Trumparilla Boat Parade kicks off in Fort MyersThe Weather Authority: Hot temperatures, rain, and we’re watching the tropics
FORT MYERS Trumparilla Boat Parade kicks off in Fort Myers The Lee County GOP is hosting the Trumparilla Boat Parade in support of the Republican nominee.
Southwest Florida The Weather Authority: Hot temperatures, rain, and we’re watching the tropics Get ready for a typical Southwest Florida weekend. It’s going to feel like the triple digits before rain rolls in and we’re watching the tropics.
ALVA Woodpeckers build home in Alva woman’s house You may have heard of squatters, but this woman is dealing with squawkers. Who needs a rooster to wake up when you have woodpeckers?
FORT MYERS Man claims he was trapped in a high-rise for 5 days A 77-year-old man wants justice after he claims he spent days trapped on the 24th floor of a high-rise apartment building.
PUNTA GORDA Charlotte Correctional prisoner charged for death of another inmate State Attorney Amira Fox convened a grand jury, which decided to move forward with a case against a Charlotte Correctional inmate.
SANIBEL Construction near Dairy Queen eagle nest on Sanibel raises concerns While many eagle nests may be a bit difficult to see, one nest has always been a favorite for Sanibel residents and tourists.
The environmental effects of artificial sweeteners Experts are studying how the foods we eat affect the environment, especially after we flush our waste down the toilet.
Victim reacts to man exposing himself to her Ring camera You get a notification on your phone from your ring camera app that someone is at the door, only to find out it is someone exposing themselves. It’s the last thing victim Maria Kivi wanted or expected to see last week.
LEE COUNTY The art of capturing your eye and drawing you in How do you capture young, hip, trendy, fun, movers and shakers, all in a pose? We take you behind the scenes of a Gulfshore Life cover shoot.
FORT MYERS The lives of two SJC Boxers changed in the ring Two SJC Boxers, Mario Nunez and Arbon Kurtishi, help each other in the ring as each of them had their lives changed because of boxing.
FORT MYERS Chlamydia cases rising sharply in Lee County If you think about a crowded space- something with more than 250 people- if it’s in Lee county, statistically one person has chlamydia.
SANIBEL Sanibel resort day passes hope to get more business on the island A pass will allow vacationers to hang out at a Sanibel beach club for a day in hopes of drumming up some business.
Voting equipment tested ahead of Lee County elections Voting equipment is being tested in Lee County. This is to ensure all ballots are printed and counted correctly for the upcoming election.
Collier County teen assaulted after leaving party The teen has been charged and the sheriff’s office said they’re aware that many believe felony charges are in order, but under Florida law, there are very specific criteria that must be met for felony charges to be filed.
WINK weather team watching tropical wave over Atlantic Ocean The Weather Authority is watching a tropical disturbance over the Central Atlantic Ocean.
FORT MYERS Trumparilla Boat Parade kicks off in Fort Myers The Lee County GOP is hosting the Trumparilla Boat Parade in support of the Republican nominee.
Southwest Florida The Weather Authority: Hot temperatures, rain, and we’re watching the tropics Get ready for a typical Southwest Florida weekend. It’s going to feel like the triple digits before rain rolls in and we’re watching the tropics.
ALVA Woodpeckers build home in Alva woman’s house You may have heard of squatters, but this woman is dealing with squawkers. Who needs a rooster to wake up when you have woodpeckers?
FORT MYERS Man claims he was trapped in a high-rise for 5 days A 77-year-old man wants justice after he claims he spent days trapped on the 24th floor of a high-rise apartment building.
PUNTA GORDA Charlotte Correctional prisoner charged for death of another inmate State Attorney Amira Fox convened a grand jury, which decided to move forward with a case against a Charlotte Correctional inmate.
SANIBEL Construction near Dairy Queen eagle nest on Sanibel raises concerns While many eagle nests may be a bit difficult to see, one nest has always been a favorite for Sanibel residents and tourists.
The environmental effects of artificial sweeteners Experts are studying how the foods we eat affect the environment, especially after we flush our waste down the toilet.
Victim reacts to man exposing himself to her Ring camera You get a notification on your phone from your ring camera app that someone is at the door, only to find out it is someone exposing themselves. It’s the last thing victim Maria Kivi wanted or expected to see last week.
LEE COUNTY The art of capturing your eye and drawing you in How do you capture young, hip, trendy, fun, movers and shakers, all in a pose? We take you behind the scenes of a Gulfshore Life cover shoot.
FORT MYERS The lives of two SJC Boxers changed in the ring Two SJC Boxers, Mario Nunez and Arbon Kurtishi, help each other in the ring as each of them had their lives changed because of boxing.
FORT MYERS Chlamydia cases rising sharply in Lee County If you think about a crowded space- something with more than 250 people- if it’s in Lee county, statistically one person has chlamydia.
SANIBEL Sanibel resort day passes hope to get more business on the island A pass will allow vacationers to hang out at a Sanibel beach club for a day in hopes of drumming up some business.
