Lee County student ran up and hit teacher in head, report showsPrescription drug shortages lead to higher prices
Lee County student ran up and hit teacher in head, report shows The report says a 13-year-old student ran up and smacked a teacher in the head because multiple classmates offered him money to do so.
Prescription drug shortages lead to higher prices There are currently more than 250 medications on the nation’s drug shortage list, according to the American Society of Health-System Pharmacists. The organization says 2023 marked the worst year for shortages in about a decade.
Mental health resources to help children Here are some resources to help you navigate the mental health system when it comes to help for children. Park Royal Park Royal does not have in-patient options for youth; however, the facility’s launched a new intensive outpatient program for 14 to 17-year-olds. It typically last several weeks or months, and offers three to five […]
NAPLES Video: FWC releases bobcat after rehab stint at Naples Zoo Wildlife officials released a bobcat back into the wild after recovering from a broken leg at Naples Zoo for eight weeks.
Single-member vs. at-large voting debate intensifies in Lee County Three members of Southwest Florida’s state Legislature delegation hosted a public forum May 1 at Lehigh Acres Municipal Services Improvement District, established by the state in 2015.
Unsolved: sawfish deaths rise during Florida Keys mystery More endangered smalltooth sawfish deaths were reported in the Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission’s weekly report.
Emails show beginnings, contradictions of South Seas resort amendment South Seas resort ownership group’s engineer proposed a land-use amendment for Lee County’s government at least six months before the first public discussions and at least seven weeks before the county’s official timeline began, emails between the resort’s representatives and county show.
NORTH FORT MYERS Lee County deputy subdues convicted felon with Taser at North Fort Myers Walmart Lee County deputies used a Taser on a man after they raced through a North Fort Myers Walmart searching for him.
FORT MYERS 2 posing as Target Corporate employees steal over $6K at Fort Myers Target SWFL Crime Stoppers seeks information on two men who allegedly claimed to be employees of Target Corporate and stole over $6,000 at Target.
Punta Gorda cosiders fate of historic A.C. Freeman House It was built by politician and businessman Augustus C. Freeman whose name the house bears, and it was placed on the National Register of Historic Places in 1987.
CAPE CORAL Man arrested for armed robbery in Cape Coral The Cape Coral Police Department has arrested a man for armed robbery and giving a fake name to law enforcement.
Jacksonville Gov. DeSantis signs bills to provide financial options for Floridians Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis signed a bill that will provide financial options to Floridians and another bill that curates the state public school curriculum.
BONITA SPRINGS LCSO seeks information on missing 77-year-old kayaker LCSO seeks information on a missing kayaker after responding to a call about a missing kayak off the coast of Bonita Beach.
FORT MYERS Tim Tebow speaks at annual Southwest Florida Community Prayer Breakfast Former Heisman Trophy winner Tim Tebow took the stage at Hammond Stadium for the annual Southwest Florida Community Prayer Breakfast.
FORT MYERS Fort Myers City Council to provide update on Fowler Street construction project The Fort Myers City Council is set to provide an update on the progress of the Fowler Street intersection project.
Lee County student ran up and hit teacher in head, report shows The report says a 13-year-old student ran up and smacked a teacher in the head because multiple classmates offered him money to do so.
Prescription drug shortages lead to higher prices There are currently more than 250 medications on the nation’s drug shortage list, according to the American Society of Health-System Pharmacists. The organization says 2023 marked the worst year for shortages in about a decade.
Mental health resources to help children Here are some resources to help you navigate the mental health system when it comes to help for children. Park Royal Park Royal does not have in-patient options for youth; however, the facility’s launched a new intensive outpatient program for 14 to 17-year-olds. It typically last several weeks or months, and offers three to five […]
NAPLES Video: FWC releases bobcat after rehab stint at Naples Zoo Wildlife officials released a bobcat back into the wild after recovering from a broken leg at Naples Zoo for eight weeks.
Single-member vs. at-large voting debate intensifies in Lee County Three members of Southwest Florida’s state Legislature delegation hosted a public forum May 1 at Lehigh Acres Municipal Services Improvement District, established by the state in 2015.
Unsolved: sawfish deaths rise during Florida Keys mystery More endangered smalltooth sawfish deaths were reported in the Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission’s weekly report.
Emails show beginnings, contradictions of South Seas resort amendment South Seas resort ownership group’s engineer proposed a land-use amendment for Lee County’s government at least six months before the first public discussions and at least seven weeks before the county’s official timeline began, emails between the resort’s representatives and county show.
NORTH FORT MYERS Lee County deputy subdues convicted felon with Taser at North Fort Myers Walmart Lee County deputies used a Taser on a man after they raced through a North Fort Myers Walmart searching for him.
