Fort Myers CRA discusses downtown expansionPunta Gorda couple salvages what’s left after dramatic rescue
FORT MYERS Fort Myers CRA discusses downtown expansion On Wednesday, the Fort Myers Community Redevelopment Agency discussed an expansion of the area they oversee.
PUNTA GORDA Punta Gorda couple salvages what’s left after dramatic rescue A Punta Gorda couple is awaiting FEMA assistance after dealing with damage from Helene.
BOCA GRANDE Rebuilding after Hurricane Helene and avoiding contractor pitfalls Neighbors across Southwest Florida and beyond are picking up the pieces and assessing the damage left by Hurricane Helene.
PORT CHARLOTTE Areas of Port Charlotte flooded due to heavy rain Some areas of Port Charlotte are underwater after heavy rain Wednesday evening.
PINE ISLAND The Greater Pine Island Alliance is seeking volunteers to help recovery efforts The Greater Pine Island Alliance is looking for volunteers, and age or skill set does not matter; if you want to help, they have a job for you.
FORT MYERS Whiskey Creek residents frustrated by worsened flooding Whiskey Creek residents do not know why flooding has worsened, but they said they want something done about it.
BONITA SPRINGS Bonita Springs firefighters rescue a bulldog in Helene’s aftermath In the aftermath of Hurricane Helene, Bonita Springs Fire Station 27 received a guest: a sweet little bulldog.
FGCU professor speaks on port worker strike 45,000 port workers on the East and Gulf Coasts are officially on strike as of Wednesday after their labor contract with the U.S. Maritime Alliance expired.
CAPE CORAL Oasis head football coach leading the Sharks after 22 years with Cape Coral Police Oasis High School head football coach Brice Bearman in his first season after retiring from the Cape Coral Police Department after 22 years.
NAPLES Naples City Council votes to repair Naples Pier Though Helene did cause further damage to the Naples Pier, the city manager said it would not get in the way of its reconstruction.
Florida voter registration deadline upcoming Monday, Oct. 7, is the deadline to register to vote in November’s general election.
FORT MYERS BEACH The future of Church of the Ascension after Helene One of the hardest hit churches by Hurricane Ian is on Fort Myers Beach. Church of the Ascension got more water from Helene, but there wasn’t much left to damage.
HARLEM HEIGHTS How were Harlem Heights residents affected by Helene? A community filled with water nearly two years ago is dry two years later, even after the storm surge of Helene, and now residents told us why.
PUNTA GORDA Harbor Belle residents in Punta Gorda on day 7 with no power after Helene Hurricane Helene’s impact on an RV park in Punta Gorda has left the community in the sweltering heat with nowhere else to turn.
Lee County Sheriff implementing new bus stop signs to improve safety The Lee County Sheriff’s Office has installed three bus stop signs throughout Lee County. Â
FORT MYERS Fort Myers CRA discusses downtown expansion On Wednesday, the Fort Myers Community Redevelopment Agency discussed an expansion of the area they oversee.
PUNTA GORDA Punta Gorda couple salvages what’s left after dramatic rescue A Punta Gorda couple is awaiting FEMA assistance after dealing with damage from Helene.
BOCA GRANDE Rebuilding after Hurricane Helene and avoiding contractor pitfalls Neighbors across Southwest Florida and beyond are picking up the pieces and assessing the damage left by Hurricane Helene.
PORT CHARLOTTE Areas of Port Charlotte flooded due to heavy rain Some areas of Port Charlotte are underwater after heavy rain Wednesday evening.
PINE ISLAND The Greater Pine Island Alliance is seeking volunteers to help recovery efforts The Greater Pine Island Alliance is looking for volunteers, and age or skill set does not matter; if you want to help, they have a job for you.
FORT MYERS Whiskey Creek residents frustrated by worsened flooding Whiskey Creek residents do not know why flooding has worsened, but they said they want something done about it.
BONITA SPRINGS Bonita Springs firefighters rescue a bulldog in Helene’s aftermath In the aftermath of Hurricane Helene, Bonita Springs Fire Station 27 received a guest: a sweet little bulldog.
FGCU professor speaks on port worker strike 45,000 port workers on the East and Gulf Coasts are officially on strike as of Wednesday after their labor contract with the U.S. Maritime Alliance expired.
CAPE CORAL Oasis head football coach leading the Sharks after 22 years with Cape Coral Police Oasis High School head football coach Brice Bearman in his first season after retiring from the Cape Coral Police Department after 22 years.
NAPLES Naples City Council votes to repair Naples Pier Though Helene did cause further damage to the Naples Pier, the city manager said it would not get in the way of its reconstruction.
Florida voter registration deadline upcoming Monday, Oct. 7, is the deadline to register to vote in November’s general election.
