Latest News: Florida approaches record-high summer temperatures

Aurelien Morissard

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AP

The 2024 Olympic Games in Paris kicked off today with the opening ceremony.

Delray Beach native and tennis star Coco Gauff and former Miami resident LeBron James are the Team USA flag bearers.

They’re not the only athletes with South Florida ties participating in the games. More than 50 athletes from Florida are competing in Paris.

A 14-year-old swimmer from Boca Raton, Mayah Chouloute, will represent Haiti in the 50-meter freestyle sprint. Another swimmer and Florida International University student, Nicole Frank, is competing for the second time, representing Uruguay.

READ MORE: Floridians can wager on the Summer Olympics for the first time

Three years ago, the federal government set aside $800 million for states to help homeless students.
The deadline to use the money is September 30th. Florida has spent almost 60% of its money as of June.
 
Barbara Duffield is the executive director of School House Connection. It’s a national group that fights homelessness through education.
 
Just half the money available from the American Rescue Fund has been spent nationally. Duffield says some states can’t use the money on such a short timeline.
 
“You had a situation where you have short-term funding," said Duffield. "Going into a system for homeless students that was already underfunded, where there wasn't necessarily the capacity, or the staffing to be able to act quickly.”
 
She says Florida is doing well because it already has an established homeless education program.

READ MORE:Partisan school board races may soon be the law in Florida

John Raoux

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AP

After more than 50 days since launching from Cape Canaveral in Boeing’s Starliner Capsule, two NASA astronauts will remain on board the International Space Station until at least next month.

Teams with NASA and Boeing continue to investigate two major issues with the vehicle – helium leaks and faulty thrusters. NASA’s Steve Stitch says that while there are other ways to get the astronauts home, bringing them back in Starliner is still the plan.

After a test this weekend of the thrusters, NASA and Boeing leaders will meet next week to discuss a return date for the crew. The mission was scheduled to last about eight days.

READ MORE:'We’re not stuck.' Why Boeing’s Starliner isn’t returning to Earth (yet)

U.S. Secret Service

The new acting director of the Secret Service got his start as a South Florida police officer.

Secret Service Deputy Director Ronald Rowe will temporarily serve as the agency's leader after Director Kimberly Cheatle resigned. She faced widespread criticism after an attempted assassination of former President Donald Trump earlier this month.
 
The South Florida Sun Sentinel reports that Rowe was a West Palm Beach police officer from 1995 to 1999 when he joined the Secret Service.

While working for the West Palm Beach PD, Rowe was a member of a high-profile unit that focused on drug crimes.

READ MORE: Secret Service director resigns in wake of Trump assassination attempt

And a new Miami-Dade program puts affordable housing and the lottery together.
 
The County has announced its "Dream Home Lottery" where low-income residents can apply online for a chance to purchase one of two 4-bedroom houses in South Miami Dade.

The houses are priced at $394,000. According to the County's website, applicants must make less than 120-percent of the Area Median Income, have a minimum credit score of 580 -- and be able to pay a three-percent down payment.
 
Applications are open through August 7th.

READ MORE: Florida program that hardens homes against hurricanes quickly fills up

Rebecca Blackwell/AP

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AP

Florida is reaching record-high temperatures this summer. 
 
A new report this week from the Florida Policy Institute is turning up the heat on state lawmakers to repeal a new law banning municipal heat protection ordinances. These include local measures that mandate water, rest and shade breaks.
 
Alexis Tsoukalas is a senior analyst at the Institute, a non-partisan public advocacy group. She says protections safeguard workers and the state economy. 

"If you're having those people who are huge drivers of your economy- your theme park workers, your hospitality and service workers- getting sick, potentially dying, having to miss work, that could be disastrous for your business," said Tsoukalas.

READ MORE: As states tap into federal dollars to address climate change, Floridians lose out

Rebecca Blackwell

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AP

Governor Ron DeSantis weighed in on the University of Florida’s recent president vacancy.

He says the decision is up to the UF’s board of trustees, but he would like to see someone selected that would oppose disruptive demonstrations on campus, like outgoing president Ben Sasse did earlier this year.

“We do not want our institutions of higher education to turn into propaganda machines like Columbia universities," said DeSantis. "We don’t want to have a situation where all these demonstrators take over the university.”

Sasse, a former Republican U.S. Senator, stepped down from the post last week after 17 months, citing his wife’s recent epilepsy diagnosis.

READ MORE: University of Florida President Ben Sasse announces resignation

A heat advisory is in effect for Broward and Miami-Dade counties until 7 p.m. today.

The National Weather Service says "feels-like" temperatures could reach up to 105 degrees.

It’s recommended to drink plenty of fluids, stay out of the sun and in air conditioned spaces, and take frequent rest breaks if working outdoors.

READ MORE: Temperature drop makes Tuesday the world’s second-hottest day

The Broward County school district has made the initial payment of nearly $32 million to the county's charter schools after it was determined that it did not properly share tax revenues.

The payment is tied to a 2018 voter-approved referendum that raised property taxes for increased teacher pay and to improve school safety.

The total amount the Broward school district owes charter schools is about $108 million, which the school board agreed to pay this April. Additional payments will be expected for the next two years.

READ MORE: As student aid requests lag in Florida, groups step in to help some fill out FAFSA

Elise Amendola

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Associated Press

South Florida schools will soon be back in session, and from July 29 through Aug. 11, the state offers a tax break on school supplies.

During the two-week period, Floridians can purchase certain school supplies and electronics.
 
That also includes clothing under $100 and items like backpacks and shoes. Electronics like laptops, calculators and tablets under $1,500 each are also on the list.
 
READ MORE: Florida Board of Education approves NIL deals for high school students

Matt Rourke/AP

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AP

Almost all of South Florida’s school districts received an “A” grade for last school year.
 
For the first time since 2011, Broward County Public Schools was among those that got the top grade. Miami-Dade County Public schools, the state’s largest school district, has maintained an “A” grade for five consecutive years.
 
The School District of Palm Beach County went up to an “A,” from last year’s “B” grade. Monroe County’s school district maintained a “B.” 

The Florida Department of Education says that overall school grades for the 2023-24 school year improved over last year. Nearly 1,300 schools in Florida earned an “A” grade, a 6% increase over the 2022-2023 school year.

READ MORE: Florida gives millions to Tampa Bay college for semiconductor and AI training

Pedro Portal

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Miami Herald

The city of Hialeah owes Miami-Dade county millions of dollars for past water and sewer services. The county says it is looking into legal options to secure the payment.
 
The Miami Herald reports that Hialeah owes a little over $18 million dollars for services provided between November 2020 and September of last year. 
 
The Miami-Dade County Mayor's office says it's given Hialeah numerous opportunities to resolve the issue through meetings, emails and correspondence.
 
Hialeah residents get half of their water from Miami-Dade County, and half from a reverse osmosis plant jointly owned by the city and the county. Hialeah also gets their sewer services from the county.
 
However, the county did acknowledge that Hialeah has been paying its sewer service invoices in full since October 2023.

READ MORE: Washington Park in North Miami Beach gets $3 million boost

Riviera Beach city officials say they could face further violations from the Palm Beach County Department of Health, while also looking at more than 100 lawsuits connected to water quality concerns in the city.

According to WPBF Channel 25, that information came out of an emergency meeting of the city's Utility Special District last night.

The conference was called after the Utility Director for Riviera Beach was removed from his position last week. That move stemmed from a water quality test from June of last year that showed traces of E. coli bacteria.

The utility district did not properly retest the water and did not inform residents of the positive test for seven months.

READ MORE: Could coral that survived last summer's heat wave seed more resilient babies?

Homeless people who live out of their cars might soon be getting a break in Broward County. The South Florida Sun Sentinel reports that Fort Lauderdale and Broward County are considering replicating what's known in San Diego as “Safe Parking."
 
That's where parking lots are designated for the homeless to spend the night without having to worry about being arrested or forced to move.
 
Broward County's Safe Parking site would be somewhere in Fort Lauderdale, but the exact location has not yet been confirmed. It would also include mobile showers and toilets.

READ MORE: Florida has months to spend $18.9 million to help homeless students

City of Miami Beach

The Miami Beach City Commission appointed its next city manager today.

After conducting a nationwide search for the city’s CEO position, Eric Carpenter, a longtime Miami Beach administrator, was selected in a 5-2 vote to fill the role, beating out three other finalists. That’s according to the Miami Herald.

After former city manager Alina Hudak resigned in March, Mayor Steven Meiner called for Carpenter to take over the role permanently, but commissioners wanted to conduct a national search.

The commission agreed to appoint Carpenter immediately and hold a special meeting possibly next week to finalize his contract terms.

READ MORE: Coconut Grove groups accuse City of Miami of housing discrimination against Blackresidents

A heat advisory is in effect for Broward and Miami-Dade counties until this evening.

The National Weather Service says hot temperatures and high humidity will produce feels-like temperatures of 105 to 107 degrees.

These hot temperatures may cause heat illness, so it’s important to stay inside an air-conditioned space – if possible. If outdoors, stay hydrated and take breaks under the shade.

The heat advisory is in effect until 7 p.m.

READ MORE: Heat guidelines are in place to help protect Florida high school athletes

Chris O'Meara

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AP

The state of Florida is facing potential First Amendment challenges to a new law aimed at keeping children off social-media platforms and blocking minors from accessing online pornography.

Attorney General Ashley Moody’s office has published three proposed rules that include addressing one of the most closely watched issues in the law: age verification.

The law, which will take effect January 1st, seeks to prevent children under age 16 from opening social-media accounts on at least some platforms — although it would allow parents to give consent for 14- and 15-year-olds to have accounts.

It also requires age verification to try to prevent minors under age 18 from having access to online pornographic sites.

The law largely puts the onus on platforms to verify the ages of users. It says that “knowing or reckless” violations could lead to the attorney general’s office filing lawsuits against platforms for unfair and deceptive trade practices.

READ MORE: Florida moves forward on a new social media law

Florida saw a 31% jump in renewable energy projects at homes and businesses last year, according to a report released this week by the Public Service Commission.

Florida’s increase is on track with national trends showing more solar panels being installed on homes and businesses in recent years, according to Politico.

The state Public Service Commission’s report says this is partially a result of the state’s net-metering and interconnection rule. That rule requires utilities to credit customers for the energy they produce.

In 2023, home and business owners in Florida delivered more than 1 million kilowatt hours of electricity production to the grid while, using over 4 million kilowatt hours.

This comes just two years after Gov. Ron DeSantis vetoed a bill that would have reduced payments for future rooftop solar owners.

READ MORE: 'No longer necessary': Florida begins repealing renewable energy goals

Also in the Florida Keys, the Department of Health in Monroe County is hosting a community event to provide free health services and supplies.

This is taking place tomorrow afternoon at the Murray Nelson Government Cultural Center in Key Largo from noon to 4 p.m.

Along with doing health screenings, staffers with the department of health will also be handing out school supplies and Narcan nasal spray, which is used to reverse the effects of opioid overdoses.

READ MORE: New drug gives hope to South Floridians affected by Alzheimer’s

The Southernmost residential home in the continental U.S. is now on sale for a hefty price.

The house on 400 South Street stands just next to the iconic Southernmost Point Buoy in Key West. 
 
