Major 2 vehicle crash shuts down NB lanes of U.S. 41 in CharlotteApple AirPods lead LCSO to an arrest ; over $100,000 worth of stolen items recovered
CHARLOTTE HARBOR Major 2 vehicle crash shuts down NB lanes of U.S. 41 in Charlotte After a major traffic accident near Sunseeker Resort in Charlotte County, all Northbound lanes of U.S. 41 were closed.
FORT MYERS Apple AirPods lead LCSO to an arrest ; over $100,000 worth of stolen items recovered Through the use of Apple Airpods, the Lee County Sheriff’s Office was able to locate nearly $100,000 worth of stolen items, leading to an arrest.
LABELLE Hendry County rolls out cameras for school speed zones The Hendry County Sheriff’s Office has rolled out a new way of enforcing school zone speed limits by using cameras that will target drivers traveling over a certain speed in a school zone.
CAPE CORAL Cape Coral officials approve replacement funding for hurricane-damaged stop signs The Cape Coral City Council has approved funding to replace stop signs damaged during Hurricane Milton, resulting in an emergency purchase.
Holiday events happening in Southwest Florida Southwest Florida is embracing the holiday spirit with a variety of festive events this Christmas season.
Collier man accused of supplying fentanyl-laced pills, enough to kill 531,500 people The Collier County Sheriff’s Office has arrested a man accused of supplying more than 10,000 fentanyl-laced pills disguised as prescription painkillers.
CAPE CORAL Cape Coral council supports construction of I-75 interchange into city The Cape Coral City Council has approved a resolution requesting support from Lee and Charlotte counties to prioritize state and federal funding for the Interstate 75 Interchange at Slater Road.
PUNTA GORDA Crews removing derelict boats from Gilchrist Park Crews are working to remove derelict boats from Gilchrist Park after several of them washed ashore during Hurricane Milton in October.
33rd endangered Florida panther death of 2024; killed by vehicle in Hardee County Another Florida panther has been 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 After waking up to a cold morning, the Weather Authority is tracking warming conditions to the low 70s this Thursday.
Police release 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.
CHARLOTTE HARBOR Major 2 vehicle crash shuts down NB lanes of U.S. 41 in Charlotte After a major traffic accident near Sunseeker Resort in Charlotte County, all Northbound lanes of U.S. 41 were closed.
FORT MYERS Apple AirPods lead LCSO to an arrest ; over $100,000 worth of stolen items recovered Through the use of Apple Airpods, the Lee County Sheriff’s Office was able to locate nearly $100,000 worth of stolen items, leading to an arrest.
LABELLE Hendry County rolls out cameras for school speed zones The Hendry County Sheriff’s Office has rolled out a new way of enforcing school zone speed limits by using cameras that will target drivers traveling over a certain speed in a school zone.
CAPE CORAL Cape Coral officials approve replacement funding for hurricane-damaged stop signs The Cape Coral City Council has approved funding to replace stop signs damaged during Hurricane Milton, resulting in an emergency purchase.
Holiday events happening in Southwest Florida Southwest Florida is embracing the holiday spirit with a variety of festive events this Christmas season.
Collier man accused of supplying fentanyl-laced pills, enough to kill 531,500 people The Collier County Sheriff’s Office has arrested a man accused of supplying more than 10,000 fentanyl-laced pills disguised as prescription painkillers.
CAPE CORAL Cape Coral council supports construction of I-75 interchange into city The Cape Coral City Council has approved a resolution requesting support from Lee and Charlotte counties to prioritize state and federal funding for the Interstate 75 Interchange at Slater Road.
PUNTA GORDA Crews removing derelict boats from Gilchrist Park Crews are working to remove derelict boats from Gilchrist Park after several of them washed ashore during Hurricane Milton in October.
33rd endangered Florida panther death of 2024; killed by vehicle in Hardee County Another Florida panther has been 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 After waking up to a cold morning, the Weather Authority is tracking warming conditions to the low 70s this Thursday.
