Crews removing derelict boats from Gilchrist Park33rd endangered Florida panther death of 2024; killed by vehicle in Hardee County
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 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.
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 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.
FILE – In this March 4, 2021, file photo, a sign reading “Welcome Back Now Open” is posted on the window of a Morton’s Steakhouse restaurant as a man works inside during the coronavirus pandemic in San Francisco. California lost close to 70,000 jobs in January. But new numbers released Friday, March 12, 2021, by the state’s Employment Development Department show the unemployment rate declined slightly to 9%. (AP Photo/Jeff Chiu, File) As COVID-19 vaccination efforts expand across Florida, the state’s unemployment rate ticked down in February. Florida’s jobless rate went from 4.8 percent in January to 4.7 percent in February, according to numbers released Friday by the state Department of Economic Opportunity. That was better than the national rate of 6.2 percent. Gov. Ron DeSantis, who was in Port Canaveral on Friday discussing ways to revive the passenger cruise industry amid the pandemic, said the jobless numbers are better than what many people expected. “That’s a 4.7 percent, which is much better than anyone predicted we would be at a year ago,” he said. “But that’s 4.7 percent where we have one of our major industries that has been idled by the federal government for over a year, the cruise line industry.” The February rate reflects and estimated 474,000 Floridians out of work from a workforce of 10.1 million. The number of unemployed people was 124,000 higher than in February 2020, just before the pandemic wreaked havoc on the state and national economy. The February 2020 unemployment rate was 3.3 percent. In addition to people still looking for work, the new numbers indicate another 337,000 Floridians had left the workforce over the previous year and don’t qualify for state or federal assistance. The Department of Economic Opportunity has since March 15, 2020, distributed nearly $24.75 billion in state and federal relief to 2.3 million claimants. Adrienne Johnston, the department’s chief economist, said labor-force numbers should continue to improve as more people get vaccinated against COVID-19. “As more people become vaccinated, then certainly they’re going to feel more confident to go back and connect into the labor market, to go back into purchasing goods and services and engage in economic activity,” Johnston said. “And as that happens, that’s certainly going to drive employment up and reduce our unemployment overall.” More than 5.3 million people in Florida have received at least one vaccination shot. More than 2 million people in the state have tested positive for COVID-19, and about 33,000 Floridians have died. On Thursday, DeSantis announced that all Floridians ages 40 and older will be able to receive COVID-19 vaccinations starting Monday and that all adults will be eligible on April 5. The Department of Economic Opportunity said Florida has recovered 709,200 of the 1.27 million jobs lost between February and April of 2020. Still the biggest impacts remain in the leisure and hospitality industry, which lost 286,200 jobs, or 22.4 percent of its workforce, from February 2020 to last month. Across the state, only one of 24 metro areas had seen job growth in the year-long period, the Lakeland-Winter Haven region, which was up 3,100 jobs. “Every region was impacted a little bit differently, every region had a different approach to mitigation efforts, and their industry mix is certainly going to impact that,” Johnston said. “So, if there’s more of a trade, transportation presence in certain areas, then they may not be impacted as much. Other parts of Central Florida are heavily reliant on tourism, and so that’s certainly going to prolong the impact for those areas.” The tourism dependent Orlando-Kissimmee-Sanford metropolitan statistical area, which lost 168,500 jobs over the year-long period, had the highest unemployment rate in February at 6.5 percent, followed by the Miami-Fort Lauderdale-West Palm Beach metropolitan area at 6.3 percent.