It’s the farthest south residential home in the continental North American states right where the Atlantic Ocean meets the Gulf of Mexico.
 
The property is owned by the family of Seward Johnson, who is the acclaimed sculptor and grandson of the founder of the pharmaceutical giant, Johnson & Johnson.
 
However, it’s not unlike other homes in the Florida Keys. It’s listed as having "extreme" wind and flood risks and, according to the listing agent, has already sustained minor wind and water damage.
 
The 5-bed, 5-and-a-half-bath is listed for a whopping $18.5 million, making it the city’s most expensive listing.

READ MORE: Half the households in Florida struggle to make financial ends meet, major report shows

AP/AP

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AP

The Broward County School Board has passed a measure that further restricts students' cell-phone usage in public schools.
 
The motion prohibits cellphone use during most of the school day even during class changes and lunch.
 
Board member Allen Zeman said this is a step in the right direction. 

"It's about us saying to students that we care so much about you, we don't want you to use these harmful devices with these addictive tools on them which cause you mental health problems," he said.

Currently, students are banned from using their phones during class time unless authorized by a teacher.
The superintendent said he plans to meet with school principals to figure out how each campus will implement this policy during the upcoming school year. 

READ MORE: Broward Schools unlikely to fire mom whose trans daughter played on girls volleyball team

AP

Former president Donald Trump plans to headline an event in West Palm Beach this week.

The Miami Herald reports that Trump is set to deliver the keynote address this Friday at the Believer's Summit — a Christian conservative gathering held by the right-wing group Turning Point Action.

Trump's appearance comes days after he formally accepted the GOP presidential nomination at the Republican National Convention in Milwaukee and less than two weeks after an attempt on his life during a campaign rally in Pennsylvania.

READ MORE: Secret Service director resigns in wake of Trump assassination attempt

An ethics watchdog group says a Doral city councilwoman used her position to benefit her side gig.

According to the Miami Herald, the Miami-Dade Commission on Ethics and Public Trust found that Councilwoman Digna Cabral encouraged city business owners to join CAMACOL Doral, short for The Latin Chamber of Commerce of the United States.

She was CEO of the organization from June 2022 to November 2023. 

The ethics report also said Cabral used the city of Doral seal and city staff time to discredit the Doral Chamber of Commerce, which is a competitor of CAMACOL Doral.

The allegations stem from when Cabral was vice mayor of Doral, about two years ago.

READ MORE: Hialeah's 'Wolf of Airbnb' sentenced to over 4 years in prison for defrauding landlords

So far this year, over 3,000 Florida resident deaths have been linked to COVID-19.

That's according to data on the state Department of Health website. This year’s pace of deaths is lower than during the past four years. Between 2020 and last year, Florida reported a total of nearly 93,000 COVID-related deaths.

READ MORE: Extreme heat and some medicines can be a risky combo. Here's what to know

Mark Foley

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Florida House of Representatives

A Democratic U.S congressman from South Florida is among those calling for the ouster of Secret Service Director Kimberly Cheatle in the wake of the attempted assassination of former President Donald Trump.
 
U.S. representative Jared Moskowitz represents parts of Broward and Palm Beach counties. He's also a member of the House Oversight Committee looking into the agency's missteps in the shooting during a Trump campaign rally in Butler, Pennsylvania.

During yesterday's committee hearing, Moskowitz cited the aftermath of the 2018 Parkland massacre as an example of what happens when top law enforcement officials refuse to take accountability for serious security breaches on their watch.

"That very day the school resource officer, a police officer, did not run into the building, he hid in the stairwell while the shooter was in the building. He stayed outside, never helped. He also directed other officers who showed up on the scene not to go into the building," said Moskowitz, an alumnus of Marjory Stoneman Douglas high school. "When it was determined that the failures in response and training and that the sheriff fired nobody in his agency, Gov. DeSantis then removed that sheriff, I supported the removal."

Trump was wounded in the ear, a man attending the rally was killed and two other rallygoers were wounded when the 20-year-old suspected gunman opened fired with an assault rifle after Trump started speaking. The gunman was killed moments later by Secret Service counter-snipers.

Cheatle acknowledged that the Secret Service was told about a suspicious person two to five times before the shooting.

READ MORE: Secret Service director, grilled by lawmakers on the Trump assassination attempt

A sudden torrential downpour in South Florida yesterday led to street flooding that temporarily closed West Broward County  hospital emergency rooms.

The Sun-Sentinel reports that ambulances had to be diverted from HCA Woodmont in Tamarac and Florida Medical Center on West Oakland Boulevard in Fort Lauderdale.

A spokesman for Tamarac Fire Rescue said that in some areas there was a foot-and-a-half of standing water.

The National Weather Service said a weak tropical wave passed near South Florida yesterday and the rainfall gave our region a break from excessive heat.

The so-called feels-like temperature in recent days have at times veered close to 110 degrees.

READ MORE: Frozen treats, cold showers and a lot of ice helps Palm Beach Zoo protect animals from heat

The Coral Gables Police Department is offering self-defense courses to women in the wake of a brazen attack on Miami Beach that was captured on surveillance footage.

Last week, a woman was rollerblading on the Beachwalk around 1 a.m. when a man grabbed her from behind and wrestled her off the path before sexually assaulting her.

The man suspected of the attack is in police custody.

Now, police in Coral Gables are teaching a self-defense course called “Fight Like a Girl” that teaches and reinforces defensive hand-to-hand combat skills.

Sergeant Alex Escobar, who runs the class, advises women to always be alert, and if something doesn’t feel right. Follow your gut, get somewhere safe and seek help.

READ MORE: Will Florida's new trafficking hotline clash with the established national hotline?

Julia Cooper

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WLRN News

The South Florida unemployment jumped a half percent in June – to its highest level in almost two and a half years.

The regional unemployment rate rose to 3.1% last month. There were about 19,000 fewer jobs compared to May, according to data released last week by the Florida Commerce Department.

The unemployment rate has been trending slowly higher in recent months but it is coming off a historically low number.

This year began with only 2.5% of people in South Florida available to work but going without a job, which was about the same as before the COVID-19 pandemic began.

The regional jobless rate remains below both the statewide and national unemployment rates.

READ MORE:Inflation slowing, but still elevated. 'We hear you,' says Biden's top economist

courtesy: MIA

Airline travelers across South Florida are still feeling the effects of last week’s Crowdstrike outage.

Air travel has yet to fully return to normal after last week’s Microsoft Windows outage caused by a flawed computer update from cybersecurity firm Crowdstrike.

More than 100 flights so far today have been canceled across South Florida's three major airports.

Delta Air Lines was the air carrier most impacted by the outage, canceling more than 700 flights today nation-wide. According to the South Florida Sun Sentinel, lines at Delta’s ticket counters stretched outside the entrance of Fort Lauderdale-Hollywood International Airport.

READ MORE: Florida lawsuit alleges misleading ads part of schemes to raise unauthorized ACA sign-ups

Lynne Sladky

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AP

Arson and firearm charges have been dropped against a man accused of igniting a fire last month in an apartment building in Miami and shooting a building worker.

More than 120 firefighters worked to extinguish the flames and dozens of people were left displaced. What remains of the building is being demolished.

The Miami Herald reports state prosecutors did not say why the charges of first-degree arson and use of a firearm to commit a crime have been dropped.

But Juan Figueroa, 73, is still facing an attempted murder charge.

READ MORE: Hialeah's 'Wolf of Airbnb' sentenced to over 4 years in prison for defrauding landlords

A man accused of stabbing a teenager at Miami International Airport yesterday remains in custody after being denied bond.

Alexander Love, 29, is charged with attempted first-degree murder and attempted premeditated murder after attacking a 17-year-old girl at the airport. According to NBC 6, Love stabbed the teenager about 18 times. She later underwent emergency surgery after being rushed to Jackson Memorial Hospital’s Ryder Trauma Center. Her condition is not immediately known.

Police have yet to confirm if Love and the girl knew each other, though Miami-Dade County officials told the Miami Herald that Love and the teen were living at the airport.

Today, a judge denied Love's bond and ordered him to have no contact with the 17-year-old victim.

READ MORE: Hialeah's 'Wolf of Airbnb' sentenced to over 4 years in prison for defrauding landlords

Matias J. Ocner

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Miami Herald

With President Joe Biden’s bombshell announcement over the weekend, many took to social media to sound off. But one post from the Miami government has a city official backpedaling.

City of Miami Mayor Francis Suarez was quick to respond on social media. So quick in fact, that he posted a draft statement where he blamed Democrats for what he called a political crisis and endorsed Republican nominee Donald Trump.

Suarez quickly deleted that post and followed up with a new statement. It didn’t mention a political crisis, but still endorsed the former president.

Suarez’s endorsement of Trump was reposted on the City of Miami’s official Instagram page, which is meant to remain politically impartial under county ethics guidance. Kenia Fallat, the city’s communications director, said this was a mistake. She accidentally reposted the statement without fully reading it.

READ MORE: Top South Florida Democrats laud President Biden, coalesce around VP Kamala Harris

COVID-19 infection rates are once again spiking across South Florida.

Memorial Healthcare System has seen twice as many patients testing positive in June and July, compared to the positivity rate in April and May.
 
Doctor Randy Katz is the district medical director of emergency services in Hollywood for Memorial Healthcare System.

He reminds anyone not feeling well to keep hydrated and stay home while contagious.

"Although you may be young and healthy and get better in a few days, there are people out there that when they contract this virus have a response that's different," he said.
"It’s best to stay home to protect the general public from acquiring the virus from you."
 
The coronavirus continues to mutate, becoming increasingly easier for it to attach to human cells, contributing to rapid spread.
 
Katz recommends people 65 and older with a chronic disease get a booster shot if they haven’t gotten one in the past six months. 

READ MORE: Latinos fight a small COVID booster rate — and big misinformation

D.A. Varela

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Miami Herald

The mother of a transgender high school athlete could soon lose her job with the Broward School District after being accused of violating a state law that bans anyone born male from playing on girls' sports teams.  

The 2021 law states that trans student athletes may only join school teams associated with their assigned sex at birth.

The South Florida Sun Sentinel reports that Broward Schools Superintendent Howard Hepburn is recommending the firing of Jessica Norton. She's an information management specialist at Monarch High in Coconut Creek. 

Broward school district investigators say Norton changed personal information about her child's gender and name in the school’s computer system — allowing the student to play girls’ volleyball. 

The Broward School Board is scheduled to vote on whether to terminate Norton’s employment on Tuesday. 

READ MORE: State official wants 'serious consequences' for letting transgender athlete play on Broward team

Verónica Zaragovia

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WLRN

Florida is seeing significantly fewer requests from voters for mail ballots. A 2021 state law made it so voters had to request new ballots every election cycle – instead of every two cycles.

Politico reports that just over 2 million voters have asked for absentee ballots for this year’s elections – a nearly 50 percent drop from just before the 2022 primary. That’s after any standing ballot requests expired because of the law.

For this year’s primary, the deadline to request an absentee ballot is August 8th and October 24th for the general election.

READ MORE: State seeks to end South Florida redistricting lawsuit

Carolyn DiPaolo

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Stet

Travelers going through Miami International, Fort Lauderdale-Hollywood and Palm Beach international airports experienced long waits and lines.

