Police investigate homicide in front of Fort Myers beauty salonWINK Neighborhood Watch: road rage, domestic violence and camper fire
FORT MYERS Police investigate homicide in front of Fort Myers beauty salon The Fort Myers Police Department is investigating a homicide after police found a man’s dead body in the parking lot of a Fort Myers beauty salon.
SOUTHWEST FLORIDA WINK Neighborhood Watch: road rage, domestic violence and camper fire This weeks segment of WINK Neighborhood watch features: An angry driver, a posterior puncture, and a family camper up in flames.
OCALA Memorial held for migrant bus crash victims A memorial was held in Ocala Friday night after a bus crash left eight people dead and 45 injured this past Tuesday.
IMMOKALEE ROAD 3 injured in deadly crash on Immokalee road The Florida Highway Patrol is currently investigating a deadly crash on Immokalee road.
NAPLES Collier deputies investigating car submerged in water The Collier County Sheriffs Office is investigating the scene of a submerged vehicle in Naples.
GAINESVILLE FGCU softball reflects on season and team’s legacy FGCU softball reflects on the historic season following their elimination doubleheader Saturday as well as what made this team special.
SOUTHWEST FLORIDA The Weather Authority: Scattered storms in the forecast for your Sunday Expect sun and clouds throughout the day, along with scattered rain. Some of the storms have the potential to become severe.
CAPE CORAL Do we need a federal gun database for mental illness? One family says yes One family is on a mission to create a new national gun database. It would require medical professionals to enter mental health information.
ALVA Three dead in triple drowning near the Franklin Lock in Olga The Lee County Sheriff’s Office is responding to a scene of a water rescue where three people were recovered.
PUNTA GORDA The Weather Authority helps you prepare for the hurricane season at the 2024 Charlotte County Hurricane Expo With hurricane season less than two weeks away, it’s important to start preparing.
GAINESVILLE FGCU softball senior balances EMT training and Regional play Ahead of NCAA Regional play, FGCU senior outfielder Riley Oakes started EMT training as she works toward being a trauma surgeon.
PUNTA GORDA Homes For Our Troops grants veteran new home Through all the cheers and a community-wide escort, it’s a ‘welcome to your forever home for army sergeant veteran Brandon Rethmel and his family.
SOUTHWEST FLORIDA Beat the Heat: Stay safe during extreme weather The Weather Authority has issued a heat advisory for portions of South, Southeast, and Southwest Florida from 10 a.m. to 8 p.m. on Saturday.
FORT MYERS Leaders discuss possibility of shutting down Caloosahatchee Bridge Should residents endure two years of partial lane closures, or fully shut the Caloosahatchee bridge down for 10 weeks?
GAINESVILLE FGCU softball parents cherish NCAA Tournament experience The parents of the FGCU softball team are relishing seeing their daughters play in the NCAA Tournament.
FORT MYERS Police investigate homicide in front of Fort Myers beauty salon The Fort Myers Police Department is investigating a homicide after police found a man’s dead body in the parking lot of a Fort Myers beauty salon.
SOUTHWEST FLORIDA WINK Neighborhood Watch: road rage, domestic violence and camper fire This weeks segment of WINK Neighborhood watch features: An angry driver, a posterior puncture, and a family camper up in flames.
OCALA Memorial held for migrant bus crash victims A memorial was held in Ocala Friday night after a bus crash left eight people dead and 45 injured this past Tuesday.
IMMOKALEE ROAD 3 injured in deadly crash on Immokalee road The Florida Highway Patrol is currently investigating a deadly crash on Immokalee road.
NAPLES Collier deputies investigating car submerged in water The Collier County Sheriffs Office is investigating the scene of a submerged vehicle in Naples.
GAINESVILLE FGCU softball reflects on season and team’s legacy FGCU softball reflects on the historic season following their elimination doubleheader Saturday as well as what made this team special.
SOUTHWEST FLORIDA The Weather Authority: Scattered storms in the forecast for your Sunday Expect sun and clouds throughout the day, along with scattered rain. Some of the storms have the potential to become severe.
CAPE CORAL Do we need a federal gun database for mental illness? One family says yes One family is on a mission to create a new national gun database. It would require medical professionals to enter mental health information.
ALVA Three dead in triple drowning near the Franklin Lock in Olga The Lee County Sheriff’s Office is responding to a scene of a water rescue where three people were recovered.
PUNTA GORDA The Weather Authority helps you prepare for the hurricane season at the 2024 Charlotte County Hurricane Expo With hurricane season less than two weeks away, it’s important to start preparing.
