Woman sees potentially suspicious charge on her account after parking at Fort Myers BeachNorth Fort Myers DL balancing spring practice and shot put regionals
FORT MYERS BEACH Woman sees potentially suspicious charge on her account after parking at Fort Myers Beach Jennifer parked in the parking lot across from Lynn Hall Memorial Park, paid with a QR code and went to visit friends for lunch.
NORTH FORT MYERS North Fort Myers DL balancing spring practice and shot put regionals North Fort Myers defensive lineman James Johnson is balancing spring football practice and going for a regional title in the shot put.
IMMOKALEE Training day for Folds of Honor donors and special guests On Wednesday, high-ranking veterans of the navy seals and other special operations conducted six different training scenarios.
SOUTHWEST FLORIDA Non-profit makes teddy bears for families of fallen officers Having a loved one in law enforcement means there is always a fear that they may not come home.
CAPE CORAL People fighting to lower the cost of playing pickleball in Cape Coral The price of playing on these courts is putting people in a pickle. The Lake Kennedy Racquet Center has yet to open, but there are a lot of concerns.
NORTH FORT MYERS Parents say their children are still waiting for winnings after Lee County takes over SWFL AG Expo Children in the 4-H program who raise animals say they’re still waiting to receive the money they won in early March.
Southwest Florida Most Wanted Wednesday: Southwest Florida’s most wanted suspects for May 8, 2024 Here are some of Southwest Florida’s most wanted suspects for May 8, 2024.
San Carlos Park Man at center of WINK News investigation now charged with drugging, molesting child After a years long WINK investigation, Dwayne Staron was arrested and convicted of grand theft. Now he and his wife, Theresa Staron, are both behind bars.
FORT MYERS Police: Man caught at Clemente Park with AR pistol, ski mask and black latex gloves A 19-year-old man has been arrested after officers found an AR pistol, all-black clothing, a ski mask and black latex gloves in his backpack.
PUNTA GORDA FHP investigating hit-and-run with injuries after crash at mm 170 on I-75 Authorities are investigating a hit-and-run crash with injuries on Interstate 75 southbound at mile marker 170 in Punta Gorda.
ALVA Department of Health warns of blue-green algae in Alva canal If you live on Sebastian Court along the canal in Alva, the Florida Department of Health in Lee County wants you to remain cautious. A blue-green algae bloom has been spotted there.
SAN CARLOS PARK Couple accused of drugging and molesting girl make court appearance A San Carlos Park couple accused of drugging and molesting a girl while covering it up for two years appeared in court.
FORT MYERS Lee County Schools receives over $2M in Juul settlement The Lee County School District has received over $2 million in a settlement with Juul, and now, it’s putting that money to use.
JERUSALEM (AP) Israel says it reopened a key Gaza crossing after a rocket attack but the UN says no aid has entered The Israeli military said Wednesday that it has reopened its Kerem Shalom crossing into Gaza after days of closure, but the U.N. said no humanitarian aid has yet entered and there is no one to receive it on the Palestinian side after workers fled during Israel’s military incursion in the area.
ATLANTA (AP) Georgia appeals court agrees to review ruling allowing Fani Willis to stay on Trump election case A Georgia appeals court on Wednesday agreed to review a lower court ruling allowing Fulton County District Attorney Fani Willis to continue to prosecute the election interference case she brought against former President Donald Trump.
FORT MYERS BEACH Woman sees potentially suspicious charge on her account after parking at Fort Myers Beach Jennifer parked in the parking lot across from Lynn Hall Memorial Park, paid with a QR code and went to visit friends for lunch.
NORTH FORT MYERS North Fort Myers DL balancing spring practice and shot put regionals North Fort Myers defensive lineman James Johnson is balancing spring football practice and going for a regional title in the shot put.
IMMOKALEE Training day for Folds of Honor donors and special guests On Wednesday, high-ranking veterans of the navy seals and other special operations conducted six different training scenarios.
SOUTHWEST FLORIDA Non-profit makes teddy bears for families of fallen officers Having a loved one in law enforcement means there is always a fear that they may not come home.
CAPE CORAL People fighting to lower the cost of playing pickleball in Cape Coral The price of playing on these courts is putting people in a pickle. The Lake Kennedy Racquet Center has yet to open, but there are a lot of concerns.
NORTH FORT MYERS Parents say their children are still waiting for winnings after Lee County takes over SWFL AG Expo Children in the 4-H program who raise animals say they’re still waiting to receive the money they won in early March.
Southwest Florida Most Wanted Wednesday: Southwest Florida’s most wanted suspects for May 8, 2024 Here are some of Southwest Florida’s most wanted suspects for May 8, 2024.
San Carlos Park Man at center of WINK News investigation now charged with drugging, molesting child After a years long WINK investigation, Dwayne Staron was arrested and convicted of grand theft. Now he and his wife, Theresa Staron, are both behind bars.
FORT MYERS Police: Man caught at Clemente Park with AR pistol, ski mask and black latex gloves A 19-year-old man has been arrested after officers found an AR pistol, all-black clothing, a ski mask and black latex gloves in his backpack.
PUNTA GORDA FHP investigating hit-and-run with injuries after crash at mm 170 on I-75 Authorities are investigating a hit-and-run crash with injuries on Interstate 75 southbound at mile marker 170 in Punta Gorda.
ALVA Department of Health warns of blue-green algae in Alva canal If you live on Sebastian Court along the canal in Alva, the Florida Department of Health in Lee County wants you to remain cautious. A blue-green algae bloom has been spotted there.
SAN CARLOS PARK Couple accused of drugging and molesting girl make court appearance A San Carlos Park couple accused of drugging and molesting a girl while covering it up for two years appeared in court.
