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 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 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 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.
No two storms are ever the same, but the emotions evoked can hurt in all the same ways. Hurricane Ian barreled ashore in Southwest Florida as a dangerous, high-end Category 4 storm. Six months later, we’ve come a long way. WINK News Reporter Gail Levy worked as a reporter in Panama City when Hurricane Michael made landfall in 2018, and she traveled back there to get a snapshot of recovery. Ryan Michaels, a meteorologist at WJHG, helped guide the community as they watched Michael make its way through the Gulf of Mexico, “An unprecedented storm system heading towards the panhandle, something we’ve never seen before, Category 4.” Gail Levy worked alongside him then, reporting from the field, “Hurricane Michael hasn’t hit quite yet, but we’re already feeling some of the effects in Franklin County.” That was October 10, 2018, the day Michael made landfall near Mexico Beach. Originally labeled a Category 4 storm, it was later upgraded to a Category 5. On September 28, 2022, Gail once again reported from the field. This time, as Hurricane Ian impacted Southwest Florida, “You can see the trees really blowing around and those sheets of rain just really coming down.” What we saw in the panhandle was different than what we saw and heard here, but what happened in 2018 gave us here in Southwest Florida a little more perspective on what was to come. WJHG had to get creative to keep the community informed, “We have limited function in our control room, so this is how we have to show videos to you.” The station was knocked off the air after a piece of the roof lifted off the building. WINK News went off the air after water flooded the station. Just like many people experienced, communication became a challenge. Donna Bell, Gail’s former boss, was the News Director at WJHG then and now. She knows the struggle of making a simple phone call, “It was really hard not having any cell phone service. Because Verizon went down, we didn’t have our Verizon phones, which all of our news phones were, for 10 days. That was terrifying as a news director. It was terrifying because I had no way to get in touch with you for a very long time.” After Michael, Gail and her photojournalist knew they couldn’t get back to the station from their location in Franklin County. They were located just east of ground zero for Michael. Most of the seaside roads back to Panama City were broken up, similar to how we saw the bridges to Sanibel and Pine Island wash away during Hurricane Ian. One major difference between the two monstrous storms is the physical roadblocks. In the panhandle, there were limited alternative routes because of too many down trees. During Ian, there were boats in the middle of the roads. We couldn’t even tell you what Sanibel looked like in the hours after Ian because we couldn’t get there – unless it was by boat. The one place we could get to on foot was Fort Myers Beach. The silver lining after both storms comes from the reunions and the togetherness we all feel and the strength of our community to rebuild stronger and better together. Nearly five years after Hurricane Michael, panhandle officials said the area is about 50% recovered. Six months after Hurricane Ian, a majority of the debris is gone, a majority of Downtown Fort Myers is open, and rebuilding is underway.