Polk County | featured news

Publix Super Markets Charities has donated $5 million to the Feeding America network of food banks to help stave hunger in communities throughout Florida and five other states served by the Lakeland-based grocery chain. The gift, announced tonight during a special ceremony at the grocer's headquarters, is three times larger than the company's normal annual contribution to Feeding America, a nationwide network of food banks that includes Feeding America Tampa Bay and its partner, Agape Food Bank in Lakeland.

Lakeland Electric is warning its customers about a scam threatening to shut off service unless payment is made.

Two people were killed late Tuesday afternoon in a traffic crash on State Road 37 south of Mulberry.

A woman was killed in a trailer fire Wednesday on Lido Avenue, Polk County Fire and Rescue officials said.

A state of emergency was declared Wednesday for 42 counties in North and Central Florida as a tropical depression churned in the Gulf of Mexico.

Republican Sen. Marco Rubio and Democratic U.S. Rep. Patrick Murphy each easily won their primaries Tuesday, setting up a November showdown that's guaranteed to be nasty as each party grapples for a majority in the Senate.

Republican Sam Killebrew beat one retired judge on Tuesday to win a place on the Nov. 8 general election ballot where he will face another retired judge, Bob Doyel who easily won the Democrat nomination for Florida House District 41.