Father arrives home from deployment; meets his baby girlSpreading holiday cheer with Christmas tree lighting in Naples
Father arrives home from deployment; meets his baby girl A man returns home from deployment and gets to be a father. Only WINK News cameras were rolling as Peter Rosche held his baby girl Margo for the first time. It’s been a long 5-weeks for the Rosche family. Peter wasn’t able to be there for her birth because he had been on a US […]
NAPLES Spreading holiday cheer with Christmas tree lighting in Naples On Monday night, the sleigh bells were ringing in Naples, and the snow was falling; the 47th annual Christmas on Third Festival was kicking off.
Fort Myers Tip-Off brings marquee programs to SWFL The Fort Myers Tip-Off returns to Southwest Florida and brings marquee programs such as Michigan, Xavier, South Carolina and Virginia Tech.
NAPLES Super 8 in Naples to become apartments for local workers A Super 8 Motel in Naples will soon look slightly different; it will become an apartment building with fully furnished units.
Endangered Florida panther killed by vehicle on SR-29 SB in Collier County; 30th death in 2024 The Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission has announced the 30th Florida Panther death of 2024.
FORT MYERS BEACH Efforts to restore Fort Myers Beach underway The Fort Myers Beach coastline continues to feel the impacts of the recent storms. Crews working on the sand renourishment beach project have more than six miles of “Critically eroded beach” to restore.
More water headed into Caloosahatchee: What it means for our estuary Southwest Florida cringes every time the mention of releases from Lake Okeechobee comes up. There are concerns about what’s in the water and whether it will dirty our shoreline or even fuel blue-green algae blooms.
NAPLES Transforming animal care: how a $1.5M donation is helping SNIP Collier We are seeing the first major changes from a donation from Tom Golisano.
FORT MYERS BEACH “We did what we had to do” Fort Myers Beach mayor takes blame for loss of FEMA discount FEMA sent the town of Fort Myers Beach a letter explaining why they lost their flood insurance discount. One reason was not removing temporary trailers and containers from flood zones. Now, the mayor says to blame him for it.
NORTH FORT MYERS Suncoast Estates fatal shooting leaves community on edge A fatal shooting took place on Saturday at the Suncoast Estates in North Fort Myers, on Heck Drive, that left one man dead and another seriously injured.
SANIBEL Gulfshore Life Men and Women of the Year award honoree: James Evans The environment and economy are nearly synonymous in Southwest Florida, and while many people work to protect both, one man stands out and has made the environment his life’s work.
NORTH FORT MYERS Where did the Shell Factory animals go? With the closure of The Shell Factory in September, people have been wondering where the animals went.
NAPLES Naples man arrested on multiple violent charges including kidnapping and sexual battery A Naples man has been arrested on multiple violent charges stemming from an alleged case of kidnapping involving guns, drugs and sexual battery.
MATLACHA CW Fudge Factory in Matlacha getting back to business after storms Getting back to business is giving one island the boost they need before the holidays.
southwest florida How much will a Christmas tree cost in Southwest Florida this year? With Thanksgiving this week and Christmas around the corner, we want to know how tree prices are stacking up across Southwest Florida.
Father arrives home from deployment; meets his baby girl A man returns home from deployment and gets to be a father. Only WINK News cameras were rolling as Peter Rosche held his baby girl Margo for the first time. It’s been a long 5-weeks for the Rosche family. Peter wasn’t able to be there for her birth because he had been on a US […]
NAPLES Spreading holiday cheer with Christmas tree lighting in Naples On Monday night, the sleigh bells were ringing in Naples, and the snow was falling; the 47th annual Christmas on Third Festival was kicking off.
Fort Myers Tip-Off brings marquee programs to SWFL The Fort Myers Tip-Off returns to Southwest Florida and brings marquee programs such as Michigan, Xavier, South Carolina and Virginia Tech.
NAPLES Super 8 in Naples to become apartments for local workers A Super 8 Motel in Naples will soon look slightly different; it will become an apartment building with fully furnished units.
Endangered Florida panther killed by vehicle on SR-29 SB in Collier County; 30th death in 2024 The Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission has announced the 30th Florida Panther death of 2024.
FORT MYERS BEACH Efforts to restore Fort Myers Beach underway The Fort Myers Beach coastline continues to feel the impacts of the recent storms. Crews working on the sand renourishment beach project have more than six miles of “Critically eroded beach” to restore.