That was after both airports announced that numerous delays and cancellations were expected resulting from tech outages.

The global fallout is being blamed on a system update from cybersecurity firm CrowdStrike. The company offers anti-hacking software that uses a Microsoft Windows operating system – used across numerous industries.

Computers using the system crashed Friday, affecting airports, deliveries and even virtual banking.

CBS News reports that FedEx and the United Postal Service are facing shipping delays because of the outage.

In prepared statements, FedEx said packages with a delivery date of July 19 will likely be delayed, while UPS did not provide additional information.

READ MORE: What we know about the computer update glitch disrupting systems around the world

Florida’s unemployment rate held steady in June for a third consecutive month.

The Florida Department of Commerce on Friday released a report that said the state’s June unemployment rate was 3.3 percent, unchanged from April and May. The estimated number of people out of work remained at 361,000 in June.

"We are seeing really encouraging numbers when we look at, kind of the core labor force statistics, of prime age workers that are participating in the labor force at near record highs," said Jimmy Heckman, chief economist for the Department of Commerce.

The overall labor force grew by 66,000 people from June 2023. In June, the largest employment drop was in the category of leisure and hospitality, which lost 14,700 positions. The majority lost involved jobs in hotels and food services.

READ MORE: Politifact FL: Black poverty, unemployment set record lows on Trump’s watch — and on Biden’s

(AP Photo/Steve Helber)

Following the attempted assassination of former President Donald Trump, Palm Beach police are going to shut down a key road near his Mar-a-Lago Club until AFTER the November elections to boost security. 
 
Trump was shot over the weekend while he spoke at a campaign rally in Pennsylvania. Two others were injured and one person died. The gunman was shot and killed by the Secret Service.
 
The Palm Beach Post reports South Ocean Boulevard, which Mar-a-Lago faces, will be closed starting tomorrow at 4 PM. 
 
The Palm Beach town manager says the town plans to explore options next week to alleviate over-burdened roads as a result of the shut down. 

READ MORE: How Mar-a-Lago became the center of gravity for the hard right

A large plume of Saharan Dust will overspread South Florida this weekend. Although this will reduce chances of rain and tropical activity in the Atlantic, it may also result in reduced air quality and hazy skies.

The National Weather Service says it may also lead to higher temperatures. A heat advisory remains in effect for Miami-Dade and Broward Counties until 6 p.m. today.

Chances of showers and thunderstorms may increase early next week.

READ MORE: Saharan dust arrives in Florida, with potential air quality impacts and more

courtesy: MIA

South Florida airports are feeling the effects of a global Microsoft system outage.

The outage is in connection with the cybersecurity firm — Crowdstrike. The company says the issue is NOT a security incident or cyberattack — and that it has been isolated and will be fixed soon.

Miami International Airport says the outage has affected the airlines and is delaying departures and arrivals.

Fort Lauderdale-Hollywood International Airport says the technology issue is also affecting their processing operations and flight delays are expected.

Palm Beach International Airport is urging passengers to check in with the airlines before heading to the airport to confirm flight status and avoid delays.

READ MORE: Widespread technology outage disrupts flights and banking around the world

Miami Springs residents have been complaining for a while about water bills that swing widely from month to month. One bill might be as low as $50 dollars, then the next would shoot up to over $1,000 dollars.
 
Miami-Dade County’s Water and Sewer Department plans to address the issue at a townhall meeting at the Miami Springs Aquatic Center.
 
The county says the erratic bills are due to a problem with a new automated water meter. The new meters aren’t syncing up with the Department’s billing system, so residents’ water bills are all over the place.
 
Miami Springs Mayor Maria Mitchell says she asked county officials to come tell residents what Water and Sewer is doing to fix the problem.

READ MORE: Condos on Jungle Island? Miami commission moves toward island development

Pedro Portal

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The Miami Herald

Local health officials are cautioning the public about the presence of blue-green algae in parts of Lake Okeechobee.
 
The Department of Health in Palm Beach County says it’s in response to water samples taken on July 11th in south and southeast portions of the lake. 
 
Blue-green algae can produce toxins that can be harmful to humans and pets. Officials are recommending not to swim or use personal watercraft in the affected areas. Drinking water is not affected.

READ MORE:Extreme heat and some medicines can be a risky combo. Here's what to know

Marta Lavandier/AP

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AP

Voters in Florida face a Monday, July 22nd deadline to register to vote in next month’s Primary Election. The Aug. 20th ballot will include partisan primary races for the US Senate and some Congressional and legislative races.

There are also several nonpartisan city, county and judicial races across the state open to all voters, regardless of political affiliation.

In addition to new Florida voters, those who wish to switch their political party affiliation must also make changes by Monday for the update to take effect.

“We have quite a few races that will be decided in this primary," said Mark Earley, supervisor of elections in Leon County. "If you wait and vote in November only, thinking that is the big election, you won’t get a chance to vote in some of these city commission, county commission or school board races.”

As of June 30th, there were more than 13.4 million registered voters in the state of Florida.

READ MORE: Ballot question to gauge voter support for expanding rapid transit in Miami-Dade County

Monroe County commissioners met this week to discuss the proposed budget for the 2025 fiscal year. If passed, the county’s proposed budget would total about $716 million dollars – 48.4 million dollars more than last year. 
 
But according to the acting county administrator, less than 5% of budget increases are being covered by property taxes. Property values in the Keys are still on the rise, with the total taxable value reaching a record high of 46.2 billion dollars. 
 
Property owners will see increases in their monthly property taxes. Homesteaded properties with an average taxable value of about $500 thousand will see a monthly increase of 2 dollars and 54 cents, while that increase for non-homesteaded owners is $17.
 
The first public hearing for adopting the budget is set for September 4th in Key West. 

READ MORE: Half the households in Florida struggle to make financial ends meet, major report shows

Miami Herald

Florida ranked 36th in the nation last year when it comes to health system performance, according to a new report out today from the Commonwealth Fund, which focuses on healthcare equity. The report’s authors are calling on Florida to expand Medicaid eligibility.
 
One of the authors is Sara Collins. She said people who lack health insurance skip necessary medical care, compared to those who are insured. 

"You’re sicker over your lifetime and have lower life expectancy as a result of it. Single most important thing Florida could do is work on expanding insurance coverage," said Collins.
 
The study shows 29% of women in Florida did not receive early prenatal care. David Radley worked with Collins on the report. 

"In Florida, reproductive-age women are less likely than in other states to have a usual source of care," said Radley. "They’re more likely to avoid skipping care when they need it because of its cost.
 
The group also says Florida has improved in reducing avoidable emergency department visits and hospital readmission rates for adults.

READ MORE: New drug gives hope to South Floridians affected by Alzheimer’s

Parts of South Florida are under a heat advisory today. The advisory is in effect for Miami-Dade and Broward counties from 10 a.m. to 6 p.m.

We will see maximum heat indices of up to 107 degrees. The heat index is also called the "feels like" temperature. It measures how hot it feels when air temperature and relative humidity are factored in.

Showers and thunderstorms are expected to be limited.

READ MORE: An urban heat islands analysis shows four Florida cities are hot spots

Lauderdale Art Week is shutting down after a seven-year run. 

Founders Evan Snow and Andrew Martineau made the announcement last week. Martineau told WLRN the event had become too much for the pair to host and produce alone. 
 
"Our time has become a lot more limited with some of the other programs that we have going on," said Martineau. "There's not a ton of funding for the week."
 
With more than 30 Broward cities participating, including Fort Lauderdale, the events highlighted different multi-medium exhibits throughout the county.
 
"We didn't want to do what everybody else did. The art week, we also positioned it as being, so not just visual, which you'll traditionally find on most art weeks, but there was also performing arts and spoken word and improv," said Snow.
 
Snow and Martineau even managed to keep it going during the pandemic with virtual events and bike tours. 

Though they can’t keep doing art week, the pair are still finding ways to support the arts through other endeavors like Zero Empty Spaces. That's an effort to make vacant spaces into affordable studio space for artists.

READ MORE: As director resigns, City of Miami is accused of neglecting the Little Haiti Cultural Complex

The voter-registration gap between Florida’s Republican Party and Democratic Party continues to widen.

According to new data by the state Division of Elections, the GOP had over 5.2 million registered voters at the end of June. Meanwhile the Democratic Party had over 4.3 million.

That gives Republicans an over 956,000 lead in registered voters.

Democrats historically led in voter registration in Florida, but Republicans overtook them in 2021. Republicans hold all statewide offices and dominate the Legislature and the Florida congressional delegation.

READ MORE:State seeks to end South Florida redistricting lawsuit

Miami-Dade County is getting over $100 million in federal funding to replace 11 of the Venetian Causeway Bridges.

The funding was awarded by the Federal Highway Administration. Some of the funding also came from the 2021 Bipartisan Infrastructure Law.

The Venetian Causeway Bridges were constructed in 1927 to connect the City of Miami Beach and City of Miami.

The replacement project will bring modern safety features, like widening the bridges by 16 feet. It will also provide infrastructure improvements, while still keeping some of the original appearance of the historic bridges.

Construction is estimated to begin in early 2026.

READ MORE:Iconic Seven Mile Bridge likely to be fully replaced, as officials reject continuous repair

Miami-Dade County is raising its garbage collection fees.

According to NBC 6, Mayor Daniella Levine Cava told commissioners to decide between increasing fees by 21% or borrowing $39 million dollars to fill the current budget hole.
 
While she recommended the borrowing option, commissioners decided on rate increases after lengthy discussions.

That means the county waste collection fee goes up from $547 per household to $697 dollars per household. A $150 dollar increase.

Commissioners say the move will also help protect bonding capacity, as the county plans to build a new waste energy facility soon.

READ MORE: Miami ‘climate tech hub’ gets $19.5 million from feds. Focus will be reinforcing coast

Most of South Florida is under another heat advisory today. 
 
The National Weather Service has put out an advisory for Miami-Dade, Broward and Palm Beach counties until 6 p.m.
 
We will see maximum heat indices of up to 109 degrees.
 
The heat index is also known as the "feels like" temperature. It measures how hot it feels when air temperature and relative humidity are factored in. 

READ MORE: A Miami ER doctor on why you should take those 'extreme heat' warnings seriously

In the case of a former police officer trying to get his job back, the city of Boynton Beach still says "No!"

That former officer was involved in an on-duty chase that killed a 13-year-old dirt-bike rider in 2021.
 
The South Florida Sun Sentinel reports the city attorney will appeal an arbitrator's recent decision that Mark Sohn should get his job back. 
 
The arbitrator had concluded that Sohn did violate Boynton Beach's pursuit policy, but that the city did not have just cause to fire him.
 
On the day after Christmas, 2021, Sohn began a pursuit of 13-year-old Stanley Davis after he tried to pull the teenager over at a gas station. Davis fled on his dirt-bike and died in the ensuing crash.

READ MORE: Dismissal of Trump documents case brings new scrutiny to Miami judge

The Hialeah City Council has temporarily filled a vacancy left open by the suspension of a councilperson who has been arrested on federal healthcare fraud charges.

Gov. Ron DeSantis removed Councilwoman Angelica Pacheco, 37, from her role last month after the arrest.
 
The Hialeah council voted last night to appoint Melinda De La Vega as Pacheco's interim replacement. 
 