FORT MYERS Lee County Schools receives over $2M in Juul settlement The Lee County School District has received over $2 million in a settlement with Juul, and now, it’s putting that money to use.
JERUSALEM (AP) Israel says it reopened a key Gaza crossing after a rocket attack but the UN says no aid has entered The Israeli military said Wednesday that it has reopened its Kerem Shalom crossing into Gaza after days of closure, but the U.N. said no humanitarian aid has yet entered and there is no one to receive it on the Palestinian side after workers fled during Israel’s military incursion in the area.
ATLANTA (AP) Georgia appeals court agrees to review ruling allowing Fani Willis to stay on Trump election case A Georgia appeals court on Wednesday agreed to review a lower court ruling allowing Fulton County District Attorney Fani Willis to continue to prosecute the election interference case she brought against former President Donald Trump.
WASHINGTON, DC – MARCH 02: Flanked by U.S. Vice President Mike Pence (L) and Secretary of Health and Human Services Alex Azar, U.S. President Donald Trump leads a meeting with the White House Coronavirus Task Force and pharmaceutical executives in Cabinet Room of the White House on March 2, 2020 in Washington, DC. President Trump and his Coronavirus Task Force team met with pharmaceutical companies representatives who are actively working to develop a COVID-19 vaccine. (Photo by Drew Angerer/Getty Images) The federal government’s “Operation Warp Speed” vaccine program, with its emphasis on quick production and testing of experimental coronavirus vaccines, is fueling fears already stirred up by vaccine skeptics, two experts said Friday. The approach itself is not unreasonable, said Dr. Peter Hotez, dean of the National School of Tropical Medicine and professor of pediatrics and molecular virology and microbiology at Baylor College of Medicine. But the way it’s being communicated is scaring people, he told CNN. “The way the message is coming out of Operation Warp Speed creates a lot of chaos and confusion. And it is enabling the anti-vaccine movement,” Hotez said. A White House coronavirus task force source told CNN earlier this week that the Trump Administration’s Warp Speed program had chosen five companies most likely to produce a Covid-19 vaccine — whittled down from 14 last month when “Operation Warp Speed” was launched. Dr. Anthony Fauci, director of the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases, says he expects up to 100,000 doses of one vaccine, made by biotech company Moderna, to be available by the end of the year, ready to be rolled out if it is shown to work safely to protect people against coronavirus infection in clinical trials that are now underway. He has said one of the candidates could be ready as early as January. That is a highly accelerated schedule, as vaccines typically take years to produce. “We think we are going to have a vaccine in the pretty near future, and if we do, we are going to really be a big step ahead,” Trump said last month. “The way they are messaging it is a little frightening because they make a point of saying how quickly it is being done,” said Dr. Paul Offit, director of the Vaccine Education Center and professor of pediatrics at Children’s Hospital of Philadelphia. “It makes people think there are steps being skipped.” Hotez and Offit should know. They have both spent years fighting an organized anti-vaccination effort and trying to educate people who have doubts and fears about vaccines. Both have written books about vaccine safety. Hotez wrote “Vaccines Did Not Cause Rachel’s Autism,” about his daughter, and Offit has written several books, including “Deadly Choices: How the Anti-Vaccine Movement Threatens Us All.” “What does the anti-vaccine lobby allege?” Hotez asked. “They say we rush vaccines, that we don’t adequately test them for safety, and that there is this conspiratorial relationship between Big Pharma and the government.” And then vaccine makers send out news releases trumpeting incremental successes. Last month, Moderna, the US biotech company heavily promoted by the White House and the National Institutes of Health, announced promising early results, sending its share price up 30%. At the same time, two top executives sold $30 million worth of shares. Lorence Kim, Moderna’s chief financial officer, exercised 241,000 options for $3 million, filings show. He then immediately sold them for $19.8 million, creating a profit of $16.8 million. The next day, Tal Zaks, Moderna’s chief medical officer, spent $1.5 million to exercise options. He immediately sold the shares for $9.77 million, triggering a profit of $8.2 million. It was all legal, but looked bad, Hotez said. “They are shooting themselves in the foot,” he said. On Thursday, National Institutes of Health director Dr. Francis Collins said he feared vaccine skepticism would make people unwilling to get the coronavirus vaccine. He also said the messaging would be important. Offit worries that companies and the federal government may actually be tempted to skip safety steps in the rush to protect people from coronavirus. That wouldn’t make the vaccine skeptics right, but it could be dangerous and further erode credibility. “You have a president who said hydroxychloroquine was going to work. He said, ‘I heard really good things about it and how could it hurt,’ ” Offit said. “None of that was right. First, it didn’t work, and second, it did hurt. It has cardiac toxicity.” Offit worries something even more damaging could happen with a vaccine. Currently, the federal government is helping develop both vaccines and drugs to fight coronavirus. “Do I think this administration has the capacity to perturb the process?” asked Offit. “Yes, I do.” So far, Offit sees nothing that has gone wrong with any of the vaccines in development. He doesn’t see any indication that safety is being sacrificed. But it’s clear to him why the administration would choose five vaccines to focus on. “It’s because they are the fastest to make,” Offit said. All use biotechnology approaches to make vaccines using genetic sequences, as opposed to the tried-and-true but slow approach of using a whole virus that has been either weakened or killed. “As long as the phase 3 trials are done and respected, I think the speed we are witnessing will be fine,” Offit said. But the phase 3 trials, one of which is penciled in to be done in 30,000 volunteers later this year, must be taken to the end to ensure that any rare side effects from vaccination will become visible. “That is the part that cannot be skipped,” Offit said.