ALVA Woodpeckers build home in Alva woman’s house You may have heard of squatters, but this woman is dealing with squawkers. Who needs a rooster to wake up when you have woodpeckers?
FORT MYERS Man claims he was trapped in a high-rise for 5 days A 77-year-old man wants justice after he claims he spent days trapped on the 24th floor of a high-rise apartment building.
PUNTA GORDA Charlotte Correctional prisoner arrested for death of another inmate State Attorney Amira Fox convened a grand jury, which decided to move forward with a case against a Charlotte Correctional inmate.
SANIBEL Construction near Dairy Queen eagle nest on Sanibel raises concerns While many eagle nests may be a bit difficult to see, one nest has always been a favorite for Sanibel residents and tourists.
The environmental effects of artificial sweeteners Experts are studying how the foods we eat affect the environment, especially after we flush our waste down the toilet.
Victim reacts to man exposing himself to her Ring camera You get a notification on your phone from your ring camera app that someone is at the door, only to find out it is someone exposing themselves. It’s the last thing victim Maria Kivi wanted or expected to see last week.
LEE COUNTY The art of capturing your eye and drawing you in How do you capture young, hip, trendy, fun, movers and shakers, all in a pose? We take you behind the scenes of a Gulfshore Life cover shoot.
FORT MYERS The lives of two SJC Boxers changed in the ring Two SJC Boxers, Mario Nunez and Arbon Kurtishi, help each other in the ring as each of them had their lives changed because of boxing.
FORT MYERS Chlamydia cases rising sharply in Lee County If you think about a crowded space- something with more than 250 people- if it’s in Lee county, statistically one person has chlamydia.
SANIBEL Sanibel resort day passes hope to get more business on the island A pass will allow vacationers to hang out at a Sanibel beach club for a day in hopes of drumming up some business.
Voting equipment tested ahead of Lee County elections Voting equipment is being tested in Lee County. This is to ensure all ballots are printed and counted correctly for the upcoming election.
Collier County teen assaulted after leaving party The teen has been charged and the sheriff’s office said they’re aware that many believe felony charges are in order, but under Florida law, there are very specific criteria that must be met for felony charges to be filed.
WINK weather team watching tropical wave over Atlantic Ocean The Weather Authority is watching a tropical disturbance over the Central Atlantic Ocean.
CAPE CORAL Cape Coral drug bust leads investigators to fake fentanyl, cash and guns Cape Coral man arrest on drug charges. Investigators said they found, guns, drugs, and more than $32,000 in Richard Riley’s home.
NAPLES Naples youth flag football team to compete in Ohio tournament This weekend, the Naples Lunatics Green will compete in the Superhero Sports tournament in Canton, Ohio.
ALVA Woodpeckers build home in Alva woman’s house You may have heard of squatters, but this woman is dealing with squawkers. Who needs a rooster to wake up when you have woodpeckers?
FORT MYERS Man claims he was trapped in a high-rise for 5 days A 77-year-old man wants justice after he claims he spent days trapped on the 24th floor of a high-rise apartment building.
PUNTA GORDA Charlotte Correctional prisoner arrested for death of another inmate State Attorney Amira Fox convened a grand jury, which decided to move forward with a case against a Charlotte Correctional inmate.
SANIBEL Construction near Dairy Queen eagle nest on Sanibel raises concerns While many eagle nests may be a bit difficult to see, one nest has always been a favorite for Sanibel residents and tourists.
The environmental effects of artificial sweeteners Experts are studying how the foods we eat affect the environment, especially after we flush our waste down the toilet.
Victim reacts to man exposing himself to her Ring camera You get a notification on your phone from your ring camera app that someone is at the door, only to find out it is someone exposing themselves. It’s the last thing victim Maria Kivi wanted or expected to see last week.
LEE COUNTY The art of capturing your eye and drawing you in How do you capture young, hip, trendy, fun, movers and shakers, all in a pose? We take you behind the scenes of a Gulfshore Life cover shoot.
