AP Tweets, Deletes Claim Pine Island Isolated — Day After DeSantis Fixed Bridge

The Associated Press tweeted Thursday that residents of Florida’s Pine Island were stranded because Hurricane Ian had destroyed the only bridge to the mainland — a day after Governor Ron DeSantis proudly announced that the bridge had been repaired in three days.

The original Associated Press (AP) tweet declared, incorrectly: “Following Hurricane Ian’s destruction, many residents on Florida’s Pine Island have stayed put for days without electricity and the resources while hoping the lone bridge to the mainland is repaired.”

The AP article linked in the tweet, dated Oct. 2, reported: “The largest barrier island off Florida’s Gulf Coast, Pine Island has been largely cut off from the outside world. Ian heavily damaged the only bridge to the island, leaving it only reachable by boat or air.”

On Wednesday evening, Gov. Ron DeSantis (R) had tweeted that the bridge to Pine Island had been repaired and reopened to traffic:

Construction on the Pine Island bridge has been completed today – just three days after construction began.

Happy to have the state step in and help get our Pine Island residents back on their feet. pic.twitter.com/a8GqPoHtP1

— Ron DeSantis (@GovRonDeSantis) October 6, 2022

Eagle-eyed Twitter users spotted the AP’s mistake, and attributed it to the media’s general antipathy toward the Republican governor:

It is very very important for the media that this tragedy be used to sink DeSantis

I explain in more detail here: https://t.co/VHDM2ArH6r

— Auron MacIntyre (@AuronMacintyre) October 6, 2022

DeSantis has accused the media of attempting to politicize the hurricane relief effort; Florida residents have praised his performance.

Joel B. Pollak is Senior Editor-at-Large at Breitbart News and the host of Breitbart News Sunday on Sirius XM Patriot on Sunday evenings from 7 p.m. to 10 p.m. ET (4 p.m. to 7 p.m. PT). He is the author of the recent e-book, Neither Free nor Fair: The 2020 U.S. Presidential Election. His recent book, RED NOVEMBER, tells the story of the 2020 Democratic presidential primary from a conservative perspective. He is a winner of the 2018 Robert Novak Journalism Alumni Fellowship. Follow him on Twitter at @joelpollak.