Florida News That Impacts You – August 19th, 2024
Bottom Line: Your daily recap of the biggest news from around the state that impacts you in South Florida.
- Nearly two million Floridians have voted in Florida’s August primaries in advance of tomorrow’s Election Day. As of Sunday afternoon, over 1.8 million Floridians had voted either by returned vote-by-mail ballots or early voting. Republicans have outvoted Democrats by about 159,000 votes statewide.
- Florida’s unemployment rate remained 1 percentage point below the national average at 3.3% in July. Florida’s private sector employment grew by 2.3% over the past year, which was also nearly a point ahead of the national average, adding 201,500 jobs. The West Palm Beach metro’s unemployment rate is currently 3.8% - having risen by a half point from last year’s lows – though still a half point below the national average. The metro lost 1,276 jobs over the past year.
- Starting today, and running through November 30th, the Coast Guard will be enforcing three new security zones along the water near Mar-a-Lago. The East Zone runs along the Atlantic Ocean near the shoreline near Mar-a-Lago. All vessels passing through that area must not stop and continue at a steady rate of speed. The Center Zone runs along the eastern section of the Intracoastal waterway and Lake Worth Lagoon bordering Mar-a-Lago. No vessels will be permitted in that zone without prior Coast Guard authorization. The West Zone consists of the western section of the Intracoastal Waterway and the Lake Worth Lagoon near Mar-a-Lago. Vessels must not stop in that section and must travel at a consistent rate of speed. The increased security protocols along the water are part of the increased security efforts to protect former President Donald Trump and his family following the recent assassination attempt.
- It’ll be hot today with afternoon thunderstorms possible and highs in the lower 90’s. Temperatures will be about 6 degrees warmer than usual for this date. Hurricane Ernesto continues to churn towards the northern Atlantic and is expected to pass by Nova Scotia on its way towards the north central Atlantic over the next couple of days. No other tropical systems are expected to develop over the next seven days.
- Gas prices fell through the weekend and are 3 cents lower than a week ago. The average price for regular unleaded in Florida is currently $3.29 per gallon. In Palm Beach County the average price is $3.49 per gallon, in Martin the average is $3.29 and in Indian River County the average is $3.31 per gallon.