Police release 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.
A flu vaccine is administered to National Foundation for Infectious Diseases (NFID) staff members in Bethesda, Md., on Wednesday, Sept. 30, 2020. (AP Photo/Federica Narancio) Operation Warp Speed, the government’s vaccine effort, is instructing clinics administering the Pfizer vaccine to wait until later this month to inoculate elderly residents at long-term care facilities, even though doses will be arriving in all 50 states this week and despite the CDC’s recommendation that the elderly be prioritized given their vulnerability to the coronavirus. CBS News has obtained two Operation Warp Speed documents produced by the Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) with guidance for CVS and Walgreens, the pharmacy partners charged with carrying out the vaccination of residents at long-term care facilities. HHS explicitly instructs providers that the “earliest the program can turn on is Dec 21st,” referring to administering the Pfizer vaccine. The rate of infection at nursing homes has been spiking in recent weeks, which makes that a potentially costly delay. On “Face the Nation” on Sunday, Health and Human Services Secretary Alex Azar described the rollout as a “turnkey vaccination” effort and denied delaying the start date for long-term care facilities. CBS News obtained the HHS documents spelling out the December 21 start date following the interview. “We’re not actually asking the nursing homes to wait. And we were able to have a really good discussion with CVS leadership about this misunderstanding that they had at the president’s vaccine distribution summit,” Azar said, stating that vaccinations can start “really any day” and adding that all nursing home residents could be vaccinated by Christmas. Hackensack Meridian Health CEO Robert Garrett, who runs one of New Jersey’s largest hospital systems, confirmed on “Face the Nation” that the long-term care facilities his company operates were told again this morning to wait to vaccinate nursing home residents. “I did hear the secretary’s interview, but the latest information I have from CVS and Walgreens is that they would start on the week of the 21st,” Garrett said. He added that it was unclear to him why the elderly would have to wait, given that the CDC recommendation is for the first group of recipients to be front-line health care workers and long-term care residents. “So, I just assumed that that would start at the same time,” Garrett told “Face the Nation.” His hospitals expect to receive vaccine doses on Monday and plan to begin vaccinating front-line medical staff the following day. Former FDA Commissioner Dr. Scott Gottlieb also confirmed the delay and said it was due to the fact that nursing home residents or their families must still provide consent for the vaccine. “It’s a very costly delay. There [are] 50,000 new infections in nursing homes every week right now, probably more than that. And we know 20% of people in the nursing homes who are infected will succumb to the infection. So, there’s a lot of death happening in these nursing homes,” he said on “Face the Nation.” Gottlieb, a former Trump administration official who now advises a number of governors, estimated that it would take about a week to get consent from patients. He also estimated it would three weeks total for CVS and Walgreens to inoculate nursing home residents. Gottlieb also serves on Pfizer’s board of directors. It is not clear why Operation Warp Speed did not arrange in advance to help obtain consent. Gottlieb said it should have been done ahead of time. “I think they could have. They could have provided a fact sheet. They could have cleared a fact sheet with the FDA, maybe provided a limited emergency use authorization just for the nursing homes to get that information cleared so they could have properly consented patients. That wasn’t done,” Gottlieb said. CVS declined to comment on Azar’s remarks. Last month, Larry Merlo, the CEO of CVS Health, told “Face the Nation” that he expected to begin the vaccination process within 48 hours of receiving the vaccine supply. All 50 states are scheduled to begin receiving vaccine doses on Monday. The HHS document obtained by CBS News further states that jurisdictions must select just one vaccine, made by either Pfizer or Moderna. Those who select the Moderna vaccine — which has not yet been approved by the FDA for emergency use — cannot distribute it to nursing homes until December 28. Staff at those long-term care facilities can also receive vaccinations at the on-site clinics. The HHS document is labeled as a “draft – pre-decisional & deliberative.”