Orlando man accused of stealing over $100K in Best Buy merchandise during statewide spree
An Orlando man booked in Brevard County is accused of stealing some $118,413.45 in merchandise from Best Buy stores across the state in a crime spree lasting the better part of a year, according to investigators.
โWe need to provide protections:โ DeSantis announces special session to combat vaccine mandates
Gov. Ron DeSantis announced the Florida legislature would return for a special session to combat vaccine mandates and protect jobs as the federal government prepares to release an executive order requiring vaccinations.
Whales surface at Clearwater Marine Aquariumโs new exhibit
CLEARWATER, Fla. โ The Clearwater Marine Aquarium has opened its newest educational exhibit, Whales: Living With Giants. According to the aquariumโs website, guests will come head-to-head with whales through educational multi-media exhibits, an undersea virtual reality experience, walk-through life-size whale gallery and an interactive kidโs zone. Virtual Reality Dive at Whales: Living with Giants exhibit (Clearwater Marine Aquarium)The virtual reality experience, which requires an additional ticket add-on, was created by an Emmy Award-winning documentary team. The Clearwater Marine Aquarium is a non-profit organization that has a mission of preserving the environment while inspiring others through leadership in the rescue, rehabilitation, and release of marine life; environmental education; research; and conservation. Whales: Living with Giants will be open through Aug. 31.
Viral video shows Florida spring breakers helping handcuffed man escape from police cruiser
Florida spring breakers have gone viral in a video after helping a handcuffed man escape a Clearwater police cruiser. The video shows a crowd of spring breakers surrounding a police cruiser on the beach. Asad has been charged with aiding prisoner escape and resisting arrest without violence. Adam Asad, 18, of Oldsmar is the suspect who helped a handcuffed prisoner to escape on the beach. He faces two charges -- aiding prisoner escape and resisting arrest without violence.
Finned, furry, and human: Clearwater Marine Aquarium to celebrate rescue days
CLEARWATER, Fla. โ Clearwater Marine Aquarium is about to celebrate the rescue anniversaries of some of its most famous dolphins, Winter and Hope. [TRENDING: This woman received the first COVID-19 vaccine | Judge scolds theme park trespasser | Chuck Yeager dies at 97]To celebrate both rescue anniversaries, the aquarium is hosting an event called Rescue Days. Talk to members of the Clearwater Marine Aquarium rescue team and check out one of our rescue vehicles from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m.Foster families can enjoy a socially distanced behind-the-scenes tour prior to the aquarium opening to guests. Meet with dogs from the SPCA Tampa Bay from 11 a.m. to 3 p.m. on Saturday, Dec. 12. (Clearwater Marine Aquarium)Click here to learn about the event and to learn more about the aquariums health and safety guidelines that are in place.
Florida to receive 6.4 million rapid COVID-19 test kits from federal government
Florida will receive 400,000 rapid-test kits a week that can be used to detect COVID-19 infections at schools, senior centers and long-term care facilities, Gov. Molecular tests, such as RT-PCR tests, detect the virus' genetic material but can take from a day to a week to get the results. Antigen tests detect specific proteins on the surface of the virus and come back within 15 minutes. Nevertheless, DeSantis said Tuesday that he may use some of the rapid test kits coming to Florida to supplant PCR testing that the state is conducting, saying it would reduce costs by 75%. In all, DeSantis said Florida would receive 6.4 million rapid test kits under the federal governmentโs plan to provide more than 150 million kits across the nation.
Florida governor says hes monitoring potential tropical cyclone very closely'
CLEARWATER, Fla. Now that Florida is in the cone of uncertainty for a disturbance in the Caribbean thats predicted to become Tropical Storm Isaias, Gov. [READ: Heres how the coronavirus pandemic will impact hurricane season in Florida | COVID or no COVID, some Central Florida residents will need to evacuate if hurricane comes]We are monitoring (Potential) Tropical Cyclone Nine very closely. It looks like were not going to know the storms exact strength and trajectory for a couple more days, DeSantis said. Because social distancing guidelines are in place, local leaders have been forced to reevaluate how they prepare for hurricanes and other potential storms. [RELATED: Florida reports more than 200 COVID-19 deaths, setting new single-day record | What is a potential tropical cyclone?]
Florida governor would send his children back to school in person -- if they were old enough
CLEARWATER, Fla. Parents across Florida have had to decide whether to keep their students home or to send them back to schools in August amid the ongoing coronavirus pandemic, while Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis is not one of those parents because his children are too young, he said he would send them for in-person learning. The governor and his wife First Lady Casey DeSantis have three young children, Madison, 4, Mason, 2, and Mamie, who is about 5 months old. I would have no way of being able to definitively say that nobody in, in any child care setting, a caregiver, has ever come down with it. If theres an outbreak in Pasco County, you know, is the health department tying that to a child care or not?
Coast Guard rescues 3 boaters off Florida coast
CLEARWATER, Fla. The U.S. Coast Guard rescued three people from Tennessee after their boat capsized Wednesday some 15 miles off Florida's Gulf Coast. The agency said in a news release that the boaters called at 2:09 p.m., saying their flat bottom fishing boat was taking on water and they needed assistance. A Jayhawk helicopter crew located the men wearing life jackets and clinging to the capsized boat. After everything went wrong, these men did everything right, said Lt. Tim Keily, the Air Station Clearwater helicopter co-pilot. They immediately called for help, wore their life jackets and stayed with their boat.
1 in critical condition after lightning strike at Clearwater Beach
CLEARWATER, Fla. โ Two people were injured, one critically, from a lightning strike Sunday on Clearwater Beach, officials said. Officials received a call around 2:15 p.m. as a line of storms moved onshore from the Gulf of Mexico, officials said. Gacek Arkadiusz, 37, of Des Plaines, Illinois, was unconscious and not breathing when police arrived at the scene around 2:15 p.m., officials said. Arkadiusz was taken to a hospital in critical condition where he remains as of Monday, Clearwater police said. Sav Keomany, 43, of Pickerington, Ohio, who was a few feet away, was taken to the hospital in stable condition.