Fatal drug overdoses dipped in Central Florida, statewide in 2023

Local News : Orlando Sentinel 1/13 8:53A Cristóbal Reyes

Signaling hope in the battle against opioids, Central Florida saw a nearly 7% drop in deadly drug overdoses between 2021 and 2023, part of a trend of declines seen throughout the U.S. after the frightening surges of the preceding decade. Data...

‘Escape Denied’: A look at Anne Frank’s family’s story — before the diary

Local News : Orlando Sentinel 1/13 3:00A Matthew J. Palm

The story of how Anne Frank hid from the Nazis is well-known, thanks to publication of her diary, which in turn inspired plays and movies. But before the German and Jewish teen spent two years hiding...

Fired Disney employee pleads guilty to hacking menus to falsely show foods as peanut-free

Local News : Orlando Sentinel 1/13 2:52A Silas Morgan

A fired Disney World employee pleaded guilty Friday to hacking into menu-creation software used by the company’s restaurants to falsely show certain food items didn’t contain peanuts and other allergens. Michael Scheuer, of Winter Garden, pleaded...

Monday will be cloudy with a few showers across Central Florida

Local News : Orlando Sentinel 1/13 12:15A Garfield Hylton

A cloudy and wet day for Central Florida residents to start the week. Rain chances begin at 15% in Melbourne, according to NWS Melbourne. The further north of Melbourne, the higher the chances of rain, peaking around 75% just north of Daytona...

Orlando working on project to get more Parramore residents connected to internet

Local News : Orlando Sentinel 1/12 10:00P Ryan Gillespie

Orlando officials are considering a free public network to create connectivity in a neighborhood where more than half the residents lack internet access. The city is in the early planning stage of a roughly yearlong process to create a web of...

Parkinson’s tremors disappear with use of machine that sends heat waves to the brain

Local News : Orlando Sentinel 1/12 8:56P Cindy Krischer Goodman

Delray Medical Center cut the ribbon on its newest high-tech machine last week that targets brain areas to treat movement disorders such as essential tremor and tremor-dominant Parkinson’s disease....

Elections supervisor to Florida lawmakers: Keep guns away from polling places

Local News : Orlando Sentinel 1/12 8:53P Anthony Man

If Florida ever allows the open carrying of firearms in the state, Broward Supervisor of Elections Joe Scott wants to make sure guns won’t be allowed in or near polling places. Legalization to allow open carry appears unlikely in Florida to...

Electric car owners don’t pay gas tax. Concerned cities facing deficits for road care want that...

Local News : Orlando Sentinel 1/12 8:47P gqlshare

As electric cars get more popular, South Florida cities say they ll be the ones paying the price. Westlake Mayor JohnPaul O Connor has urged the Palm Beach County Legislative Delegation to push for a...

Winter storms cause slight decrease in holiday travel at Orlando airport

Local News : Orlando Sentinel 1/12 12:00A Martin E. Comas

Winter storms that blasted the Northeast and South in recent weeks — causing flight delays and cancellations around the country — led to slightly fewer passengers flying out of the Orlando International Airport this holiday season compared to the...

‘Living diaper to diaper’: Collection to aid parents who cannot afford key baby supply

Local News : Orlando Sentinel 1/11 12:00A Michael Cuglietta

When Megan Martin’s second child was born, her family had less than $100 a week to spend at the grocery store. And diapers for their two kids ate up more than half that money. “We had to limit our...

Atlantic sunrise, Gulf sunset: Driving Florida coast to coast in one day

Local News : Orlando Sentinel 1/9 10:00P Patrick Connolly

While driving from the East Coast to the West Coast of the United States in one day would be far fetched, if not impossible, driving from Florida s Atlantic Coast to Gulf Coast in a day is much easier...

Seminole Towne Center, a once tony mall, will soon shutter its doors

Local News : Orlando Sentinel 1/9 8:22A Martin E. Comas, James Wilkins

The mostly vacant Seminole Towne Center — once billed as a premier mall for well-heeled shoppers in Seminole County — will shutter most of its property by the end of the month, after years of struggling with closed stores and acres of empty...

Hamburger Mary’s works toward Kissimmee reopening as state law on drag shows winds way through...

Local News : Orlando Sentinel 1/9 4:57A Natalia Jaramillo, Jim Saunders

TALLAHASSEE — The owners of the former Orlando location of Hamburger Mary s continue work toward reopening in Kissimmee as a federal appeals court considers the constitutionality of a 2023 state law aimed at preventing children from attending...

Central Florida’s cold streak continues, adding numerous advisories and warnings

Local News : Orlando Sentinel 1/9 12:52A Garfield Hylton

It s another cold day for Central Florida. Volusia and Lake counties have a freeze warning that lasts until 9 a.m. for temperatures at 30-32 degrees, according to NWS Melbourne. A cold weather advisory remains in effect for all east Central...

1 year in, Access for All is an Orlando Museum of Art success

Local News : Orlando Sentinel 1/8 10:00P Matthew J. Palm

On a December weekday afternoon, a procession of cars circles the Loch Haven Park parking lot, with drivers peering down every row in futile search of a spot. Inside Orlando Museum of Art , groups...