Fort Myers community comes together for Thanksgiving turkey giveawayLCSO: Shooting Investigation underway in North Fort Myers
FORT MYERS Fort Myers community comes together for Thanksgiving turkey giveaway This time of year is especially stressful for people who are struggling financially. Adding all the holiday expenses on top of rent, food and basic necessities can leave people feeling anxious and off balance.
NORTH FORT MYERS LCSO: Shooting Investigation underway in North Fort Myers The Lee County Sheriff’s Office is investigating an incident in North Fort Myers on Saturday.
FORT MYERS Driver arrested after fleeing police, causing multi-car crash in Fort Myers The Fort Myers Police Department has arrested a man accused of causing a multi-car crash in Fort Myers.
Chilly morning and a cool Saturday afternoon with lots of sunshine The Weather Authority says the weekend is starting off nice and chilly, with temperatures in the 40s and 50s across Southwest Florida.
WINK NEWS SWFL Scoreboard: High School Football Regional Semifinals It’s the regional semifinal round of high school football in Southwest Florida. Check out the scores and highlights.
FORT MYERS BEACH New information on why FEMA put Fort Myers Beach on probation FEMA was sure to lay it out in a letter. Out of the five points listed, three areas need work on Fort Myers Beach to re-apply for the flood insurance discount.
CAPE CORAL Exclusive: Cape Coral Police Chief speaks out on hate crime incident New exclusive surveillance video shows the moment a Cape Coral home is vandalized. The suspects painted racial slurs on the wall in red paint. WINK News broke this story on Wednesday.
CAPE CORAL New police precincts coming to Cape Coral The Cape Coral Police Department is adding new precincts around the city. The reason? Growth.
Vietnam veteran’s unique service animal companion When we think of service animals, dogs usually come to mind, but it’s not just dogs that help people navigate through their challenges.
NAPLES Gulfshore Life’s Men and Women of the Year award honoree: John Cooney It’s one thing to be philanthropic and help our community. It’s another to provide so much help and want absolutely nothing in return, not even your name mentioned.
FORT MYERS Dunbar High principal named Lee County Principal of the Year Carl Burnside was the last to find out Friday morning that he was selected as Lee County Schools Principal of the Year for 2025.
FORT MYERS BEACH Fort Myers Beach businesses excited for increased season traffic Those on Fort Myers Beach are excited for the town to return to normal. Businesses are ready to accept snowbirds and residents again.
CAPE CORAL Mom faces DUI charge after crash during pick-up at Oasis High School A crash in the pick-up line at Oasis High School led Cape Coral police to a DUI investigation.
Rethinking daily Asprin intake Many of us have heard the saying, “An aspirin a day keeps the doctor away,” but new research shows that taking aspirin every day might not be as good for you as we once thought.
NAPLES Embezzlement investigation in Naples WINK News is looking into claims of embezzlement in the Naples government.
FORT MYERS Fort Myers community comes together for Thanksgiving turkey giveaway This time of year is especially stressful for people who are struggling financially. Adding all the holiday expenses on top of rent, food and basic necessities can leave people feeling anxious and off balance.
NORTH FORT MYERS LCSO: Shooting Investigation underway in North Fort Myers The Lee County Sheriff’s Office is investigating an incident in North Fort Myers on Saturday.
FORT MYERS Driver arrested after fleeing police, causing multi-car crash in Fort Myers The Fort Myers Police Department has arrested a man accused of causing a multi-car crash in Fort Myers.
Chilly morning and a cool Saturday afternoon with lots of sunshine The Weather Authority says the weekend is starting off nice and chilly, with temperatures in the 40s and 50s across Southwest Florida.
WINK NEWS SWFL Scoreboard: High School Football Regional Semifinals It’s the regional semifinal round of high school football in Southwest Florida. Check out the scores and highlights.
FORT MYERS BEACH New information on why FEMA put Fort Myers Beach on probation FEMA was sure to lay it out in a letter. Out of the five points listed, three areas need work on Fort Myers Beach to re-apply for the flood insurance discount.
CAPE CORAL Exclusive: Cape Coral Police Chief speaks out on hate crime incident New exclusive surveillance video shows the moment a Cape Coral home is vandalized. The suspects painted racial slurs on the wall in red paint. WINK News broke this story on Wednesday.
CAPE CORAL New police precincts coming to Cape Coral The Cape Coral Police Department is adding new precincts around the city. The reason? Growth.
