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Today's top Florida stories
• Miami Herald ($): Biden will visit Surfside on Thursday after condo building collapse. "President Joe Biden will visit Surfside on Thursday to thank first responders and meet families of the victims, one week after the collapse of a residential building left at least 11 people dead and 150 missing."
• Associated Press: ‘Excruciating:’ Florida Collapse Search Stretches To Day 6. "Rescuers are using bucket brigades and heavy machinery as they work atop a precarious mound of pulverized concrete, twisted steel and the remnants of dozens of households. The efforts include firefighters, sniffer dogs and search experts using radar and sonar devices."
• News4Jax: State sending mental wellness teams to Sunrise after condo collapse. "As the search for survivors in the Surfside condo collapse continues, the state is sending mental wellness peer teams to provide support to Urban Search and Rescue members. State Fire Marshal Jimmy Patronis said two peer team members will be assigned to each unit."
• WTSP: How and when do rescuers decide to shift from rescue to recovery after Surfside condo collapse? "While rescuers sifting through the rubble since last Thursday continue to hold out hope of finding more survivors, the difficult decision hangs overhead: when to transition from a rescue effort to a recovery mission."
• CBS Miami: Surfside Condo Collapse Is Third Largest Building Failure In Country’s History. "'This is the third largest building failure in the history of the United States – only third to Oklahoma and New York City – so we are doing everything that we can,' said Jimmy Patronis, Florida’s chief financial officer."
• WFSU: DeSantis Vetoes Proposed Changes To Auto Insurance Requirements. "On Tuesday night, DeSantis used his veto pen for a second time following this year's legislative session, rejecting four bills. Among them was SB 54, which would’ve done away with a long-standing requirement for all drivers to purchase $10,000 in personal injury protection. Instead, the measure would’ve required motorists to purchase up to $25,000 worth of death or bodily injury liability coverage."
• Florida Politics: Gov. DeSantis vetoes juvenile arrest expunction bill. "Florida currently allows minors to expunge first-time misdemeanors if they complete a diversion program. However, the proposal (SB 274), carried by Gainesville Republican Sen. Keith Perry and Winter Springs Republican Rep. David Smith, would have expanded juvenile expunction laws to include felonies and other arrests beyond their first offense."
• Associated Press: California Bans State Travel To Florida And 4 Other States. "California added five more states, including Florida, to the list of places where state-funded travel is banned because of laws that discriminate against members of the LGBTQ community, the state attorney general announced Monday."
• Florida Storms: Active And Wet Pattern in The Long-Range Forecast Over Florida. "Rain chances will first be on the rise across the western half of the peninsula Tuesday and Wednesday as moisture is drawn back across the state in the wake of a recent pocket of dry air aloft. ... This could be capped off by even more rain this weekend across the northern half of Florida from the approach of a slow-moving front, while portion of South Florida may be skirted by tropical moisture moving north out of the Caribbean."
• News Service of Florida: Judge Upholds Florida's Ban On Gun Sales To People Under 21. "The 48-page ruling by Chief U.S. District Judge Mark Walker came more than three years after the Republican-controlled Legislature and then-Gov. Rick Scott rushed to approve the restriction following a massacre at Parkland’s Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School that killed 17 people."
• WUFT News: In Line With State and National Trends, Alachua County Crime Rate Dropped in 2020. "The number of arrests in Alachua County fell sharply during the COVID-19 pandemic, with arrests down 29% in 2020 compared to the year prior. Newly released data from the Florida Department of Law Enforcement paints a mixed picture statewide and in Alachua County, with violent crime increasing in 2020 despite a lower overall crime rate."
• Tampa Bay Times ($): Tampa teens reported a teacher’s sexual comments. Then a student’s life was upended. "Madisyn (Slater) didn’t know it, but Hillsborough County Public Schools has a troubled history when it comes to protecting students from sexual misconduct. So much so, the district once drew federal scrutiny. Her actions would provoke a strong response from her school, draw in parents and police, and upend her life in ways she never expected."
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About today's curator
I'm Ethan Magoc, a news editor at WUFT. Originally from Pennsylvania, I've found a home telling Florida stories. I’m part of a team searching each morning for local and state stories that are important to you; please send feedback about today's edition or ideas for stories we may have missed to emagoc@wuft.org.