Tag Archives: Florida
Man, tired of living in U.S., steals boat to go back to Cuba, gets arrested on way
A 30-year-old Miami man was jailed in the Florida Keys after authorities say his plan to steal a commercial fishing boat in order to head back to Cuba hit a serious snag Monday. According to the Monroe County Sheriff’s Office, a Marathon man reported that his 40-foot fishing boat was stolen that morning and said one of his former employees, Cristian Torres Perez, had recently quit “and had been talking about returning to Cuba as he disliked living in the U.S.” >click to read< 12:10
Still reeling from Ian, Florida shrimpers are desperate to get back on the water
Jimmy Driggers, 85, got into the fishing business when he was just 13 years old. He’s a shrimper in Fort Myers, Fla. “I was a mullet fisherman, [a] commercial fisherman in my younger days,” he said. Driggers walks with a prosthetic leg from an injury he sustained on his boat about a decade ago. It’s decorated with a sea lighthouse. He owns one shrimping boat the F/V Miz Shirley named after his wife. It can carry 50,000 pounds of shrimp. Driggers said the industry has been hurting for decades, and that he was paid more back in the 1980’s than he is today. Fuel prices have skyrocketed. Then came Hurricane Ian. It pushed The Miz Shirley half onto a seawall and half was left in the water –- unusable. >click to read< 07:28
Removal of shrimp boats begins near Fort Myers Beach
It was a bittersweet moment for shrimpers who could finally see just how badly they were damaged. The first boat, the Double E, was finally lifted after being thrown onto its side during Hurricane Ian. Wayne Romano has worked on the Double E for 18 years. “It gives me promise that maybe soon we will be back to work,” Romano said. Seeing the boat like this is heartbreaking for him. And when he got onboard to get his clothes, it made him seasick for the first time in his life. “I only made it four foot inside that boat and I had to lay down because it throws, it throws your whole equilibrium off and everything,” Romano said. “It felt like the boat was going to flip over.” 2 Videos, >click to read< 10:22
Cranes removing misplaced boats at Fort Myers Beach
Fort Myers Beach used to be a place where you’d see happy beachgoers enjoying the sun and water. However, since Ian, when you cross the bridge, you are met with construction cranes and more. The cranes are there to pick up a lot left behind by Ian, such as boats that have been lost in the storm. That kind of help cannot come fast enough, especially to those who need them for work. Fishermen have to come up with the money themselves to get the proper equipment to lift the materials needed back in the water. Although the boats aren’t even the biggest thing that needs saving, the entire fishing industry in Southwest Florida needs help. Video, >click to read< 21:50
Large Claws a Good Sign for Stone Crab Season
“My grandfather started Kirk Fish Company in the late 1940s, early 1950s, we’re not exactly sure when,” Kelly Kirk said. “My dad grew up here on the docks. I grew up here on the docks. It’s been in the family since then. The season seems to be starting out decent. It’s so hard to tell this early on. It usually takes a solid two weeks before we can judge what the season will look like and what the catch will be. But from what I’m hearing from the crabbers locally, and up and down the coast, the crabs are healthy, they’re strong. I’m optimistic that it’s going to be a strong season.” One sign of a good stone crab season, according to Kirk, is the size of the claws. “It’s a good sign when you see a lot of big ones,” Kirk said. “We’re seeing quite a few big ones already. >click to read< 13:44
The fight to protect right whale, lobsters roils Maine politics
In a state where few things matter more than lobster, it’s no surprise that Mainers are getting a hefty portion of crustacean politics as part of the campaigning for the 2022 midterm elections. What is surprising, however, is the high level of anger and frustration pointed squarely at Washington regulators, with many arguing that NOAA’s new rules are unfair and will hit the prized lobster industry far too hard. Rule backers say they’ll help protect a dwindling population of whales that’s at grave risk from fishing gear. “The men and women who make up Maine’s iconic lobster fishery are facing a terrible crisis, a crisis not of their making, a crisis that is due to this administration’s onerous regulations,” photos, >click to read< 12:11
Rebuild Fort Myers Beach Shrimp Industry – A fundraiser by Anna Erickson
Mystery of the disappearing mahi-mahi divides fishermen
At a recent meeting of federal regulators in the Florida Keys, local fishermen raised the alarm that one of the most popular fish they go after – the dolphinfish or mahi-mahi – is fast disappearing from local waters. But industry regulators and the commercial fishing boats, say the plight of the charter boats is more complicated than that. Commercial “long line” fishing is not permitted off the Florida coast and federal regulations allocate the vast majority of the 24.5 million pounds of mahi-mahi allowed annually to the charter boats and their recreational rod-and-reel customers. They blame the larger commercial fishing vessels ,,, Photos, >click to read< 17:19
Hurricane Ian: How will the stranded shrimp boats on Fort Myers Beach be cleaned up?
