90.7 WMFE's Intersection

DCF has shut down Little Miracles Academy, the Orlando day care where 3 year old Myles Hill was found dead in a van. At a press conference, the day care’s co-owner offered a tearful apology and asked for forgiveness, but Myles Hill’s family say they want answers.

How could a three year old be left in a hot van all day? What kind of oversight is there for child care centers in Florida? And is enough being done to keep kids safe?

Then, astronomers and amateur stargazers are getting ready for the solar eclipse next week. Planetarium coordinator Michael McConville says for some of the coolest images of the eclipse you may just want to look down, not up.

And we talk bananas, basketball and playing very old, very expensive instruments with musicians Steven Lin and Francisco Vila Haas.

UCF kicker Donald de La Haye has been ruled ineligible after a dispute over his popular You Tube channel. De La Haye says it’s because he refused to demonetize those videos. UCF says the student athlete was offered an option that would have allowed him to keep making videos and remain on the team… but he turned it down. What are the rules for how NCAA athletes can make money and do those rules need an update?

Then, breakfast may be the most important meal of the day, but if you like to sleep in you can’t beat brunch. Orlando restaurant critic Faiyaz Kara and chef Emily Ellyn whip up some decadent breakfast and lunch dishes.

And, brothers Edwin and Andy White have been making music together for a decade. We talk to them about their latest album, touring, and how the Orlando music scene has changed since they got their start.

The Republican quest to repeal and replace Obamacare didn’t get the votes it needed. So where does the debate over health insurance go from here- and what does it mean for the one point seven million Floridians signed up for insurance under the Affordable Care Act?

On this episode of Intersection political analysts Dick Batchelor & Chris Carmody take the pulse on the health insurance battle in Florida. And they talk about big spending election campaigns from the Governor’s mansion to Capitol Hill.

The opioid epidemic is stretching healthcare resources in Florida. We check in with Daytona Beach OBGYN Pamela Carbiener who specializes in helping pregnant addicts and mothers. We also hear from a young mother Hillary Medlin who detoxed with her newborn, and is now helping others facing the same challenge, and Dixie Morgese, Executive Director of the Healthy Start Coalition of Flagler & Volusia Counties. 

And – from revamping classic rides to getting up close and personal with sharks, Orlando area theme parks are looking for new ways to get visitors through the turnstiles. Orlando Sentinel theme park reporter DeWayne Bevil has the latest on new attractions for tourists and locals.

Since opening her women’s clinic in west Orlando, Jennie Joseph has seen premature birth rates and infant mortality rates plummet. Her secret – making sure women receive care whether they have health insurance or not  and taking care of them holistically. How one woman is saving lives in some of Orlando’s most underinsured zip codes.

And one great thing about living in central Florida is that there’s a day-trip adventure in any direction. From scalloping on secluded beaches to drifting along a natural spring. So if you’re looking for someplace new to explore, stay tuned. We’re getting behind the wheel with Channel 13’s Scott Faise to see where the road takes.

And meet Orlando singer songwriter Chase Shallee who beat an illness and turned her recovery into a work of art.

The ACLU is suing the federal government over the President’s commission looking into voter fraud. Florida says it will only hand over what’s already in the public record, but the ACLU is worried about the commission collecting a national database of voters that includes partial social security numbers and claims the commission’s work is not open enough to the public.

We’re looking at voter rolls in the Sunshine state. A national organization called ERIC is helping a network of states to clean up their voter rolls and wants Florida to join since so many people move here from somewhere else. Local and state elections officials say a lot of work is done on the ground level to keep the rolls as clean as possible.We examine voter fraud in Florida and what’s being done to make sure it’s not happening here.

Americans are eating out in record numbers and changing the restaurant industry in the process. Food critic Scott Joseph, UCF professor Robb Seltzer and Food truck guru Mark Baratelli look at changes and trends taking a bite out of traditional restaurants.

And celebrating the life of Orlando icon Billy Manes.

A giant sinkhole in Pasco County swallowed two homes and a boat, and is now more than 230 feet across and 50 feet deep. County officials are trying to figure out what to do with the sinkhole once it’s cleaned up.

Sinkholes: Why do they happen, how do you recover from them and what do they cost.

Then, how do you write a memoir if you’re losing your memory? Patricia Charpentier helps people write their life stories, and many of her clients suffer from alzheimer’s. She says it’s challenging, rewarding work, and sometimes a race against time.

And, Carly Jo Jackson performs some new music from her upcoming album, and talks about the craft of songwriting, touring, and how she ended up jamming out in one concert with a celebrity chef.

Eatonville is one of the oldest black towns in the US. Back in the 1980s there were plans to widen a road through the town. Those plans were shelved after residents led an effort to show how the road would destroy the historic character of Eatonville. But Eatonville is still under threat. N.Y. Nathiri of Preserve Eatonville Community and landscape architect Everett Fly explore why Eatonville survived where other black towns have not.

Then, Some of the greatest athletes on wheels compete in Cincinnati this week. 90.7’s Catherine Welch learns about some of the Central Floridians heading to the National Veterans Wheelchair Games including a 72 year old powerlifter. And, with the games in Florida next year just how wheelchair accessible is Orlando?

And, last year Miles Mulrain started a series of monthly meetings to talk about solutions to crime in Pine Hills. Mulrain and Emery James of the non profit Let Your Voice Be Heard say other cities are starting to take notice of their approach.

 

More than $1 million was cut from the Orange and Osceola County State Attorney’s office budget after prosecutor Aramis Ayala announced she would not seek the death penalty.

90.7’s Renata Sago joins Intersection to talk about what the budget cuts mean to the state attorney’s office. And we’ll hear from Republican state representative Scott Plakon who supported the budget cut, and says Ayala’s office has the money it needs.

After David Dao was dragged off a United Airlines Flight back in April, lawmakers called on airlines to improve their treatment of passengers. Consumer advocate and travel columnist Chris Elliott explains what the FAA reauthorization bill working its way through congress does to improve the flying experience, and what’s missing from the bill.

And for nearly 10 years the Community Center 729 in Orlando has been a place of yoga, meditation and spiritual retreat. Founder Trish Roddis has another mission too- helping the homeless.

The US National Space Council, disbanded for nearly a quarter of a century, was reformed last week. The council will oversee space policy across NASA, intelligence organizations and the military. And it’s headed up by vice president Mike Pence, who stopped by the Kennedy Space Center for a tour Thursday.

Where is this administration going when it comes to space exploration? What kind of job does vice president Mike Pence have ahead of him as he guides the US government through this new era of space exploration? And what does it mean for the private companies and government contractors lining up in Florida for a piece of the cosmic action?

Then, Volusia County Sheriff Mike Chitwood promised a new start for the office when he pinned on the badge six months ago. Now a sheriff’s deputy is on administrative leave while the FDLE investigates the fatal shooting of a man at a Racetrac gas station last week. We’ll hear from the sheriff on training his deputies to be guardians rather than warriors.

And, an encore performance of music from young jazz musician Malo Kingsley.

July 4th: a chance to kick back, hit the beach, fire up the grill, relax… but not if you’re an emergency room doctor.

Dr. Christopher Hunter explains what keeps an ER busy in summer, and why Orlando’s position as a tourism hub brings a unique set of patients through the hospital doors.

Florida is the lightning capital of the country. Researchers at the Florida Institute of Technology are in an ideal spot to study lightning but as Amitabh Nag explains sometimes they’ll give nature a hand by firing a rocket into the clouds to trigger a lightning strike.

And Opera del Sol promises a new approach to the art form. Can it attract a brand new audience? Founder Nicole Dupré outlines her vision for the opera.