Pedestrian injured in crash on McGregor BoulevardFamily of Eagles: FGCU volleyball star graduates with Master’s Degree
FORT MYERS Pedestrian injured in crash on McGregor Boulevard The Fort Myers Police Department is investigating a crash that left at least one person injured Saturday night.
Family of Eagles: FGCU volleyball star graduates with Master’s Degree Saturday marked a special day for Florida Gulf Coast University as more than 1,800 students graduated. For one student-athlete, graduating from FGCU runs in the family.
lehigh acres LCSO: Man shot by car owner protecting property The Lee County Sheriff’s Office responded to a shooting in Lehigh Acres early Saturday morning.
NORTH FORT MYERS Lee County residents wait hours for D-SNAP assistance The supplemental nutrition assistance program (SNAP) is at the Lee Civic Center all weekend, ready to help southwest Florida.
SOUTHWEST FLORIDA First eaglet hatches in famous SWFL eagle nest Welcome E24! The third eaglet from the nest of M15 and F23 has hatched according to the Southwest Florida eagle camera.
Rock for Equality: SWFL non-profit hosts benefit concert for Palestine A Southwest Florida non-profit hosted a benefit concert on Friday night to help with humanitarian aid in Palestine.
Warm, breezy Saturday with a few showers possible The Weather Authority is forecasting a breezy, warm weekend in store across Southwest Florida, with the chance of a few showers, particularly on Saturday.
CAPE CORAL Active investigation underway in South Cape Coral Cape Coral police are investigating at a home on Southwest 49th Terrace in South Cape Coral early Saturday morning.
16 transported after 2 airboats crash in Collier County According to the Collier County Sheriff’s Office, two airboats crashed south of U.S. 41 east between mile markers 74 and 75, leaving well over a dozen people injured.
SOUTHWEST FLORIDA New bill filed: Auto shop and law enforcement must work together to solve hit-and-run crashes There could be new detectives on the block, located in your nearest auto shop. A new state bill aims at trying to stop hit-and-run drivers from getting away.
CAPE CORAL New leash on life; Cape Coral shelter dog beats cancer with drug being tested for humans A drug now being studied in human trials to kill cancerous tumors, is already approved and helping animals.
CAPE CORAL City of Cape Coral planning a new interchange with I-75 The city of Cape Coral is in the early stages of planning a new interchange with I-75, an idea that has been discussed for more than a decade.
Tracking invasive species after hurricanes Hurricanes Helene and Milton didn’t just bring wind and rain, they brought new threats to southwest Florida’s ecosystem.
PUNTA GORDA Woman in Punta Gorda shooting charged with 2nd degree murder A woman in a homicide investigation on Nasturtium Drive in Punta Gorda has been charged with 2nd-degree murder.
Lee County mother continuing fight to get children a bus stop The school district already told her she lives too close to the school to qualify for a bus route but she has not given up.
FORT MYERS Pedestrian injured in crash on McGregor Boulevard The Fort Myers Police Department is investigating a crash that left at least one person injured Saturday night.
Family of Eagles: FGCU volleyball star graduates with Master’s Degree Saturday marked a special day for Florida Gulf Coast University as more than 1,800 students graduated. For one student-athlete, graduating from FGCU runs in the family.
lehigh acres LCSO: Man shot by car owner protecting property The Lee County Sheriff’s Office responded to a shooting in Lehigh Acres early Saturday morning.
NORTH FORT MYERS Lee County residents wait hours for D-SNAP assistance The supplemental nutrition assistance program (SNAP) is at the Lee Civic Center all weekend, ready to help southwest Florida.
SOUTHWEST FLORIDA First eaglet hatches in famous SWFL eagle nest Welcome E24! The third eaglet from the nest of M15 and F23 has hatched according to the Southwest Florida eagle camera.
Rock for Equality: SWFL non-profit hosts benefit concert for Palestine A Southwest Florida non-profit hosted a benefit concert on Friday night to help with humanitarian aid in Palestine.
Warm, breezy Saturday with a few showers possible The Weather Authority is forecasting a breezy, warm weekend in store across Southwest Florida, with the chance of a few showers, particularly on Saturday.
CAPE CORAL Active investigation underway in South Cape Coral Cape Coral police are investigating at a home on Southwest 49th Terrace in South Cape Coral early Saturday morning.
