ALVA Woodpeckers build home in 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 arrested 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.
CAPE CORAL Cape Coral drug bust leads investigators to fake fentanyl, cash and guns Cape Coral man arrest on drug charges. Investigators said they found, guns, drugs, and more than $32,000 in Richard Riley’s home.
NAPLES Naples youth flag football team to compete in Ohio tournament This weekend, the Naples Lunatics Green will compete in the Superhero Sports tournament in Canton, Ohio.
ALVA Woodpeckers build home in 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 arrested 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.
CAPE CORAL Cape Coral drug bust leads investigators to fake fentanyl, cash and guns Cape Coral man arrest on drug charges. Investigators said they found, guns, drugs, and more than $32,000 in Richard Riley’s home.
NAPLES Naples youth flag football team to compete in Ohio tournament This weekend, the Naples Lunatics Green will compete in the Superhero Sports tournament in Canton, Ohio.
People needing FEMA trailers have waited months, and now, FEMA is saying no to some who have applied. FEMA says they do not want to put trailers in a flood zone, but many of the people who need help the most are in flood zones. Lee County commissioners learned about FEMA’s rule on Tuesday. For more than 70 days, no one from FEMA told anyone they wouldn’t place a trailer in a flood zone. It’s possible FEMA representatives who visited many destroyed, and damaged homes didn’t know the rule either. One representative visited Richard Stengel’s home in island park and marked it for a trailer, but since that day, Stengel hasn’t heard a thing. “My car was sitting right here. And that’s gone,” said Stengel. Stengel didn’t just lose his car in Hurricane Ian. His furniture’s gone, his walls are gone, and his whole home is pretty much gone. “I’ve been living with my sister over in San Carlos Park. She had a she got a two-bedroom house. She had a bedroom I could [use], but she’s gonna have to have that. So I don’t know. I’ll be OK. Until next week, two weeks, two weeks, and then we’ll see,” said Stengel. Stengel thought the one thing he would see by now is a FEMA trailer parked on his front lawn. “I was approved, staked it out, and he says it will be probably two weeks, and that was first part of November,” Stengel said. That representative never said the trailer might never come because FEMA won’t park its trailers in a flood zone. “That just boggles my mind,” said Stengel. Stengel isn’t alone in that thought. Lee County Commissioner Brian Hamman can’t determine what FEMA is doing with this rule. “FEMA has rules [that] don’t seem to make sense. They say we can’t help flood victims because they live in flood plains. Well, yeah, of course, they live in flood plains. That’s why they got flooded. That’s why they need a FEMA trailer,” said Hamman. At a Lee County recovery workshop, FEMA representatives explained the reasoning. They said the trailers could be parked across Lee County for one hurricane season, maybe two, and that’s not safe. Stengel had an easy answer for that concern. “Let me take the responsibility. You know, and if there’s a hurricane coming and you have to evacuate. They’re looking for a loss of life. Believe me, you know, I learned my lesson this time,” said Stengel. FEMA said it’s looking into 18 locations where they could create a group site for the trailers. It’s somewhere for them to be placed, but that doesn’t help out people like Stengel as much as if it was on their front lawn. “Would that be hour drive from here? Or would it be a 15? It’s not gonna be a 15 or 20-minute drive. So you’d be commuting,” said Stengel. That is just not ideal, especially when you ask Hamman. “After the hurricane happened, we had a parade of officials that came to town who said we’re here to help anything you need, just let us know. Here’s what we need right now. We need some temporary trailers that could be allowed to be placed on our resident’s properties so that they can stay near their homes as they try to rebuild their lives,” Hamman said. A FEMA representative said it’s looking at 18 different group sites across Lee County, but those have to undergo extensive planning, including environmental and mitigation reviews. Then the commissioners have to look over it, and the public has to comment on it. All of which would take time, time that many storm victims just don’t have.