De La Vega has no prior political experience, but some council members said her background in community service makes her a valuable asset to the team.
 
De La Vega currently serves as vice president of the Hialeah Lions Club, a nonprofit that offers support for senior citizens, people with special needs and impoverished families.
 
De La Vega will hold the council seat until November 2025 when a special election will determine a permanent replacement.

READ MORE: As director resigns, City of Miami is accused of neglecting the Little Haiti Cultural Complex

Parkland 17 Memorial Foundation

A foundation that will build a memorial to honor the 17 students and staff killed during the Parkland school shooting in 2018 is now asking for the public's input.

The Parkland 17 Memorial Foundation has decided on three final options for the memorial that will be built at the former Heron Bay Golf Club. It's located at the border of Parkland and Coral Springs.

One design features 17 sculptures with a curtain of water flowing into a reservoir. Another features a central fountain surrounded by 17 limestone columns. The third features a reflection pool with 17 private gardens.

The foundation's spokesman told the South Florida Sun Sentinel that the voting process will take between four to six weeks. The final decision is expected to be made by the end of the year.

The School Board in Broward County is also still considering a memorial for the Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School campus.

You can give fill out a survey here.

READ MORE: 'Love ultimately always wins': Parkland residents gather to remember and heal

Seniors ages 62 and up in Miami can qualify for help with their monthly housing costs starting this week.
 
The City of Miami has recently reopened its Senior Rental Assistance Program. The city will provide up to $500 per month to residents who meet the program’s criteria based on need.
 
Miami’s Senior Rental Assistance program used to be for residents who lived anywhere in the city. But this round of funding is just for seniors who live in District 5. That means neighborhoods like Wynwood, Overtown, Little Haiti and the upper east side. To pick up a paper application, go to any of Commissioner Christine King’s offices throughout District 5.
 
Applications for senior rental assistance close on Aug. 5.

READ MORE: Renters in Florida call out 'unlivable conditions' under corporate landlords

Palm Beach County’s public bus system has announced its new executive director months after the untimely death of the previous leader.

Palm Tran has named Ivan Maldonado as the new leader for the county's public transportation system. He’s the first Hispanic person in the job and is the fourth-ever executive director.

With two decades’ experience, Maldonado previously held leadership roles in the Tampa Bay area and Tallahassee among others. He formally succeeds Clinton B. Forbes who died last winter after an apparent heart attack. He was 55 years old. An interim director has led operations since.
 
Palm Tran serves about 28,000 daily riders with more than 30 bus routes.

READ MORE: Brightline brings more passengers not profits, while push continues for commuter rail

Miami Beach commissioners might go back to the drawing board just two weeks before they’re supposed to vote on a new city manager.
 
After the previous city manager Aliana Hudak resigned in March, the city hired a recruitment firm to conduct a national search to find her replacement.
 
But now, according to Axios Miami, some commissioners are voicing displeasure at the four-person shortlist and debated whether to reopen the application process. 
 
For now, the candidates will go through final interviews before the July 24 vote.

READ MORE:As director resigns, City of Miami is accused of neglecting the Little Haiti Cultural Complex
 

At least 60 people are now displaced after a fire broke out at a Fort Lauderdale medical facility.

The fire broke out early yesterday morning in front of the two-story, U-shaped building known as TLC Recovery Center South, just east of I-95 near Broward Boulevard. The South Florida Sun Sentinel reports that the fire also spread to some people’s units.

Firefighters were able to evacuate all residents from the building and the flames were put out quickly. There were no injuries.

Authorities still don’t know the cause of the fire. Residents are temporarily living in other associated facilities.

READ MORE:Chaos at Hard Rock Stadium as fans breach security gates ahead of Copa America final

Developer Sergio Pino died in an apparent suicide this morning. FBI agents arrived at his Cocoplum home today amid an investigation related to threats made against his estranged wife, according to the Miami Herald.

The Miami-Dade Medical Examiner’s office confirmed to the Herald that Pino died inside his home around 10:20 a.m.

Pino’s death comes weeks after the FBI raided his waterfront home in Coral Gables. Authorities were investigating reported assaults against Tatiana Pino and her relatives that led to the arrests of four men, including a household employee of Sergio Pino.

Pino denied any involvement in the alleged assaults. He was 67 years old.

READ MORE: Colombia's soccer federation president and son among 27 arrested in chaos at Copa America final

The town of Jupiter has unveiled construction plans for two new fire stations. 
 
This comes ahead of the launch of Jupiter forming its own department in 2026.
 
Last year, the town decided to end its relationship with Palm Beach County Fire Rescue. Town officials cited concerns over rising costs and said they wanted more control over the services it receives and the way its tax dollars are spent, according to the Palm Beach Post. 
 
One station is proposed on 3 acres at Cinquez Park and the other on 5 acres at Piatt Place.
 
The town council will hear the plans at a meeting tonight at 7 p.m. 

READ MORE: Why the first and only Latina on the Palm Beach County school board won't seek reelection

Alie Skowronski

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Miami Herald

A Broward School Board member is being accused of leveraging his position for private gain.

Allen Zeman alleges that his fellow board member Torey Alston advocated for the district to pay Broward charter schools roughly $120 million multiple times. That's before recusing himself from voting on the issue, according to NBC6.

Alston reportedly owned a company that received revenue from at least one Broward charter school.  

Alston, an appointee of Gove. Ron DeSantis, argues this is politically motivated. He is currently running for the District 2 seat against Rebecca Thompson. She is Zeman’s former executive secretary at the District.

The complaint with the Florida Ethics Commission has not yet been made public.

READ MORE: South Florida schools protected from paying personal-injury insurance, ruling says

If you live in Broward County and tomorrow afternoon you're seeing more police officers than usual — don't panic.

In all probability, it's a training exercise that's been planned for a long time now.

The South Florida Sun-Sentinel reports that more than a dozen agencies will practice their response to potential large-scale terrorist attacks.

The Broward Sheriff's Office training is called “Operation Heat Shield Five” in which hundreds of local officers, deputies, first responders and volunteers will be taking part.

The first training scenario will start at 4 p.m. tomorrow at Port Everglades.

The training will end at 6 a.m. Thursday morning.

READ MORE:

After two years of tax rate cuts, the Miami-Dade mayor is proposing a new budget that will keep property tax rates the same as last year. That’s because mayor Daniella Levine Cava said the county will have to spend about $30 million creating fully independent offices for the county sheriff, tax collector and supervisor of elections.

Elections for those offices are a new requirement under the state constitution and will take place this November.

"We must set ourselves and these offices up for success. And we must ensure that our residents receive the same level of efficient and effective service without interruptions or delays," she said. "This is a top priority."

Even with a flat tax rate, the county expects to collect 8% more in taxes, because of exploding property values.

READ MORE: State seeks to end South Florida redistricting lawsuit

The Civic Center Metrorail stop has a new name after 40 years. Now, riders can get on or off at what’s called the UHealth Jackson station.
 
This comes as a partnership among Miami-Dade County, Jackson Health System and the University of Miami Health System with an aim to motivate people to use public transit to the healthcare hub near downtown. 
 
"Rapid access to healthcare is critically important, and that’s why this partnership makes so much sense," said chief operating officer of UHealth Dipen Parekh
 
UHealth will deploy mobile clinics along Metrorail stations over the next month to provide services like children’s vaccines and health screenings.

READ MORE: Brightline brings more passengers not profits, while push continues for commuter rail

Hialeah council members today will select an interim member to fill its vacant seat.

Councilwoman Angelica Pacheco was removed by Gov. Ron DeSantis on June 25. That was after she was charged in connection with an alleged multimillion-dollar healthcare fraud scheme at her rehab clinic.

The interim council member will hold the seat until November 2025 when a special election will determine Pacheco’s successor.

Tonight's meeting is set for 5:30 p.m. at Hialeah City Hall.

READ MORE: State seeks to end South Florida redistricting lawsuit

Lynne Sladky

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AP

The Copa America, the hemisphere’s marquee soccer tournament, ended last night with Argentina triumphant. But critics say the Copa itself was less than a triumph.

The championship game at Hard Rock Stadium in Miami Gardens was delayed 82 minutes due to dangerous crowd behavior. To many Copa critics, that was a fitting finale to a tournament plagued by security issues, substandard playing turf and refereeing, awkward TV camera feeds and exorbitant ticket prices. They point mainly at the South American soccer federation in charge of tournament operations, known as CONMEBOL.

CONMEBOL’s high ticket costs, in fact, were a factor in the chaos at Hard Rock Stadium. Many tickets for earlier Copa matches reportedly went unsold. That led CONMEBOL to slash prices at the last minute in order to fill seats. That ultimately made thousands of Colombian and Argentine fans believe they could get into Sunday’s final without tickets. And that helped result in the riotous gate-crashing.

The Copa final was supposed to be a dress rehearsal for the seven World Cup games Miami will host in 2026. There will be lots of lessons to learn from.

READ MORE: Chaos at Hard Rock Stadium as fans breach security gates ahead of Copa America final

Want more stories about the Americas? Sign up for WLRN’s Americas Report newsletter and we’ll send a round up of the most important news and stories from the hemisphere, every Thursday morning. Sign up here.

Dozens of people were evacuated from a rehab facility in Fort Lauderdale after a fire broke out early this morning.

Around 2 a.m. this morning, the blaze engulfed the north side of TLC Recovery Center South, just east of I-95 near Broward Boulevard, that's according to WSVN.

The flames spread into the parking lot, consuming at least one car before firefighters were able to contain the fire.

At least 60 people were inside when the fire started, and all were evacuated to another property owned by the rehab facility.

READ MORE: As final debris of shooting site is cleared, Parkland teacher feels a 'weight lifted off'

Lynne Sladky/AP

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AP

Miami-Dade Mayor Daniella Levine Cava addressed a security breakdown at the Copa America Final on Sunday night in Miami Gardens that resulted in fans storming the gates and scaling fences. At one point the gates were opened, letting crowds in with no security check.

Many fans that had tickets were kept out after it was determined the stadium was filled past capacity.

Hard Rock Stadium is scheduled to host seven World Cup games two years from now.

"What happened last night was truly unprecedented. And we did obviously try very hard to make sure people would not come if they were not ticketed. Unfortunately many did show up nonetheless," Levine Cava said. "And we are doing a very thorough deep dive into everything that happened so that we can learn from it for the future."

The mayor said over 800 county police officers were at the event – more than double the amount used for Super Bowls. The event also featured security from other police departments and hired stadium security.

The mayor was unable to say who made the decision to open the stadium gates.

READ MORE: 'This is how the game is': Colombian soccer fans remain positive after Copa America heartbreak

Wilkine Bruuts

South Florida counties have begun sending out Vote-by-Mail ballots for the August Primary.

Voters in Broward, Miami-Dade, Monroe and Palm Beach counties have until Aug. 8 to request a vote-by-mail ballot for the Aug. 20 election. 
 
The early voting period runs from Aug. 10 through the 17. Additional information for anyone casting a mail-in ballot can find more information through their county supervisor of elections office. 
 
READ MORE: A lawsuit over Florida's felon voting restrictions has been dropped

An internal Donald Trump campaign memo has directed campaign staffers to avoid the offices in West Palm Beach and Washington, D.C.

