ESTERO 1 injured after shooting at Coconut Point Mall According to the Lee County Sheriff’s Office, one person has been injured after a shooting at the Coconut Point Mall on Friday.
CAPE CORAL CCPD cruiser damaged after officer involved crash An officer-involved crash leaves a Cape Coral police cruiser smashed.
PORT CHARLOTTE Sweet’s Diner in Port Charlotte reopens After months of fundraising and rebuilding, this diner, which had a car fly-through it, is back open.
FWC pushing to protect Florida’s endangered manatees Florida Fish and Wildlife is pushing to protect endangered manatees. One danger that animals face is when boats bash into them, leaving deep scars across their backs.
FORT MYERS The Fort Myers Fire Department looks towards new year Fighting fires is always top of mind for the Fort Myers Fire Department. The Fort Myers Fire Department leads the way when it comes to protecting your property when a fire breaks out.
WINK NEWS Palisades Wildfire devastates SWFL family Just hours after evacuating their Malibu home, the Wohl family learned they would never go back.
CAPE CORAL Cape Coral expands with development The Cove at 47th The Cove sits in south Cape Coral between Cape Coral Parkway and Southeast 47th Terrace right next to Cork Soakers.
FORT MYERS ‘Operation Ghost Buster’: 16 arrested in Fort Myers drug operation The Fort Myers Police Department Narcotics Unit conducted an operation targeting drug traffickers and individuals unlawfully selling and possessing firearms in Fort Myers.
FORT MYERS ‘A Distinctive Honor’: Bank of America award benefits FSW Nursing Program Bank of America has been awarded Florida Southwestern State College the 2024 Neighborhood Champion Award.
CAPTIVA One step closer to decision on South Seas building density After hearing arguments from both sides, the judge said he stood by his earlier decision in favor of the Captiva Civic Association.
Governor signs death warrant for man accused of 1997 killing of 2 in Charlotte County Gov. Ron DeSantis has signed the death warrant for a man accused of killing two people in Charlotte County in 1997.
Community input needed for renaming Challenger Boulevard While Lee Health continues construction on the area’s newest hospital, there are decisions to be made.
ESTERO SWFL Lady Hammerheads find community through rugby The southwest Florida Lady Hammerheads are the Florida Women’s Rugby Union’s newest team.
Heavy law enforcement presence near Arcadia Popeyes According to the DeSoto County Sheriff’s Office, there is a heavy law enforcement presence near a Popeyes restaurant.
Punta Gorda City Council searches for new home Punta Gorda City Council sought a temporary solution when it was unable to meet Jan. 9 at the Military Heritage Museum because elevators weren’t working, which would have been a violation of the Americans with Disabilities Act.
ESTERO 1 injured after shooting at Coconut Point Mall According to the Lee County Sheriff’s Office, one person has been injured after a shooting at the Coconut Point Mall on Friday.
CAPE CORAL CCPD cruiser damaged after officer involved crash An officer-involved crash leaves a Cape Coral police cruiser smashed.
PORT CHARLOTTE Sweet’s Diner in Port Charlotte reopens After months of fundraising and rebuilding, this diner, which had a car fly-through it, is back open.
FWC pushing to protect Florida’s endangered manatees Florida Fish and Wildlife is pushing to protect endangered manatees. One danger that animals face is when boats bash into them, leaving deep scars across their backs.
FORT MYERS The Fort Myers Fire Department looks towards new year Fighting fires is always top of mind for the Fort Myers Fire Department. The Fort Myers Fire Department leads the way when it comes to protecting your property when a fire breaks out.
WINK NEWS Palisades Wildfire devastates SWFL family Just hours after evacuating their Malibu home, the Wohl family learned they would never go back.
CAPE CORAL Cape Coral expands with development The Cove at 47th The Cove sits in south Cape Coral between Cape Coral Parkway and Southeast 47th Terrace right next to Cork Soakers.
FORT MYERS ‘Operation Ghost Buster’: 16 arrested in Fort Myers drug operation The Fort Myers Police Department Narcotics Unit conducted an operation targeting drug traffickers and individuals unlawfully selling and possessing firearms in Fort Myers.
FORT MYERS ‘A Distinctive Honor’: Bank of America award benefits FSW Nursing Program Bank of America has been awarded Florida Southwestern State College the 2024 Neighborhood Champion Award.
CAPTIVA One step closer to decision on South Seas building density After hearing arguments from both sides, the judge said he stood by his earlier decision in favor of the Captiva Civic Association.
Governor signs death warrant for man accused of 1997 killing of 2 in Charlotte County Gov. Ron DeSantis has signed the death warrant for a man accused of killing two people in Charlotte County in 1997.
Community input needed for renaming Challenger Boulevard While Lee Health continues construction on the area’s newest hospital, there are decisions to be made.
ESTERO SWFL Lady Hammerheads find community through rugby The southwest Florida Lady Hammerheads are the Florida Women’s Rugby Union’s newest team.
Heavy law enforcement presence near Arcadia Popeyes According to the DeSoto County Sheriff’s Office, there is a heavy law enforcement presence near a Popeyes restaurant.
Punta Gorda City Council searches for new home Punta Gorda City Council sought a temporary solution when it was unable to meet Jan. 9 at the Military Heritage Museum because elevators weren’t working, which would have been a violation of the Americans with Disabilities Act.
Trucks replacing sand on Sanibel beaches. CREDIT: WINK News A sign of hurricane recovery will also serve as more protection for an island ripped to shreds by Hurricane Ian. Dozens of trucks are taking more than 50,000 tons of sand to Sanibel beaches to replace the eroded sand from Hurricane Ian. At beaches on the northwestern part of Sanibel and the south end of Blind Pass, WINK News saw many trucks come in on Monday dumping fresh sand on the shoreline. WINK News spoke to one of the environmental groups monitoring the entire process. “Always has been one of our favorites,” said Brenda Yurs and McKenna Mason, both visiting from Wisconsin. Whether you’re soaking in the sun, waking down the shoreline or searching for sea shells, you may not think there’s anything wrong with the sand at Sanibel’s Blind Pass Beach. Ty Reagan thinks the sand on the beach is special. “Well, it’s the real sand. I mean, you’ve got the shells, you don’t have the white fluffy sand. I mean, it’s old-school Florida,” said Reagan. Old school Florida because, as the Sanibel Captiva Coastal Wildlife director Kelly Sloan explains, historically, Sanibel has not renourished its beaches. “So that’s all the natural sand that you’re seeing out there,” said Sloan. That’s how Sanibel likes it, and wildlife like the natural sand too. “When you bring in sand during the nesting season, it can have negative impacts on our coastal wildlife, including the turtles and shorebirds,” said Sloan. “Sea turtles, of course, lay their eggs on the sandy nesting beaches, and if you were to bring in the sand and put it on top of that, that would be obviously pretty detrimental.” But during special cases, like Hurricane Ian, a Category 4 storm, expectations have to be made. Blind Pass and Turner Beach will receive approximately 70,000 tons of sand from the Stewart Mine in Immokalee. Sanibel works closely with environmental groups like SCCF. “We are contracted to relocate all nests that are laid on the beach starting 65 days before the project begins,” said Sloan. SCCF’s sea turtle and shorebird teams will be out every morning monitoring for the duration of the project. Work is expected to be finished in about 90 days. Lee County commissioners voted in January to accept grant funds of $5 million from the Florida Department of Environmental Protection to replace sand on Lee County beaches after Hurricanes Ian and Nicole.