Sanibel Island

Scenes of flooding around Fort Myers Beach

Hurricane Helene's wind and surge brought sand - and arguments - ashore

Tom Bayles

What to do with perfectly fine beach sand — once it's been cleared that it's really perfectly fine — depends on whom you talk to, and who pays

Thousands of sea turtle nests will hatch in Southwest Florida throughout this summer and fall, so if you see a local beach swarmed with hatchlings turtle scientists say to leave the baby turtles alone, move off the beach, and certainly do not help the animals

Environment

Sea turtles are packing Southwest Florida beaches with nests

Tom Bayles

This year's sea turtle nesting season is going great, with a leatherback on Sanibel and early nesting throughout the region. But few turtle lovers forget last season when early signs were record-breaking but the season's results were heart-breaking

Lawn watering uses the most water in Southwest Florida, thus ensuring that sprinklers are working correctly and not running during banned hours is especially important during drought conditions

Government & Politics

Repairs at Sanibel Island reverse osmosis plant prompt need for irrigation conservation

WGCU Staff

The Island Water Association on Sanibel has begun replacement of Hurricane Ian damaged infrastructure at the reverse osmosis facility and is asking residents to follow irrigation restrictions.The construction project will temporarily reduce the water utility’s treatment capacity, and has been timed to coincide with anticipated seasonal rains and off-peak residential water demands.

The freshly painted mural can be seen as you drive onto Fort Myers Beach. The 35 foot elevator shaft in the heart of the Time Square area on Fort Myers Beach has been brought back to life by owner Chris Primeau. He had the shaft restored and how it is being painted by two local muralists, Summer Desalvo and Lacy McClary. Summer started her first of two sides last week and said she will be finished by the end of this week. Lacy will begin this week on her two sides. They all hope this project inspires all the Fort Myers Beach residents to continue to rebuild.

Business/Economy

Post Hurricane Ian lessons learned from local government officials: Moore About Business

Karen Moore

Local and state officials reviewed their experiences and lessons learned recently. Here are some of the takeaway notions from Karen Moore, publisher of Southwest Florida Business Today.

During segregation, Black and white children on Sanibel Island played together, even though they went to seperate elementary schools.

Human Interest

Grandsons of Black settlers reflect on segregated South: 'Things were different on Sanibel'

Janine Zeitlin

Kenneth and Eugene Gavin are part of the legacy of the Gavin and Walker families on Sanibel Island. The two families were among the first Black settlers on the island.

Hurricane Recovery

Sanibel Lighthouse beach parking lots temporarily closed for beach renourishment and repairs

WGCU Staff

Sanibel's lighthouse beach parking lots will be temporarily closed Monday, January 22 through Friday, January 26 for beach renourishment work and lighthouse repairs.

Human Interest

Sanibel or ‘San-a-bull’? A tale of two island pronunciations

WGCU Documentary Unit

Sanibel or ‘San-a-bull’? Video tells the tale of two island pronunciations

Crews began adding sand along Sanibel’s coast as part of the Sanibel beach renourishment project. Approximately 400,000 tons of sand will be brought in over the next four months. The first truckloads of sand began arriving on the island Tuesday morning around 6 am. They are working at Donax Road Beach Access west to Gulfside City Park (Reach 4) and from Tradewinds Drive Access west to Bowman's Beach (Reach 1). The beach is still open to the public but parking in some areas may be closed. Between 120 and 160 trucks will be hauling two to three loads of sand to the Island each day. This is to prepare the beach after Hurricane Ian devastated the island a year ago.

Hurricane Recovery

Eastern Portion of Island Inn Road on Sanibel temporarily closed

WGCU Staff

Despite a record number of sea turtle nests on Florida beaches in 2023, remaining shoreline damage from 2022’s Hurricane Ian, overwashed beaches from 2023's Hurricane Idalia, and record-setting high temperatures on land and in the ocean last summer combined to turn a promising start to the nesting season into a bleak reproductive cycle in Southwest Florida

Environment

Promising start to sea turtle nesting season ends in disappointment

Tom Bayles

Imagine the surprise felt by sea turtle lovers when the number of egg-filled clutches laid on Southwest Florida beaches during last summer’s nesting season totaled a normal year despite shorelines transformed by Hurricane Ian.Even better: The mommas kept coming.Female sea turtles often return to the beach of their birth to nest every three years or so, which made understandable the fears of the large and active cadre of turtle volunteers that Category 5 Ian in September 2022 had rendered nesting beaches so unrecognizable the females would be lost, search aimlessly, then dump their eggs at sea.

Hurricane Recovery

Sanibel Causeway restoration substantially done, all lanes open

WGCU Staff

All travel lanes across the Sanibel Causeway are now open and work on the roadway is substantially complete, a report from the Florida Department of Transporation said late Friday. Once through the toll plaza, motorists will now be able to drive to Sanibel with more predictable travel times and no altered traffic patterns around which to maneuver.