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Luz Vargas, 45, lost her son Kenyero Fuentes in the fire in Lahaina, Maui, on Aug. 8. He was found in the remnants of their burned home. His 15th birthday would have been this Sunday.

A mother raced to save her son from the Maui fires. She couldn't reach him

When everyone was trying to escape the flames in Lahaina, Luz Vargas ran toward them: Her son was home alone. Days later she found his body. Sunday would have been his 15th birthday.

Gas is pumped into a vehicle at a gas station in Miami on Jan. 23, 2023. A rise in gas prices caused inflation to increase in January when compared to December. Gas prices remain volatile, making the outlook for inflation more uncertain.

Gas stations in SWFL impacted by fuel contamination at the Port of Tampa; FDACS provides an update as of August 29

The Florida Department of Agriculture and Consumer Services has identified a fuel contamination issue caused by human error at the Port of Tampa that could impact fuel sold in Southwest Florida.

A story about a federally endangered green saltwater sea turtle found alive and well in a freshwater pond stretches the topic definition for WGCU's Water Quality Report, but being a good news story with a happy ending, during a summer filled with horribly sometimes deadly environmental news, the editors OK'd the slight departure

Water Quality Report: Good news, far too rare lately, made smiles

a federally endangered green saltwater sea turtle found alive and well in a freshwater pond water quality report bayles wgcu red tide blue green algae

Rehearsal underway for "Heathers: The Musical." It is a joint production between TheatreZone and Florida Gulf Coast University’s Bower School of Music. This experience gives students an amazing opportunity to work with Equity actors and industry professionals in an educational setting while putting on a Broadway-caliber show and getting a feel for what it’s like working in the business. Here we see the students rehearsing and learning some of their numbers before the Equity actors arrive! Heathers will be running October 12- 15 at the FGCU Theatre Lab.

FGCU students have 'Big Fun' in TheatreZone's 'Heathers: The Musical'

TheatreZone and Florida Gulf Coast University are collaborating to bring in Equity actors for "Heathers: The Musical," which will give FGCU theater and music students the opportunity to learn from and work with professional performers.

A behind-the-scenes look of the progress being made on the building of the Mote Science Education Aquarium (Mote SEA). Construction continues and they get closer to an opening date. Members of the local Media were taken on a tour of the first floor of Mote SEA, looking up through the atrium to the second and third floors, and around the exterior of the building. Dan Bebak, Vice President of Mote Education, Aquarium and Facilities, provided up-to-date construction progress and a look into when Mote SEA will be open to the public. From the first floor, a look at the three STEM Teaching Laboratories, as well as the Gulf of Mexico habitat, could be seen.

Inside Mote SEA as STEM labs and exterior construction grow

A behind-the-scenes look of the new Mote Science Education Aquarium was provided recently as construction continues and the facility gets closer to its anticipated 2025 opening date. Mote SEA differs from other aquariums and attractions since science and education is in its name and is the focal point for all guest experiences.The new facility will embody Mote’s vision of Oceans for All, doubling the number of visitors exposed to marine science each year and providing no-cost opportunities for schools to utilize specialized STEM teaching labs to ensure that every child has hands-on marine science and technology experiential learning opportunities.

A fire truck is stalled in the deepest part of Bahia Vista Street in Sarasota. Phillippi Creek runs through this part of town and has flooded a large area. A massive amount of rain fell on the Sarasota area as well as Southwest Florida, Sunday into Monday. Now neighborhoods along the Phillippi Creek area are dealing with power outages and flooding from Hurricane Debby’s impacts leaving streets, cars and even homes underwater. The tropical storm produced more than a foot of rain and eventually turned into a category 1 hurricane once it made land fall.

TD Debby, on its way to hurricane status, leaves Sarasota flooded

According to the National Weather Service more than 12 inches of rain fell from Tropical Depression Debby during it's passage by Sarasota last weekend and most of the day Monday.Here's where you can get a look at the NWS rain data chart.All tropical storm and storm surge warnings for Sarasota County have been cancelled but there are still several other watches, warnings, and advisories in effect for Sarasota County.

Among the several regions from the Artic to the Mariani Islands that are now underwater parts of America are two zones in the Gulf of Mexico rich in natural resources

Water Quality Report: America is bigger

The Extended Continental Shelf Project has made America larger and the Gulf of Mexico's resources off Fort Myers is one of the reasons why

A traffic bridge over the Indian River Lagoon on Florida's East Coast, a waterway environmentalists continue to work to clean after decades of releases of polluted water from Lake Okeechobee scheduled to begin again Dec. 7

Billions of gallons of water being released from Lake Okeechobee to lower depth 4 feet

LOSOM was a hard-fought win for environmentalists was those key components the nonprofits believed would reduce the need for emergency discharges that have previously caused ecological damage

The Celtic Ray Public House in downtown Punta Gorda flooded with 4 feet of water from Peace River and Charlotte Harbor after following Hurricane Milton on October 10, 2024. It's the second flooding of the pub and downtown Punta Gorda in the past two-and-a-half weeks.

Reporter shares firsthand accounts of Punta Gorda residents and devastation following Hurricane Milton

Punta Gorda is grappling with the aftermath of two major hurricanes in just two weeks—first Hurricane Helene, and now Hurricane Milton. As floodwaters receded into Charlotte Harbor, WGCU’s Mike Braun spoke with residents returning to assess their homes and businesses.

Here's where things stand for several major landmarks in the Los Angeles fires

The fires raging across Los Angeles are putting some cultural institutions in danger.

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