Matlacha

Lee County’s Matlacha Community Park, which has been closed since Hurricane Ian due to damage, will reopen to the public with limited amenities at 7 a.m. Saturday.

Head of state Emergency Management and FEMA officials surprise Hurricane Ian victims on Pine Island

Andrew Jarosh found his Matlacha home in a shambles when he finally got a chance to survey what Hurricane Ian had wrought. However, he didn't count on the visitor that the storm dumped at his property.

The early completion of emergency road and bridge repairs for Pine Island was announced on Wednesday.

Three days after Hurricane Ian ripped through the communities on Pine Island, the coast guard organized a water-borne operation to help evacuate residents because the bridge that used to connect the island to the mainland is buckled and broken. Many residents want to stay.

Governor Ron DeSantis, Florida Attorney General Ashley Moody, and Lee County Sheriff Carmine Marceno addressed Pine Island residents' concerns for their safety following catastrophic impacts of Hurricane Ian.

Internationally acclaimed impressionist-expressionist painter and philanthropist Leoma Lovegrove takes a break from her Matlacha gallery and studio space…