Florida’s Fourth Estate

Hurricanes Ian and Nicole didn’t just destroy homes and businesses — a local beekeeper also says Florida’s bee population took a hard hit. Oxx Simeina runs Oxx Beekeeping in Kissimmee. He said he keeps bees on multiple properties across North and Central Florida. One of the properties he keeps his hives on was flooded with “about 3 feet of water,” and some of the hives “floated about 100 yards to the other side of the yard.” “A bunch of them flipped over, and I pretty much lost all of the hives,” Simeina said. One of the hives managed to survive. “I’m just trying to baby her to make sure she makes it through the winter,” the beekeeper said. He told Ginger Gadsden and Matt Austin on Florida’s Fourth Estate that the struggle extends beyond his hives. Simeina said a lot of trees were destroyed in the storms. “So the bees aren’t getting as much food as they would get during this time of year, and the bees that do have food are being robbed by the bees that don’t have food,” he said. Simeina said this is the first year in 9 years he is considering giving his bees a sugar-water mix through the whole winter to make sure they don’t starve. He said he doesn’t like it because it’s not natural, but he has to do what needs to be done to save his bees following the busy hurricane season. You can learn more about the impact Hurricane Ian and Nicole have had on our local bee population on Florida’s Fourth Estate. You can download the podcast from wherever you listen to podcasts or watch anytime on News 6+. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

A video of an alligator that had been eaten whole by a python went viral in late 2022. Now the woman behind it is speaking with Florida’s Fourth Estate. “We stretched out the python which literally took up the entire room, you could really like see the outline of the alligator,” said scientist Rosie Moore. Once they opened it up they could see the 5-foot alligator was inside, still intact. People online were shocked by the video. Hundreds of thousands reacted to the wild sight. And for those who stuck around on Moore’s Instagram page, they saw she wasn’t only a scientist but also a model. Moore said people are surprised by her dual interests, but she is using her platform to inspire the next generation. “I think it’s kinda cool to show both sides... or show girls that it’s cool to be a scientist,” Moore said. Learn more about Moore, her wild discovery and how she wants to help other girls tap into the world of science on Florida’s Fourth Estate. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

On the latest episode of Florida’s Fourth Estate hosts Ginger Gadsden and Matt Austin said they have been involved in some pretty bad gifts. Ginger said her worst present ever just so happens to be from Matt. “I call it the wheel of awfulness,” she said “I gave Matt the business about some shoes he wore to work one day and several days after that and he wasn’t having it or whatever.” In return, she says she got a wheel of pictures of him “making out with the shoe.” Others show him blowing kisses, telling someone to ‘shh’ and another of him smiling into the camera. “That was your sexiest man alive attempt,” Gadsden said. Gadsden said she keeps the silly gift on her mantel at home. While that one was intentionally bad, Austin admits he has a history of giving bad gifts. “Many years ago when my wife and I were dating, I was walking through the mall and I spotted this dress,” he said.”I was like, ‘Man. my girlfriend Tricia is going to look so good in this dress.” Austin held up the soft green, multi-tiered, flowery dress, to show it off. “If she were a flapper girl that would be perfect,” Gadsden said. It turns out it was not a hit. “The tags are still on it,” Austin said. “If you ask her to this day she would say, ‘Oh no it was nice.’ She won’t ever say how bad it is.” In this episode, Austin and Gadsden also break down what they think the top gifts are this season. If there is a gift you think should be on the list or if you have ever gotten a terrible gift, we want to hear from you. Leave your comments below or email ffe@wkmg.com. You can download Florida’s Fourth Estate from wherever you listen to podcasts or watch it anytime on News 6+. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

