It’s Wednesday, February 24th - and NBC 6 has the top stories for the day.
No. 1 - Publix will be reopening its COVID-19 vaccine online appointment reservation system for Florida Wednesday after bad weather led to delays in doses arriving to the state.
Reservations for appointments at 273 stores in 20 Florida counties will open up at 7 a.m. Also, seniors in South Florida will be getting new options for getting the COVID-19 vaccine at certain pharmacies starting Wednesday, Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis said at a news conference Tuesday in Hialeah. DeSantis announced all 31 Navarro Discount Pharmacies in Miami-Dade County as well as all 35 CVS y Mas Pharmacies would begin to schedule appointments. Additionally, four CVS locations in South Florida - one in Miami-Dade, two in Broward and one in Palm Beach - would also begin to schedule appointments Wednesday.
No. 2 - A Miami-Dade family is thankful after the return of a 14-year-old who was last seen Monday.
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Florida Department of Law Enforcement officials issued a missing child alert Tuesday for Juan F. Velasquez Jr., who was last seen in the 15500 block of Southwest 147th Court. Early Wednesday morning, the FDLE said the alert was canceled and Velasquez was found safe. Officials did not release any additional details at this time. His father said the last time he saw him was Sunday night before he went to bed. The next day when he tried to wake him up for school, his son was gone.
No. 3 - Tiger Woods was in a violent rollover car crash in the Rancho Palos Verdes area Tuesday, requiring him to be rescued from the SUV and rushed to surgery, according to the Los Angeles County Sheriff's Department.
Woods, one of the top-ranked golfers in the world and the athlete who “made golf cool” to younger generations, was serving as the tournament host of the Genesis Invitational at Riviera and filming lessons with celebrities for Discovery-owned GOLFTV. He was the only person in the car and it was a single-car crash, according to LASD. The report came in at 7:22 a.m. and by 7:28, rescuers had reached his vehicle, Sheriff Alex Villanueva revealed in a news conference. A statement said Woods "underwent a long surgical procedure on his lower right leg and ankle after being taken to the hospital."
Local
No. 4 - After Gov. Ron DeSantis announced plans to order flags be flown at half-staff to honor Rush Limbaugh, some principals and other Broward County school leaders pushed back.
The conservative radio host chose words that were offensive to some on his radio show and has frequently been accused of hate-filled speech, including bigotry and blatant racism through his comments and sketches. After the Palm Beach resident died Wednesday, DeSantis made the announcement, one that does not sit well with some in Broward County. To hear why and how the state attempted to compromise, click here for the story from NBC 6 reporter Derrick Lewis.
No. 5 - Pompano Beach teen Dylan Warfel started rescuing rabbits when she was 12. Now she's 17 and still at it.
Her latest rescue involved 250 rabbits and guinea pigs from a woman who surrendered her animals near Fort Myers. Many of the animals that Dylan rescued were sick. So Dylan is taking them to Broward Avian and Exotic Animal Hospital for much-needed care. Dylan is also now starting her own rescue calling it "Penny and Wild: Smalls of South Florida" after her two pet rabbits.
No. 6 - Weatherwise, scattered showers stick around and temperatures take a slight dip Wednesday across South Florida before picking back up to end the work week. Keep your NBC 6 app handy for push alerts on any severe weather as well as First Alert Doppler 6000.
