Aerial pesticide spraying has not eradicated the Zika virus in Miami Beach so far, adding fuel to critics who have warned all along that buildings are too tall and ocean breezes too strong for that method to work there. So the city is resorting to less conventional methods: Officials have…
Nearly every major newspaper in Florida has told people to avoid Amendment 1 like a nest of Aedes aegypti mosquitoes. The amendment is deceptive and designed to prevent Floridians from getting solar panels despite fraudulently claiming to be pro-solar. It’s being pushed by corporations such as Florida Power & Light, ExxonMobil, and Koch Industries.
With his trusty German shepherd in tow, Rodney Irwin drives past a state mental hospital at the edge of the Everglades and pulls into the brush. A machete rests on the floorboard beneath his feet, and a gallon of his favorite drink — Walmart-brand black-cherry soda mixed with orange Gatorade…
The Atlantic held a conference in Miami this week. In addition to being an excuse for D.C. policy wonks to hang out in South Beach, the event included a candid interview with Dr. Thomas Frieden, the director of the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. Frieden happens to be the guy in charge of eradicating Zika from the United States.
Ever since the Zika outbreak hit Miami, the Centers for Disease Control has warned of “hot zones” where the virus has definitively been spread locally. Shaded alarmingly red on maps, the first zone in Wynwood was followed by another in South Beach and, last week, an area in Little River…
Miami is at war with the Aedes aegpyti mosquito. Though minuscule, the tiny, zebra-striped bug is wreaking havoc on the area’s economy through the Zika virus. Government officials have declared an all-out assault on the blood-suckers, but the county’s first line of defense — the much-debated pesticide naled — may not be…
Miamians rarely, if ever, have an excuse to complain about the weather. When the rest of America sits under a smothering carpet of snow, we can still usually go to the beach. Yes, we get some occasional flooding, but our rainstorms usually don’t last longer than Game of Thrones episodes…
Active Zika virus transmissions have returned to mainland Miami. Gov. Rick Scott’s office announced a new “active transmission zone” this afternoon in the heart of Little Haiti and Little River. The one square mile area stretches from NW 63rd Street to NW 79th Street and from N Miami Ave. to…
Miami Beach environmentalist Dave Doebler says he doesn’t think most people know how bad styrofoam really is for the ocean. He says he sees people using temporary, floating docks made from bare styrofoam “all the time.” Most folks quickly pull the docks from the water the minute he tells them…
Yesterday, Hillary Clinton joined Al Gore at Miami Dade College’s Kendall campus to give a serious, policy-heavy speech on her plans to tackle climate change and other environmental issues. It was one of the wonkier moments in her campaign and a breath of science-heavy fresh air from all the mudslinging…
Miami Beach resident Michael Capponi, one of Miami’s biggest promoters for clubs including LIV, B.E.D., and Amnesia, also founded one of the nation’s premier Haitian relief organizations in 2011, a year after the Caribbean island was rocked by 7.0 magnitude earthquake. The quake killed between 100,000 and 200,000 people. Capponi, a…
Florida has officially dodged a 140 mile per hour bullet. Although the central coast is still being whipped with hurricane-force winds this morning, Matthew looks likely to avoid making landfall in the Sunshine State — just barely. The killer eye wall missed the coast by less than five miles in…
On Wednesday morning, Florida Gov. Rick Scott gave a press conference in Stuart, warning the state’s residents that Hurricane Matthew should not be underestimated and saying “protecting life is our No. 1 priority.” Scott urged those in evacuation zones to leave town before the storm hits and thanked Airbnb, which…
8 a.m.: Today is the day Florida’s long run of good hurricane fortune comes to a howling end. By early this evening, Hurricane Matthew’s 130 mile per hour winds, torrential rains and massive storm surges will collide with the Florida coast, ending an 11-year streak without a major ‘cane crossing into…
Hurricane Matthew will almost certainly crawl up Florida’s eastern coastline as — at least — a Category 3 storm this weekend. The National Hurricane Center confirmed this yet again in its 5 p.m. update today, which keeps Miami-Dade under a tropical storm warning and most of the state north of…
Hurricane Matthew’s eyewall bulldozed right across Baracoa, Cuba last night, one of the island nation’s oldest and most historic towns. Baracoa was the first city the Spanish settled after landing on the island — some of the town’s buildings have stood since the 1500s. But many were no match for…
In less than 24 hours, still-growing Hurricane Matthew will slide along South Florida after tearing through Haiti, Cuba and the Bahamas. If you’ve still been holding out last minute hope that the monster storm won’t unleash torrential rain and howling winds in our neck of the woods, it’s time to…
The updates Miami residents are getting about Hurricane Matthew keep getting worse. After initially predicting the hurricane would miss the Florida coast entirely, the National Hurricane Center said yesterday that portions of South Florida were, indeed, in the storm’s path. This morning, the Center issued hurricane watches for Central Florida,…
Miami Beach Mayor Philip Levine has shown two big talents in recent years: Nabbing high-profile press for his attempts to save his city from climate change, and hobnobbing with A-list celebs. So, when Leonardo DiCaprio started filming a documentary on global warning last year, you bet Levine made sure he…
As Category 4 Hurricane Matthew’s eye passes over Les Cayes, Haiti this morning, the storm remains a churning behemoth. Winds topping 140 miles per hour have been reported in Haiti’s westernmost tip, while up to three feet of rain pours onto mountain villages in the nearby hillsides. Across the border…
Miamians still aren’t sure if they should prepare for the III Points Music Festival this weekend or get ready for a multi-foot storm surge. Category 4 Hurricane Matthew is slowly barreling up through the Caribbean and this morning’s predictions that it would stay east of the Florida coastline is now…
In Miami Beach, it’s now illegal to hand anyone food or drinks in styrofoam containers, which dissolve into tiny particles that float along the top of the ocean for hundreds of years. Miami Beach has already issued hundreds of dollars in Styrofoam fines. But it’s apparently still perfectly legal to…