The memo was sent out to staff hours after the attempted assassination of the former president during a campaign rally Saturday in Pennsylvania.

The memo states staff should stay away from campaign offices as new security measures are implemented.

One rally spectator was killed, two others "critically injured" and Trump was wounded in the right ear when the suspected shooter opened fire with an assault rifle from a rooftop about 400 ft. outside the rally.

The suspect was killed by at least one Secret Service sharpshooter.

READ MORE: Authorities hunt for clues, as motive behind Trump's assassination attempt remains elusive

Miami Herald

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Google Maps

Condo buildings with roofs that are too old or damaged to qualify for insurance are getting some relief from the state’s Citizens Property Insurance under certain conditions.

Condos used to be able to get insurance through the commercial insurance market for these risks. But the market standards have left some properties uninsurable. That’s according to the Palm Beach Post. 
 
Citizens Insurance proposed these high-risk buildings be offered coverage, but only if a roof-replacement contract is already in place with a paid deposit. 
 
That way, they can provide them with insurance during the transition period, making it more likely the buildings will be able to re-enter the commercial market. 

Citizens’ action comes at a time when older condo buildings are receiving increased criticism and having to adhere to new requirements to pass building inspections.

READ MORE: Condos on Jungle Island? Miami commission moves toward island development

It's gonna be another be hot day in South Florida.

The National Weather Service has put out a heat advisory today for the entire region.

The maximum heat indices are forecast on average between 105 and 110 degrees for most areas, but some parts could exceed 110.

The heat index is also known as the "feels like" temperature. It's a measure of how hot it feels when you factor in air temperature and relative humidity.

READ MORE: A beginner’s guide to hurricane season in South Florida

Rebecca Blackwell

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AP

Argentina is once again the Copa America champion.

The Albiceleste, or blue-and-whites as the Argentine team is known, defeated Colombia 1-to-0 last night here in Miami at Hard Rock Stadium to win the hemispheric soccer tournament for a record 16th time.

The winning goal came in extra time after Argentine legend Lionel Messi left the game because of an injury.

The evening was marred, however, by unruly fan behavior. The start of the game was delayed almost an hour-and-a-half because many tried to crash the stadium gates and enter without tickets.

This was also the first loss for the Colombian team, known as Los Cafeteros, since February of 2022.

READ MORE: As Messi seeks another trophy, soccer fears for a future without him

A new, on-demand rideshare service approved by Monroe County commissioners in May will begin to run in the Florida Keys soon.

The "Conch Connect" all-electric service through the rideshare company Freebee will begin July 15 in Stock Island and Key West. 

It costs $2 per rider and operates seven days a week from 5 a.m. to 9 p.m. 

Up to 30 cars will be in operation with five of those being wheelchair accessible.

READ MORE: Brightline brings more passengers not profits, while push continues for commuter rail

Trina Sargalski / WLRN

Mango lovers can enjoy the beloved fruit in numerous ways this weekend at Fairchild Tropical Botanic Garden Mango Festival.

At the two-day event, attendees can drink mango smoothies, listen to lectures about the tropical fruit and even buy their own mango tree.

Despite a weak mango harvest this year, Fairchild’s deputy director Nannette Zapata said the garden’s diversity of mango species helped ensure a plentiful harvest.

There’s no blanket solution to increasing a mango tree’s fruit production, but Zapata recommends fertilizing and pruning the plant.

"Sometimes the trees get so large, they’re 20, 30 ft. tall. Not only are they prone to wind damage from storms, you’re also having a bunch of fruit at the top coming down and crashing down because no one’s going to pick a 30 foot tree," Zapata said. "The thicker the tree the more it resists the wind and the more uprooting happens."

The garden has hosted the festival, taking place on Saturday and Sunday, for over three decades.

READ MORE: Miami's mango trade: Swap your excess fruit for bread

The operator of five South Florida hospitals is under federal investigation for fraud and corruption. 

CBS4 reports federal prosecutors in Boston are looking into various allegations — including if Steward Health Care engaged in fraud and violated the Foreign Corrupt Practices Act. 

US law prohibits citizens and companies from committing corrupt activities when operating overseas.  

Steward had been appointed by the government in Malta to run three state-owned hospitals. Malta is an island country in the Mediterranean.

That deal is now at the center of a criminal corruption investigation on the island.

Steward and its executives have not been charged in connection to that probe.

Steward filed for bankruptcy protection in May and is looking to sell all of its hospitals.

READ MORE: With owner in bankruptcy, union says Palmetto General staff struggles with patient needs

One of the longest-serving pastors in Miami-Dade County has died at the age of 96. 

Rev. Douglas Cook served as the pastor of Jordan Grove Missionary Baptist Church in Liberty City for 56 years.  

According to the Miami Herald, Cook grew up during the Great Depression and had to drop out of school when he was in fourth grade to help his sharecropper father provide for their family.

Cook worked plowing the fields and later in rural veterinary medicine. He was ordained as a minister at Jordan Grove in 1966.

Cook also worked 31 years in Miami-Dade County Schools as a teacher, assistant principal and interim principal. 

He is being remembered as a fighter for human rights and social justice. 

READ MORE: Historically Black Coconut Grove nurtured young athletes. Now that legacy is under threat

Palm Beach County's newest city might soon toughen its rules about where sex offenders can live. 
  
The South Florida Sun Sentinel reports that Westlake has proposed a new ordinance that would prohibit a sexual offender or predator from living within 2,500 ft. of any place where children gather. 

Current Florida law sets that restrict at 1,000 ft.

READ MORE: Will Florida's new trafficking hotline clash with the established national hotline?

When people walk into the lobby of the new training facility for the Broward Sheriff's Office, the first thing they'll see is a memorial to the 17 victims of the Parkland school shooting.

The BSO's Research, Development and Training Center was built specifically to improve police response in situations where every second matters.

Broward Sheriff Gregory Tony spoke during the unveiling ceremony yesterday.

"It's because of that tragedy that this building is standing," Tony said.

The names of the 17 victims murdered during the 2018 shooting at Marjorie Stoneman Douglas High School appear on a wall in the training center's lobby.

Gina Hoyer's son Luke was killed during the massacre.

"The lobby is beautiful and it's a remembrance of all the loved ones that were lost that day due to failures that showed up on campus that day," Hoyer said to CBS4.

Meanwhile, a permanent memorial to the Parkland victims is still in the works. Just yesterday, organizers announced that they're down to three designs for the memorial.

READ MORE: 'That chapter has closed': Parkland shooting building is finally being demolished

Wilfredo Lee

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AP

The state of Florida has pulled its digital driver's license app from app stores.
 
The Orlando Sentinel reports the Florida Highway Safety and Motor Vehicles department didn't say why the app is being removed.  But ever since its launch two years ago, the app has been plagued with glitches.
 
The agency's website says the app will now be updated and improved by a new vendor. 
 
The new app is expected to be developed by early next year.

READ MORE: What Florida’s driver’s license policy change means for transgender people

Pedro Portal

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Miami Herald

Miami commissioners are continuing to crack down on homeless encampments on public property.
 
The updated ordinance now prohibits unhoused people from using bed mattresses or bedrolls in public. 
 
Police enforcing the ordinance also no longer have to give people two hours to gather their belongings. Instead, they just have to give a “reasonable” amount of time.
 
The resolution was passed unanimously and without discussion. This October, a new state law will go into effect barring municipalities from permitting sleeping or camping in public.
 
READ MORE: A ban on sleeping on public property could bring trouble to some municipalities

Daniel A. Varela

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Miami Herald

The city of Miami will now require property owners to recertify their drainage systems every 10 years. 
 
Property owners will be responsible for maintaining their entire stormwater systems, including grates and manholes, and getting them inspected.
 
Commissioners unanimously passed an ordinance creating the new requirements this week.
 
Existing systems will need to be inspected within two years.
 
This comes after storms last month that caused intense flooding through much of the city and surrounding areas.

READ MORE: Miami ‘climate tech hub’ gets $19.5 million from feds. Focus will be reinforcing coast

Inflation continued cooling in South Florida last month. Consumer prices were up 3.5% in June compared to a year ago. It means regional inflation is at its lowest level in about three and a half years.
 
Economists call it shelter, and housing inflation has been almost the sole source of how stubborn higher price trends have been across South Florida. One reason the annual housing inflation rate is slowing is because it has been so hot over the past two years, so today’s data is being compared to much bigger numbers.
 
South Florida’s annual inflation rate is now lower than that in New York, Philadelphia and Seattle

READ MORE: The South Florida economy at mid-year: inflation, housing and jobs still hot

Commissioners in Lauderdale-by-the-Sea have decided against hiring lifeguards for their beaches.

The decision was made based on the results of a recent survey. 

More than 300 residents said they don't believe lifeguards are necessary and don't want to spend tax dollars paying for them. 

"Beach safety starts with the person who's going into the ocean. It doesn't end with that person all the time because sometimes people make bad judgments," said town commissioner John Graziano at a meeting earlier this week. "But that is a problem that isn't necessarily corrected by municipal enforcement."

But Lauderdale-by-the-Sea commissioner Theo Poulopoulas said not hiring lifeguards is a mistake. 

"We are a very populated town when it comes to tourism, and I believe in my heart that we are doing them a disservice of not having more beach safety, more beach patrols or lifeguards to protect them," Poulopoulas said.

This past February, a seven-year-old girl died in an accident in the sand at Lauderdale-by-the-Sea when she dug a hole that collapsed.

The town's beach is periodically patrolled by the Broward Sheriff’s Office and Pompano Beach Fire Rescue.

READ MORE: Condos on Jungle Island? Miami commission moves toward island development

The two men who died in a plane crash near North Palm Beach County General Aviation Airport yesterday were the flight instructor and a private pilot.

That’s according to the National Transportation Safety Board, which did not release the names of the two men. They were in a small aircraft embarking on a cross-state flight, practicing what’s called “touch and go” landings.

Before crashing into a marsh area at the end of the runway in West Palm Beach, they had taken off from Pompano Beach and flew over Sarasota and back to Melbourne.

The crash remains under investigation.

READ MORE: As second runway plans develop, Palm Beach Airport hits record 8 million passengers

South Floridians can expect a little break from the excessive heat but not for too long.

The National Weather Service said temperatures should be slightly cooler today and tomorrow thanks to an increase in cloud coverage and rainfall. Highs will be in the upper 80s.

Scattered showers and thunderstorms are expected today in the afternoon hours. Hot conditions will return this weekend.

READ MORE: Hurricanes aren’t just a coastal problem. How to gauge your risk level

Elise Gregg

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WLRN News

The demolition of the Parkland school building where 17 students and staff were killed in a 2018 massacre has been completed. 
 
According to the South Florida Sun Sentinel, Broward County School District officials confirmed this week that the 1200 building at Marjory Stoneman Douglas High was entirely demolished and the debris has been cleared away.
 
A district spokeswoman said the land will be covered with pre-grown grass until plans for the site are determined. 

READ MORE: 'That chapter has closed': Parkland shooting building is finally being demolished

Amy Sancetta

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AP

Drowning is the leading cause of unintentional death among children, ages 1 to 4 in Florida. Most drown in a pool. Now,experts are urging state residents to learn CPR.

