ALVA Woodpeckers build home in Alva woman’s house You may have heard of squatters, but this woman is dealing with squawkers. Who needs a rooster to wake up when you have woodpeckers?
FORT MYERS Man claims he was trapped in a high-rise for 5 days A 77-year-old man wants justice after he claims he spent days trapped on the 24th floor of a high-rise apartment building.
PUNTA GORDA Charlotte Correctional prisoner arrested for death of another inmate State Attorney Amira Fox convened a grand jury, which decided to move forward with a case against a Charlotte Correctional inmate.
SANIBEL Construction near Dairy Queen eagle nest on Sanibel raises concerns While many eagle nests may be a bit difficult to see, one nest has always been a favorite for Sanibel residents and tourists.
The environmental effects of artificial sweeteners Experts are studying how the foods we eat affect the environment, especially after we flush our waste down the toilet.
Victim reacts to man exposing himself to her Ring camera You get a notification on your phone from your ring camera app that someone is at the door, only to find out it is someone exposing themselves. It’s the last thing victim Maria Kivi wanted or expected to see last week.
LEE COUNTY The art of capturing your eye and drawing you in How do you capture young, hip, trendy, fun, movers and shakers, all in a pose? We take you behind the scenes of a Gulfshore Life cover shoot.
FORT MYERS The lives of two SJC Boxers changed in the ring Two SJC Boxers, Mario Nunez and Arbon Kurtishi, help each other in the ring as each of them had their lives changed because of boxing.
FORT MYERS Chlamydia cases rising sharply in Lee County If you think about a crowded space- something with more than 250 people- if it’s in Lee county, statistically one person has chlamydia.
SANIBEL Sanibel resort day passes hope to get more business on the island A pass will allow vacationers to hang out at a Sanibel beach club for a day in hopes of drumming up some business.
Voting equipment tested ahead of Lee County elections Voting equipment is being tested in Lee County. This is to ensure all ballots are printed and counted correctly for the upcoming election.
Collier County teen assaulted after leaving party The teen has been charged and the sheriff’s office said they’re aware that many believe felony charges are in order, but under Florida law, there are very specific criteria that must be met for felony charges to be filed.
WINK weather team watching tropical wave over Atlantic Ocean The Weather Authority is watching a tropical disturbance over the Central Atlantic Ocean.
CAPE CORAL Cape Coral drug bust leads investigators to fake fentanyl, cash and guns Cape Coral man arrest on drug charges. Investigators said they found, guns, drugs, and more than $32,000 in Richard Riley’s home.
NAPLES Naples youth flag football team to compete in Ohio tournament This weekend, the Naples Lunatics Green will compete in the Superhero Sports tournament in Canton, Ohio.
ALVA Woodpeckers build home in Alva woman’s house You may have heard of squatters, but this woman is dealing with squawkers. Who needs a rooster to wake up when you have woodpeckers?
FORT MYERS Man claims he was trapped in a high-rise for 5 days A 77-year-old man wants justice after he claims he spent days trapped on the 24th floor of a high-rise apartment building.
PUNTA GORDA Charlotte Correctional prisoner arrested for death of another inmate State Attorney Amira Fox convened a grand jury, which decided to move forward with a case against a Charlotte Correctional inmate.
SANIBEL Construction near Dairy Queen eagle nest on Sanibel raises concerns While many eagle nests may be a bit difficult to see, one nest has always been a favorite for Sanibel residents and tourists.
The environmental effects of artificial sweeteners Experts are studying how the foods we eat affect the environment, especially after we flush our waste down the toilet.
Victim reacts to man exposing himself to her Ring camera You get a notification on your phone from your ring camera app that someone is at the door, only to find out it is someone exposing themselves. It’s the last thing victim Maria Kivi wanted or expected to see last week.
LEE COUNTY The art of capturing your eye and drawing you in How do you capture young, hip, trendy, fun, movers and shakers, all in a pose? We take you behind the scenes of a Gulfshore Life cover shoot.
