33rd endangered Florida panther death of 2024; killed by vehicle in Hardee CountyCool and breezy for your Thursday afternoon
33rd endangered Florida panther death of 2024; killed by vehicle in Hardee County Another Florida panther was killed by a vehicle, this time in Hardee County, increasing the death toll of the endangered species to 33 for 2024.
the weather authority Cool and breezy for your Thursday afternoon The Weather Authority is tracking cold morning conditions before temperatures warm up to the low 70s this Thursday.
Students react to threat made at Florida Gulf Coast University Students at Florida Gulf Coast University said they don’t know the specifics of a threat made last week, but they do know it was taken care of.
Missing and endangered boy found in Lehigh Acres Authorities have found a missing and endangered boy in Lehigh Acres. Police asked for the public’s help in locating Zachariah McKelvin.
School District denies bus service to student despite mother’s measurements When we think of the bus stop, we typically think of it as a safe place for our children, but one mother says the Lee County School District told her they live too close to the school to get a bus route.
MATLACHA 2 stranded dolphins rescued from mangroves near Matlacha Two stranded dolphins were pulled from mangroves near Matlacha.
CAPE CORAL NAACP honors Cape Coral Police Chief after acknowledging hate crime NAACP President, James Muwakkil, was so impressed with Cape Coral Police Chief Anthony Sizemore that he wanted the entire city to know.
NAPLES Jingled Elves trolley tour underway Breaking out your best dance moves and spreading Christmas cheer. These ‘jingled elves’ are breaking it down with a purpose.
BONITA SPRINGS Bonita Springs Elementary School’s demolition plans There’s a new lesson plan at Bonita Springs Elementary School: Demolition 101. The school is set to be knocked down, and there’s good reason.
MARCO ISLAND Marco Island Councilmember’s dogs allegedly attack 13-year-old girl Councilor Tamara Goehler is coming under fire after her dogs allegedly attacked a 13-year-old girl and the girl’s five-month-old puppy.
PUNTA GORDA Gilchrist Park’s future brightens as boat cleanup commences The boats blocking Gilchrist Park are ready to be moved two years after Hurricane Milton.
Lee County Department of Health issues red tide alert for Bowman’s Beach The Florida Department of Health in Lee County has issued a health alert for the presence of red tide near Bowman’s Beach.
CAPE CORAL City of Cape Coral working on project to address canal safety An older Cape Coral couple drove into a canal last year. Neighbors are now saying something needs to be done about canal safety.
NAPLES Collier County mental health center receives $4 million donation A giant donation is dedicated to providing people with better mental health care in southwest Florida.
LABELLE City of LaBelle under precautionary boil water notice A water main break has the City of Labelle under a precautionary boil water notice.
33rd endangered Florida panther death of 2024; killed by vehicle in Hardee County Another Florida panther was killed by a vehicle, this time in Hardee County, increasing the death toll of the endangered species to 33 for 2024.
the weather authority Cool and breezy for your Thursday afternoon The Weather Authority is tracking cold morning conditions before temperatures warm up to the low 70s this Thursday.
Students react to threat made at Florida Gulf Coast University Students at Florida Gulf Coast University said they don’t know the specifics of a threat made last week, but they do know it was taken care of.
Missing and endangered boy found in Lehigh Acres Authorities have found a missing and endangered boy in Lehigh Acres. Police asked for the public’s help in locating Zachariah McKelvin.
School District denies bus service to student despite mother’s measurements When we think of the bus stop, we typically think of it as a safe place for our children, but one mother says the Lee County School District told her they live too close to the school to get a bus route.
MATLACHA 2 stranded dolphins rescued from mangroves near Matlacha Two stranded dolphins were pulled from mangroves near Matlacha.
CAPE CORAL NAACP honors Cape Coral Police Chief after acknowledging hate crime NAACP President, James Muwakkil, was so impressed with Cape Coral Police Chief Anthony Sizemore that he wanted the entire city to know.
NAPLES Jingled Elves trolley tour underway Breaking out your best dance moves and spreading Christmas cheer. These ‘jingled elves’ are breaking it down with a purpose.
BONITA SPRINGS Bonita Springs Elementary School’s demolition plans There’s a new lesson plan at Bonita Springs Elementary School: Demolition 101. The school is set to be knocked down, and there’s good reason.
MARCO ISLAND Marco Island Councilmember’s dogs allegedly attack 13-year-old girl Councilor Tamara Goehler is coming under fire after her dogs allegedly attacked a 13-year-old girl and the girl’s five-month-old puppy.
PUNTA GORDA Gilchrist Park’s future brightens as boat cleanup commences The boats blocking Gilchrist Park are ready to be moved two years after Hurricane Milton.
