Local non-profit, Family Initiative, has big plans after receiving $5 million from GolisanoCharlotte County deputies bust park drug deal after community tip
CAPE CORAL Local non-profit, Family Initiative, has big plans after receiving $5 million from Golisano A multi-million dollar donation is helping people with autism have priceless experiences.
PORT CHARLOTTE Charlotte County deputies bust park drug deal after community tip One man’s drug deal in Charlotte County wasn’t exactly a walk in the park.
Dog alerts Lee County woman to home intruder The Lee County Sheriff’s Office arrested a 22-year-old man for burglary and loitering after he broke into a woman’s home and stood inches away from her bed as she slept.
NAPLES Naples business owner accused of rape In 2023, 14,021 domestic violence 911 calls came into Collier County.
manasota key Charlotte County Commissioners vote ‘Yes’ to changes and redevelopment on Manasota Key The Charlotte County Commissioners voted to pass charges that residents on Manasota Key have been dreading.
The debate over fluoride in Florida’s water The water you drink and use to brush your teeth is fueling a community, state and national conversation.
SANIBEL Phase 2 of Sanibel Beach renourishment project set to begin Eric Jackson, Sanibel’s Public Information Officer, is encouraging residents and visitors to still come to the beach.
NAPLES Riding toward a brighter future for kids: The story of Bikes for Tykes For nearly four decades, Bikes for Tykes has been on a mission to give children and adults in need in Southwest Florida a chance to ride refurbished bicycles.
ENGLEWOOD SWFL agencies bring chaplains on staff to offer support to first responders First responders across the country face the devastating impact of suicide nationwide those numbers are rising.
NORTH FORT MYERS Lee County deputies arrest man for ATV and UTV thefts, fence destruction A North Fort Myers man has been arrested after allegedly stealing a four-wheeler, crashing it into a property fence, and later trying to flee on a second stolen vehicle.
‘I saw God twice:’ Boating accident survivor thanks Lee Health After surviving an unthinkable accident in Matlacha, one woman wants to thank the medical team that saved her.
MATLACHA Blue Dog restaurant in Matlacha thankful for decade of support The Blue Dog Bar & Grill in Matlacha has survived multiple hurricanes over the past decade. Now, they’re thanking the community for supporting them every step of the way.
NAPLES Nominee of Gulfshore Life Men and Women of the year volunteers for STARability Gulfshore Life has nominated Anne Fleming as one of its Men and Women of the Year for volunteering her time to raise money for a new home store for Starability.
WINK NEWS Holiday gift exchange scams targeting social media users During the holiday season, tidings of joy and goodwill can be shrouded by scammers seeking to take advantage of holiday shoppers.
New cancer fighting machinery arrives at Southwest Florida Proton All the pieces are in place now, but it will take about a year of calibrating and fine-tuning before the proton machine is up and running.
CAPE CORAL Local non-profit, Family Initiative, has big plans after receiving $5 million from Golisano A multi-million dollar donation is helping people with autism have priceless experiences.
PORT CHARLOTTE Charlotte County deputies bust park drug deal after community tip One man’s drug deal in Charlotte County wasn’t exactly a walk in the park.
Dog alerts Lee County woman to home intruder The Lee County Sheriff’s Office arrested a 22-year-old man for burglary and loitering after he broke into a woman’s home and stood inches away from her bed as she slept.
NAPLES Naples business owner accused of rape In 2023, 14,021 domestic violence 911 calls came into Collier County.
manasota key Charlotte County Commissioners vote ‘Yes’ to changes and redevelopment on Manasota Key The Charlotte County Commissioners voted to pass charges that residents on Manasota Key have been dreading.
The debate over fluoride in Florida’s water The water you drink and use to brush your teeth is fueling a community, state and national conversation.
SANIBEL Phase 2 of Sanibel Beach renourishment project set to begin Eric Jackson, Sanibel’s Public Information Officer, is encouraging residents and visitors to still come to the beach.
NAPLES Riding toward a brighter future for kids: The story of Bikes for Tykes For nearly four decades, Bikes for Tykes has been on a mission to give children and adults in need in Southwest Florida a chance to ride refurbished bicycles.
ENGLEWOOD SWFL agencies bring chaplains on staff to offer support to first responders First responders across the country face the devastating impact of suicide nationwide those numbers are rising.