The best way to learn is to watch how CPR, or cardiopulmonary resuscitation, is done and practice it. If you suspect someone’s not responsive, call 911. Then put both hands firmly centered on the chest, elbows locked and each compression about two inches into the chest.

Barbara Bolinsky showed the basics at a demonstration last month. She’s a registered nurse and instructor at Broward Health Coral Springs, which offers in-person classes for $10.
 
Doctor Eli Friedman is a cardiologist with Baptist Health. He says free, short videos online work, too. 

"If you have the ability to save the life of a loved one, why wouldn’t you learn this?" he said.

First responders recommend carefully watching children in or near a pool and regularly scanning the bottom of it.  

READ MORE: Experts say more affordable access to swim lessons is key to reducing child drownings

Although Angelo Colina is fluent in English and Spanish, he said working in his native language changed his craft.

"We get to tap into things that are very cultural. It makes more sense for me to do an impression of an Argentinian accent in Spanish than do it in English," he told WLRN. "I feel like not everything can be translatable."

The Venezuelan comedian is performing stand-up around the United States in Spanish and he's making his way to Miami.

His shows have attracted fluent Spanish speakers and people learning the language. In his sets, Colina doesn’t shy away from talking about cultural differences and discrimination. 

For example, in one of his shows, he talks about his experience living in Colombia.

He said in Spanish that he's tired of being discriminated against for being Venezuelan.

"So I moved to the United States, where they will discriminate against me for being Mexican. It’s different!" Colina said in one of his stand up shows.

He said his favorite part about doing stand up is constantly learning about cultural specifics and nuance.

Colina will be performing at Miami Improv on July 14 at 8 p.m.

READ MORE: Comedian Julio Torres takes a surreal spin on the American Dream in film 'Problemista'

The City of Boynton Beach has just unveiled a $4 million renovation to one of its beloved athletic fields that made possible with a $250,00 grant from the NFL.

The Ezell Hester Jr. Athletic Field, off Seacrest Boulevard, now has a synthetic sports turf on the home field and new bleachers that seat more than 950 people.

At the unveiling this week, City Commissioner Woodrow Hay said he’s been waiting 30 years for the new facility.

"This field that you see behind us right now was nothing but dirt… and now look at it," he said in audio from South Florida Sun Sentinel. "I can see Little League teams, high school, NFL, the Miami Dolphins ... I can see them all coming here."

The facility also now has additional parking, a walking trail, park benches and picnic tables.

Officials said a new concession building is expected to open in about two months.

READ MORE: Miami FIFA World Cup Committee CEO's goal: Make city 'the envy' of all other 2026 host cities

The finale is now set.

It will be Argentina and Colombia playing for the championship of the hemispheric soccer tournament on Sunday night, here in South Florida at Hard Rock Stadium
 
Last night, Colombia defeated Uruguay 1-0. 
The Colombians were down a man the entire second half due to a red card.
 
But they held off the Uruguayans to reach the Copa climax against defending champ Argentina, which is led by InterMiami star Lionel Messi.

READ MORE: Miami FIFA World Cup Committee CEO's goal: Make city 'the envy' of all other 2026 host cities

The Palm Beach County Sheriff's office said two men are dead after the small plane they were in crashed into a lake near the North Palm Beach County General Aviation Airport.
 
PBSO said the crash occurred early yesterday afternoon.
 
A preliminary report from the National Transportation Safety Board states the plane was departing from the airport when it crashed into a marsh area at the end of the runway.

According to the South Florida Sun Sentinel, the cause of the crash is not yet known.  
 
The identities of the two men have not yet been released. 

READ MORE: Palm Beach County sees record investment returns, but braces for more property foreclosures

Wilfredo Lee

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AP

Florida’s spiny lobster mini-season just got a little more exciting for Sunshine State residents.

Gov. Ron DeSantis announced that in addition to the 2024 mini season, which will run from Wednesday, July 24 through Thursday, July 25, an additional day will be added to the season, July 14— exclusively for Florida residents.

The regular lobster season goes from Aug. to March 31.

READ MORE: In Keys visit, DeSantis adds a day to lobster mini season and $5 million for artificial reefs

A state panel is recommending that Broward judge Mardi Levey Cohen receive a reprimand for sharing potentially fake claims about an opponent during her 2022 reelection campaign.
 
Levey Cohen shared rumors about an opponent with the Wynmoor Condominium Democratic Club via email. She accused her opponent of things like fraudulently receiving federal money they didn’t qualify for during the pandemic. 
 
The state panel determined that Levey Cohen did not do her due diligence in verifying those claims. Documents filed to the state’s Supreme Court say that Levey Cohen isn’t contesting the panel’s findings or recommended discipline.

READ MORE: Broward League of Women Voters holds election forum with county court judicial candidates

Biscayne Bay's so-called "spoil islands" will soon reopen to the public. 
 
The City of Miami temporarily closed Osprey, Morningside, Pace Picnic and Willis Islands back in May because of excess litter left behind by boaters.
 
They’re set to reopen at sunrise this Friday, July 12.
 
But city officials say now there will be measures in place to ensure the islands are kept clean and protected.
 
Aside from enhanced patrols, there will be educational outreach and new signage on the islands. A contracted vendor will also keep a record of debris collected, helping assess the effectiveness of the city’s "Leave No Trace" campaign.

READ MORE: Florida reefs got a reprieve from steamy water this summer, but will it last?

The old Dade County Courthouse in downtown Miami is being auctioned off with a minimum bid of over $52 million.
 
The 27-floor building was opened in 1928. Miami Today reported that in 2021, engineers found some structural issues with the building. 
 
A new courthouse with a $263 million price tag is being built right next door. The opening day for bids on the old courthouse is on Sept. 4.

READ MORE: Judge to decide on suit between Miami-Dade House candidates Joe Saunders and aunt 'Moe' Saunders

Former Miami Hurricanes and Dolphins quarterback Bernie Kosar has announced that he has Parkinson’s disease and also suffers from liver failure.

Parkinson's is a brain disorder that causes unintended or uncontrollable movements -- like difficulty with balance and coordination.

As the disease progresses, people may also have difficulty walking and talking.

In an interview with Cleveland Magazine, Kosar said his condition has fluctuated throughout the year.

But he says he has improved recently and attributes that as the result of a new diet and exercise routine.

Kosar spent 12 seasons with the National Football League, with three of those seasons as a Miami Dolphins quarterback.

Before joining the Dolphins in 1994, he helped the Dallas Cowboys win the 1993 Super Bowl as a backup quarterback. 

READ MORE: Fake Florida therapist fooled hundreds online until she died, state records say

Anita Li

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WLRN

Miami-Dade County Public Schools have expanded their swimming program – with an emphasis on drowning prevention.
 
Four thousand children, all 4 and 5-year-olds, will receive free swimming lessons this school year at 10 pools. Then next school year, the district hopes to instruct 10,000 more students.
 
Golden Glades resident Barbara Sylverain has signed up her 5-year-old daughter. Sylverain says she never had the chance to learn how to swim, so she’s glad her daughter has the opportunity.

"If she go in the open water and she started to drown, I don’t know how to save her…It’s amazing ‘cause she started to teach me as well. My hope is for her to become a pro, you know? [laughs]]  
 
According to figures provided by the county, drowning is the leading cause of death for children younger than 9 in Miami-Dade.

READ MORE: Experts say more affordable access to swim lessons is key to reducing child drownings

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Miami Republican candidate Mayra Joli (center) and a man dressed as the meme Pepe the Frog attend a rally for former President Donald Trump in Doral on Tuesday, July 9. 2024.

Daniel Rivero / WLRN

2 of 4  — Crowd of Trump Supporters in Doral for rally

A crowd of about 45,000 people attended a rally for former President Donald Trump in Doral on Tuesday, July 9. 2024.

Daniel Rivero / WLRN

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Trump Latinos, a hip-hop group based in Miami and Tampa, shoot a music video at the Trump rally in Doral on Tuesday, July 9, 2024.

Daniel Rivero / WLRN

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A vendor displays a shirt for sale that reads "I'm voting for the felon 2024," in reference to President Trump's conviction in May, at Trump National Doral on Tuesday, July 9, 2024.

Daniel Rivero / WLRN

Thousands of supporters of former President Trump gathered at the Trump National Doral Tuesday night to rally for the presumptive Republican nominee.

A long string of Florida Republicans took to the stage — from a Miami-Dade County commissioner to both United States Senators. Republican Congressman Byron Donalds of Naples was a crowd favorite.

"We are now the Republican state in the country. We are now the red state in the country, and Miami-Dade County is also known as Trump County here in the great state of Florida," he said.

Former President Trump made light of efforts from some Democrats to switch candidates from President Joe Biden to Vice President Kamala Harris for the November election. He attacked the vice president for supporting the Green New Deal when she was Senato

"I don’t think Kamala Harris’ California socialism is going to go down well with the people of Doral, the people of Miami or the people of Florida," Trump said. Because in Florida we don’t like socialism, we want our freedom right?

Trump National Doral estimated about 45,000 people were in attendance.

READ MORE: Trump revels in Democratic turmoil as he returns to campaign trail in Doral, teases VP pick

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Soccer fans gathered at the Miami Beach Bandshell in Miami Beach to watch Argentina advance to the Copa America final after beating Canada 2-0 on Tuesday, July 9, 2024.

Jimena Romero / WLRN News

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Soccer fans gathered at the Miami Beach Bandshell in Miami Beach to watch Argentina advance to the Copa America final after beating Canada 2-0 on Tuesday, July 9, 2024.

Jimena Romero / WLRN News

Argentines of all ages gathered outside the Miami Beach Bandshell and the iconic Manolo Restaurant – singing Muchachos, Ahora Nos Volvimos a Ilusionar, the unofficial anthem of Argentina’s 2022 World Cup win.

This time, they were celebrating La Albiceleste advancing to the Copa America final after beating Canada last night 2 -0.

Ulises Lopez Miño is originally from Rosario, Argentina – like Argentine soccer great Lionel Messi. To celebrate his home country’s win on the same day as its Independence Day, he told WLRN in Spanish, is a beautiful gift.

“Un regalo hermoso para toda la Argentina justo en este día, el día de la independencia," he said.

Miño said just like the Muchachos song, Argentines are now excited again. Any celebrations this weekend will center the two things closest to him — Argentine pride and soccer.

"Es lo más alto, vamos a ver si el domingo podemos festejar lo más importante que para nosotros es esta pasión tan grande de ser Argentino y poner el futbol como prácticamente todo."

The next game will be Colombia versus Uruguay at 8 p.m. in the semifinals.

READ MORE: Miami FIFA World Cup Committee CEO's goal: Make city 'the envy' of all other 2026 host cities

Broward County is fining the city of Fort Lauderdale and a company it hired for a drainage project – and charging both a combined $175,000. 
 
That’s after Ric-Man Construction removed too many mangrove and pine trees from the River Oaks neighborhood and dumped gravel in a canal.
 
According to the South Florida Sun Sentinel, the missteps in the $50 million project also include discharging water into a nearby wetland preserve. 
 
Without the trees, noise pollution has grown in River Oaks from nearby shipyards. The lack of trees and the water discharge also could put fish and other native wildlife in danger.

READ MORE: Mangrove Rangers ride to the rescue of a beleaguered habitat

Former President Donald Trump is holding a campaign rally at the Trump National Doral Golf Resort tonight.

