9-25-20
AFTER BRIEFLY GOING UP, HOSPITALIZATIONS FROM COVID-NINETEEN IN LOUISIANA ARE DOWN AGAIN, DROPPING BY SEVENTEEN IN YESTERDAY’S REPORT FROM THE DEPARTMENT OF HEALTH. THERE ARE TWO FEWER PATIENTS ON VENTILATORS. THE NUMBER OF DEATHS IN THE STATE ROSE BY SIXTEEN. THE TOTAL NUMBER OF CASES IN LOUISIANA HAS REACHED ABOVE ONE HUNDRED SIXTY-THREE THOUSAND WITH FIVE HUNDRED SEVENTY-SEVEN NEW CASES YESTERDAY.
ACADIANA HAD THREE MORE DEATHS YESTERDAY. TWO WERE IN LAFAYETTE PARISH WHILE VERMILLION PARISH ADDED ANOTHER. THERE ARE SIX HUNDRED SIXTY-SEVEN TOTAL IN THE REGION. THE TOTAL NUMBER OF CASES IN ACADIANA EXCEEDS TWENTY-FIVE THOUSAND THREE HUNDRED. THERE WERE FORTY-FIVE NEW CASES YESTERDAY IN ACADIANA, INCLUDING TWENTY IN LAFAYETTE PARISH.
FOR THE SECOND DAY IN A ROW, SOUTHWEST LOUISIANA RECORDED NO NEW DEATHS. THE TOTAL IS STILL AT THREE HUNDRED THIRTY-FOUR. THIRTY-ONE NEW COVID-NINETEEN CASES WERE ADDED IN SOUTHWEST LOUISIANA, INCLUDING EIGHTEEN IN CALCASIEU PARISH. THE TOTAL FOR THE REGION HAS RISEN ABOVE ELEVEN THOUSAND, EIGHT HUNDRED.
TEN SCHOOLS IN LOUISIANA WERE RECOGNIZED YESTERDAY BY THE U-S DEPARTMENT OF EDUCATION AS NATIONAL BLUE RIBBON AWARD WINNERS. THEY INCLUDED FIVE SCHOOLS IN ACADIANA. ERATH HIGH SCHOOL AND ST. THOMAS MORE CATHOLIC HIGH SCHOOL IN LAFAYETTE WERE HONORED IN THE EXEMPLARY HIGH PERFORMING SCHOOLS CATEGORY. FORKED ISLAND/E.BROUSSARD ELEMENTARY IN ABBEVILLE, INDIAN BAYOU ELEMENTARY IN RAYNE AND STEPHENSVILLE ELMENTARY IN MORGAN CITY WERE RECOGNIZED IN THE ACHIEVEMENT GAP-CLOSING SCHOOLS CATEGORY.
Nearly 160,000 people in Louisiana may have missed out on the $1,200 individual payments that Congress authorized earlier this year because of the coronavirus outbreak. The Louisiana Department of Revenue says the IRS is mailing letters to the Louisiana residents and urging them to apply for the assistance by an Oct. 15 deadline. The payments are $1,200 for individuals, $2,400 for married couples and $500 for each dependent. Most of the payments went out months ago to people who file federal income tax returns but the revenue department says most of those receiving letters notifying them of possible eligibility aren’t required to file federal tax returns because of low incomes.
EIGHT MONTHS AGO, LAFAYETTE MAYOR PRESIDENT JOSH GUILLORY CONVENED A COMMITTEE TO REPEAL AND REPLACE THE UNIFIED DEVELOPMENT CODE. HOWEVER, HIS ADMINISTRATION IS GOING TO PROPOSE ONLY A FEW CHANGES TO THE CODE, A DECISION THAT LEAVES DRAINAGE MEASURES FROM 2017 LARGELY IN PLACE. ONE OF THE CHANGES WOULD BE LIFTING A BAN ON IN-LINE DETENTION, WHICH INVOLVES MERGING NEWLY CONSTRUCTED DETENTION PONDS WITH EXISTING DRAINAGE CANALS. INSTEAD AN EVALUATION SYSTEM WOULD BE PUT IN PLACE THAT WOULD ADDRESS POTENTIAL PROBLEMS THAT LED TO THE BAN IN THE FIRST PLACE.
ONE PERSON IS IN JAIL FACING SEVERAL CHARGES IN CONNECTION WITH THE STABBING DEATHS OF TWO PEOPLE. SYLVIA MASTERS REPORTS.
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FEMA IS OPENING TWO NEW DRIVE-THRU DISASTER RECOVERY CENTERS TOMORROW FOR THOSE IMPACTED BY HURRICANE LAURA. ONE WILL BE LOCATED AT THE SOUTHSIDE COMMUNITY CENTER ON FOURTH STREET IN RAYNE AND THE OTHER WILL BE AT THE WAR MEMORIAL CIVIC CENTER ON SEVENTH STREET IN DERIDDER. FEMA STAFF WILL BE ON HAND TO SCAN DOCUMENTS, ASSIST WITH REGISTRATION AND ANSWER QUESTIONS ABOUT DISASTER ASSISTANCE PROGRAMS. THE DRIVE-THRU CENTERS WILL BE OPEN SEVEN DAYS A WEEK FROM SEVEN A-M TO FIVE P-M AND THEY’LL BE OPERATED UNDER STRICT COVID-NINETEEN PROTOCOLS TO KEEP EVERYONE SAFE.