“You come and you see your business sitting on land when it’s supposed to be in the water,” said Tacey Gore, the owner of the shrimp boat Lexi-Joe. Over the last three weeks, Gore and her husband haven’t been seeing anything but their boat on dry land. Unlike the boats scattered along San Carlos Boulevard that are mangled and in the mangroves, cranes aren’t picking the ships up and it might be awhile before they do. “The cranes are massive,” Gore said. “They have to come in parts and get put together. They’re basically going to have to set up a makeshift boatyard here.” Getting a crane that big is just part of the problem. Getting it through the Matanzas Pass is another problem. Video, >click to read< 15:06
Commercial fishermen accused of raiding fellow fisherman’s lobster traps in the Keys
Three commercial fishermen were arrested this week after being accused of raiding another commercial angler’s traps and stealing at least one spiny lobster. Their arrest Tuesday came five days after plainclothes Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission officers said they observed them from land checking the other boat’s traps off Long Key and taking one lobster. Aniel Sanfiel Vallalonga De La Fe, 51, from Miami, Ricardo Daiz De La Cruz, 32, from Boca Raton, and Yumar Gonzalez Ruiz, 49, from Homestead, each face two counts each of felony trap tampering and one count each of theft of the contents of another harvester’s traps, a second-degree misdemeanor. >click to read< 10:32
DeSantis requests federal support for Florida fisheries in aftermath of Hurricane Ian
Gov. Ron DeSantis is requesting that the areas affected by Hurricane Ian be declared a federal fisheries disaster by the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA), which would open up channels for more aide for those in the fishing industry. DeSantis announced the request Saturday at a press conference providing updates on Hurricane Ian relief efforts, highlighting support for those who work on the water. If approved, NOAA will be able to provide more support to commercial fishermen, wholesale dealers, charter boat captains and fisheries, he said. “Clearly a storm of this magnitude — this is appropriate for this declaration,” DeSantis said. “So once this is approved, then that provides these groups and people in the industry to work with NOAA to be able to get more support. So we’re happy to help facilitate that request.” >click to read< 14:58
Florida shrimpers race to get battered fleet back to sea
The seafood industry in southwest Florida is racing against time and the elements to save what’s left of a major shrimping fleet and a lifestyle that was battered by Hurricane Ian. One of two shrimpers that didn’t sink or get tossed onto land went out Sunday, but the victory was small compared with the task ahead. Shrimping is the largest piece of Florida’s seafood industry, with a value of almost $52 million in 2016, state statistics show. Gulf of Mexico shrimp from Fort Myers has been shipped all over the United States for generations. Now, it’s a matter of when the fishing can resume and whether there will still be experienced crews to operate the boats when that happens. 20 photos, >click to read< 08:49
Local fishermen help those devastated by Hurricane Ian
The Organized Fisherman of Florida (OFF) Cortez chapter has already made one boat trip to Pine Island to deliver supplies to fellow fishermen who lost everything, and more trips are planned. OFF Executive Director Alexis Meschelle is spearheading the campaign with her husband, OFF President Nathan Meschelle. “When our guys saw that fish houses down there that had been in existence for three generations were gone, their boats were gone, their traps were gone, we knew we had to help,” she said. “We couldn’t imagine what that would be like to lose all that. And we knew that they would do the same for us.” >click to read< 16:55
Fisherman charged with use of illegal traps
A commercial fisherman is facing charges after officers from the Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission (FWC) discovered more than 500 closed season crab traps in Hernando County. According to FWC, on Sept. 21 the officers initially came upon 54 illegal traps while on patrol. Later acting on a warrant that provided the fisherman’s GPS coordinates, officers found another 450 traps belonging to the fisherman who allegedly illegally worked at night. >click to read< 18:16
Shrimpers in Florida losing millions after Hurricane Ian
