Search results for

State health officials reported 6,772 new COVID-19 cases and 44 deaths, Wednesday. So far more than 7.5 million people in Florida have been vaccinated including more than 2.9 million people who have received a first dose and more than 4.6 million who have completed the series.Florida Education Commissioner Richard Corcoran sent a letter to school district officials, Wednesday, advising that mask wearing for students will be optional this fall.School districts in Southwest Florida are planning to scale back their virtual learning options for the 2021-2022 school year. Area school districts are also reporting a surge in new infections after students returned from spring break.Due to reports of rare blood clots, Florida has paused distribution of the Johnson & Johnson COVID-19 vaccine. Gov. Ron DeSantis says despite the pause, Florida’s vaccine supply is still strong. The state’s effort to vaccinate people in prison is also not affected by the pause.Florida Agriculture Commissioner Nikki Fried is calling on Gov. DeSantis to loosen vaccine residency restrictions in an effort to get more undocumented farmworkers vaccinated.

The battle to prevent the Everglades Jetport may have influenced some important laws and events aimed at protecting the environment, wildlife, and parks.

A state lawmaker is looking to halt oil drilling permits in the Everglades.In the past five years, state officials have approved 37 oil drilling…

CORRECTION: The trash cans on Marco Island beach are the responsibility of Collier County and not the city of Marco Island. A natural predator has wiped…

On Nov. 12, the Alliance for the Arts will host a town hall at the Collaboratory in Fort Myers. It will delve into five areas shaping the future of arts and culture in Southwest Florida: Access to the Arts, Community Collaboration, Art Education, Artist Empowerment, and Special Projects.

A fund-raising fishing tournament for Hurricane Ian recovery and rebuilding efforts raised funds in the tens of thousands of dollars even though nobody’s gone fishing in the tournament yet.The recent kick-off party for the Conservancy of Southwest Florida’s “RedSnook” Catch & Release Charity Fishing Tournament raised more than $70,000 to benefit Isle of Capri hurricane victims.The party brought in more than $45,000 in less than 10 minutes. The Community Foundation of Collier County added $25,000,

Former President Donald Trump handily won Florida's Presidential Preference Primary election, Tuesday. In Naples, the mayoral race and one city council seat were too close to call and now head for a recount.

Deaths attributed to Hurricane Ian, based on Florida officials and information from other state and local sources, has risen to at least 123. The Florida Medical Examiners Commission officially confirmed the cause of death of 92 people statewide after the hurricane based on their updated death tally after Hurricane Ian.

Lee County is working to get signage back in place after Hurricane Ian damaged much of the coast in September.

State health officials reported 1,204 new confirmed cases of COVID-19, Thursday, bringing the statewide total number of cases to 48,675. The Florida Department of Health also reported 48 more coronavirus-related deaths, Thursday, for a total of 2,144 fatalities.In a tweet, Gov. Ron DeSantis attributes the large single-day increase in the number of infected people to "another big dump of test results."On Wednesday, state health officials reported receiving more than 77,900 test results, marking the largest single-day number of test results they've received since the pandemic began.