More water headed into Caloosahatchee: What it means for our estuary Southwest Florida cringes every time the mention of releases from Lake Okeechobee comes up. There are concerns about what’s in the water and whether it will dirty our shoreline or even fuel blue-green algae blooms.
NAPLES Transforming animal care: how a $1.5M donation is helping SNIP Collier We are seeing the first major changes from a donation from Tom Golisano.
FORT MYERS BEACH “We did what we had to do” Fort Myers Beach mayor takes blame for loss of FEMA discount FEMA sent the town of Fort Myers Beach a letter explaining why they lost their flood insurance discount. One reason was not removing temporary trailers and containers from flood zones. Now, the mayor says to blame him for it.
NORTH FORT MYERS Suncoast Estates fatal shooting leaves community on edge A fatal shooting took place on Saturday at the Suncoast Estates in North Fort Myers, on Heck Drive, that left one man dead and another seriously injured.
SANIBEL Gulfshore Life Men and Women of the Year award honoree: James Evans The environment and economy are nearly synonymous in Southwest Florida, and while many people work to protect both, one man stands out and has made the environment his life’s work.
NORTH FORT MYERS Where did the Shell Factory animals go? With the closure of The Shell Factory in September, people have been wondering where the animals went.
NAPLES Naples man arrested on multiple violent charges including kidnapping and sexual battery A Naples man has been arrested on multiple violent charges stemming from an alleged case of kidnapping involving guns, drugs and sexual battery.
MATLACHA CW Fudge Factory in Matlacha getting back to business after storms Getting back to business is giving one island the boost they need before the holidays.
southwest florida How much will a Christmas tree cost in Southwest Florida this year? With Thanksgiving this week and Christmas around the corner, we want to know how tree prices are stacking up across Southwest Florida.
This green sea turtle is one of 58 that died in October 2019 in Collier County, Florida. (Collier County Parks & Recreation Department) As a toxic red tide continues to grip the coast of Southwest Florida, one county saw the highest number of sea turtle deaths it has ever recorded for a single month in October. Last month, 58 turtles were reported dead in Collier County and two others were reported sick or injured, according to Maura Kraus, the principal environmental specialist for the county’s parks and recreation division. The county’s records of sea turtle strandings — which includes sick, injured or dead turtles — date back to 1989. The uptick is striking. Over the past decade, Collier County has recorded an average of just under five sea turtle strandings a month in October. This past month’s count of strandings is about 12 times higher than the 10-year average, according to Allen Foley, a wildlife biologist with the Florida Fish and Wildlife Research Institute and the lead coordinator for the state’s sea turtle stranding and rescue network. In all of last year, during one of the worst red tide outbreaks the region has ever seen, 133 turtles were stranded in Collier County. “It’s disturbing to us,” Kraus said. “It’s either that we have a lot more turtles out there, or we have a really big problem.” Of the turtles found dead in October, Kraus said that most were Kemp’s Ridley sea turtles — the world’s smallest and most endangered sea turtles. Red tide The timing of these turtle deaths tracks closely with the arrival of this year’s red tide in Florida, which began to spread along the state’s southwest coast early last month, Foley said. The red tide is a natural phenomenon that has occurred for centuries, but there are questions about what exactly is causing the intense outbreaks of the past several years. It typically forms in deeper waters and then is carried onshore by winds and currents, but this year’s event began closer to the coast, where scientists say nutrient runoff from fertilizer used on farms, lawns, and other sources can accelerate its growth. Scientists say this current outbreak is nowhere near as serious as the historically bad event that began in 2017 and lingered for 16 months until early this year. But high concentrations of the toxic algae are holding steady in the waters off the state’s southwest coast. “Red tide [toxins] can concentrate in the food sources of these turtles,” Kraus said. “Kemp’s Ridley’s are much smaller, so they are more prone to feeling the effects of the red tide.” Lee County, home to the Fort Myers area and located just north of Collier, also reported an abnormally high number of stranded turtles, with 40 found in the month of October. Foley says the turtles that are found dead or sick will undergo testing to confirm a cause of death, but with so many dying without any other apparent afflictions, there’s only one likely explanation. “There is really no reasonable doubt that the high number of strandings are caused by anything other than red tide,” he said. On the bright side, both Foley says that the turtle strandings have slowed over the last few weeks and appear to have peaked. As water temperatures drop as winter approaches, he says most of the turtles have likely moved away from the highest concentrations of the toxic algae.