Susan Giles Wantuck

On Monday, Florida's Education Commissioner issued an emergency order for brick and mortar schools to reopen for the fall, with the full array of services schools provide.

It said "school openings must be consistent with safety precautions as defined by the Florida Department of Health, local health officials and supportive of Floridians, young and adult, with underlying conditions that make them medically vulnerable."

No matter who does your taxes, once you sign on the dotted line, you are responsible for them. 

Ryan Thompson of the IRS said tax fraud is rampant this time of year. And there are ways to spot would-be crooks. 

According to State Attorney General Ashley Moody, Florida is number one in the nation for fraud. And that includes price gouging.

It can present in a number of different ways, whether it's when you are trying to buy lumber to board up your windows when a hurricane's bearing down, or whether you find you're paying much more at the pump for gasoline than you usually pay. 

U.S. Coast Guard members are still on the job, rescuing people and guarding national waters.

But with the government shutdown in effect, they're not getting paid. 

It may feel like prices at the gas pump are higher than they've been in a while. Well, AAA on Monday reported gas prices hit a four-year high for the month of September. 

It's been a long time since Florida's Gulf Coast has seen a red tide outbreak this severe.

The troubles with Florida's SunPass toll system started with what was to be a six-day upgrade in June. It's resulted in a major malfunction that led to motorists across Florida seeing their bank accounts being overdrawn and charged overdraft fees.

The City of Sarasota has declared a state of emergency over the toxic red tide bloom that began in November.

Todd Kerkering is the emergency manager for the city of Sarasota. He has lived there since the 1970s and said he doesn't remember ever hearing about an emergency declaration in Sarasota because of red tide. 

FEMA, the Federal Emergency Management Agency, is putting blue plastic sheeting on homes damaged by Hurricane Irma.

Floridians are old pros when it comes to hurricane preparation, but these last few years of near hurricane drought may have taken the edge off storm preparation.

But Harvey's Texas devastation is a stark reminder about the kind of damage a major hurricane can do.

About two weeks from now on August 21, a lot of people will be looking up. They will be witnessing the first "coast to coast" solar eclipse visible in the United States in about 100 years.

You can use this interactive map from NASA to find exactly when to look for the effects of the eclipse in your part of the world. And if you need help converting UTC or (UT) time, check here.

Howard Hochhalter manages the Bishop Planetarium at the South Florida Museum in Bradenton. He says in Florida, we'll get about 83 to 85 percent of the eclipse.

The folks who work at the Guy Harvey Research Institute at Nova Southeastern University are hoping that people will come to understand the critical link between sharks and ourselves.

Authorities are calling the Pasco County sinkhole that swallowed up two homes last week the biggest sinkhole in the state in recent history.  At last check, it was 225 feet wide and 50 feet deep.  

Because many residents in the area of the Lake Padgett sinkhole depend on well water, Pasco Emergency Management personnel are taking water samples to be tested for E. coli and other contaminants.  

More than 140 wildfires are burning in the state of Florida today.

It's a "red flag warning" day in inland portions of West Central Florida today, which means high winds, no rain in sight and low humidity. Florida remains under a state of emergency because of a rash of wildfires, with a declaration from the governor last month.  

In Florida, it's always wildfire season. But spring is the time of year when the risk is highest.