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.
The Clinic for the Rehabilitation of Wildlife, aka CROW, is reopening at its home on Sanibel nearly six months after being slammed by Hurricane Ian. The building was never swept away in the storm, but it sustained enough damage to displace the staff and animals. With a ribbon-cutting Thursday morning, everyone is excited to return to CROW’s original location. After the storm, CROW was too damaged to reopen on the island; it needed a place to set up shop while the clinic was repaired. That’s where the Animal Refuge Center in North Fort Myers came in, offering its extra building to CROW and all its patients. ARC’s dog and cat shelter was transformed to welcome injured wildlife, allowing crow to continue caring for animals in need in Southwest Florida “We have digital radiography, we have laboratory equipment, all sorts of things that we’re used to using for dogs and cats,” said Dr. Laura Leinen, board trustee at the Animal Refuge Center. “But, obviously, those are the same things that CROW needs for their wildlife patients. So, we’re able to share those.” CROW worker handles a tortoise. Credit: WINK News “It was really heartbreaking to see, like, we couldn’t go back to our day-to-day work,” said Lilli Pedersen, a wildlife rehabilitation worker at CROW. “I think it’s amazing and just heartwarming that somebody would extend this to us, to be able to continue our work and just get back to it.” ARC was used to taking in dogs and cats searching for homes, but the clinic opened its doors to creatures a bit wilder. CROW saves and treats animals of all shapes and sizes: owls, hawks, tortoises, snakes—you name it. “It meant not having to start from four walls and a shell; there’s a lot of things that are here that we can share and things that we can bring from the island to have this facility up and running much quicker than in any other facility,” said Alison Charney Hussey, executive director of CROW. “That means so much because, again, we can take care of the animals and be back in business.” The ribbon-cutting ceremony took place at 10:30 a.m. “I think people will see us working together and know that the animals that they love, whether domestic or wild, are still being taken care of,” Hussey said. Smiling faces and warm embraces went as far as the eye could see at the ribbon cutting for CROW’s return to Sanibel. “Lots of hugs, lots of happy tears. Some of the volunteers are coming back here for the first time since the storm, seeing CROW for the first time, seeing the improvements that we’ve made in the hospital. And it’s just a happy time. Everyone’s home,” said Hussey. That includes volunteer Sue Kressly. “It is so good to be back home. And to see all the volunteers and the staff. We’ve been separated for now months, and all dealing with our own recovery. And it’s really nice to see people coming together with hope for the future and to be able to rebuild and grow.” CROW prepared days in advance for Hurricane Ian. It evacuated all of its patients ahead of time, but after the hurricane, several animal enclosures were too badly damaged to return. Dr. Robin bast is the staff veterinarian. She came with first responders by helicopter the Friday following Ian. “At that point, it became evident that we weren’t going to be able to function out here for a longer period of time. Usually, we expect to be gone about three to five days for your normal storm. But for this, it was going to be months.” Through everything, CROW never stopped taking care of their patients, but now they can do so again at home on Sanibel.