WINK Neighborhood Watch: Deadly shooter, home invasion and drug traffickingPedestrian dead after crash on McGregor Boulevard
WINK Neighborhood Watch: Deadly shooter, home invasion and drug trafficking This week’s segment of WINK Neighborhood Watch features deadly shootings, home invasions and drug trafficking.
FORT MYERS Pedestrian dead after crash on McGregor Boulevard The Fort Myers Police Department is investigating a crash that left at least one person dead Saturday night.
Sunday brings sun and clouds with chance for a stray shower The Weather Authority forecasts another seasonal day across Southwest Florida, with temperatures reaching the upper 70s to low 80s this afternoon.
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.
WINK Neighborhood Watch: Deadly shooter, home invasion and drug trafficking This week’s segment of WINK Neighborhood Watch features deadly shootings, home invasions and drug trafficking.
FORT MYERS Pedestrian dead after crash on McGregor Boulevard The Fort Myers Police Department is investigating a crash that left at least one person dead Saturday night.
Sunday brings sun and clouds with chance for a stray shower The Weather Authority forecasts another seasonal day across Southwest Florida, with temperatures reaching the upper 70s to low 80s this afternoon.
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.
In this September 2020 photo provided by Palm Beach Gardens Fire and Rescue, firefighters from left to right, Julie Dudley, Sandi Ladewski, Monica Marzullo, Krystyna Krakowski and Kelsey Krzywada pose at their station in Palm Beach Gardens, Fla. The women who made history by working an entire firefighting shift with no men are still thriving at their fire department in Florida months later. The members of the team at Palm Beach Gardens Fire Rescue say they’ve succeeded in a heavily male-dominated profession for a couple of reasons. One is that their male colleagues and supervisors have enthusiastically supported them. (Krystyna Krakowski/Palm Beach Gardens Fire and Rescue via AP) Krystyna Krakowski became a firefighter in Florida at a time when there were very few women to work beside or guide her in the service. Twenty years later, she is not only thriving but also recruiting more females into the profession. Krakowski is one of five women at Palm Beach Gardens Fire Rescue who made department history last year by working an entire shift with no male colleagues — a feat that went viral on social media. She and her team members say they have been able to succeed thanks to both the support of the men they work with and by pushing through every challenge that comes their way. The chain saw-and-ax-wielding women note they are held to the same standards as the men, physically and otherwise, and that the public should be aware that men and women of the department work together to help people. “I’ve worked super hard to be strong from Day One,” said firefighter Julie Dudley. “I still remember being in an academy and the instructor looking at me going, ‘If you want to do girly push ups you can,’ and I was like, ‘Excuse me. No, I’m good. I got this.’” The firefighters’ success is notable in a profession that is so heavily male-dominated and that has seen numerous lawsuits from women alleging discrimination and sexual harassment in fire departments across the country. The day they worked the all-woman shift, they were encouraged and cheered on by the men of the Palm Beach Gardens Fire Rescue. “Even our battalion chiefs sent us a message: ‘Good luck, ladies, all eyes are on you today. Show ‘em what you got,’” Krakowski said. “It was exciting to say that every position was filled by a female. … We played every role. We’re capable. We’ve made it.” It wasn’t always easy, however. Even some of the women on the history-making team had to overcome prior obstacles. In the fire department where she previously worked, Krakowski says she was the target of a hazing. She said fellow firefighters awoke her with an airhorn, held her down and zip-tied her hands and legs. When the incident came up on a radio show, Krakowski said she felt compelled to call in because comments from the public were so awful. “It was heart-wrenching to hear another woman say, ‘She doesn’t belong in a firehouse. It must be a girl who needs attention,’” Krakowski said. “I’m a hardworking single mom. I’ve been that way almost my entire life; nothing has ever been given.” Kelsey Krzywada said at her first fire school, instructors were unwilling to help her when she struggled with the training because of her small size. At the second school she tried, however, “They were encouraging, regardless of your size, your gender,” Krzywada said. “They loved their career, and they wanted all of us to love it too.” Kryzwada said her choice of professions also negatively affected a relationship. “His girl works with chain saws and fire, and he feels a little less of a man,” she remarked of a former partner. When their all-woman shift went viral, most of the feedback on social media was positive, but there were detractors as well. “We’d have people going, ‘How are you going to carry my 300-pound husband out of a building over your shoulder when it’s on fire?’” Julie Dudley said. “Well, we’re not. And I can tell you that no man in our department is going to do it either.” The firefighters acknowledge that the physical aspects of the job can be challenging, but they said they have learned how to play to their strengths as women rather than relying on brute force. As smaller women, Krzywada and Krakowski have found alternate but effective ways to do their job, whether it’s pulling a hose line or throwing ladders, they said. And while there are still plenty of “good old boy” fire departments in the U.S., the women see a positive shift away from that as more young people enter. Sandi Ladewski said any male firefighters at the Palm Beach Gardens department who didn’t approve of women working in the industry have since left. The ones who remain — both colleagues and superiors — have supported the women and helped them to thrive and grow in numbers, she said. Krakowski said she hopes to start seeing even more women join the ranks as instructors. Monica Marzullo, who was the second female in history to work in her last department, says the presence of more women brings a sense of camaraderie. “The guys have always had each other. They have that brotherhood,” Marzullo said. “And it’s nice, too, when you have good women that are actually interested in helping one another.” Since going viral, Dudley and Krakowski said they’ve received messages on social media from women wanting to become firefighters. Both said they welcome and advise them on how to enter the field. “I have … one little niece (who) wants to be a firefighter,” Ladewski said. “She wants to help people like Auntie Sandi.”