FORT MYERS 2 posing as Target Corporate employees steal over $6K at Fort Myers Target SWFL Crime Stoppers seeks information on two men who allegedly claimed to be employees of Target Corporate and stole over $6,000 at Target.
Punta Gorda cosiders fate of historic A.C. Freeman House It was built by politician and businessman Augustus C. Freeman whose name the house bears, and it was placed on the National Register of Historic Places in 1987.
CAPE CORAL Man arrested for armed robbery in Cape Coral The Cape Coral Police Department has arrested a man for armed robbery and giving a fake name to law enforcement.
Jacksonville Gov. DeSantis signs bills to provide financial options for Floridians Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis signed a bill that will provide financial options to Floridians and another bill that curates the state public school curriculum.
BONITA SPRINGS LCSO seeks information on missing 77-year-old kayaker LCSO seeks information on a missing kayaker after responding to a call about a missing kayak off the coast of Bonita Beach.
FORT MYERS Tim Tebow speaks at annual Southwest Florida Community Prayer Breakfast Former Heisman Trophy winner Tim Tebow took the stage at Hammond Stadium for the annual Southwest Florida Community Prayer Breakfast.
FORT MYERS Fort Myers City Council to provide update on Fowler Street construction project The Fort Myers City Council is set to provide an update on the progress of the Fowler Street intersection project.
For Lauderdale beach. Credit: CBS Visitors from across the country continued to drive Florida’s tourism industry at a record pace, while international travel still struggled to reach pre-pandemic levels. That’s according to the tourism marketing agency Visit Florida’s figures for the third quarter of 2022. The data shows the state attracted 35.115 million travelers during the third quarter, a 6.9% increase from 2021. The estimate was also 8% above the same period of 2019, before the pandemic essentially shut down the state’s crucial tourism industry. The numbers from July 1 through Sept. 30, the fifth consecutive quarter outpacing the corresponding quarter in 2019, indicated the industry has mostly moved past the COVID-19 pandemic. “Tourism is the number one industry in Florida, and it is the highest contributor to general revenue of our state. So the health of our tourism economy is directly related to the health of our economy as a whole,” said Visit Florida President and CEO Dana Young. “Said another way, if we aren’t doing well, the economy is not going to be doing well either. And so, the more people realize that, that very important connection between tourism and prosperity, the more they are likely to realize how important the work that we do with tourism marketing is.” The estimates did not reflect impacts from Hurricane Ian, which crashed into the southwest coast as a Category 4 system on September 28, days before the end of the quarter. But some resorts have reported layoffs as they try to recover from damage, and the hurricane could affect fourth-quarter tourism numbers. After Ian hit, Visit Florida quickly put together a digital and social-media promotional campaign, seeded with about $2.7 million, that focused on parts of the state left unscathed by Ian. Young said they highlighted areas beyond the state’s top tourism regions. “Last year, we saw a marked increase in the number of visitors that were going to our more rural counties, so truly off the beaten path,” Young said. “In fact, in a few of our counties, we saw hotel occupancy levels increase as much as 25% year over year.” The public-private Visit Florida is backed this year by $50 million in state money for marketing. During the first nine months of 2022, Florida drew 104.375 million visitors, up 15.3% over the first three quarters of 2021 and 4.1% higher than at the same point in 2019, according to the Visit Florida numbers. For all of 2019, the state attracted a record 131.07 million travelers. The state drew 97.752 million U.S. visitors during the first nine months of 2022, including 32.645 million in the third quarter. By comparison, the state drew 90.05 million U.S. visitors during the first nine months of 2019, including 29.295 million in the third quarter of that year. The state initially focused on reviving domestic travel after the initial hit from COVID-19 in 2020. Numbers didn’t start to surpass pre-pandemic levels until the middle of 2021. Meanwhile, Florida drew an estimated 5.002 million overseas travelers during the first three quarters of this year, down 30% from the same period in 2019. Also, Florida drew 1.62 million Canadian visitors through Sept. 30 this year, nearly 46% below the 2019 total. Young said she didn’t expect global inflation or the devalued British pound to further hurt the state’s efforts to attract international visitors. “What we are seeing is that people still want to escape all of that, and they are still planning vacations,” Young said. “And by and large, they are planning vacations to Florida. So, we are not seeing an impact from the negative economic situation around the world on the people that are actually planning a trip to Florida.” Florida tourism was boosted in June when the Biden administration lifted a requirement that international travelers test negative for COVID-19 within a day of boarding flights to the U.S. The ban was one of the last remaining government mandates designed to contain the spread of the coronavirus. But the 1.931 million overseas travelers in the third quarter was off 22.8% from 2019. Also, the 539,000 Canadians who traveled to Florida during this year’s third quarter was down from 703,000 during the same period in 2019.