What was supposed to be a quick flight from Orlando to Knoxville, Tennessee turned into an hours-long road trip for 13 strangers. Alanah Story said Frontier Airlines delayed her flight earlier this month. “People were literally lining up about to get on the plane... we find out our flight is canceled,” she said. “Everyone was like oh my gosh what are we going to do now?” That’s when, Story said one of the women on the flight, “yelled out to everyone to let us know, like they’re not doing anything for us, we can get a van if you want.” “My mom and Carlos and his wife had kind of been talking about doing it so they all just kind of merged together,” she said. “It was kind of like a joint effort.” Story said she was surprised at the direction everything was going.  “I actually met up with Mikayla in the bathroom, the one who’s going to UT, and I was like ‘Girl, this is crazy, this is nuts, like we don’t know each other.’” And before they could get in the van a total of 13 people had agreed to take the road trip, all for their own reasons. One girl said she was going to miss her finals, another woman said she was about to miss her kid’s custody battle, and one guy said he was just trying to get home after visiting a friend in Orlando. Story recorded their stories on her cell phone and posted the video to TikTok. Story said the TikTok video, which has now been viewed more than 3 million times, “helped break the ice” for everyone in the van. “When I say like the comments were being read out loud the entire van ride, it’s Iike I’m listening to stats running — like that’s how often they are talking about this,” Story said. She said a lot of the passengers also talked to each other and shared their life stories. Overall Story called it a good experience but said one person did take more bathroom breaks than her mom would have preferred and one passenger did talk quite loudly, but for the most part, people were very considerate of each other. Lots of people who saw the TikTok video online are suggesting the experience be turned into a movie. Story said that would be OK with her. So, would she ever fly Frontier again? “I say, like, uh, I would never fly with them again, I’m 23 years old, they have cheap flights, I like to go places... so I might try it one more time,” she said. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Usually, when people think about celebrities they think of Hollywood. But California isn’t the only state churning out celebs. Florida has had its fair share, some you may have forgotten and others you never knew about. Florida’s Fourth Estate hosts Matt Austin and Ginger Gadsden break down their top five. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Matt Austin and Ginger Gadsden look at the top movies filmed in Florida and sit down with actor Carlos Navarro. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

When people think of Florida cities, they usually think of Orlando, Miami or Tampa. But, if you have lived here for more than a couple weeks or have visited more than once, you have likely been exposed to some more unique city names, too. Matt Austin and Ginger Gadsden break down their Top 5 list of strange town names in Florida on their podcast Florida’s Fourth Estate. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

You can skip the grocery store and buy a local grass-fed cow right from the ranch. Jeremy and Jill Barton run Barton Beef in Bunnell. The couple says getting your beef from their Flagler County ranch means fewer antibiotics in your beef and could mean big savings too. The duo joined Matt Austin and Ginger Gadsden to talk more about it on Florida’s Fourth Estate. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Hurricane Nicole devastated parts of Florida’s coastline, but it also churned up the sea and spit out long-lost treasure. While the wind was still whipping our state, Jonah Martinez and his daughter, Kaylee Martinez, set their sights on the sand. “When the cold fronts or the hurricanes come up, we usually get an opportunity to go out there and look for stuff that has been lost. Mother Nature does a job and erodes the sand away and if you are in the right place at the right time, you never know what you are going to find,” Jonah Martinez said. The pair said they found a lot of junk, but they also uncovered gold coins. Florida’s Fourth Estate host Ginger Gadsden asked them if they “found a sweet spot, and where is it?” But co-host Matt Austin chimed in before they could dish out the details, saying, “I’m not going to let you answer that.” “Through the 30 years of doing this, I have found many sweet spots and I can tell you that when I find them, they are sweet and when I leave them there is not much for anyone else to find,” Jonah Martinez said. But he added you can look around online to find information on how to succeed at finding treasures along the coast like he has. “Little by little, Kaylee’s got involved with this and it’s kind of something now that we are doing and she’s just having fun with it too,” he added. And she’s not just having fun; her Dad said she also uncovered several coins. “It was a totally new feeling, just holding this piece of treasure and this piece of history that hasn’t been held in 300 years,” she said. “It’s just mind-boggling.” Her dad said it’s an incredible find, especially considering how often he goes out to search for treasure and comes up empty-handed. “The chances that you actually do are very, very slim, so you gotta have that “no-finds” or the “treas-aren’ts” before you have the “treas-are,” Jonah Martinez said. It was a pun that left his daughter with her hand palmed to her face. Along the way, Jonah Martinez said he has also found “wedding rings, GoPros, sunglasses, cellphones, hand grenades, bullets... World War II stuff” and more. But his best find was back in 2015 when he said he uncovered about $6.5 million worth of gold coins. Learn more about the Daddy-Daughter Hurricane Treasure Hunters on Florida’s Fourth Estate. You can download it from wherever you listen to podcasts. You can also watch it anytime on News 6+. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Hosts Matt Austin and Ginger Gadsden poke fun at some of the memorable moments in Florida politics. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Most of us have been there: You have a dream and you wake up struck by how real it felt. But why did you have that dream? An Orlando-based mental health counselor says he is helping people figure it out all, while at the same time improving their mental and physical health. Jesse Lyon describes himself as a Clinical Hypnotherapist and Dream Interpreter who helps people work through the trauma they face in their day-to-day life by analyzing the dreams they have at night. “One of the symptoms of trauma are post-traumatic nightmares, and so helping people learn what those nightmares are, trying to teach them and really helping them unlock their mental health through the messages from their mind, is what I am all about,” Lyon said. He says while there are naysayers, there’s also a lot of research to support what he does. “The research is just astounding -- how many research articles, how many scientific papers have been written about dreams and their connection with mental health,” Lyon said. He also says there are a lot of myths surrounding dreams. “The falling and hitting the ground -- big myth -- it’s not going to hurt you, but there is some really great research behind it. What we have researched and found is two things: there can be kind of a physical interpretation and an emotional interpretation,” Lyon said. He says the emotional side can be attached to us feeling like we have not reached our goals, but the physical ones may happen because you are experiencing a blood sugar drop. If you think you don’t have dreams, Lyon says you actually do, you just may have forgotten them by the time you open your eyes. “Everyone dreams. The research is very conclusive,” says Lyon. “Every time you go to sleep you go through many phases of sleep -- in each of those, you have dreams. Those dreams can be different based on the phase, but everybody dreams. The big problem, though, is that many people don’t remember their dreams when they wake up, so it’s a memory issue not a dreaming or not dreaming issue,” says Lyon. Lyon says he has found a lot of success with his message on TikTok and through his website. You can hear more from Lyon as he discusses his business and future plans on Florida’s Fourth Estate. The podcast can be downloaded from wherever you listen to podcasts. You can also watch it anytime on News 6+. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

