Cool and breezy for your Thursday afternoonStudents react to threat made at Florida Gulf Coast University
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 Ian.
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.
LABELLE City of LaBelle under precautionary boil water notice A water main break has the City of Labelle under a precautionary boil water notice.
ESTERO FGCU student wins ice dancing national championship FGCU sophomore Lucas Appel wins his second US Senior Solo Dance National Championship in three years.
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 Ian.
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.
LABELLE City of LaBelle under precautionary boil water notice A water main break has the City of Labelle under a precautionary boil water notice.
ESTERO FGCU student wins ice dancing national championship FGCU sophomore Lucas Appel wins his second US Senior Solo Dance National Championship in three years.
Line for COVID-19 tests at the CenturyLink test site in Fort Myers. (Credit: WINK News) Lines for COVID-19 testing continue to grow as COVID-19 cases and hospitalizations are once again on the rise in Southwest Florida. Many of the people in line for a test were exposed over the holiday weekend. Others want to make sure they are negative before making New Year’s plans, and some are feeling symptoms. The line at the CenturyLink testing site in Fort Myers stretched down the road on Tuesday. WINK News spoke with people who said they waited an hour and a half to two hours for a test, but they say it is worth it. A combination of the quickly spreading variant and the holiday gatherings caused a spike in cases. Florida reported 39,000 cases on Monday from the Christmas weekend. With New Year’s Eve coming up, some people are thinking about changing their plans. Margaux Fry of Fort Myers said, “I didn’t really think about it before, but obviously, with all this stuff going on, it’s definitely on the back of everyone’s mind.” “If it’s positive for COVID, it changes lots of things,” said Kathleen Flynn Barnett of Sanibel. “I have a friend visiting and two more people coming in, so you know we’ll just adjust.” Adjusting is something we’ve all learned through the pandemic. Dr. Larry Antonucci with Lee Health says this new variant comes with good and bad. “I think what’s a little bit worrisome is that we’ve seen a 70% increase in hospitalization just over the past couple of weeks. And, you know, we certainly don’t want that rate to increase. But compared to what we saw on delta, the numbers are much, much lower. As you know, during the peak of the delta surge, we had over 600 patients with COVID in the hospital. We’re at 59, but we’re hoping that this surge will get through our community, and then we’ll start to see a lowering of those cases.” By now, many know COVID-19 is here to stay, so when it comes to moving forward, Michelle Ciuffetelli said, “let’s be safe but let’s also live and do life, but let’s do it safely.” “Hopefully, it will mutate to be less aggressive. As long as we chip away at it, I think we’re going to win this battle,” said Tony Zenga from Montreal. People who went through the testing line at CenturyLink said everything went smoothly despite the wait. And with appointments at pharmacies filling up and out-of-stock at-home tests, people say CenturyLink is the best bet. “It’s the only one I can figure out how to do. I tried Walgreens by my house and it sent me ten miles up my house on 41,” said Michael Orange. Flynn Barnett said, “I tried drug stores CVS and Walgreens. There’s no appointment available for the next three days so this I can at least get today.” Nomi Health, the group that runs the site, says they are still deciding if they will adjust their hours to handle the spike. On Monday, they announced the site would be walk-up only. No more appointments. If you want to know where your closest testing site is, you can find a complete list of Florida’s COIVD-19 testing locations by clicking here. You can also search for testing sites by entering your zip code on the Curative website by clicking here. Curative has five testing Locations in Lee County and is accepting appointments.