Anticipation for Trump's appearance has cultivated a pretty festive atmosphere where thousands of people are seeking shade on the golf course.

Spectators are weathering extreme heat. South Florida has been under a heat advisory since earlier this morning with peak indexes ranging from 105 to 110 degrees.

Among the most popular shirts seen was "I'm voting for the felon 2024," in reference to President Trump's conviction in May. A New York jury found him guilty of all 34 charges in a scheme to illegally influence the 2016 election through a hush money payment to a porn actor who said the two had sex.

The Tampa and Miami-based rap group, Trump Latinos, has been shooting a music video while several local lawmakers, including Congresswoman María Elvira Salazar and Congressman Byron Donalds.

"Miami-Dade County is also known as Trump county," he said.

READ MORE: Trump returns to campaign trail in Miami with looming VP deadline

Wilfredo Lee

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AP

Ahead of former President Donald Trump’s rally in Doral tonight, Florida Democrats held a press conference in Miami to discuss what they say are possible threats under a second Trump term. 
 
They focused on Project 2025, a nearly 900 page document that outlines the proposed overhaul of the federal government, drafted by longtime allies and former officials in Trump’s administration.
 
 "Combined with last week's supreme court ruling I'm not exaggerating when I say that a Trump presidency will make Trump more a king than a president, giving him all the power to go after his political enemies and enact the revenge he is so obsessed with," said Miami-Dade Democratic Party Chair and Florida State Senator, Shevrin Jones.

Florida Democratic Party Chair Nikki Fried said the Project 2025 plan threatens women’s rights.

"What I’m most concerned about are Trump’s plans to decimate our reproductive rights even more. Women will die if this plan makes it to the White House," Fried said. "We cannot let that happen."

Donald Trump has said he knows nothing about Project 2025 or who is behind it. The rally tonight begins at 7 p.m. at Trump National Doral.

READ MORE: Trump returns to campaign trail in Miami with looming VP deadline

Daniel Rivero

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WLRN

After leading the Little Haiti Cultural Complex for over a year, the executive director has resigned after citing systemic issues as the reason for his departure.
 
Qunyatta Warren said the City of Miami administration, which oversees the Little Haiti Cultural Complex, doesn't look at the center with the same care as facilities in other neighborhoods receive. 
 
The Miami Herald reports that Warren's issues with the City stem from a long list of repairs to the center that have yet to start, and disagreements concerning overtime requests. 
 
Warren is one of several other previous directors who have said they felt the City of Miami hasn’t prioritized the center.

READ MORE: Little Haiti Cultural Center hit with 'unsafe structures' violations. The community fears what comes next

The city of Miramar is collecting donations for victims affected by Hurricane Beryl.
 
The drive is collecting items like sleeping bags, non-perishable food and first-aid kits. The city will be accepting donations through the end of the month, which can be dropped off at its fire stations.

A full list of items that can be donated are on the city's website.
 
Hurricane Beryl made landfall in Texas yesterday as a Category 1 storm.

READ MORE: Miami-Dade Mayor Daniella Levine Cava urges donations for Hurricane Beryl victims

Odelyn Joseph

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AP

The Haiti National Police says they’ve taken back control of the country's largest public hospital.

The Miami Herald reports, this comes more than four months after armed gangs seized control of the area to use as a possible escape route.

Videos posted on social media show the hospital left vandalized, with furniture left scattered outside.

The facility known as the General Hospital is one of more than 30 public health facilities that armed groups have attacked in Haiti's capital, Port-au-Prince, since February.

READ MORE: New Haitian leader visits Washington seeking additional support

Want more stories about the Americas? Sign up for WLRN’s Americas Report newsletter and we’ll send a round up of the most important news and stories from the hemisphere, every Thursday morning. Sign up here.

Matias J. Ocner

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The Miami Herald

A heat advisory is in effect for all of South Florida today from 10 a.m. through 6 p.m.  

The National Weather Service says peak heat indexes of between 105 and 110 degrees can be expected across much of our region. The heat index is also known as the "feels like" temperature.
 
It's a measure of how hot it feels when you factor in air temperature and relative humidity.

READ MORE: A Miami ER doctor on why you should take those 'extreme heat' warnings seriously

Local soccer star Benjamin Cremaschi has been selected for the U.S. team that will play at the Paris Olympics this summer.
 
The 19-year-old Cremaschi, an Argentine-American who lives in Key Biscayne, is a rising star for Miami’s Major League Soccer club, Inter Miami C.F. At Inter Miami he of course plays with another Argentine standout you may have heard of: Lionel Messi.

Cremaschi, a midfielder known as “Benja”, is one of 18 players named to the U.S. Olympic squad. They’ll play their first game on July 24 in Marseille against host France.

READ MORE: Miami FIFA World Cup Committee CEO's goal: Make city 'the envy' of all other 2026 host cities

One of Broward's largest cities might soon remove its police officers from some schools over a funding dispute with the county's school district.
 
The South Florida Sun Sentinel reports the Pembroke Pines mayor is asking the Broward School District to pay the full cost of the city's school resource officers.
 
The mayor argues that if the district does not pay, it would lead to a financial shortfall of over $2 million for his city's police budget.
 
The Broward Schools Superintendent is set to meet tomorrow with city leaders to try to resolve the issue.
 
The mayor said the cost of each full-time officer is over $165,000, which includes salary, benefits and equipment costs.

READ MORE: South Florida schools protected from paying personal-injury insurance, ruling says

At least seven people were injured — three of them seriously — this morning after a boat crash in the Florida Keys.
 
Around 2 a.m., a boat crashed into South Pine Channel Bridge in the lower Keys. Three people on board were flown to mainland hospitals off the Keys, while four others were taken to local ones. 
 
The Miami Herald reports the boat was also destroyed in the high-speed crash, sinking after passengers were rescued. The cause of the crash remains under investigation.

READ MORE: Experts say more affordable access to swim lessons is key to reducing child drownings

Damian Dovarganes

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AP

Federal regulators said that patients who received mammograms at a South Florida hospital in the past two years may have been given inaccurate results and should get tested again.
 
The Miami Herald reports that the U.S. Food and Drug Administration has ordered North Shore Medical Center in North Miami-Dade to stop performing mammograms after a review found the images failed to meet quality standards.
 
The possibly inaccurate mammograms were done between March 2022 and March 2024. 
 
The hospital has also recently seen cutbacks and layoffs after its owner, Steward Health Care, filed for bankruptcy protection in May to thin out debt.

READ MORE: With owner in bankruptcy, union says Palmetto General staff struggles with patient needs

Screenshot from 2022 FAA “From the Flight Deck” informational video

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Stet News

Palm Beach International Airport is receiving a multimillion dollar grant to improve its runways. The Federal Aviation Administration has awarded PBIA $17 million through the Bipartisan Infrastructure Law.
 
It’s an effort to keep pace with record numbers of traveling across the nation

The project includes upgrades to three of its runways, involving  pavement, lighting and other safety and efficiency improvements. The grant will fund 75% of the project and the remaining 25% will come from the fees baked into ticket prices that help maintain the airport.
 
The airport generates nearly $6 billion a year and serves more than 8 million passengers a year.

READ MORE: As second runway plans develop, Palm Beach Airport hits record 8 million passengers

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Florida Department of Transportation

For drivers who regularly commute from the Village of Key Biscayne to the mainland some temporary changes.
 
First, the westbound ramp on the Rickenbacker Causeway to southbound I-95 will close overnight starting today. It reopens July 21. 
 
Then from July 21 through Aug. 3, the northbound ramp to I-95 will be closed during overnight hours. 
 
READ MORE: Key Biscayne flyover closures in July will take at least 24 days

Today, many in Miami-Dade are mourning the loss of a man credited with shaping the county's government as it is today.
 
The Miami Herald reports that Merrett Stierheim died yesterday. He was 90 years old. 
 
Stierhiem's career started with an internship at Miami City Hall in 1959. Among his many roles, Stierheim served as superintendent of Miami-Dade County schools, Miami’s city manager and twice as Miami-Dade County manager.

He oversaw a number of important public works projects for Miami-Dade, including construction of the county zoo’s South Miami-Dade campus, the 29-story Government Center and construction of the Metrorail and Metromover.

READ MORE: How historical markers can remember, and manipulate, the past

Hurricane Beryl pounded Jamaica last week with Cat 4 winds. Especially hard hit was the popular south coast tourism community of Treasure Beach.

Jason Henzell has owned Jake’s Hotel there for more than 30 years. His Breds Treasure Beach Foundation is working with U.S. relief nonprofits like the Global Empowerment Mission in Doral. They’re getting urgently needed aid like food, generators and tarps to thousands of affected residents.

“We prepared better than we ever had before, but Beryl was a different beast altogether. So there is an extensive amount of roof damage, crops that are lost," Henzell told WLRN about Beryl’s ferocity. "It’s going to be close to a month away before the electricity is restored. But we’re farmers and fishermen. We have a resilience built into us, and that is a phenomenal thing.”

Beryl was the earliest Cat 5 storm on record in the Atlantic hurricane season. It ravaged Caribbean countries like Grenada and Barbados — and Global Empowerment Mission is funneling aid there as well.

READ MORE: Beryl brings floods to Houston and knocks out power to more than 2 million customers

A heat advisory is in effect for all of South Florida today through 6 p.m. 
 
The National Weather Service said the heat index at its peak is expected to be between 105 and 110 degrees for much of our region.
 
The heat index is also known as the "feels like" temperature.

It's a measure of how hot it feels when you factor in air temperature and relative humidity.

READ MORE: A Miami ER doctor on why you should take those 'extreme heat' warnings seriously

The hemispheric soccer tournament’s Cinderella team, Venezuela, lost Friday night to Canada in penalty shots after their quarterfinal game ended in a 1-1 tie.

Canada advances to the semifinals and will play Copa favorite Argentina tomorrow night at 8 p.m. in New Jersey.

Colombia routed Panama 5-to-0 in their quarterfinal match on Saturday.

Colombia will now play a semifinal game on Wednesday against Uruguay, which defeated Brazil on Saturday in penalty shots after their match ended in a scoreless draw.

The Copa final will be played in Miami on Sunday night at Hard Rock Stadium.

READ MORE: Saturday Sports: Copa America and the U.S. men's soccer team, criminal probe into doping

Charles Krupa

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AP

Spirit Airlines is planning on resuming service to two South American cities for the holiday season.
 
Starting Dec. 4, travelers can take direct flights from Fort Lauderdale-Hollywood International Airport to Lima, Peru and Bucaramanga, Colombia. That’s according to the South Florida Sun Sentinel. The flights will be in service thru Jan. 8.
 
Currently, there are no nonstop flights from the Fort Lauderdale airport to Lima or Bucaramanga. 
 
In May, Spirit Airlines announced that it will no longer charge customers fees for changing their flights.

READ MORE: A new airport could spark the economy in a rural part of Florida. Will the workforce be ready?

Ariel Ley

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AP

After pushback from private business owners, the Cuban government has suspended a proposed price cap on several food staples. 
 
The Miami Herald obtained a recording of a closed-door meeting between the government and entrepreneurs who warned officials that people could go hungry. 
 