Jesse Clapham, of Erickson and Jensen Seafood, said his company brings in $10 million a year from shrimping. Ian is a major setback to an industry already playing catch-up, he says. “You know we’ve been through multiple hurricanes in the past, fuel prices, imported shrimp, and we keep going,” Clapham said. When the storm first hit, many shrimpers took refuge on their boats. Bloomberg reports that because diesel prices rose so much this year, the boats couldn’t afford to go to Texas in April, as they usually do, where shrimp are more plentiful. When they stayed in Florida, it put some of them directly in Hurricane Ian’s path. “We need help from the government or the state of Florida,” Clapham said. Video, >click to read< 09:25
Hurricane Ian Ravages Family Fishing Business Just Before Crab Season
Off the Hook Fishing Fleet has been in Michael McPhillips’ family for three generations, but Hurricane Ian has left the Fort Myers business in shambles. “Words can’t describe what happened here, McPhillips said. Though stone crab fishing runs in his blood, McPhillips says family-owned commercial fishing businesses are hard to come by. It’s why he tied down and braced for impact as Hurricane Ian barreled into Fort Myers. His mom Denise says she begged her son to stay home. “This is our livelihood,” Michael McPhillips said. “This is all we got. Without this, you don’t have anything. That’s why I was trying to save the boats.” Denise McPhillips says they don’t have insurance. Video, >click to read< 14:00
Florida, Carolinas count the cost of Hurricane Ian
Florida, North and South Carolina faced a massive clean-up on Saturday from the destruction wrought by Hurricane Ian, after one of the most powerful storms ever to hit the U.S. mainland caused tens of billions of dollars in damage and killed more than 20 people. Ian, now a post-tropical cyclone, was weakening but still forecast to bring treacherous conditions to parts of the Carolinas, Virginia and West Virginia into Saturday morning, according to the National Hurricane Center. “Major to record river flooding will continue across central Florida through next week. Limited flash, urban and small stream flooding is possible across the central Appalachians and the southern Mid-Atlantic this weekend, with minor river flooding expected over the coastal Carolinas,” it said. >click to read< 08:40
Everglades City: A fishing community versed in struggle bands together after Hurricane Ian
On Friday, after the water had fully receded from roads but with the power still out, it was mostly friends and family helping each clean mud and haul belongings to the curb in the stifling heat. Many neighbors and family have known each other for generations. Betty Valdes, 41, who grew up in Everglades City and whose family runs a fishing boat, said at the height of the surge, people could boat down most every street in town. “It was solid water,” she said. Most of Everglades City’s crab boats survived, secured by those who depend on them for their livelihoods. 41photos, >click to read< 08:32
Many trapped in Florida as Ian heads toward South Carolina – Photos show the devastating impact of Hurricane Ian in Fort Myers
Rescue crews piloted boats and waded through flooded streets Thursday to save thousands of Floridians trapped after Hurricane Ian destroyed homes and businesses and left millions in the dark. A hurricane warning was issued for the South Carolina coast, where the storm was expected to again make landfall, having already hit Cuba and Florida. Photos, >click to read< Photos show the devastating impact of Hurricane Ian in Fort Myers – With top winds of 155 mph, Ian was a major storm that left catastrophic damage in its wake after hitting the southern Gulf Coast and moving north through Florida’s inner counties. The images below show its impact around the state. >click to view< 16:40
People trapped, 2.5M without power as Hurricane Ian drenches Florida
Hurricane Ian left a path of destruction in southwest Florida, trapping people in flooded homes, cutting off the only bridge to a barrier island, damaging the roof of a hospital intensive care unit and knocking out power to 2.5 million people as it dumped rain across the peninsula on Thursday. One of the strongest hurricanes to ever hit the United States threatened catastrophic flooding around the state. Ian’s tropical-storm-force winds extended outward up to 415 miles (665 km), drenching much of Florida and the southeastern Atlantic coast. Photos, >click to read<
Tropical Storm Ian bringing ‘catastrophic flooding’ to east-central Florida – After making landfall as a powerful Category 4 hurricane, Ian weakened into a tropical storm as it made its way across Florida Wednesday night, according to the latest advisory from the National Hurricane Center. At 8 a.m. Thursday, maximum sustained winds were still 65 mph. The storm is expected to bring life-threatening flooding, storm surge and gusty winds across Florida, Georgia and the Carolinas. >click to read< 08:50
Hurricane Ian makes landfall, causes ‘catastrophic storm surge, winds and flooding’ in southwest Florida