Lee County Department of Health issues red tide alert for Bowman’s Beach The Florida Department of Health in Lee County has issued a health alert for the presence of red tide near Bowman’s Beach.
CAPE CORAL City of Cape Coral working on project to address canal safety An older Cape Coral couple drove into a canal last year. Neighbors are now saying something needs to be done about canal safety.
NAPLES Collier County mental health center receives $4 million donation A giant donation is dedicated to providing people with better mental health care in southwest Florida.
LABELLE City of LaBelle under precautionary boil water notice A water main break has the City of Labelle under a precautionary boil water notice.
Gigi Bryant always wanted to be a UConn Husky. Now, she’ll be one forever. (Credit: CNN) It was well known that Mambacita wanted to be a University of Connecticut Husky, and on Monday she became an honorary member of the most decorated team in women’s college basketball. Gianna Bryant had her 13-year life cut short this weekend when the Sikorsky S-76B carrying her, father Kobe Bryant and seven others crashed in Calabasas, California. Three thousand miles away in Storrs, Connecticut, the news came with an especially brutal epilogue. Gigi, as she was known, always wanted to play for the Huskies, who have lifted a record 11 championship trophies and whose coach, Geno Auriemma, is arguably the best hoops skipper of all time. The father and daughter attended games as fans, and in an October 2018 exchange captured by an ESPN reporter, the elder Bryant told fellow sharpshooting NBA legend Reggie Miller, who was pressing him to send Gigi to UCLA, that his daughter “is hellbent on UConn.” Reggie Miller tries to convince Kobe Bryant to send his daughter to play basketball at UCLA but he says she is hellbent on going to UConn. pic.twitter.com/zz1D5SbFe8 — Arash Markazi (@ArashMarkazi) October 26, 2018 Before UConn’s Monday exhibition game against the US Women’s National Team, the Huskies draped a No. 2 jersey — the digit Gigi wore — over one of their bench seats. A bouquet wrapped in blue and white ribbons was placed in front of it. The team tweeted a photo of the memorialization with the caption, “Mambacita is forever a Husky” — a nod to the teen’s nickname, derived from her famous father’s sobriquet, Black Mamba. Once the game tipped off, the players continued the tribute, borrowing from the NBA’s Atlanta Hawks and Washington Wizards. Team USA guard Sue Bird, a former Husky, declined to bring the ball across midcourt, resulting in an 8-second violation — an ode to the number Bryant wore when he first joined the Los Angeles Lakers in 1996. UConn’s Crystal Dangerfield then took the inbound pass and allowed the shot clock to expire, spurring a 24-second violation in honor of the number Bryant wore in high school and during the latter half of his pro career. HARTFORD, CONNECTICUT – JANUARY 27: A jersey to honor Gianna Bryant sits on the UConn bench before the USA Women’s National Team Winter Tour 2020 game between the United States and the UConn Huskies at The XL Center on January 27, 2020 in Hartford, Connecticut. Bryant and her father, former NBA player Kobe Bryant, were killed in a helicopter crash on January 26. (Photo by Maddie Meyer/Getty Images) Both jerseys were hoisted into the rafters of the Staples Center following the Lakers luminary’s retirement in 2016. Bryant also won two Olympic gold medals and a hemispheric International Basketball Federation title with the US Men’s National Team. Cameras caught Auriemma on the sideline, lowering his head and dabbing his eyes during Monday’s commemoration. After the game, which the Huskies lost, Auriemma said it was difficult to take the court with the pall of the UConn’s fans’ deaths hanging over the Harry A. Gampel Pavilion. “You’ve just got to put on a happy face and you’ve got to do what you’ve got to do,” he said. “It wasn’t easy.” Bryant still had plenty to offer the world, Auriemma said, and he recalled the first UConn game that Bryant and Gigi attended and how Gigi was in awe of being around the Huskies ballers, while his players were enthralled to be in the presence of an NBA legend. “You could just see the look in her eyes, like she was so excited,” Auriemma said. “Imagine the absurdity of that: that your father’s Kobe Bryant and the most excited you’ve been in a long time is being around college women’s basketball players, but that’s what it meant to her. That’s what she wanted to be.” Hours after the deadly California crash Sunday, the Hawks and Wizards tipped off with All-Star point guard Trae Young wearing Bryant’s No. 8. Before the game, Young revealed that Gigi was a huge fan of his, and of the three games she’d attended in the 2019-20 season, two of them were Hawks games. “She told me I was her favorite player to watch. I can’t believe this,” he tweeted. “Rest Easy Gigi.” After the teams gave up 8- and 24-second violations in Bryant’s honor, they put on an offensive clinic befitting one of basketball’s greatest all-time scorers. The final: Hawks 152-Wizards 133.