As Hurricane Ike moves west across Cuba, Highlands County and south Florida residents can let their guard down for this storm. "It's going south of us; we are out of the cone of doom," Highlands County Emergency Management Director Bill Nichols said Monday morning. "We are monitoring the storm, though. ...more

September 8, 2008

Roy Cummings Bucs 24-21: Matt Bryant breaks out of his slump in the clutch. ...more

September 7, 2008

Lorne H. Spence of Hudson says people who favor oil drilling off the Florida coast should visit places where drilling is already taking place. ...more

August 27, 2008

While appreciating how difficult tracking a hurricane is and how important it is to err on the side of caution, the weather wizards should tone down the drama. Although not a native Floridian, I got a solid christening after my July 2004 move with the parade of hurricanes, so I'm no babe in the woods. The media's constant harping about preparedness, while showing possible deadly scenarios done in spaghetti, all but drove me to barricade myself in the house. ...more

August 21, 2008

With Tropical Storm Fay zeroing on Florida, Gov. Charlie Crist declared a state of emergency Saturday afternoon. ...more

August 17, 2008

State Farm Florida wants to raise home insurance rates nearly 50 percent statewide, but its proposal is loaded with excessive costs and profits, Florida's consumer advocate said Tuesday. ...more

August 13, 2008

A review of the engineering report on the Memorial Elementary School roof prompted the School Board of Highlands County to call a special meeting to discuss concerns noted in the report. ...more

July 10, 2008

TAMPA - Nothing free lasts forever, even hurricane inspections. My Safe Florida Home officials are urging residents who want a free inspection to act now, as the program is rapidly closing on its goal of 400,000 inspections statewide. ...more

July 3, 2008

Just like a little success or winning makes a lot of problems go away, the same holds true when the rains finally come to a drought-stricken area. ...more

July 3, 2008

You can't live in Florida without hearing about hurricanes. Conversations are filled with details about the ones that skirted by, the ones that hit and the damage caused. ...more

June 29, 2008