The price cap on staples like chicken, cooking oil and pasta would have prevented small and medium-sized businesses from importing those goods. 
 
Cuba is already suffering from a slew of shortages, along with inflation, which is what that price cap was supposed to help contain. 
 
While the measure suspended, the government and private sector will negotiate fair prices.
 
READ MORE: Cuba's first transgender athlete shows the progress and challenges faced by LGBTQ people

Want more stories about the Americas? Sign up for WLRN’s Americas Report newsletter and we’ll send a round up of the most important news and stories from the hemisphere, every Thursday morning. Sign up here.

The Riviera Beach Police Department is undergoing transformations that include a new police headquarters and a mobile command center.

Back in March, voters authorized the city to raise as much as $35 million for a new headquarters to replace the current one.

Now, according to the Palm Beach Post, with appropriations from South Florida Congresswoman Sheila Cherfilus-McCormick, they’ll purchase a new $750,000 mobile command center.

It’s designed to serve as a fully equipped, on-the go operations hub for the department.

The mobile command is expected to be up and running in 12 to 18 months.

The new police headquarters and new mobile command center are part of a broader infrastructure renewal in Riviera Beach, where at least $553 million in projects are on the drawing board or in the approval process.

READ MORE: Palm Beach County sees record investment returns, but braces for more property foreclosures

Fort Lauderdale commissioners have approved a resolution to reduce lead emissions at the city-owned Executive Airport. 
 
This follows a year of complaints from residents after a South Florida Sun Sentinel investigation found that South Florida's smaller airports top the country in toxic lead emissions.
 
Under the new resolution, the city is required to promote the use and sale of unleaded fuel at the Executive Airport, which ranks 18th in the country for lead emissions.
 
Currently, only a few general aviation airports in Florida sell unleaded fuel, and it is usually incompatible with older planes. 

READ MORE: Miami ‘climate tech hub’ gets $19.5 million from feds. Focus will be reinforcing coast

Following Independence Day gatherings, volunteers today picked up nearly 900 pounds of trash and litter on Deerfield Beach. 
 
Before sunrise, the nonprofit, Surfrider, collected cardboard, plastic and trash. The group more than doubled its haul from last year, according to NBC6. 
 
Surfrider’s Miami chapter is also cleaning up Miami Beach. 
 
With chapters across the country, Surfrider calls July 5 “The Dirtiest Beach Day of the Year."

READ MORE: Why climate change makes a hurricane like Beryl more dangerous

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City of Fort Lauderdale

The Broward County Inspector General Office has concluded that Fort Lauderdale’s former city manager did not reside in the city during his term.

The ethics watchdog group recently made the discovery using Greg Chavarria’s SunPass records. It was published in a preliminary report last month.

Now, the investigation’s final report said Chavarria falsely gave the state Department of Highway Safety and Motor Vehicles a Fort Lauderdale address as his legal residence even though he did not reside there.

Chavarria resigned from his position last month, citing personal reasons.

The county’s Inspector General will now refer the findings to the Broward State Attorney’s Office.

READ MORE: Fort Lauderdale's outgoing city manager leaves a city in the midst of major projects

Miami-Dade Animal Services will now open its Medley shelter on weekends to tackle the overpopulation of dogs at their shelters.

The Medley location, which has historically served as an “overflow shelter,” houses approximately 165 medium to large dogs, while the county’s Doral pet shelter holds nearly 450 dogs. That’s according to the Miami Herald.

The shelter will be open from 1 p.m. to 4 p.m. every weekend, beginning this Saturday. The county has also waived all dog fees for the next four months.

READ MORE: Broward County's animal shelter remains overflowing with cats, dogs

An alarming amount of car crashes on a single street in Hialeah has sparked attention in Washington and now federal dollars are coming to fix it.

Over 800 car crashes in just the past year — on a one mile stretch of road in Hialeah. The problems of East 4th Avenue are so bad that Congress has now given $3 million to try to fix it for drivers, pedestrians and bikers.
 
The stretch of road is one of the top priorities for Miami-Dade County’s Vision Zero program, aiming at eliminating traffic fatalities. A woman on a bicycle was killed by a driver on that street last year.
 
The money will go toward improved lighting, making crosswalks better and to putting dedicated bike lanes in place.
 
Republican Congressman Mario Diaz-Balart represents Hialeah and he announced the funding.
 
Work on the project is scheduled to begin later this year.

READ MORE: New law will require transparency for red light cameras. Some Florida cities are making a killing

Many Miami-Dade commuters won't soon forget what happened in April. That's when the start of a state construction project left thousands stranded on the causeway that connects mainland Miami and Key Biscayne.

But now. the Florida Department of Transportation has a new plan on how to make necessary repairs to the Rickenbacker Causeway Flyover Bridge.

FDOT will close the westbound ramp of the State Road starting July 8 through Aug. 3. 

The agency says commuters can expect heavy traffic and delays during the closure. 

The work will occur in two stages and detours will be marked to note any schedule changes due to the weather or other unexpected conditions. 

READ MORE:

Defending champ Argentina defeated Ecuador last night in a thriller decided by penalty shots.

Ecuador tied the match 1-to-1 in the final seconds of regular time, but the Argentines won the penalty shootout 4-to-2.

Argentina advances to the semifinals of the hemispheric soccer tournament.

Tonight Venezuela, known as La Vinotinto, hopes to continue its Cinderella run when it plays Canada in a quarterfinal match at 9 . .in Dallas.

In tomorrow night’s quarterfinal games, Colombia takes on Panama, and Uruguay faces Brazil.

READ MORE: The U.S. is eliminated from Copa America, increasing the pressure to fire its coach

Want more stories about the Americas? Sign up for WLRN’s Americas Report newsletter and we’ll send a round up of the most important news and stories from the hemisphere, every Thursday morning. Sign up here.

Lauderdale-by-the-Sea kicked off its Fourth of July celebration with a parade down the beach. With a pivotal upcoming election, attendees at this year’s celebration hoped the unity lasted longer than the fireworks.

Nicole Quintero was one of the hundreds of people who lined El Mar Drive as police vehicles, politicians, and local businesses toted their floats down the road.

"The flyover was great, that was my favorite part," Quintero said.

But in a country with a divisive election looming, some like Jayne Palen saw the celebration as reason for optimism — perhaps proof that the country isn't as divided as people think it is.
 
"We’re all Americans, we should be able to have differences of opinions and still all be united as Americans, period," Palen said.
 
Others were less sure.

"I would love to see everyone come out and be supportive in November but I guess we’re just gonna have to see," Quintero said.

READ MORE: Experts think Biden's poor debate could hurt down ballot Democrat races
 

Elise Gregg

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WLRN

Tonight, the South Florida sky will be lit up with fireworks to celebrate Independence Day. In downtown Miami, you can catch the show at Bayfront Park.

Earlier that day, though, the celebrations kicked off with a highly competitive hotdog eating contest.

With a $200 cash prize on the line, seven contestants plowed through entire trays of hot dogs — the winner, Juan from Colombia, left only three.

Third and second place won $25 and $50 gift cards. The rest of the night, folks can enjoy fireworks, music and food.

READ MORE: Safety is top of mind as police plan strong presence on waters off Miami

This Independence Day, law enforcement wants to remind South Floridians that it’s not only dangerous to shoot your gun in the air — it’s illegal.

"That bullet has no name. Once it goes up, it’s got to come down somewhere," said Miami Police Captain Freddy Cruz in a recent video on the department’s social media. "So please, do not do it. If you see somebody doing it, you hear of somebody — call 9-1-1 immediately."

"We will be dispatched to that area for firearms that are being shot up in the air," Cruz said. "And again, you’re tying up police services that could actually be utilized to help others that are really in need."

Recklessly shooting off a firearm — yes, even for celebrating the Fourth — is a first-degree misdemeanor under Florida law. That could be up to a $1,000 fine or up to a year of jail time.

READ MORE: In Florida, teens caught with guns get a second chance to turn their lives around

This morning kids were already running around Miami Springs where residents are ready to celebrate the Fourth of July with a bang. 
 
This year marks the return of the city's fireworks show on the Miami Springs golf course. The show was canceled last year because the course was being renovated.

"You know its so symbolic of our community though, of Miami Springs. Of a community where family, friends, vistitors get together and just celebrate life. And so this year it’s doubly exciting because we’re back," said City Mayor Maria Mitchell city's mayor. 

The city asks visitors to have fun at the show, but not to bring golf carts or roll coolers on the new grass.
 
The fireworks show starts after sundown. 

READ MORE: Affordability, childcare among topics in Miami-Dade County survey for residents

A heat advisory remains in effect for all of South Florida until 8 p.m. tomorrow.

The National Weather Service said feels-like temperatures could reach between 105 and 110 degrees both today and tomorrow afternoon.

Hot temperatures and humidity can cause heat illness, so it’s important to take precaution.

Stay hydrated and in air-conditioned rooms, if possible. When outside for long periods, wear lightweight and loose fitting clothing and try to limit strenuous activities to early morning or evening.

READ MORE: Why climate change makes a hurricane like Beryl more dangerous

The quarterfinal round of the hemispheric soccer tournament begins tonight when defending champion Argentina faces Ecuador in Houston at 9 pm.
 
Argentina’s legendary captain Lionel Messi, who also stars for our Inter Miami club, is expected to return from an injury.
 
Tomorrow night, the tournament’s Cinderella team — Venezuela, known as La Vinotino — takes on Canada in Dallas. 

READ MORE: Florida Panthers sign deal to move local broadcasts from Bally to Scripps Sports

Want more stories about the Americas? Sign up for WLRN’s Americas Report newsletter and we’ll send a round up of the most important news and stories from the hemisphere, every Thursday morning. Sign up here.

A hacker group said it has breached the Florida Department of Health data system and has gained access to a large amount of potentially sensitive information on Floridians.

The group has threatened to publish the data unless the state pays an undisclosed amount of money. 
 
The Tampa Bay Times reports that the ransomware group called RansomHub gave the state until tomorrow to recover the data. 
 
But Florida's government has a policy of not paying ransomware.
 
A Florida health spokesperson confirmed yesterday that the department experienced a potential cyber incident. The kind of information the group possesses — if any — is unclear. 
 
Since last week, state tax collectors’s offices and funeral homes have been unable to issue birth and death certificates because the Department of Health’s online system went down.

READ MORE: South Florida auto dealerships left reeling after 'massive' software hack

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Courtesy

The new Fort Lauderdale police station is only halfway built, but it already has hairline cracks forming in the concrete. 
 
According to the South Florida Sun Sentinel, the development team told city officials nearly four months ago about cracks forming along the third floor. 
  
One city commissioner has called for the building to be tore down to start the process all over again.

READ MORE: Fort Lauderdale, police sued for violent 2020 attacks against protesters of George Floyd murder

The Broward Office of the Inspector General today released a report criticizing mismanagement within the North Lauderdale finance department. 
 
They allege the city allowed a vendor to overbill more than $2.58 million.
 
From 2012-2021 WastePro, the City's solid waste contractor, overbilled both residential and commercial customers within the city. 
 
According to the OIG, they got away with it due to mismanagement from the city's former finance director Steve Chapman.
 
The report stated that WastePro did not engage in any form of misconduct— however,  it did not abide by some of its financial obligations.

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