3 To Know: RSW soars; murder charge a first and sweltering summer predicted
1. RSW racks up big number of passengers; 1.5M for second-busiest March in airport history
Southwest Florida International Airport (RSW) experienced its own version of March Madness this year.
The Lee County Port Authority reports that the Fort Myers airport recorded 1,509,777 passengers, making this March the second best reported in the 41-year history of the airport.
Year-over-year, it was an increase of 29 percent, putting the airport well on track to top 10 million passengers again this year.
Year-to-date, passenger traffic is up 25 percent at RSW.
The late fall, winter and early spring months are typically the busiest, with Southwest Florida being a top destination for tourists and snowbirds.
Which airlines carried the most passengers to and from Fort Myers in March: Southwest (278,639) Delta (260,718) United (195,560) American (180,831) Spirit (140,160). – Mark H. Bickel/Naples Daily News
2. Woman indicted in fatal drug sale; murder charge in fentanyl OD a first
A Naples woman faces a capital murder charge over the distribution of narcotics, becoming the first such case in Collier County.
Michaella Jean Haire, 29, faces a charge of capital first-degree murder over the unlawful distribution of fentanyl, as well as delivery of a controlled substance, a second-degree felony.
State Attorney Amira Fox convened the Collier County grand jury April 19, which returned an indictment against Haire the same day on both charges.
The indictment claims that around Sept. 4, 2023, Haire killed the victim by the unlawful distribution of a controlled substance, fentanyl, or mixture thereof, and said controlled substance, or mixture thereof, caused or is proven to have been a substantial factor in killing the victim.
Haire is accused of obtaining fentanyl and giving it to the victim, who overdosed and died a short time later.
Fox said Haire was in custody at the Collier County Jail on unrelated charges.
Jail records indicate she was in custody on charges related to the possession or distribution of narcotics.
Haire is next due in court May 13 for her arraignment. – Tomas Rodriguez/Naples Daily News
3. Early forecasts predict sweltering summer
Get those flip-flops ready. All signs point to an unusually hot summer for most of the U.S., weather forecasters say.
In a summer forecast map released by NOAA, nearly the entire nation is enshrouded in red or orange, meaning warmer-than-average temperatures are expected for June, July and August.
NOAA said areas where the unusual heat is most likely include the Northeast and a large swath of the West.
The two hottest summers in the U.S. were in 2021 and in 1936, according to NOAA.
Not all forecasters believe it will be a sweltering summer, though. AccuWeather, which releases its summer forecast on May 1, told USA Today that “we’re looking at a milder-than-average summer across the U.S., with a couple of hot spots in the Northeast and the Southwest.” – Doyle Rice/USA Today
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