Sanibel couple remaining hopeful following damage from HeleneSanibel residents recovering from Helene two years after Ian
SANIBEL Sanibel couple remaining hopeful following damage from Helene A Sanibel couple is remaining hopeful after flooding impacted their home during Helene Thursday night.
SANIBEL Sanibel residents recovering from Helene two years after Ian Due to Helene, The City of Sanibel has postponed a two-year Ian celebration and turned the event into a cleanup.
FORT MYERS BEACH Fort Myers Beach seeking to avoid unnecessary traffic after Helene The town of Fort Myers Beach is asking some people not to visit the island.
CHARLOTTE HARBOR Historic home and lives upended in Charlotte Harbor flooding While Hurricane Helene was not expected to cause a life-threatening storm surge in the county, the residents were walloped by rising flood water.
Dekle Beach Gov. DeSantis reviews the damage done by Hurricane Helene Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis is set to hold a news conference in Dekle Beach.
Tracking power outages after Helene There are still several thousand neighbors in southwest Florida without power as of Saturday.
The Weather Authority The Weather Authority: Scattered rain and storms throughout your Saturday The Weather Authority is tracking scattered rain and storms throughout your Saturday afternoon.
Southwest Florida remembers Hurricane Ian 2 years later; what happened before and after the storm The storm that had devastated Southwest Florida, Hurricane Ian, has now reached its 2nd anniversary of landfall.
High School Football Scoreboard Week 6 Hurricane Helene couldn’t keep all the Friday night lights off in Southwest Florida. Week 6 was a loaded slate included a classic in the WINK News Game of the Week.
BONITA SPRINGS Bonita Springs begins clean up operations On Friday, the Department of Transportation pushed sand off the road on Hickory Island after Hurricane Helene ripped through
MANASOTA KEY Manasota woman recovers after home destroyed by Helene Whipping winds – the sound of Hurricane Helene ripping through Manasota Key, as swells smashed into the island. Even so, Marsha Viglianco stayed to watch from her back porch.
El Jobean residents fighting to recover from Helene In Charlotte County, people living in El Jobean are in recovery mode Friday night. Many were flooded out of their homes, and now they’re figuring out their next steps.
NAPLES Restoration efforts begin in the aftermath of Helene in Collier County Helene gave Naples Beach flash flooding a debris Thursday night.
PUNTA GORDA Punta Gorda couple deals with flooding after Helene A Punta Gorda couple is recovering as the storm surge from Helene went through their dream home.
DOWNTOWN FORT MYERS Flooding affects business in downtown Fort Myers In downtown Fort Myers, the streets may be drying up, but for one business owner on Bay Street, the true struggle is just getting started.
SANIBEL Sanibel couple remaining hopeful following damage from Helene A Sanibel couple is remaining hopeful after flooding impacted their home during Helene Thursday night.
SANIBEL Sanibel residents recovering from Helene two years after Ian Due to Helene, The City of Sanibel has postponed a two-year Ian celebration and turned the event into a cleanup.
FORT MYERS BEACH Fort Myers Beach seeking to avoid unnecessary traffic after Helene The town of Fort Myers Beach is asking some people not to visit the island.
CHARLOTTE HARBOR Historic home and lives upended in Charlotte Harbor flooding While Hurricane Helene was not expected to cause a life-threatening storm surge in the county, the residents were walloped by rising flood water.
Dekle Beach Gov. DeSantis reviews the damage done by Hurricane Helene Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis is set to hold a news conference in Dekle Beach.
Tracking power outages after Helene There are still several thousand neighbors in southwest Florida without power as of Saturday.
The Weather Authority The Weather Authority: Scattered rain and storms throughout your Saturday The Weather Authority is tracking scattered rain and storms throughout your Saturday afternoon.
Southwest Florida remembers Hurricane Ian 2 years later; what happened before and after the storm The storm that had devastated Southwest Florida, Hurricane Ian, has now reached its 2nd anniversary of landfall.
High School Football Scoreboard Week 6 Hurricane Helene couldn’t keep all the Friday night lights off in Southwest Florida. Week 6 was a loaded slate included a classic in the WINK News Game of the Week.
BONITA SPRINGS Bonita Springs begins clean up operations On Friday, the Department of Transportation pushed sand off the road on Hickory Island after Hurricane Helene ripped through
MANASOTA KEY Manasota woman recovers after home destroyed by Helene Whipping winds – the sound of Hurricane Helene ripping through Manasota Key, as swells smashed into the island. Even so, Marsha Viglianco stayed to watch from her back porch.
El Jobean residents fighting to recover from Helene In Charlotte County, people living in El Jobean are in recovery mode Friday night. Many were flooded out of their homes, and now they’re figuring out their next steps.
NAPLES Restoration efforts begin in the aftermath of Helene in Collier County Helene gave Naples Beach flash flooding a debris Thursday night.
PUNTA GORDA Punta Gorda couple deals with flooding after Helene A Punta Gorda couple is recovering as the storm surge from Helene went through their dream home.
DOWNTOWN FORT MYERS Flooding affects business in downtown Fort Myers In downtown Fort Myers, the streets may be drying up, but for one business owner on Bay Street, the true struggle is just getting started.
MGN CARACAS, Venezuela (AP) – Leaning back in the mahogany chair that belonged to his imposing socialist predecessor, new congress boss Henry Ramos doesn’t seem worried about being branded an out-of-touch conservative intent on burying the memory of late President Hugo Chavez and ousting his successor. On the contrary, he’s ready for a fight. “If you call me a dinosaur, you’re saying a dinosaur is what voters want. I didn’t get here falling from a parachute,” said Ramos, 72, who last week became president of the first opposition congress Venezuela has seen since Chavez launched his socialist revolution nearly two decades ago. “We’re not seeking confrontation, but if they insist….” he added with an arch of his eyebrow. A veteran politician, Ramos was sworn in on Jan. 5 to replace outgoing legislative leader Diosdado Cabello, a former army officer widely seen as the revolution’s enforcer. Now second in the line of succession after President Nicolas Maduro’s vice president, he promises to be just as much of a polarizing figure as Cabello. During his first tumultuous days on the job, Ramos swore in three opposition lawmakers despite a Supreme Court order barring them from taking office. On Wednesday, those lawmakers were expected to leave their seats after the court said their presence made all congressional acts null. Ramos was also recorded on videotape telling workers to remove all portraits of Chavez from the neoclassical capitol and take them to presidential palace “or the trash.” Ramos came under fire for the video, distributed by his own press chief, which infuriated the socialist government. The move also rankled some allies who want the opposition to keep the focus on an economic crisis marked by triple-digit inflation and widespread shortages. He makes no secret of his swanky tastes. While top socialist officials dance to salsa music on live TV and proclaim their devotion to Venezuela’s rice, beans and shredded beef dish, Ramos expounded on his love for expensive whisky, classical music and haute cuisine as smoke from his assistants’ cigarettes curled toward the chandeliers in his office during an interview with The Associated Press. The always-factious opposition coalition was widely expected to pick a moderate from the new generation to head congress after sweeping Dec. 6 legislative elections. But Ramos, trained as a lawyer, claimed the leadership gavel by doing what even his detractors say he does best: negotiating behind closed doors, in this case aligning with opposition hardliners who have adopted a six-month deadline to recall Maduro from office. He’s never been known for his personal grace. In a 2006 diplomatic cable, then-U.S. Ambassador William Brownfield called Ramos “repellent” as well as “crude, abrasive, arrogant, and thin-skinned.” In the same memo, he compares Ramos’ style to that of Chavez. Like the late populist leader, Ramos excels at playing to his base and driving his opponents to act in anger. Members of the ruling United Socialist Party of Venezuela responded to his removing of all images of Chavez from the congressional compound by vowing to plaster every corner of Caracas with posters of the late leader. Maduro has also doubled down on hardline policies in recent days. He left moderates spluttering last week when he appointed a new economic czar who says inflation does not exist in real life. “The more Maduro takes a confrontational approach, the stronger he makes Henry Ramos’s position,” said Javier Corrales, who teaches Latin American politics at Amherst College in Massachusetts. “If he were to make a peace offering of some sort, it would divide the opposition, because some are willing to make pacts with the government.” In addition to serving in congress several times, Ramos, a descendant of Lebanese immigrants, has been a leader for decades in the Democratic Action party, which co-governed Venezuela during an era of politics that preceded Chavez when elites dominated the government. In 2005, he led a disastrous campaign to sit out legislative elections, a strategy that ultimately handed complete control of congress and other major institutions to the socialists. These days, he gets to the office by 5 a.m., surrounds himself with a young staff, and doesn’t slow down for anyone, including a doctor who told him to lay off pork after undergoing open heart surgery. Some worry Ramos’ combative style is pushing the country toward a dangerous showdown. The chaotic sidewalks beyond his office’s heavy golden drapes are decorated with graffiti calling him a clown. A video of socialist supporters burning his effigy has begun circulating online. But many in the opposition believe that a clash with the socialist government is inevitable, and see Ramos as a strongman best able to stand firm. On the possibility of a negotiation, Ramos said that smart leaders can reflect and make changes. But he could not resist needling his political adversary. “Maduro is not about to die from intelligence,” he said.