High School Football Scoreboard Week 6 Hurricane Helene couldn’t keep all the Friday night lights off in Southwest Florida. Week 6 was a loaded slate included a classic in the WINK News Game of the Week.
BONITA SPRINGS Bonita Springs begins clean up operations On Friday, the Department of Transportation pushed sand off the road on Hickory Island after Hurricane Helene ripped through
MANASOTA KEY Manasota woman recovers after home destroyed by Helene Whipping winds – the sound of Hurricane Helene ripping through Manasota Key, as swells smashed into the island. Even so, Marsha Viglianco stayed to watch from her back porch.
El Jobean residents fighting to recover from Helene In Charlotte County, people living in El Jobean are in recovery mode Friday night. Many were flooded out of their homes, and now they’re figuring out their next steps.
NAPLES Restoration efforts begin in the aftermath of Helene in Collier County Helene gave Naples Beach flash flooding a debris Thursday night.
PUNTA GORDA Punta Gorda couple deals with flooding after Helene A Punta Gorda couple is recovering as the storm surge from Helene went through their dream home.
DOWNTOWN FORT MYERS Flooding affects business in downtown Fort Myers In downtown Fort Myers, the streets may be drying up, but for one business owner on Bay Street, the true struggle is just getting started.
BONITA SPRINGS Damage in Bonita Springs from Helene It seems like nearly every place on the water was left with significant damage. In Bonita Springs, storm surge pushed into the city.
FORT MYERS BEACH Closer look at rescue operations during Helene All across Southwest Florida, we saw stories of bravery and selflessness during Helene.
DOWNTOWN FORT MYERS Neighbors hit with flooding in Dean Park community On Friday, roads in downtown Fort Myers were fairly dry. It’s a stark contrast to Thursday night’s storm surge caused by the outer bands of Hurricane Helene.
ESTERO ISLAND Precautionary boil water notice issued for parts of Estero Island A precautionary water boil notice has been issued for Estero Island on Friday.
SANIBEL Helene aftermath in Sanibel While much of the water has receded, the Sanibel Causeway was closed for several hours Friday morning because city crews were trying to clean up the flooding and debris.
LEE COUNTY WINK News Player of the Week: Riverdale RB Cole Hayes Riverdale running back Cole Hayes rushed for 336 yards and five touchdowns against Cypress Lake to be named the WINK News Player of the Week.
Matlacha resident on difficult road to recovery after Helene Matlacha residents are recovering from Helene’s storm surge on Thursday.
FORT MYERS BEACH Neighbors begin to clean up after flooding on Fort Myers Beach Waking up Friday morning, Fort Myers Beach neighbors had deja vu. The site of debris, the sound of alarms and the unmistakable smell of mud brought back memories of Hurricane Ian.
High School Football Scoreboard Week 6 Hurricane Helene couldn’t keep all the Friday night lights off in Southwest Florida. Week 6 was a loaded slate included a classic in the WINK News Game of the Week.
BONITA SPRINGS Bonita Springs begins clean up operations On Friday, the Department of Transportation pushed sand off the road on Hickory Island after Hurricane Helene ripped through
MANASOTA KEY Manasota woman recovers after home destroyed by Helene Whipping winds – the sound of Hurricane Helene ripping through Manasota Key, as swells smashed into the island. Even so, Marsha Viglianco stayed to watch from her back porch.
El Jobean residents fighting to recover from Helene In Charlotte County, people living in El Jobean are in recovery mode Friday night. Many were flooded out of their homes, and now they’re figuring out their next steps.
NAPLES Restoration efforts begin in the aftermath of Helene in Collier County Helene gave Naples Beach flash flooding a debris Thursday night.
PUNTA GORDA Punta Gorda couple deals with flooding after Helene A Punta Gorda couple is recovering as the storm surge from Helene went through their dream home.
DOWNTOWN FORT MYERS Flooding affects business in downtown Fort Myers In downtown Fort Myers, the streets may be drying up, but for one business owner on Bay Street, the true struggle is just getting started.
BONITA SPRINGS Damage in Bonita Springs from Helene It seems like nearly every place on the water was left with significant damage. In Bonita Springs, storm surge pushed into the city.
FORT MYERS BEACH Closer look at rescue operations during Helene All across Southwest Florida, we saw stories of bravery and selflessness during Helene.
DOWNTOWN FORT MYERS Neighbors hit with flooding in Dean Park community On Friday, roads in downtown Fort Myers were fairly dry. It’s a stark contrast to Thursday night’s storm surge caused by the outer bands of Hurricane Helene.
ESTERO ISLAND Precautionary boil water notice issued for parts of Estero Island A precautionary water boil notice has been issued for Estero Island on Friday.
SANIBEL Helene aftermath in Sanibel While much of the water has receded, the Sanibel Causeway was closed for several hours Friday morning because city crews were trying to clean up the flooding and debris.
LEE COUNTY WINK News Player of the Week: Riverdale RB Cole Hayes Riverdale running back Cole Hayes rushed for 336 yards and five touchdowns against Cypress Lake to be named the WINK News Player of the Week.
Matlacha resident on difficult road to recovery after Helene Matlacha residents are recovering from Helene’s storm surge on Thursday.
FORT MYERS BEACH Neighbors begin to clean up after flooding on Fort Myers Beach Waking up Friday morning, Fort Myers Beach neighbors had deja vu. The site of debris, the sound of alarms and the unmistakable smell of mud brought back memories of Hurricane Ian.
It’s time to shop until you drop, but it’s not your everyday kind of shopping. With the start of the 2024 hurricane season, it’s time to prepare for any upcoming storms. Right now, hurricane readiness supplies are sales tax-free. READ MORE: Sales tax-free shopping begins; save money and prepare for Hurricane Season “When storms are announced, things tend to fly off the shelf very quickly,” said Jay Thomas, an assistant manager at Lowe’s. “We run out of generators, very fast, storm shutters, all the fasteners you need to hang them. It’s important to have those things to keep your family safe.” From large, expensive items like portable generators, to small items like batteries, even dog and cat food; They’re all exempt from sales taxes from now until June 14. so far, people have been taking advantage of the sales. “Picked up like 4 or 5 fuel cans like two years ago when the tax holiday was on, and I’m hoping to grab one or two more just to stock up outside of that.” said customer Patrick Sheehan. “Oh we plan early,” said customer Kathy Harter. “And my husband just texted me the other day, ‘Do we have extra dog food?’ Because we have four big dogs. And so, we have to buy extra.” Many customers said other important items they think should have been exempt, were not. “I don’t know if they take into consideration. You know, everything you might need for a tax-free holiday like this. But definitely, air conditioners is something that you would want to have,” said Thomas. “The power goes out, you’re not going to be able to run your whole house on a backup generator like this.” Sheehan agreed with him. “I think in today’s day and age, that should just be a standard across the board at this point. I don’t it’s kind of silly that it’s not considering our region,” said Sheehan. The disaster preparedness sales tax holiday runs until June 14. If you miss it – it’s not too late to still save on supplies this hurricane season. A second exemption period will be held from Saturday, August 24 to Friday, September 6.