Hurricane Ian weakened slightly again late Wednesday afternoon but remained a dangerous Category 4 storm with top winds of 140 mph. The storm. which previously produced top winds of 155 mph, is forecast to weaken further as it travels up the Florida peninsula, according to a 5 p.m. update from the National Hurricane Center. In 12 hours, the storm’s winds are expected to fall to 85 mph, making the storm a Category 1 hurricane. “It will still pack a formidable punch as it moves across the state of Florida along the I-4 corridor in the next couple of days,” Video, photos, >click to read< 17:57
Southeastern fishery closures floated for 2023 federal right whale rule
Don’t call them “proposals,” but four draft packages arose this week in high-level brainstorming sessions among scientists and fishers on the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration’s Atlantic Large Whale Take Reduction Team. The task force’s purpose is to lead the effort to save North Atlantic right whales from extinction. The ultimate goal is a 90% risk reduction to North Atlantic right whales in U.S. waters. “It’s mandated by the Marine Mammal Protection Act, so this isn’t optional,” said Colleen Coogan, branch chief for the Marine Mammal and Sea Turtle Team in the Protected Resources Division of the NOAA Fisheries Greater Atlantic Regional Fisheries Office. “This is a legal mandate.” >click to read< 10:01
Florida Keys spiny lobster industry hit by housing crisis, labor shortage
Living where you work in Florida is a real problem for thousands of state residents, and it’s causing problems across industries. Harvesting spiny lobster, also known as the rock lobster, is bigger in the Keys than in most places, but folks can’t get crews to fully staff their boats. “Keys housing is too expensive for crew members to typically live, so they’re having to commute from places like Homestead, Florida, all the way out to the Keys. The fishermen really talked a lot about how important it is to have knowledgeable crew on these boats to make sure you’re avoiding citations.” A silver lining on the labor issue is that while older fishers are getting out of the fishery, experts are seeing more younger fishers coming in. >click to read< 14:20
Shrimp boat catches fire in Walton County
A shrimp boat caught fire Tuesday afternoon in Walton County. Walton County Fire Rescue was called to the shrimp boat near Shipyard Road in Freeport. “Firefighters conducted a primary search of the vessel and are now working to extinguish the flames,” the department says in a release. “At this time, it is believed that no one was on the vessel when the flames ignited.” No further details were released. We will update the story when we get more info. >Link< 10:45
End of an era: Old-fashioned mullet smoker to close after 43 years of business
A Sarasota fisherman is nearing the end of an era. For 43 years, George Nodaros has been a champion of old school cooking, spending countless Saturday morning smoking mullet for eager customers. His method is an old fashioned style that’s rarely seen around modern Sarasota. Using a massive smoker he bought more than 30 years ago, the fisherman smokes his freshly caught mullets for hours on Saturday mornings, starting at the crack of dawn. The recipe is a simple one comprised of salt, pepper, paprika and patience. Tough work, but for Nodaros, it’s rewarding enough to keep coming back year after year. >click to read< 14:29
Florida: Pine Island man sentenced in stone crab case of crabs taken from traps that weren’t his
A Pine Island man facing multiple charges of harvesting stone crab and other species from traps that weren’t his got two years’ probation and credit for a one-day jail sentence. Steve Harry Long, 65, of Pineland, withdrew a not guilty plea and pleaded no contest Aug. 3 in early resolution court before Senior Circuit Judge Thomas Reese. Long faced 16 conservation law violations including multiple counts of molestation of stone crap traps without consent of the owner, possession of egg-bearing female stone crabs, possession of undersized sheepshead and blue crab trap molestation. >click to read< 15:02
NOAA rejects Trump-era expansion of rock shrimp fishing on Oculina Bank
In a surprise and unusual move last week, NOAA Fisheries rejected the South Atlantic Fishery Management Council’s request to allow this type of commercial fishing in 22 square miles of the area, where it has been prohibited since 2014. The ruling will keep about 19 permitted rock shrimpers, mostly from the Port Canaveral area, from working in a region believed to be habitat for the delicacy. Rock shrimp, known for their unique flavor, sell in Brevard County seafood markets for $29 a pound. Conservationists celebrated the decision, but the matter isn’t settled yet. >click to read< 08:04