Almost eight years to the day since his daughter was murdered trying to escape the mass shooting at Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School, Fred Guttenberg sat next to U.S. Rep. Debbie Wasserman Schultz doing what he’s become known for — passionately arguing for gun laws that would make it more difficult for someone to commit an act of violence. “Jaime’s law,” named for Guttenberg’s daughter, is a federal bill that would extend background checks to the purchase of ammunition,... Read More
68 measles cases reported in Florida this year; count continues to rise
Measles is now spreading in Florida, with 68 cases reported in the state already this year. Florida Department of Health tracking shows that as of Feb. 7, the most recent data available, most cases in the state of the highly infectious disease are in Collier County, where, each day, more students and professors at Ave Maria University near Naples are showing symptoms. Although the state’s tracking charts show 45 cases in college-aged students in the area, the university said in a statement... Read More
Conagra ordered to pay $25 million in lawsuit alleging Pam cooking spray caused lung disease
A jury awarded a Los Angeles man $25 million in a lawsuit against Chicago-based Conagra alleging its butter-flavored Pam cooking spray caused a rare chronic lung disease that will require a double lung transplant. The verdict last week in the Superior Court of Los Angeles found that Conagra did not adequately warn consumers about the potential dangers of inhaling fumes from Pam cooking spray containing diacetyl, a butter-flavored chemical linked to respiratory illness. During the... Read More
‘An admirer of hers’: 911 calls released after murders in Fort Lauderdale and Sarasota
A woman whose family members were killed in a murder spree stretching from Fort Lauderdale to Sarasota called 911, voicing concerns about an “admirer” of her mother and asking them to check on her, newly released recordings show. “I need the police to come right now, to come check on my mom’s house in Fort Lauderdale,” the woman, who is identified in a fundraiser by the name Eve, said in the first call just after 1:30 p.m. “Can you tell me exactly what happened?” the dispatcher... Read More
Wendy’s closes US restaurants and focuses on value to turn around falling sales
By DEE-ANN DURBIN, AP Business Writer Wendy’s is closing several hundred U.S. restaurants and increasing its focus on value after a weaker-than-expected fourth quarter. The Dublin, Ohio-based company said Friday that its global same-store sales, or sales at locations open at least a year, fell 10% in the October-December period. That was worse than the 8.5% drop expected by analysts polled by FactSet. U.S. same-store sales fell even further in the fourth quarter. Wendy’s said late last... Read More
Art’s a beach! Fort Lauderdale’s new colorful lifeguard towers are more than just pretty to look at
Next time you can’t locate your group at Fort Lauderdale beach, tell them to meet you at the lifeguard tower with the manatee. Or the scuba diver. Or the zebrafish. Eight of 20 towers along the city’s famous shoreline are now painted in colorful aquatic themes, making them stand out along the busy stretch of pedestrians, sand and sunbathers. The towers are also new, replacing bland white stands that the city says had been sinking and deteriorating. The city dedicated four of the freshly... Read More
Second US aircraft carrier is being sent to the Middle East, AP source says, as Iran tensions high
By KONSTANTIN TOROPIN and JON GAMBRELL, Associated Press WASHINGTON (AP) — The United States will send the world’s largest aircraft carrier to the Middle East to back up another already there, a person familiar with the plans said Friday, putting more American firepower behind President Donald Trump’s efforts to coerce Iran into a deal over its nuclear program. The USS Gerald R. Ford’s planned deployment to the Mideast comes after Trump only days earlier suggested another round of... Read More
South Florida rap icon brings his culture to cookware with Trick Daddy Pots | VIDEO
It feels only natural that Trick Daddy’s cooking show, “I Got My Pots,” led the hip-hop legend to launch a signature line of cookware. Trick Daddy Pots debuted in December featuring a 15-piece ceramic cookware collection born out of his viral video cooking/culinary series (originally titled “B—-, I Got My Pots!”), which has seen celebrity guests such as NeNe Leakes, CeeLo Green, Trina, DJ Khaled, Timbaland, Rick Ross and Mike Epps in the kitchen with the Miami-born rapper. (You... Read More
‘He snapped’: Jail calls, photographs connect fraught custody battle to Tamarac triple murder
The notes appeared throughout the now-quiet Tamarac home, on pieces of printer paper and legal pads. “Videos give a good contrast of demeanor changes, coaching, & alienation,” one read. “Won’t be a permanent final injunction,” said another. A third contained a quote in blue ink: “The most dangerous time for a woman when she is leaving her abuser is the moments just before and after her ‘leaving.’” “Timely,” was written above it. The notes depict Mary Gingles’... Read More
Can new shade sails lure crowds to Tunnel Top Plaza? Fort Lauderdale is about to find out
FORT LAUDERDALE — Tunnel Top Plaza, the gathering spot on Las Olas Boulevard that sits above the U.S. 1 tunnel, has turned into a no-walk zone. A mass of metal scaffolding went up in late December, prompting people passing by to wonder why. It’s all to make way for a shady new addition: Beige-colored shade sails. The work could be done as soon as next week, Fort Lauderdale officials say. The retractable shade sails should help make Tunnel Top Plaza a more attractive and comfortable spot,... Read More