Audit Flags Safety Issues at RSW During Expansion

LEE COUNTY, Fla. — A county audit has raised red flags about safety oversight at Southwest Florida International Airport amid a major terminal expansion, citing limited access to critical safety records during construction.

The 31-page audit points to concerns over transparency and safety practices as the airport continues work on an expansion project that is both behind schedule and over budget. According to the report, county auditors were denied access to several key documents needed to evaluate whether proper safety procedures were being followed in active airside construction zones.

“For one of the first times in 20 years, we did not get all of the information we asked from the airport,” said Lee County Auditor Kevin Karnes.

Karnes said auditors were seeking documents such as vehicle inspection reports, safety meeting minutes and inspection records. Without those materials, he explained, auditors could not verify whether safety protocols were being consistently enforced in areas where aircraft operations, construction crews and heavy equipment operate in close proximity.

“This is something that does concern me and does need to be rectified,” Karnes said.

In response to the findings, the Lee County Port Authority disputed parts of the audit and defended its safety practices. In a statement included in the report, the authority said, “They provided ample audit evidence, material and worked with auditors.”

Despite that response, the audit concluded that while most daily airside safety operations appear to meet federal standards, several weaknesses remain. Those include delays in addressing identified safety issues, inconsistent enforcement of rules and procedures that have not been reviewed or updated in years.

The report emphasized that the lack of full access to records prevented auditors from independently confirming that all safety requirements were being met during construction. It remains unclear whether Karnes will pursue additional steps to obtain the requested documentation as the expansion project moves forward.

The terminal expansion at RSW is intended to accommodate growing passenger traffic in Southwest Florida, but the audit underscores the importance of maintaining rigorous safety oversight during large-scale construction at active airports.

Originally reported by Dave Elias in Gulfcoastnews now.