FORT MYERS The lives of two SJC Boxers changed in the ring Two SJC Boxers, Mario Nunez and Arbon Kurtishi, help each other in the ring as each of them had their lives changed because of boxing.
FORT MYERS Chlamydia cases rising sharply in Lee County If you think about a crowded space- something with more than 250 people- if it’s in Lee county, statistically one person has chlamydia.
SANIBEL Sanibel resort day passes hope to get more business on the island A pass will allow vacationers to hang out at a Sanibel beach club for a day in hopes of drumming up some business.
Voting equipment tested ahead of Lee County elections Voting equipment is being tested in Lee County. This is to ensure all ballots are printed and counted correctly for the upcoming election.
Collier County teen assaulted after leaving party The teen has been charged and the sheriff’s office said they’re aware that many believe felony charges are in order, but under Florida law, there are very specific criteria that must be met for felony charges to be filed.
WINK weather team watching tropical wave over Atlantic Ocean The Weather Authority is watching a tropical disturbance over the Central Atlantic Ocean.
CAPE CORAL Cape Coral drug bust leads investigators to fake fentanyl, cash and guns Cape Coral man arrest on drug charges. Investigators said they found, guns, drugs, and more than $32,000 in Richard Riley’s home.
NAPLES Naples youth flag football team to compete in Ohio tournament This weekend, the Naples Lunatics Green will compete in the Superhero Sports tournament in Canton, Ohio.
Students sanitizing their hands in the classroom. Credit: WINK News Hand sanitizers have become trusted tools to keep people safe and healthy in the fight against the COVID-19 pandemic — but now, an independent study suggests some products may be having the opposite effect. Valisure, an independent pharmacy and lab that tests drug products for quality, says it tested 260 products and found elevated levels of benzene in more than 20 of them. Benzene is a known human carcinogen, and exposure to it is known to cause blood disorders, including leukemia. The leading brand of hand sanitizer, Purell, and many others had no detectable levels of benzene. But Valisure has petitioned the Food and Drug Administration to launch an investigation and recall the products it found contain benzine. Valisure CEO David Light told CBS News chief medical correspondent Dr. Jon LaPook that he was “shocked” to find such high levels of benzene in the products. “I was shocked that we were finding benzene at all,” Light said. “It might very well be the most well known … compound that is dangerous to humans.” Valisure Chief Scientific Officer Kaury Kucera walked LaPook through the testing process. In the early days of the pandemic, the Food and Drug Administration relaxed standards on benzene levels in liquid hand sanitizers, allowing benzene in a concentration of up to two parts per million, according to Dr. Leonardo Trasande, a professor of environmental science at the NYU Grossman School of Medicine. “There was an effort to really increase hand sanitizers and the availability because a lot of people were purchasing them and supply was running low,” Trasande explained. Valisure tested hundreds of products for the chemical. Valisure says of 260 products, 21 products from 15 brands tested above the FDA interim limit. The top three tested between six- to eight-times higher than allowed. Valisure found batches of a Star Wars Mandalorian hand sanitizer with a Baby Yoda character on the label manufactured by Best Brands Consumer Products contained nearly double the allowable amount. Attempts to get a response from the manufacturer were unsuccessful. In a statement, the Walt Disney Company said it launched independent testing on the “Baby Yoda” sanitizer and has instructed Best Brands to withdraw the products until more is learned. CBS News found the product available on Amazon, which told CBS News it is investigating the products in question. Dr. Daniel Teitelbaum, at the Colorado School of Public Health, warns benzene exposure could be increased in workers who use hand sanitizer contaminated with it, then put on gloves that prevent evaporation. “If you’re not wearing gloves over them, the risk is quite low because your skin is warm, you use that, the benzene will evaporate quite rapidly,” he said, adding that threat mostly is for people with “special risks.” Teitelbaum continued, “It’s a lot of health care personnel. It’s a lot of cleaning and sanitation people. … The longer you use it, the greater the risk.” For a list of products tested by Valisure, visit this link. The FDA said it is reviewing Valisure’s petition and continues to test sanitizer products and monitor the market. The company is also inviting people to send samples of hand sanitizers for analysis.