FORT MYERS The lives of two SJC Boxers changed in the ring Two SJC Boxers, Mario Nunez and Arbon Kurtishi, help each other in the ring as each of them had their lives changed because of boxing.
FORT MYERS Chlamydia cases rising sharply in Lee County If you think about a crowded space- something with more than 250 people- if it’s in Lee county, statistically one person has chlamydia.
SANIBEL Sanibel resort day passes hope to get more business on the island A pass will allow vacationers to hang out at a Sanibel beach club for a day in hopes of drumming up some business.
Voting equipment tested ahead of Lee County elections Voting equipment is being tested in Lee County. This is to ensure all ballots are printed and counted correctly for the upcoming election.
Collier County teen assaulted after leaving party The teen has been charged and the sheriff’s office said they’re aware that many believe felony charges are in order, but under Florida law, there are very specific criteria that must be met for felony charges to be filed.
WINK weather team watching tropical wave over Atlantic Ocean The Weather Authority is watching a tropical disturbance over the Central Atlantic Ocean.
CAPE CORAL Cape Coral drug bust leads investigators to fake fentanyl, cash and guns Cape Coral man arrest on drug charges. Investigators said they found, guns, drugs, and more than $32,000 in Richard Riley’s home.
NAPLES Naples youth flag football team to compete in Ohio tournament This weekend, the Naples Lunatics Green will compete in the Superhero Sports tournament in Canton, Ohio.
Emergency management officials learned from Hurricane Irma and are implementing a variety of changes as hurricane season approaches. Leslie Brozek, of south Fort Myers, said she’d planned to ride out the storm in her home in September 2017, until a last minute evacuation order. “I had relatives up North calling and texting me, ‘What are your going to do?'” Brozek said. “‘You gotta leave, you gotta leave, you gotta leave.'” Brozek said she considered evacuating and driving somewhere else, but was afraid of running out of gas. She decided to leave her home and went to seek shelter at Germain Arena, along with thousands of others, where she dealt with crowds. There were 35,000 people in Lee County staying in public shelters as Hurricane Irma hit Southwest Florida. Lee Mayfield, of Lee County Emergency Management, shared how the experience led to significant changes. “Part of of our business here in this building is to solve problems as they arrive,” Mayfield said. “One example is when we had those long lines at shelters … how do we get those lines moving faster.” Mayfield added the storm’s sheer size led to more evacuations — and need for shelters. “It wasn’t your typical sheltering situation because it was such a large evacuation, prompted by the storm surge that was predicted for Southwest Florida overall really,” Mayfield said. Mayfield also underscored the seriousness of Irma. “This wasn’t the one to mess around with,” Mayfield said. Brozek said she spent her time sitting, walking and “trying to help people” while in Germain Arena. When the roof leaked, she added it was a somewhat chaotic experience. “Everybody scrambled that was down there, everybody had to scramble and move,” Brozek said. Mayfield said he strives to find solutions to expedite the process. “Maybe they don’t have to answer every single question on those forms, maybe we can shorten that form, which we’ve done,” Mayfield said. Animals will also be allowed at shelters moving forward. “We understand,” Mayfield said. “We’ve done studies and they’ve shown that people won’t leave their house without their cat or their dog.” The county said they’ll also use more volunteers, as Brozek said she was unable to do so. “Well I wanted to volunteer and … help and they told me no,” Brozek said. County workers will be called into action and citizens will have the opportunity to help in the future, and “this is not a one agency effort.” “I think the biggest takeaway for us was preparedness absolutely works,” Mayfield said. Brozek said she returned to downed branches, ficus trees and a broken fence at her house. “We were lucky,” Brozek said. Mayfield also urged people to prepare early with a plan, a disaster supply kit and have other information readily available. Across Southwest Florida, other counties are amending their shelter guidelines. Collier County also said they’re reassessing the shelter space and looking to expand public and pet shelters. Charlotte County also said all of the general population shelters accept pets with their vaccination records and carriers. Emergency managers stressed shelters should be a last resort. View more information on Lee County Emergency Management below: