Gov. DeSantis to hold news conference in GainsvilleHotter and drier Wednesday with a few inland storms this afternoon
Gainsville Gov. DeSantis to hold news conference in Gainsville Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis is set to hold a news conference in Gainsville.
The Weather Authority Hotter and drier Wednesday with a few inland storms this afternoon The Weather Authority is tracking a mild and drier Wednesday morning with rain expected inland this afternoon.
Cape Coral City Council to discuss repairs for yacht club pier The Cape Coral City Council will discuss and possibly decide upon three options to repair the damaged yacht club pier.
LEHIGH ACRES Kitchen fire causes substantial damage to a home in Lehigh Acres The Lehigh Acres Fire Control and Rescue responded to a kitchen fire at a Sunset Boulevard home on Tuesday night.
FORT MYERS Lee County making changes to fix bus issues In the past, the Lee County School District struggled to find enough bus drivers.
NAPLES Naples man gets original Bob Ross paintings appraised Bob Ross took this blank canvas in a small studio in Muncie, Indiana, and transformed it into a beautiful masterpiece.
Lee Schools board considers full-day phone bans The biggest talking point in a Lee County School District safety presentation wasn’t about violence or drugs, it was about phones
PORT CHARLOTTE Fallen officer ceremony in Charlotte County commemorates those who lost lives in line of duty The emotional ceremony was held at the William R. Gains Veterans Memorial Park in Port Charlotte.
SAN CARLOS PARK Lee County couple suspected of drugging and sexually abusing child Neighbors say a home in San Carlos Park was just another house before Tuesday.
PINE ISLAND FDOT asking you if bike and pedestrian lanes should be added to busy road The Florida Department of Transportation is asking you if bike and pedestrian lanes should be added to the busy road.
Food drive for mental health awareness While someone may look healthy, they may be fighting a real inner battle.
FORT MYERS Overbilled for overflow of water; Residents stuck with hefty water bill The Moore’s make ends meet living at The Cove for almost a year.
ESTERO Scoreless Eagle up for award at NIL Summit FGCU’s Brandon Dwyer is one of the big time performers in NIL despite having never scored a single point in his entire Eagle career.
What happens after a nuisance alligator is captured? For alligators, the month of May means we are in the heart of mating season in the Sunshine State.
Exclusive: Interview with woman who shares hope of recovery on National Fentanyl Awareness Day Lee County Sheriff’s Office said that in 2020 they seized nearly two thousand grams of fentanyl. In 2023, that number jumped to over 8,000.
Gainsville Gov. DeSantis to hold news conference in Gainsville Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis is set to hold a news conference in Gainsville.
The Weather Authority Hotter and drier Wednesday with a few inland storms this afternoon The Weather Authority is tracking a mild and drier Wednesday morning with rain expected inland this afternoon.
Cape Coral City Council to discuss repairs for yacht club pier The Cape Coral City Council will discuss and possibly decide upon three options to repair the damaged yacht club pier.
LEHIGH ACRES Kitchen fire causes substantial damage to a home in Lehigh Acres The Lehigh Acres Fire Control and Rescue responded to a kitchen fire at a Sunset Boulevard home on Tuesday night.
FORT MYERS Lee County making changes to fix bus issues In the past, the Lee County School District struggled to find enough bus drivers.
NAPLES Naples man gets original Bob Ross paintings appraised Bob Ross took this blank canvas in a small studio in Muncie, Indiana, and transformed it into a beautiful masterpiece.
Lee Schools board considers full-day phone bans The biggest talking point in a Lee County School District safety presentation wasn’t about violence or drugs, it was about phones
PORT CHARLOTTE Fallen officer ceremony in Charlotte County commemorates those who lost lives in line of duty The emotional ceremony was held at the William R. Gains Veterans Memorial Park in Port Charlotte.
SAN CARLOS PARK Lee County couple suspected of drugging and sexually abusing child Neighbors say a home in San Carlos Park was just another house before Tuesday.
PINE ISLAND FDOT asking you if bike and pedestrian lanes should be added to busy road The Florida Department of Transportation is asking you if bike and pedestrian lanes should be added to the busy road.
Food drive for mental health awareness While someone may look healthy, they may be fighting a real inner battle.
FORT MYERS Overbilled for overflow of water; Residents stuck with hefty water bill The Moore’s make ends meet living at The Cove for almost a year.
ESTERO Scoreless Eagle up for award at NIL Summit FGCU’s Brandon Dwyer is one of the big time performers in NIL despite having never scored a single point in his entire Eagle career.
What happens after a nuisance alligator is captured? For alligators, the month of May means we are in the heart of mating season in the Sunshine State.
Exclusive: Interview with woman who shares hope of recovery on National Fentanyl Awareness Day Lee County Sheriff’s Office said that in 2020 they seized nearly two thousand grams of fentanyl. In 2023, that number jumped to over 8,000.
FORT LAUDERDALE, Fla. (AP) Drug enforcement officials say traffickers are bringing more cocaine into South Florida than at any time in the past decade. Officials with the Drug Enforcement Administration say Colombia has been producing more cocaine than at the height of the notorious 1980s. Back then, South Florida was the main conduit for cocaine shipments headed to the United States in an era famous for “cocaine cowboys.” The Sun Sentinel of South Florida reported Sunday that 90 percent of the cocaine seized in the United States can be traced back to Colombia, and Colombia has tripled its production in the past few years. “There is a mountain of cocaine, much of it is likely headed our way,” said Justin Miller, intelligence chief for the DEA’s Miami field division. “But we are already seeing these drug combinations, and cocaine deaths are already going up significantly.” Customs and Border Protection officials in Florida said they confiscated 61 percent more cocaine last year over the prior year, amounting to 9,500 pounds of cocaine. Because there is a lag time between production and distribution, the full impact of the increase has yet to hit South Florida, authorities said. Experts trace the boom in production to when the Colombia government stopped aerial spraying of herbicides over cocoa fields used to make cocaine in the fall of 2015 because of health concerns. “The aerial spraying worked quite well,” said Richard Mangan, a former DEA agent and Florida Atlantic University criminal justice professor. “But there was a lot of pushback after a while to the damage it was doing to legitimate crops, the damage it was doing to people.” Meanwhile, the state Medical Examiner Commission reports that overdose deaths from cocaine are at their highest level in Florida since 2007. From 2012 to 2015, cocaine deaths in Florida went from 1,318 fatalities to 1,834 fatalities. Only the synthetic painkiller fentanyl surpassed cocaine for contributing to Florida overdose deaths in Florida for the first half of last year, according to medical examiner records. The increase in production in Colombia already is driving down prices in South Florida. One kilo, or about 2.2 pounds, of pure cocaine was worth between $28,000 and $35,000 two to three years ago. Today, the same amount is worth $26,000 to $28,000, Miller said.