What we learned about Cape Coral’s water crisis after a ride alongThe Weather Authority: A wet Saturday evening as storms move through Southwest Florida
CAPE CORAL What we learned about Cape Coral’s water crisis after a ride along On Friday, WINK News got to ride along to see just what people are doing that could be wasting water.
The Weather Authority: A wet Saturday evening as storms move through Southwest Florida A rainy Saturday evening across much of southwest Florida.
FORT MYERS Lee Health Touch-A-Truck event educates families on Trauma Awareness On Saturday morning, sirens were ringing to celebrate Lee Health Trauma Center’s 30 years of service and to provide the public with trauma education and prevention methods.
SOUTHWEST FLORIDA (CBS) CDC says bird flu viruses “pose pandemic potential,” cites major knowledge gaps Bird flu continues to appear to pose a “low risk to the general public” for now, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention says. But the agency’s scientists ran into roadblocks investigating a human case of this “pandemic potential” virus this year, they said in a new report.
DOWNTOWN FORT MYERS Bay Street Yard set to open in late May A new place to hang out in Downtown Fort Myers is opening this spring.
Aetna agrees to settle lawsuit over fertility coverage for LGBTQ+ customers Aetna has agreed to settle a lawsuit that accused the health insurer of discriminating against LGBTQ+ customers in need of fertility treatment.
SOUTHWEST FLORIDA WINK Neighborhood Watch: Robbery, Pawn Shops, and Child Porn This week’s segment of Wink Neighborhood Watch features an armed robber, fraud at a pawn shop, and possession of child pornography.
Southwest Florida The Weather Authority: Sun, clouds, humidity, rain – it’s all in your weekend forecast Saturday afternoon will be hot and humid, with a mix of sun and clouds.
LEHIGH ACRES Chaotic lake getting fence and security Now, with all the negative attention it has gotten, some think putting up a fence is a great way to keep that bad activity out.
FORT MYERS Students affected by COVID-19 able to graduate for the first time For many young people, COVID stripped away one of their greatest rites of passage: graduation.
Deadly crash on State Road 29 in Hendry County Authorities are at the scene of a deadly crash on State Road 29 in Hendry County on Friday afternoon.
Celebrating Free Comic Book Day in SWFL JP Sports store manager Jonathan Powell said this is a generational event that brings families together to reminisce on comics and other hobby-related knickknacks.
FORT MYERS Group rescues dogs before getting put down in Lee County Our animal shelters are packed with amazing puppies who have the sole desire to be loved.
FORT MYERS FGCU student beats all odds and is able to graduate Nearly four years ago, Marisa Manning had her heart set on going to Florida Gulf Coast University but never thought she’d find her passion for studying parasites.
FORT MYERS Victim in MLK Blvd. shooting identified as social media influencer The victim of the Martin Luther King Boulevard shooting has been identified as a local social media influencer.
CAPE CORAL What we learned about Cape Coral’s water crisis after a ride along On Friday, WINK News got to ride along to see just what people are doing that could be wasting water.
The Weather Authority: A wet Saturday evening as storms move through Southwest Florida A rainy Saturday evening across much of southwest Florida.
FORT MYERS Lee Health Touch-A-Truck event educates families on Trauma Awareness On Saturday morning, sirens were ringing to celebrate Lee Health Trauma Center’s 30 years of service and to provide the public with trauma education and prevention methods.
SOUTHWEST FLORIDA (CBS) CDC says bird flu viruses “pose pandemic potential,” cites major knowledge gaps Bird flu continues to appear to pose a “low risk to the general public” for now, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention says. But the agency’s scientists ran into roadblocks investigating a human case of this “pandemic potential” virus this year, they said in a new report.
DOWNTOWN FORT MYERS Bay Street Yard set to open in late May A new place to hang out in Downtown Fort Myers is opening this spring.
Aetna agrees to settle lawsuit over fertility coverage for LGBTQ+ customers Aetna has agreed to settle a lawsuit that accused the health insurer of discriminating against LGBTQ+ customers in need of fertility treatment.
