It’s Tuesday, February 15th - and NBC 6 has the top stories for the day.
No. 1 - A man who called 911 after shooting his wife died after exchanging gunfire with police Monday inside a Little Havana home, officials said.
Miami Police officers responded after 3 p.m. to a neighborhood near SW 6th Street and 18th Avenue after the man called 911 reporting that he had shot his wife. When officers arrived at the house, they found a woman with a gunshot wound, police said. Inside the home, an officer encountered an elderly man who was armed with a gun. There was an exchange of gunfire between the man and an officer, who immediately retreated to as he waited for backup, investigators said. Paramedics initiated lifesaving efforts, but the man and woman were pronounced dead.
No. 2 - One of three swimmers rescued from a strong rip current off Fort Lauderdale last week has died, as newly released body camera video shows the dramatic efforts to save them.
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Fort Lauderdale Police, Fire Rescue and the Broward Sheriff's Office pulled the swimmers from the water around 6:30 p.m. on Feb. 7 and rushed them to the hospital, but it was learned that one of them died on Friday. New videos released Monday shows the efforts to rescue the swimmers. One of the videos is from Fort Lauderdale Police Det. John Rose, who was manning the police boat when he got a call that three people were drowning off the coast. Hear what he said in a report from NBC 6’s Nicole Lauren.
No. 3 - The boyfriend of slain cross-country traveler Gabby Petito had gnawing marks on his remains that were likely from wild animals after he fatally shot himself in a Florida nature preserve, according to a full autopsy released Monday.
The 47-page report details the discovery of the body of 23-year-old Brain Laundrie in the Carlton Reserve in North Port on Oct. 20. The report noted that Laundrie's backpack and shoes were found surrounded by "apparent skeletal human remains that were scattered on top of the dirt ground." Also found near the scene were a pair of shorts, a green backpack containing flares and a tent that hadn't been assembled, a white metal ring, a handwritten half note and a hat with a "Moab Coffee Roasters" logo, the report said.
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No. 4 - The father of a teen boy who died in the 2018 Parkland school shooting climbed a downtown D.C. construction crane in protest Monday to mark four years since the tragedy.
Manuel Oliver, the father of Joaquin "Guac" Oliver, climbed the 150-foot crane not far from the White House as part of his protest to end gun violence and push for gun control. Oliver tweeted a video early Monday from the top of the crane saying he'd asked President Joe Biden for a meeting to discuss the issue. Police later escorted Oliver down from the crane. He and another person were seen being placed in handcuffs. The White House issued a statement earlier Monday, mourning the deaths of the 14 students and three educators killed at Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School on Feb. 14, 2018.
No. 5 - It has now been four years since one of the worst events in South Florida history. It seems like a substantial amount of time, but not enough for survivors to recover from the trauma of a gunman killing 17 people and wounding 17 others at Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School in Parkland.
"Healing is not a done process in a minute or a month or a year, it takes time, and time that most people don’t realize and time that most people don’t acknowledge,” said Samantha Grady, who was a student at Stoneman Douglas at the time. Grady, Matthew Satar and Rebecca Bogart were together in room 1214 when terror crashed into their Holocaust studies class. Their friends, Nick Dworet and Helena Ramsey, were shot and killed in the barrage of bullets just inches away from them. The three former classmates met up with each other recently at a park in Coral Springs to discuss the anniversary. The reality that life ended that day in 2018 for two of their classmates never leaves them, they think about it all the time. Click here for more in a report from NBC 6’s Ari Odzer.
No. 6 - Every day at lunchtime, Barbara Ferranti goes to the Palace Gardens in Homestead to spend quality time with her husband Bob. She always stays until after dinner, because one hour just won’t cut it.
"Isn't he cute?" Barbara said as she caressed Bob's face. Two years ago, when Bob’s Alzheimer’s became more advanced, Barbara had to make the difficult decision to move him into the Palace’s Memory Care Program. The Ferranti’s love story began in 1969 at the University of Miami. Bob asked Barbara’s roommate to go to a homecoming game, but Barbara wasn't having it. A few months later they planned to get married, but religion became part of the conversation. Click here for more of their emotional love story in a report from NBC 6’s Laura Rodriguez.
