Sanibel Island is now open to the public with some restrictions. A curfew remains in place from 9 pm to 6 am, and the beaches and beach parking lots are closed. To discourage sightseeing, the city has also put fences up around rebuild areas that are not open to the public as well.

There were more travel delays at Tampa International Airport yesterday, but this time the Federal Aviation Administration says the problems were due to issues with air traffic control computers. The En Route Automation Modernization (ERAM) slowed traffic coming to and from Florida when it detected too many planes in the air.

It was weather related delays for ships coming into the port of Tampa over the weekend. Heavy fog kept cruise ships out to sea for an additional nine hours. The extended vacation affected the Norwegian Dawn, Royal Caribbean Brilliance of the Seas and the Celebrity Constellation.

A new strain of the COVID virus is responsible for an increase in cases in Florida over the holidays, with 25,840 cases reported for the last week in December, which is 6,000 more than that same week last year. For information on the COVID-19 vaccine and booster shots, please check here.

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