Vietnam veteran’s unique service animal companion When we think of service animals, dogs usually come to mind, but it’s not just dogs that help people navigate through their challenges.
NAPLES Gulfshore Life’s Men and Women of the Year award honoree: John Cooney It’s one thing to be philanthropic and help our community. It’s another to provide so much help and want absolutely nothing in return, not even your name mentioned.
FORT MYERS Dunbar High principal named Lee County Principal of the Year Carl Burnside was the last to find out Friday morning that he was selected as Lee County Schools Principal of the Year for 2025.
FORT MYERS BEACH Fort Myers Beach businesses excited for increased season traffic Those on Fort Myers Beach are excited for the town to return to normal. Businesses are ready to accept snowbirds and residents again.
CAPE CORAL Mom faces DUI charge after crash during pick-up at Oasis High School A crash in the pick-up line at Oasis High School led Cape Coral police to a DUI investigation.
Rethinking daily Asprin intake Many of us have heard the saying, “An aspirin a day keeps the doctor away,” but new research shows that taking aspirin every day might not be as good for you as we once thought.
NAPLES Embezzlement investigation in Naples WINK News is looking into claims of embezzlement in the Naples government.
Pink Shell Beach Resort & Marina on Fort Myers Beach. Credit: WINK News. Lee County released new data this week on how different areas in the county are bouncing back after Ian, based on the number of hotels that have reopened since the storm. In the entire county, 78.1% of hotels and rentals are open following Hurricane Ian, including Sanibel, Captiva and Fort Myers Beach, which have less than half of their hotels open at this time. Here are all of the numbers from Lee County on the percentage of how many hotels and rentals are open: Boca Grande: 100.0% open Bonita Springs: 94.4% open Cape Coral: 100.0% open Captiva: 56.0% open Estero: 100.0% open Fort Myers: 98.7% open Fort Myers Beach: 42.9% open Lehigh Acres: 100.0% open North Fort Myers: 74.8% open Pine Island: 66.3% open Sanibel: 17.5% open You’ll find that the numbers show Fort Myers Beach, Captiva, and Sanibel struggling to reopen. They are the three hit hardest by Ian. Boca Grande, Cape Coral, Estero and Lehigh Acres are the only areas fully open at 100% capacity. Lee County also shared that during April 2024, 1,133,256 passengers traveled through Southwest Florida International Airport, an increase of 15.5% in comparison to April 2023. Many said it is going to take some time, and not just a couple of years, it is going to take a lot of time. Laura Becker traveled all the way to Fort Myers Beach from Minnesota. “It’s a very lowkey vibe and a very fun place to be,” Becker said. She’s staying in Cape Coral but wanted to stay on Fort Myers Beach. When Becker looked at places on the island for her entire family, she couldn’t find what she wanted. WINK News spoke with Jacki Liszak from the Fort Myers Beach Chamber of Commerce. “As of this week, we have about 1,755 rooms available, that’s a hotel and vacation rental. Pre-storm, I have that we had 4,315 rooms and vacation rentals available,” Liszak said. Those who spoke to WINK News on Friday said they are staying in surrounding areas, and not actually on the island, due to the limited options. “We’re here to help rebuild houses after [the] hurricane and for people that don’t have the money to support to do it. And, we’ve been like talking and doing flooring and painting inside people’s houses,” a missionary group from Minnesota said. The three-day rainstorm messed up their plans. “Most of the things we’re doing like inside were also like low-income houses, so it was obviously not like the best situation with rain,” they said. As well as Laura’s beach day. “It’s not fun we did that drove through flooding yesterday. We actually tried to hit some of the other islands and got turned around because the roads were closed because we kept trying to find beaches, but not so much fun. We did puzzles and indoor games,” Becker said. Locals were also shocked to see the rain. “It’s the craziest rain I’ve seen since Ian. It was horrifying,” Paula Gray, a local, said. Maybe in years, the area will be rebuilt. “We’re not even close yet to gaining back what we had pre-storm,” Liszak said. But there is hope. “It’s very good. Feels good to be back,” Becker said. Feels good to be back. Liszak said even with the number of hotels and rentals in the process of opening on Fort Myers Beach, the numbers wouldn’t even come close to pre-Ian. She said people could look forward to these in the future as the public would have access to new and great things, like rooftop terraces, new restaurants and bars.