It's like a rotting marine graveyard and there are no signs of it going away. Red tide - it's nasty, it's deadly, and it’s a smell you can’t “un-smell.” If you live or have been to Southwest Florida recently, the scent of fish carcasses is nauseating. Red tide is a wave of microorganisms that are choking sea life. The wave hit the Gulf of Mexico last November and now spreads over more than 130 miles of Florida’s coast. Governor Rick Scott has issued a state of emergency for seven counties. Coastlines are filled with putrid fish floating in water that looks almost brassy, and this past Labor Day, businesses along the Gulf Coast scrambled to fill rooms because of cancellations due to the Red Tide outbreak by offering lower prices to get people back on the beach.
Guests:
- State Sen. Linda Stewart [D-Orlando]
- Charlie Hunsicker, Director of the Manatee County Parks & Natural Resources Dept., Manatee County Government
- John Horne, Owner & President of the Anna Maria Oyster Bars and recipient of 2018 Natl. Restaurant Association Educational Foundation’s Restaurant Neighbor Award
- Elliott Falcione, Executive Director of the Bradenton Area Convention and Visitors Bureau