Voting equipment tested ahead of Lee County elections Voting equipment is being tested in Lee County. This is to ensure all ballots are printed and counted correctly for the upcoming election.
Collier County teen assaulted after leaving party The teen has been charged and the sheriff’s office said they’re aware that many believe felony charges are in order, but under Florida law, there are very specific criteria that must be met for felony charges to be filed.
WINK weather team watching tropical wave over Atlantic Ocean The Weather Authority is watching a tropical disturbance over the Central Atlantic Ocean.
FILE – A woman is transported from The Rehabilitation Center at Hollywood Hills as patients are evacuated after a loss of air conditioning due to Hurricane Irma on Sept. 13, 2017, in Hollywood, Fla. Prosecutors dropped manslaughter charges Thursday, Sept. 22, 2022, against three nurses who had been present when 12 nursing home patients suffered fatal overheating five years ago after a hurricane knocked out power to their facility’s air conditioning. (Amy Beth Bennett/South Florida Sun-Sentinel via AP, File) Prosecutors dropped manslaughter charges Thursday against three nurses who were present when 12 nursing home patients suffered fatal overheating five years ago after Hurricane Irma knocked out power to their facility’s air conditioning. The Broward County State Attorney’s Office dismissed charges against Althia Meggie, Sergo Colin and Tamika Miller, but not Jorge Carballo, the home’s administrator. He is still scheduled to go on trial next month, and prosecutors said Meggie, Colin and Miller would testify against him. The victims, ranging in age from 57 to 99, had body temperatures of up to 108 degrees (42 degrees Celsius), paramedics have reported. The staff has been criticized for not taking the patients to a hospital across the street that had air conditioning. Carballo’s attorney, James Cobb, did not immediately return a call Thursday seeking comment. He sent a letter to Broward State Attorney Harold Pryor last week saying, “I’ve never seen a more malicious, misguided prosecution in my life.” He told Pryor that lead prosecutor Chris Killoran has admitted to him that Carballo will be acquitted. He said Pryor and Killoran have “no good faith reasonable belief that you can obtain a conviction of Mr. Carballo.” In a Thursday letter, Pryor responded, “I am aware of the challenges ahead; however, we do believe we have a good faith basis to proceed against your client.” The deaths began at the Rehabilitation Center of Hollywood Hills three days after Irma knocked out a transformer that powered the cooling system at the 150-bed, two-story facility in suburban Fort Lauderdale. Otherwise, the facility never lost power. A state report said that before the storm hit on Sept. 10, 2017, Carballo and his staff made appropriate preparations. They purchased extra food and water and seven days’ fuel for the generator. Administrators also participated in statewide conference calls with regulators, including one where then-Gov. Rick Scott said nursing homes should call his cell phone for help. After the air conditioner was knocked out, Carballo and his facility manager contacted Florida Power & Light. When that didn’t work, they tried calling Scott’s cellphone and county and city officials. No help came. Temperatures that week were in the upper 80s (about 31 degrees Celsius). On Sept. 12, two days after the storm, serious problems began to arise. Employees tried to use portable air conditioners to keep the patients cool, but they were not properly installed. The units on the first floor were vented into the ceiling, meaning they were displacing heat into the second floor. That’s where 11 of the 12 victims lived. In an internet chatroom managers used to communicate, the director of housekeeping wrote, “the patients don’t look good.” The report says Carballo never responded but did order the installation of large fans. In the early afternoon, Hollywood paramedics made the first of several visits over the next 16 hours: a 93-year-old man had breathing problems. A paramedic asked about the high temperatures — staff said they were getting the air conditioner repaired. Paramedics took the man to the hospital across the street, where doctors measured his temperature at 106 degrees (41.1 Celsius). He died five days later. Carballo told investigators that when he left at 11 p.m. the temperature inside the home was safe. The report found that “not credible.” At 3 a.m. on Sept. 13, paramedics returned to treat an elderly woman in cardiac arrest, with one telling investigators the home’s temperature was “ungodly hot.” The woman’s temperature was 107 (41.7 Celsius) and so was another person’s. The paramedics were called into a room where Colin, the lead nurse, was performing CPR on a dead man. Paramedics told investigators the man had rigor mortis, meaning he had been dead for hours, undercutting the staff’s contention they monitored patients closely. The report says security video shows no one visited the man for seven hours. Paramedics said Colin tried to stop them from checking other patients, saying everything was OK. Lt. Amy Parrinello said she replied, “you told me that before and now we have multiple deceased patients so with all due respect, I don’t trust your judgment.” At 6 a.m., fire Capt. Andrew Holtfreter arrived and was summoned to another dead body. A paramedic began treating a patient whose temperature was so high it couldn’t be measured — the department’s thermometers max out at 108 degrees (42.2 Celsius). Alarmed by the patients arriving at its emergency room, Memorial Hospital staff went across the street. One nurse said the nursing home felt like “the blast of heat” inside a car that’s been sitting in the sun all day. The fire department ordered the home evacuated. Soon, Hollywood homicide detectives arrived — about the time FPL came to fix the air conditioner. The home never reopened.