FLU SEASON AND NEW VACCINE
The vaccination campaign has begun, and both traditional flu vaccines and COVID-19 vaccines are available. According to authorities, last year’s dominant strain was different from the previous year’s, so people’s natural defenses have been weakened.
Getting vaccinated is strongly recommended for people over 65, pregnant women, and young children.
While the vaccine does not always prevent the illness, it reduces severe cases and hospitalizations. For those who dislike shots, the FluMist nasal spray is available (for people ages 2 to 49). Ask your pharmacist for more information.
A new vaccine, mFLUSIVA from Moderna, is available for purchase, but it is still quite hard to find. mFLUSIVA uses messenger RNA (mRNA) technology, which teaches the body how to fight the disease, unlike more traditional vaccines that inoculate a live but weakened version of a virus.
According to a study of 40,000 people aged 50 to 64, it offers 27% more protection against the flu compared to traditional vaccines. It does not contain eggs (so there’s no risk of an egg allergy), but it reportedly has slightly more side effects than other vaccines (headaches, arm pain, chills, and temporary fatigue).
mFLUSIVA is currently available only at Walgreens pharmacies; to find it, you can check Moderna’s Vaccine Finder: https://products.modernatx.com/finder.
THE PARTNERSHIP BETWEEN 21 AIR AND AMAZON HAS BEEN SUSPENDED
Following the accident that occurred on Sunday, September 6, at Miami International Airport—which claimed the lives of five employees of a cleaning company—Amazon has decided to suspend its partnership with 21 AIR, the subcontracted carrier that operated the aircraft.
The investigation into the circumstances surrounding the crash of the Boeing 767 and its landing is ongoing. According to information released by the National Transportation Safety Board, one of the pilots reportedly alerted the other that the aircraft was approaching too fast, and various cockpit warning signals were triggered. Amid stormy weather conditions, the plane landed well past its intended landing spot.
The September 6 flight was carrying a shipment of contact lenses. According to an investigation by the Miami Herald, some current and former employees of 21 AIR reportedly stated that working conditions at the company were unsafe. DHL is also a client of 21 AIR.
RELATED: ROSS BUYS THE BOCA RATON INNOVATION CAMPUS
A few decades ago, the Boca Raton Innovation Campus housed IBM’s offices. Nicknamed the BRiC, the Brutalist-style building, located at 5000 T-Rex Avenue, was designed by Hungarian architect Marcel Breuer. IBM acquired the land in 1966, and more than 10,000 IBM employees worked there in the 1970s. It was there that the IBM Personal Computer (PC) was designed.
Since IBM’s departure in 1986 and the building’s acquisition by the CP Group in 2018, it has served as a mixed-use facility.
Designed as a state-of-the-art innovation center, it is occupied by various companies in the healthcare, tech, and finance sectors, and features housing, shops, and artistic events. It includes a ballroom that can seat 1,000 people, six event spaces available for rent, and a very long hallway—reportedly the longest in the Western Hemisphere.
Stephen Ross, president of Related Ross, paid tribute to the site’s legacy: “BRiC has already changed the course of technology once for the region, and it will play an important role in what comes next.” ”
DENGUE OUTBREAK AND MOSQUITOES
An 80-year-old woman from Tampa Bay died recently, and experts suspect that dengue may have been the cause of death. However, this mosquito-borne virus is not usually fatal.
As of September 8, 2026, 208 cases of dengue have been reported in Florida since the beginning of the year, with a spike in cases in late August. Of these cases, 73 people contracted the virus locally in Florida (rather than upon returning from travel), including 59 in Hillsborough County (Tampa Bay) and five in Pinellas County (St. Petersburg). Ten counties are currently on alert for this mosquito-borne disease and are stepping up spraying efforts.
The Florida Mosquito Control Association (FMCA) recommends wearing long sleeves, light-colored clothing, and closed-toe shoes; using mosquito repellents containing DEET, picaridin, IR3535, or lemon eucalyptus oil; and draining standing water from containers around the home.
WAVE OF LAYOFFS AT THE MIAMI HERALD
About 30 people were laid off in September from the Miami Herald, South Florida’s leading newspaper, including about 20 journalists, who make up one-third of the newsroom.
The Florida newspaper is not the only one affected. Thirteen newspapers across the country have been impacted, including: Idaho Statesman, Kansas City Star, Lexington Herald-Leader, Sacramento Bee, Charlotte Observer, and Fresno Bee.
Yet the Miami Herald team has already won numerous awards for its investigative reporting, and one of the journalists was instrumental in uncovering the Hope Florida scandal (see page 8, article by Sylvain Bruneau). The laid-off employees are concerned about the quality of the news that will now be available to the public, especially during this election season.
Media giant McClatchy, the group that owns the newspapers, justified the decision in an email to staff, explaining that sales (customers, subscribers) for the Miami Herald have fallen by 40% over the past five years, and that the media landscape is changing and saturated with information. The group is encouraging newsrooms to use artificial intelligence.
CEO Tony Hunter recently stated that the company was working to “agentify the entire organization.”
However, many journalists have recently objected to the use of their articles in summaries generated by AI. In April, 65 unionized employees of the Miami Herald and the Bradenton Herald wrote an open letter stating that their contracts prohibit the company from using their bylines without their consent. This conflict between employees and management may have exacerbated tensions.
Now, the Miami Herald regularly produces articles followed by the disclaimer: “Produced with the help of a proprietary AI-powered tool using original Herald content, reported, written, and published by the Herald.”
As for the Soleil de la Floride, every article by our journalists is written without the use of artificial intelligence.
GAS PRICES
As of September 21, 2026, the price of regular gas is on the rise nationwide ($4.47/gallon). In Florida, the average price is $4.28 per gallon, which is eight cents higher than a month ago. In the West Palm Beach-Boca Raton metropolitan area, it is $4.43; in Fort Lauderdale, it is $4.33; and in Miami, it is $4.26. At the Costco in Pompano Beach, the posted price is $3.99 per gallon.
Translated with Deepl