SOUTHWEST FLORIDA WINK Neighborhood Watch: Robbery, Pawn Shops, and Child Porn This week’s segment of Wink Neighborhood Watch features an armed robber, fraud at a pawn shop, and possession of child pornography.
Southwest Florida The Weather Authority: Sun, clouds, humidity, rain – it’s all in your weekend forecast Saturday afternoon will be hot and humid, with a mix of sun and clouds.
LEHIGH ACRES Chaotic lake getting fence and security Now, with all the negative attention it has gotten, some think putting up a fence is a great way to keep that bad activity out.
FORT MYERS Students affected by COVID-19 able to graduate for the first time For many young people, COVID stripped away one of their greatest rites of passage: graduation.
Deadly crash on State Road 29 in Hendry County Authorities are at the scene of a deadly crash on State Road 29 in Hendry County on Friday afternoon.
Celebrating Free Comic Book Day in SWFL JP Sports store manager Jonathan Powell said this is a generational event that brings families together to reminisce on comics and other hobby-related knickknacks.
FORT MYERS Group rescues dogs before getting put down in Lee County Our animal shelters are packed with amazing puppies who have the sole desire to be loved.
FORT MYERS FGCU student beats all odds and is able to graduate Nearly four years ago, Marisa Manning had her heart set on going to Florida Gulf Coast University but never thought she’d find her passion for studying parasites.
FORT MYERS Victim in MLK Blvd. shooting identified as social media influencer The victim of the Martin Luther King Boulevard shooting has been identified as a local social media influencer.
Addison Bethea and Rhett Willingham in Bethea’s hospital room. Credit: CBS Miami Addison Bethea faces a long fight ahead after she was bitten by a shark off Keaton Beach on the state’s Gulf coast. “I’ve always been told that something will happen just like that, that was definitely this situation,” the 17-year-old said from her hospital room days after the attack. Bethea, who is from Perry, started last Thursday on the water just like many others ahead of Independence Day. “We were scalloping for about two hours and we went to the last spot, obviously for only like 15 minutes, and we were going towards the boat and I felt like a tug,” she said. The tug of a roughly nine-foot-long shark, coming seemingly out of nowhere. “I tried to push it off of me and punch it in its nose, but it was at like a weird position where I couldn’t punch his nose good. Then it tried to drag me underwater because we were in like six feet of water,” said Bethea. Her brother, Rhett Willingham, was nearly eight feet away from her when the shark attached itself to her thigh. “I heard her almost yelp and I stood up to turn around and see what was going on because it sounded like something scared her and she was under the water and then she came back up and there was blood all around her and I saw the shark,” said Willingham. Willingham, a firefighter, helped her fight it off. But then came the next battle, to save her life. He pulled his sister into another boat, applied a tourniquet to her leg to stem the blood loss, and rushed her back to land as fast as possible After fighting off the shark, Willingham pulled his sister into another boat, applied a tourniquet to her leg to stem the blood loss, and rushed her back to land as fast as possible Three days later, from Bethea’s room at Tallahassee Memorial, their mother, Michelle Murphy, called him a true hero. “My daughter, by medical standards, should not be alive right now and I know that. It’s a miracle she survived this and I know if Rhett hadn’t been the one that was with her when it happened we may be in a very different scenario right now,” said Murphy. The teen is scheduled to have her leg amputated above her knee on Tuesday. Bethea’s story quickly spread across the country and she said that the support from people all over has helped her through this process. “It’s just insane because I’ve seen other people go through things and need support and thought it’d ever be me. Now that I’m going through it, it’s just crazy,” she said. But the most meaningful bond is at home with her older brother. “We’ve always been close, like since forever, so this somehow brought us even more close. He’s always been by my side and I’ve always looked up to him,” said Bethea. Despite the challenges ahead, her love of being out on the water remains. “Don’t be scared of the ocean. I had so many people comment on my Instagram saying, ‘I’m so scared of the ocean now’. But I’m still going to get in the ocean when I heal and get better. I’m still going to do what I love, don’t just let fear overtake your life,” she said.