Beyond the News WFLA Interviews

Scammers have been booking up driver license appointments online at the Hillsborough Tax Collector's office and selling them to unsuspecting residents, especially targeting Spanish-speaking residents. We speak with Hillsborough Tax Collector Nancy Millan.

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A team with Mote Marine Lab has been evacuating coral it's cultivating in the Florida Keys from its offshore nurseries due to the extreme temperatures in the water, soaring into the 90s. We speak with the director of Mote's coral cultivation program, Dr Jason Spadano.

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On the one-year anniversary of Andrew Warren's suspension as Hillsborough State Attorney, he's receiving an award from the American Bar Association as he continues his appeal process. Meantime, the current top prosecutor says she's mended fences with the cops. We speak with Andrew Warren.

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Tampa recorded its hottest July since records began around 1890. So did several other locations on Florida's west coast. We speak with National Weather Service meteorologist Jen Hubbard in Ruskin.

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Tributes are pouring in for Paul Reubens. The actor best known as "Pee-wee Herman" died at age 70. The former mayor of the town Reubens grew up in remembers him as a longtime friend and a "soldier" for human rights. Fredd Atkins was Sarasota's first African-American mayor, and remembers Reubens as a high school classmate and lifelong friend.

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A group described as the largest African-American motorcycle club is holding its annual convention in Tampa this week. Kenneth Thomas, a former police officer, founded the National Association of Buffalo Soldiers and Troopers Motorcycle Club in 1987. He and current national president Nathan Mack talk about how the club and some three thousand attendees will be doing charity work during their stay.

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An early morning fire devastated the Alligator and Wildlife Recovery Center at John's Pass in Madeira Beach. The center housed more than two hundred animals, many of which are feared dead in the fire. The Tampa Bay Beaches Chamber of Commerce is holding a fundraiser to help the center. We speak with chamber CEO Robin Miller.

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Sarasota County reported six malaria cases to the state health department in May and June, prompting a stepped up effort to control mosquitoes. We speak with Wade Brennan, manager of Sarasota County Mosquito Management Services. How long will it take to break the chain of transmission?

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As we celebrate Independence Day, the peak of hurricane season is just a few weeks away. We talk with Florida's Chief Financial Officer Jimmy Patronis about what you need to know about supplies and dealings with insurance companies. In other words, the basics of hurricane survival and resiliency.

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Charles Kondek, a Tarpon Springs police officer who was killed in the line of duty in 2014, was also a regular blood donor. One Blood blood bank honors his legacy of service by holding an annual blood drive. It's taking place this year at a Publix supermarket in Tarpon Springs. We speak with Pat Michaels of One Blood about the event and how it honors Kondek's legacy.

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