NORTH FORT MYERS Lee County deputies arrest man for ATV and UTV thefts, fence destruction A North Fort Myers man has been arrested after allegedly stealing a four-wheeler, crashing it into a property fence, and later trying to flee on a second stolen vehicle.
‘I saw God twice:’ Boating accident survivor thanks Lee Health After surviving an unthinkable accident in Matlacha, one woman wants to thank the medical team that saved her.
MATLACHA Blue Dog restaurant in Matlacha thankful for decade of support The Blue Dog Bar & Grill in Matlacha has survived multiple hurricanes over the past decade. Now, they’re thanking the community for supporting them every step of the way.
NAPLES Nominee of Gulfshore Life Men and Women of the year volunteers for STARability Gulfshore Life has nominated Anne Fleming as one of its Men and Women of the Year for volunteering her time to raise money for a new home store for Starability.
WINK NEWS Holiday gift exchange scams targeting social media users During the holiday season, tidings of joy and goodwill can be shrouded by scammers seeking to take advantage of holiday shoppers.
New cancer fighting machinery arrives at Southwest Florida Proton All the pieces are in place now, but it will take about a year of calibrating and fine-tuning before the proton machine is up and running.
You see the dirt mounds everywhere, but did you know the insects that call them home are dangerous? One Southwest Florida woman knows firsthand after losing her best friend last month. Now, she’s on a mission to make sure people are educated so another tragedy can be avoided. “It was just such a shock and such a sad thing,” said Gail Ruperd, whose best friend died after being bitten by fire ants. “One of my favorite memories of her is her singing. I mean, almost every time you said something, she could think of a song and would start singing.” But over a period of four days, she was silenced. “This was just such a shocking, horrible thing that nobody expected.” It started with a trip to Myakka River State Park in mid-April. “While they were there, she said, ‘Oh, I’m getting bit up by red ants’, not thinking anything of it,” Ruperd said. “They get in the car to leave, and she starts to have a reaction – a pretty severe anaphylactic reaction.” Three days later, the 66-year-old was gone. “I rushed to the hospital, of course, and stayed with them for a very long time. But by that time, they got her breathing, but she was on life support. And there wasn’t a lot of hope brain-wise. Dr. Roberto Pereira, a research scientist in the Urban Entomology Laboratory at the University of Florida, said cases of people dying from fire ant bites are rare and sometimes avoidable. “There are some people that are very sensitive to fire ants, and if they get stung by fire ants, even just one stinging incident can cause the person to go into shock.” But the “normal person can withstand several stings,” he said. “With the proper care and proper medication, it doesn’t result in death very often at all.” Ruperd said her friend was allergic to bees, but she didn’t have an EpiPen at the time of the fire ant attack. “And that I think is the hardest thing,” she said. “We don’t know if it would have made a difference if she’d had an EpiPen. We’re never going to know that. But if one person went out and got an EpiPen from hearing this story, that would be helpful.” To find out if you are allergic to fire ant bites, check with your allergist. And it’s not just humans who suffer from fire ant bites. “When we deal with cattle raising, those animals are subject to the fire ant bites just as we are,” Pereira said.“It’s very common for cattle that are born out in the field that the fire ants may attack their eyes and actually cause the little calves to be blind.” Fire ants prefer sunny, open areas like lawns and pastures to build their nests. Because they aren’t native to North America, there aren’t a lot of natural controls for them, but you can treat your lawn with chemicals to get rid of them. “Because the ant is not from here, it’s from South America, we haven’t been able to really control this ant just with biological control, so we have to supplement that with chemical control and using pesticides,” Pereira said. “There are some products that combine these two active ingredients so that you’re killing ants, but at the same time you’re weakening the whole colony by making the queen or queens less productive.” He adds the USDA also spent time working to eradicate fire ants on a larger scale. “One was we introduced some biological controls. So these are other living organisms that attack the fire ants,” Pereira said. “This little, tiny fly hovers over an ant and eventually comes down to it and it bumps right near the neck of them. And in that act, an egg is injected inside the head. From that egg, a little larva comes out.” The USDA also tried using a protozoan very common in Florida to make the ants sick. “This protozoan causes the queen to not be very productive in terms of number of eggs, eventually that colony will die.”