FORT MYERS BEACH The future of Church of the Ascension after Helene One of the hardest hit churches by Hurricane Ian is on Fort Myers Beach. Church of the Ascension got more water from Helene, but there wasn’t much left to damage.
HARLEM HEIGHTS How were Harlem Heights residents affected by Helene? A community filled with water nearly two years ago is dry two years later, even after the storm surge of Helene, and now residents told us why.
PUNTA GORDA Harbor Belle residents in Punta Gorda on day 7 with no power after Helene Hurricane Helene’s impact on an RV park in Punta Gorda has left the community in the sweltering heat with nowhere else to turn.
Lee County Sheriff implementing new bus stop signs to improve safety The Lee County Sheriff’s Office has installed three bus stop signs throughout Lee County. Â
FILE – This Dec. 12, 2018, file photo shows traffic on the Hollywood Freeway in Los Angeles. New vehicles sold in the U.S. will have to travel an average of at least 40 miles per gallon of gasoline in 2026 under new rules unveiled by the government. The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration said Friday its fuel economy requirements will undo a rollback enacted under President Donald Trump. (AP Photo/Damian Dovarganes, File) New vehicles sold in the United States will have to travel an average of at least 40 miles per gallon of gasoline in 2026, up from about 24 mpg, under new federal rules unveiled Friday. The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration said its fuel economy requirements will undo a rollback of standards enacted under President Donald Trump. For the current model year, standards enacted under Trump require the fleet of new vehicles to get just over 24 miles per gallon in real-world driving. The new requirements increase gas mileage by 8% per year for model years 2024 and 2025 and 10% in the 2026 model year. Agency officials say the requirements are the maximum that the industry can achieve over the time period and will reduce gasoline consumption by more than 220 billion gallons over the life of vehicles, compared with the Trump standards. Transportation Secretary Pete Buttigieg, whose department includes the NHTSA, said the rules also will help strengthen national security by making the country less dependent on foreign oil and less vulnerable to volatile gasoline prices. Gasoline nationwide has spiked to an average of more than $4.22 per gallon, with much of the increase coming since Russia, a major oil producer, invaded Ukraine in late February. It cost $2.88 per gallon just a year ago, according to AAA. Gas prices also have helped to fuel inflation to a 40-year high, eating up household budgets and hitting President Joe Biden’s approval ratings. “Transportation is the second-largest cost for American families, only behind housing,” Buttigieg said. The new standards, he said, will help keep the U.S. more secure and preserve “the freedom of our country to chart its future without being subject to other countries and to the decisions that are being made in the boardrooms of energy companies.” But auto dealers say more stringent requirements drive up prices and push people out of an already expensive new-car market. Trump’s administration rolled back fuel economy standards, allowing them to rise 1.5% per year, which environmental groups said was inadequate to limit planet-warming greenhouse gas emissions that fuel climate change. The standards had been rising about 5% per year previously. But the new standards won’t immediately match those adopted through 2025 under President Barack Obama. NHTSA officials said they will equal the Obama standards by 2025 and slightly exceed them for the 2026 model year. The Obama-era standards automatically adjusted for changes in the type of vehicles people are buying. When they were enacted in 2012, 51% of new vehicle sales were cars and 49% SUVs and trucks. Last year, 77% of new vehicle sales were SUVs and trucks, which generally are less efficient than cars. Some environmental groups said the new requirements from NHTSA under Biden don’t go far enough to fight global warming. Others supported the new standards as a big step toward reducing emissions. “Climate change has gotten much worse, but these rules only require automakers to reduce gas-guzzling slightly more than they agreed to cut nine years ago,” said Dan Becker, director of the Safe Climate Transport Center at the Center for Biological Diversity. He said the final rule is about 2 mpg short of the strongest alternative that NHTSA considered. Officials said that under the new standards, owners would save about $1,400 in gasoline costs during the lifetime of a 2029 model year vehicle. Carbon dioxide emissions would drop by 2.5 billion metric tons by 2050 under the standards, the NHTSA said. Automakers are investing billions of dollars to develop and build electric vehicles but say government support is needed to get people to buy them. The companies want government tax credits to reduce prices as well as more money for EV charging stations to ease anxiety over running out of juice. Stellantis, formerly Fiat Chrysler, said Friday it’s investing $35 billion on electric and hybrid vehicles and to become carbon neutral by 2038. “These aims are critical to a sustainable future, and are more likely to be realized with government support for a widespread EV recharging network, point-of-sale EV purchase incentives, and inducements to expand electric-vehicle manufacturing in the U.S.,” the company said in a statement. The NHTSA sets fuel economy requirements, while the Environmental Protection Agency develops limits on greenhouse gas emissions. NHTSA officials said their requirements nearly match rules adopted in December by the EPA, so automakers don’t have to comply with two rules.