GAINESVILLE FGCU softball senior balances EMT training and Regional play Ahead of NCAA Regional play, FGCU senior outfielder Riley Oakes started EMT training as she works toward being a trauma surgeon.
PUNTA GORDA Homes For Our Troops grants veteran new home Through all the cheers and a community-wide escort, it’s a ‘welcome to your forever home for army sergeant veteran Brandon Rethmel and his family.
SOUTHWEST FLORIDA Beat the Heat: Stay safe during extreme weather The Weather Authority has issued a heat advisory for portions of South, Southeast, and Southwest Florida from 10 a.m. to 8 p.m. on Saturday.
FORT MYERS Leaders discuss possibility of shutting down Caloosahatchee Bridge Should residents endure two years of partial lane closures, or fully shut the Caloosahatchee bridge down for 10 weeks?
GAINESVILLE FGCU softball parents cherish NCAA Tournament experience The parents of the FGCU softball team are relishing seeing their daughters play in the NCAA Tournament.
Sea turtle nesting season officially kicked off on Monday. Scientists know turtles with satellite tags on them did pretty well during Hurricane Ian, but now it’s time for them to lay eggs in conditions that aren’t ideal, which has environmental leaders worried about hatching. Tiny tracks leading from the water to higher ground on Fort Myers Beach are a telltale sign that sea turtle nesting season is here. ”You can see she crawled up through here and made her way looking for some elevation and some dune vegetation, ran into the rocks and rubble,” said Chadd Chustz, environmental project manager on Fort Myers Beach. Not an ideal location to drop her eggs. The turtle-to-be ultimately decided the rocky patch was not the best place to start her family, and her tracks go back to the water. Chustz believes rubble left behind by Ian is just one way the storm will affect this nesting season. “We also lost a lot of dune vegetation,” Chustz said. “That’s something that the momma turtles look forward to go and lay their eggs in. So, without that dune vegetation, they’re struggling a little bit to find the right place to lay their eggs.” Less vegetation and fewer structures to block light onto the beach will also be an issue. “Now we have houses that are two and three, four houses back from Estero Boulevard, but they’re now essentially Gulf-front,” Chustz said. “So, even back on those houses, it’s important for them to come to the beach, take a look at their lighting and make some adjustments for the turtles.” The moon and stars’ reflection on the water is a turtle hatchling’s road map to the ocean. Lights from our homes, both exterior and interior, can lead them astray ”We ask that people look for amber LEDs and put them in fixtures that are downward-directed and shielded away from the beach,” Chustz said. Fort Myers Beach is making its own adjustments for the turtles. Piles of sand will form a berm 6 feet above sea level to protect the eggs from water if there’s a storm, giving the tiny turtles a better chance. Fort Myers Beach has regulations in place to protect the animals: People are asked to close their curtains at sunset to stop interior light from hitting the beach, install proper exterior lights and fill in any holes they dug on the beach before they leave. And another big thing is to keep the beach dark for nesting turtles, so put your flashlights away. “This is the time of year when loggerhead sea turtles start heading towards our beaches from their foraging grounds,” said Kelly Sloan, coastal wildlife director at the Sanibel-Captiva Conservation Foundation If you see tracks in the sand, know that they belong to a sea turtle who just returned from months of swimming hundreds or even thousands of miles. Although May 1 is the official sea turtle nesting season start date, Sloan’s turtles get busy earlier on the barrier islands. “We have about 12 nests on our beach right now already,” Sloan said. “So, you know, we expect to see about 800 to 1,000 this year on our beaches of Sanibel and Captiva.” One particular loggerhead turtle on Captiva was crowned the second of the season and was likely a returnee. “A sea turtle imprints on the beach that they’re born on,” Sloan said. “A lot of the time, they’ll come back to the same exact spot to lay their eggs about 25 or 30 years later.” In an ever-changing Southwest Florida, chances are that beach will look different to the new mom upon her return. This season, Ian’s storm surge forced many changes, too. “After a hurricane, studies have shown that the vegetation is thinned out and lights that weren’t previously visible from the beach have become visible,” Sloan said. “Maybe it’s never been a problem before, but now the sea turtles can see that white light on your house.” Those lights can outshine the turtles’ compass: the moon. “On a moonless night, the lights from the homes are often brighter, brighter than the sea,” Sloan said. “They’ll go the wrong direction, and they will end up dying of dehydration or predation. Or sometimes they’ll even get squished by cars.” Sea turtle species range from vulnerable to critically endangered, but Southwest Florida had its best turtle nesting season on record last year. The hope is for a new record this year.