Caught on Camera: Firefighters respond to dumpster fire at FGCUFGCU students affected by Covid celebrate first commencement ceremony
FORT MYERS Caught on Camera: Firefighters respond to dumpster fire at FGCU San Carlos Park Fire District responded to a dumpster fire Sunday afternoon.
FORT MYERS FGCU students affected by Covid celebrate first commencement ceremony Graduation is a right of passage from school to the real world, but for these students, reality hit them in 2020.
PUNTA GORDA Motorcycle crash leaves 1 dead One person has died after a motorcycle crash in Charlotte County.
LEE COUNTY Lee Deputies work to track down transient sex offenders who fail to register WINK News Anchor Corey Lazar goes on patrol with Lee County Deputies in search of transient sex offenders who don’t register.
National Hurricane Preparedness Week: Know your risk Hurricane season starts on June 1st, but the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration has designated the week of May 5 through May 11 as National Hurricane Preparedness Week. Each day, Meteorologist Lauren Kreidler will be highlighting ways to stay prepared ahead of this year’s hurricane season.
Southwest Florida The Weather Authority: Stay alert – chance of showers and storms on Sunday Hot, humid, and more rain for parts of Southwest Florida on Sunday.
CAPE CORAL What we learned about Cape Coral’s water crisis after a ride along On Friday, WINK News got to ride along to see just what people are doing that could be wasting water.
The Weather Authority: A wet Saturday evening as storms move through Southwest Florida A rainy Saturday evening across much of southwest Florida.
FORT MYERS Lee Health Touch-A-Truck event educates families on Trauma Awareness On Saturday morning, sirens were ringing to celebrate Lee Health Trauma Center’s 30 years of service and to provide the public with trauma education and prevention methods.
SOUTHWEST FLORIDA (CBS) CDC says bird flu viruses “pose pandemic potential,” cites major knowledge gaps Bird flu continues to appear to pose a “low risk to the general public” for now, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention says. But the agency’s scientists ran into roadblocks investigating a human case of this “pandemic potential” virus this year, they said in a new report.
DOWNTOWN FORT MYERS Bay Street Yard set to open in late May A new place to hang out in Downtown Fort Myers is opening this spring.
Aetna agrees to settle lawsuit over fertility coverage for LGBTQ+ customers Aetna has agreed to settle a lawsuit that accused the health insurer of discriminating against LGBTQ+ customers in need of fertility treatment.
SOUTHWEST FLORIDA WINK Neighborhood Watch: Robbery, Pawn Shops, and Child Porn This week’s segment of Wink Neighborhood Watch features an armed robber, fraud at a pawn shop, and possession of child pornography.
Southwest Florida The Weather Authority: Sun, clouds, humidity, rain – it’s all in your weekend forecast Saturday afternoon will be hot and humid, with a mix of sun and clouds.
LEHIGH ACRES Chaotic lake getting fence and security Now, with all the negative attention it has gotten, some think putting up a fence is a great way to keep that bad activity out.
FORT MYERS Caught on Camera: Firefighters respond to dumpster fire at FGCU San Carlos Park Fire District responded to a dumpster fire Sunday afternoon.
FORT MYERS FGCU students affected by Covid celebrate first commencement ceremony Graduation is a right of passage from school to the real world, but for these students, reality hit them in 2020.
PUNTA GORDA Motorcycle crash leaves 1 dead One person has died after a motorcycle crash in Charlotte County.
LEE COUNTY Lee Deputies work to track down transient sex offenders who fail to register WINK News Anchor Corey Lazar goes on patrol with Lee County Deputies in search of transient sex offenders who don’t register.
National Hurricane Preparedness Week: Know your risk Hurricane season starts on June 1st, but the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration has designated the week of May 5 through May 11 as National Hurricane Preparedness Week. Each day, Meteorologist Lauren Kreidler will be highlighting ways to stay prepared ahead of this year’s hurricane season.
Southwest Florida The Weather Authority: Stay alert – chance of showers and storms on Sunday Hot, humid, and more rain for parts of Southwest Florida on Sunday.
CAPE CORAL What we learned about Cape Coral’s water crisis after a ride along On Friday, WINK News got to ride along to see just what people are doing that could be wasting water.
The Weather Authority: A wet Saturday evening as storms move through Southwest Florida A rainy Saturday evening across much of southwest Florida.
FORT MYERS Lee Health Touch-A-Truck event educates families on Trauma Awareness On Saturday morning, sirens were ringing to celebrate Lee Health Trauma Center’s 30 years of service and to provide the public with trauma education and prevention methods.
SOUTHWEST FLORIDA (CBS) CDC says bird flu viruses “pose pandemic potential,” cites major knowledge gaps Bird flu continues to appear to pose a “low risk to the general public” for now, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention says. But the agency’s scientists ran into roadblocks investigating a human case of this “pandemic potential” virus this year, they said in a new report.
DOWNTOWN FORT MYERS Bay Street Yard set to open in late May A new place to hang out in Downtown Fort Myers is opening this spring.
Aetna agrees to settle lawsuit over fertility coverage for LGBTQ+ customers Aetna has agreed to settle a lawsuit that accused the health insurer of discriminating against LGBTQ+ customers in need of fertility treatment.
SOUTHWEST FLORIDA WINK Neighborhood Watch: Robbery, Pawn Shops, and Child Porn This week’s segment of Wink Neighborhood Watch features an armed robber, fraud at a pawn shop, and possession of child pornography.
Southwest Florida The Weather Authority: Sun, clouds, humidity, rain – it’s all in your weekend forecast Saturday afternoon will be hot and humid, with a mix of sun and clouds.
LEHIGH ACRES Chaotic lake getting fence and security Now, with all the negative attention it has gotten, some think putting up a fence is a great way to keep that bad activity out.
Cars drive under a sign greeting visitors near the entrance to Walt Disney World, Thursday, July 2, 2020, in Lake Buena Vista. (AP Photo/John Raoux) Feeling survivor’s guilt that she kept her job during the economic crisis, Disney World employee Maxine Wild wanted to make a difference. “I needed to help. I needed to do something,” Wild said as she watched colleagues get furloughed during the pandemic. The situation worsened as Walt Disney Co. announced last week it will lay off 28,000 employees, including at least 6,700 in Central Florida. That’s why Wild started a Facebook group for out of work Disney employees to advertise their side hustles, from the Disney chef selling pastries made at home to the Imagineer who can do interior decorating. For some, working at Disney had been a dream job. The “Ear For Each Other” page, which isn’t affiliated with the company, has helped them connect with each other as they figure out what’s next with their lives, some said. “It makes you realize you are not alone, sitting at home figuring out what to do,” said Jennifer Padley, a furloughed employee from Haines City whose job had been working on photo albums for couples married at Disney World. The Facebook page has grown to more than 11,000 followers as of Monday. It has quickly become a marketplace for people to inquire if any unemployed Disney employees know how to fix a car or want odd jobs during yard work. An author needed a voice actor to record an audiobook. Voila! There is bound to be a Disney voice actor who can handle that, Wild said, as that one business connection could pay off already. “It’s a way to say, ’Let me help a cast member before I go to a corporate grocery store or I go to the corporate mechanics,” said Brittney Jones, a furloughed server at BoardWalk Resort’s ESPN Club who advertises her baked goods on the Facebook page. Jones said she prayed for her phone to ring for seven months, the call to go back to work. Now, she dreads anytime it rings. She worries it’s her layoff notification as the unions and Disney negotiate over the company cuts. “It’s definitely been very nerve-wracking,” said Jones, 32, of Orlando. “You’re anxious all the time.” She finds distraction in the kitchen as she bakes cupcakes for the homemade do-it-yourself decorating kits and pumpkin moon pies she sells. One day, she made 30 porch deliveries alone. Her growing side project got a boost from the Facebook page, said Jones, who is studying to be a pastry chef at Valencia College. The money helps, although Jones remembers the advice from a chef who warned her that you have to sell a lot of cupcakes to keep the lights on. Fortunately, her husband, who works in technology at Universal, is still employed as they raise their two children. Scroll along the Facebook page, and you might see Padley offering to paint a mural for a baby’s nursery or an accent wall. She shows a picture of her own living room that’s an homage to Epcot’s Spaceship Earth as proof of her talent. And there’s seasonal Magic Kingdom merchandise worker, Jack Keller who is selling his homemade wooden Mickey Mouse-inspired lawn chairs and other items. Since he was furloughed from his job, he spends six to eight hours a day in his garage crafting them. He has produced 40 orders so far during the pandemic, which helped the 68-year-old retiree kept busy during the months without his old job. The week she found out she was losing her job, Kelly-Anne Salazar baked 144 cookies to sell for her growing side business, Pinch of Purpose Vegan Baking. In happier times, Salazar, 32, was part of the Disney team who handled the logistics and costumes for entertainers at the Disney Marathon and other special events. She hasn’t gone back to work since March and doesn’t expect to return since her job is axed effective Dec. 4. She got the news Friday. Through it all, Salazar baked. “I don’t know what I would have done not without baking,” said Salazar, a Mexican-Salvadoran who grew up celebrating food with her family. The Windermere resident takes orders three days a week and then spends her weekends, dropping off her special fuchsia-colored brownie-style cookies — the special ingredient is beets — and other flavors she invented. One customer stood out. It was a Disney employee who wanted to buy cookies to cheer up her boss who was distraught after laying off her staff on Zoom meetings. Salazar included a Mary Poppins quote with the order: “Keep your head up, and your feet beneath you.”