16 transported after 2 airboats crash in Collier County According to the Collier County Sheriff’s Office, two airboats crashed south of U.S. 41 east between mile markers 74 and 75, leaving well over a dozen people injured.
SOUTHWEST FLORIDA New bill filed: Auto shop and law enforcement must work together to solve hit-and-run crashes There could be new detectives on the block, located in your nearest auto shop. A new state bill aims at trying to stop hit-and-run drivers from getting away.
CAPE CORAL New leash on life; Cape Coral shelter dog beats cancer with drug being tested for humans A drug now being studied in human trials to kill cancerous tumors, is already approved and helping animals.
CAPE CORAL City of Cape Coral planning a new interchange with I-75 The city of Cape Coral is in the early stages of planning a new interchange with I-75, an idea that has been discussed for more than a decade.
Tracking invasive species after hurricanes Hurricanes Helene and Milton didn’t just bring wind and rain, they brought new threats to southwest Florida’s ecosystem.
PUNTA GORDA Woman in Punta Gorda shooting charged with 2nd degree murder A woman in a homicide investigation on Nasturtium Drive in Punta Gorda has been charged with 2nd-degree murder.
Lee County mother continuing fight to get children a bus stop The school district already told her she lives too close to the school to qualify for a bus route but she has not given up.
If you’re on unemployment in Florida and never received your Lost Wages Assistance from the federal government, this could be why. WINK News obtained documents from the state’s Department of Economic Opportunity discussing the federal assistance those on unemployment can get for weeks claimed in August. Except call takers at the DEO’s customer service centers are told not to tell claimants about the form, unless they have a specific reason. Darlene Felker of Punta Gorda knew something was wrong when, after the state began distributing LWA payments in September, she didn’t get hers. Now, WINK News has the internal documents to show the DEO wasn’t forthcoming with helping people who were eligible but didn’t get paid. FEMA approved Florida for four weeks of $300 in LWA to go to eligible unemployed people. People collecting benefits had to meet certain requirements to qualify, and Felker says she met them all. “Those $300 should have been released,” Felker said. She had her suspicions, thinking she didn’t get paid because one of the questions she had to answer she feels was misleading. That question is “are you currently unemployed?” “I specifically called DEO, I was told to put ‘no’ because I am working, I’m just working 8-10 hours a week, 16 hours at the most,” Felker said, who’s partially unemployed. Under the eligibility requirements listed by the state, it says, “Floridians who are eligible for state or federal Reemployment Assistance benefits, are unemployed or partially unemployed due to COVID-19 and have a weekly benefit amount of at least $100 in a state or Federal Reemployment Assistance program may be eligible to receive the additional $300 LWA benefits.” WINK News brought her situation to the DEO back in September and a representative said “this is a non-issue.” But three weeks later, WINK News got a tip about something the DEO was keeping quiet. A public records request revealed internal documents showing an email dated Oct. 5, where the DEO told its call center employees in part: “A new form has been created […] for those claimants calling in stating they answered incorrectly to the question regarding COVID-19 while requesting benefits for the weeks ending 08/01/20-08/22/20. This form will be used internally, please do not volunteer to complete this form for anyone calling regarding the Lost Wage Assistance payments, the claimant specifically has to indicate they answered the question incorrectly. Also, this form will only be available for the duration of time the department has available funding for the Lost Wage Assistance program (LWA).” That means people calling in to the DEO have to specifically say they answered a question wrong to get help. Felker said had she not known she’d answered a question wrong, she would’ve thought she wasn’t eligible for the money. After WINK News questioned the DEO about the existence of these instructions, they sent out a press release on Oct. 9, saying people need to call if they think there are errors in their application, not once did it mention Lost Wages Assistance. “It tripped all these people up that are not getting that money, it’s crazy,” Felker said. It took more than a dozen calls and several faxes to the DEO, but last week, Felker finally got the $1,200 owed to her. “You just have to be persistent on calling and speaking to a supervisor and letting them know that you’re aware of this form,” Felker said. WINK News on Monday asked the DEO why they kept it internal, a representative did not address that question. However, DEO did confirm there is still LWA funding available. For ongoing updates on unemployment, follow WINK News Investigative Reporter Sara Girard on Twitter and Facebook. She also updates the WINK News FAQ: Unemployment Resources page as information is received.