News 6 anchors Matt Austin and Ginger Gadsden discuss a viral post made by Matt about his daughters. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

This week on Florida’s Fourth Estate, hosts Ginger Gadsden and Matt Austin continue to explore the spirit world as we get closer to Halloween. Austin and Gadsden’s guest, Ting Rappa, said we have to be open to the idea we are not alone. Talking to Rappa about the paranormal is eerily comforting. Perhaps that explains why for 18 years now the company she founded, American Ghost Adventures, has been so successful. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

What is it about being terrified that brings people so much joy? Why do some relish thrills so chilling it could lead to heart palpitations? This is certainly the time of year curiosity gets the best of anyone looking for a scary good time. When you think of creepy stories — whether in real life or in the movies — strange, unexplained things almost always happen in places that have stood the test of time. They are old, musty and mysterious. Think of the creepy hotel in The Shining, the mansion in The House on Haunted Hill or the house in The Amityville Horror. All places that send a chill up the spine just thinking about them. This week on Florida’s Fourth Estate, hosts Matt Austin and Ginger Gadsden get the haunting details on what is considered to be one of, if not the most haunted cities in America: St. Augustine. The man brave enough to pull back the curtain on the dark side this haunting season is Stephen Mitchell. Mitchell, with Historic Tours of America, knows about things that go bump in the night in St. Augustine because he has been bumped by a spirit or two while working at the Old Jail in St. Augustine. Mitchell has been featured on shows that conduct paranormal investigations and St. Augustine is a hot spot. Mitchell said while doing research on ghost tours in America he discovered the first ghost tours may have started in St. Augustine. “There is so much history and so much happens, people come looking for the ghosts and they have been for much longer than we’ve had ghost tours,” he said. “But the ghost stories keep building and building and so much keeps happening there it’s no wonder that hundreds of tours go out on any given night all over the city. It’s really incredible.” One of those takes place at the Old Jail on San Marcos Avenue, just north of downtown. It served the city from 1891 to 1953 and housed some of the most violent criminals within its walls. A tourist attraction now but at one point the Old Jail carried out capital punishments in public. It should come as no surprise when Mitchell explains there are nightly sightings and encounters with spirits and dark energies at the jail. Mitchell said each night there is a paranormal investigation being conducted. “Every night people are in there from midnight until two o’clock looking for the ghosts, looking for evidence, looking for a sign of some sort of paranormal activity because in that building something happens at least once every 24 hours that nobody can explain. It is truly and certifiably, incredibly haunted,” he said. Mitchell has had his own encounters with dark forces in the Old Jail. He said he has come across things he can’t explain, like the time he was pushed down some stairs. “I was going up the staircase, it was late in the day and all of a sudden I was stopped. I could feel that push right on my chest as it pushed me backward right back down the stairs. I didn’t get hurt. I didn’t fall entirely. I was able to catch myself, turn around and run the rest of the way,” he said. If you would like to hear more about the local haunts in St. Augustine take a tour and experience the unknown for yourself. Click here for more information. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Carlos Navarro is one of the voices behind “Monsters in the Morning” on Real Radio 104.1, but you may recognize him from “The Walking Dead” and the Marvel Studios series “Hawkeye,” too. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices