Baton Rouge news

• Deion Jones blisters 40-yard dash with 4.38 clocking at LSU Pro Day

  14-03-2016 22:41
  
  Improves significantly on his 4.59 time from the NFL Scouting Combine.
  
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• John Bel Edwards' Louisiana session speech: What did and did not get applause from the Legislature

  14-03-2016 22:08
  
  This is a rundown of the Gov. John Bel Edwards' speech topics that generated applause -- as well as those that didn't -- from the Louisiana Legislature.
  
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• Back in session: Higher education, healthcare could face cuts

  14-03-2016 19:51
  
  BATON ROUGE - The new legislative session began today, and Governor John Bel Edwards delivered grim news to lawmakers regarding the state budget in his opening address.Lawmakers didn't raise enough money in the special session to keep critical services from being cut. Under state law, they can't raise taxes during the regular session, so they'll be forced to make some painful decisions. Healthcare, higher education, schools and prisons are all on the chopping block again."As we begin this regula
  
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• Waiting game: Port Vincent, Prairieville residents wait for river to crest

  14-03-2016 19:36
  
  PRAIRIEVILLE - Prairieville and Port Vincent sit on either side of the Amite River. Monday night, residents on both sides are waiting for floodwaters to recede.Marshal Barry arrived in Prairieville from California more than 10 years ago. He came to help people in the aftermath of Hurricane Katrina, fell in love with the area and never left. He was out of town when last week's storms hit."We got a picture from our realtor, you know, we're putting our house up for sale," he explains. "He's like 'y
  
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• John Bel Edwards addresses Legislature at 1 p.m.: Follow it live

  14-03-2016 18:51
  
  Gov. John Bel Edwards will begin addressing the Louisiana Legislature at 1 p.m. in the state Capitol to kick off the 2016 regular session.  Follow our live coverage in the comments section below.   Edwards is expected to emphasize Medicaid expansion, education...
  
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• SE La. flood areas not yet eligible for federal disaster assistance

  14-03-2016 17:44
  
  BATON ROUGE - Federal aid is likely to come for areas of Louisiana inundated by floods in the last week.The federal government declared Bossier, Claiborne, Grant, Morehouse, Ouachita, Richland, and Webster Parishes as disaster areas. Other parishes will likely be added to the list, which as of this post, does not include Ascension, Livingston or Tangipahoa - two capital region parishes that sustained wide-spread flooding Friday, Saturday and Sunday. As of Monday, some places in those parishes re
  
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• John Bel Edwards agenda: Medicaid expansion, TOPS changes, New Orleans-to-Baton Rouge rail

  14-03-2016 16:52
  
  Edwards plans to tackle several other topics besides finances during the regular lawmaking session which opens Monday and lasts through June 6.
  
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• EBRSO: Zachary man arrested for rape of EBR woman in February

  14-03-2016 16:47
  
  BATON ROUGE - The East Baton Rouge Parish Sheriff’s Office arrested 35-year-old Samuel Williams, Jr., of Zachary, for the rape of an East Baton Rouge woman that occurred in February.On Sunday, Feb. 21st, Lane Memorial Hospital contacted the sheriff’s office to report that a woman had been raped earlier that morning while at a friend’s house located in Zachary.According to the sheriff’s office, the woman consumed two drug substances while at her friends hom
  
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• Springfield residents using airboats to get around

  14-03-2016 16:05
  
  SPRINGFIELD - Some people in the town of Springfield in lower Livingston Parish have resorted to using airboats to check on family and neighbors.Robert Wilson and other residents are hopeful that the flood water will recede soon."I'm worried but what can you do? The water is still coming up a little bit," he said Monday.Dozens of homes are flooded in the Springfield area near the Blood River.  The river was swift under a bridge on Blood River Road.  Water appeared to b
  
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• Mo Claiborne's LSU SEC Championship ring for sale on eBay for $100,000

  14-03-2016 15:38
  
  Just finished fourth season with Dallas Cowboys.
  
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• UPDATE: 80-year-old man missing from Darrow has been found

  14-03-2016 15:32
  
  ASCENSION - The Ascension Parish Sheriff’s Office is searching for an 80-year-old man who went missing from Houmas House Plantation in Darrow.According to the Ascension Parish Sheriff's Office, the man went missing Monday at around 12:30 p.m.He six feet tall and was last seen wearing a light colored jacket and plaid shirt, the sheriff's office says. According to the sheriff's office, the man suffers from dementia.
  Anyone with information is encouraged to contact the Ascension Parish Sh
  
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• FEMA awards over $10 million in grants to La. for disaster preparedness

  14-03-2016 14:43
  
  WASHINGTON - Congressman Charles Boustany, Jr., M.D. (R- Lafayette) announced that FEMA has awarded the state of Louisiana two grants for disaster preparedness worth a combined $10,357,122.One grant, the Storm Water Mitigation Project for Pontilly (Ponchartrain Park and Gentilly), provides $5, 350,000 in funding for drainage improvements that will allow for the drainage system to  accommodate much higher storm frequencies and lead to the reduction of flooding.The second grant for the Go
  
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• DPW: Multiple road closures this week due to sewer repair

  14-03-2016 14:22
  
  BATON ROUGE - According to the City-Parish Department of Public Works Traffic Engineering Division, there will be multiple road closures this week.The following streets will be closed Monday, Mar. 14 to Friday, Fri. 18 from 7 a.m. to 5 p.m. due to sewer repair:S. 11th Street (North Blvd/America St.)N. 11th Street (Convention St./North Blvd.)Spain St. (Maximillian/East Blvd)Convention Street (N. 11th/S. 10th St.)Ibervillle Street (South St./Bynum St.)Intersection of South Street and Eddie Robinso
  
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• Louisiana jobless rate up slightly in January to 5.9 percent

  14-03-2016 13:55
  
  NEW ORLEANS - Louisiana's unemployment rate ticked up in January, with jobless numbers rising because more people joined the labor force than found jobs.
      
  The jobless rate rose to 5.9 percent from 5.8 percent in December, but stayed below the 6.9 percent rate of January 2015.
      
  A separate survey showed payrolls rose slightly in January from December, but are more than 15,000 below year-ago levels, warning Louisiana's economy may be shr
  
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• DOTD: I-59 and I-10 may be closed in south La./Mississippi this afternoon

  14-03-2016 13:07
  
  BATON ROUGE - Due to flooding, the Louisiana Department of Transportation and Development and the Mississippi Department of Transportation announced that Interstate 59 and Interstate 10 in south Louisiana/Mississippi may close today.The closures will affect I-59 at the Louisiana state line and I- 10 in Hancock County. If these closures should occur, congestion will be a major issue in the affected areas.DOTD encourages drivers to plan an alternate route to prepare for the potential closure.Motor
  
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• Former LSU hoops coach Trent Johnson fired by TCU

  14-03-2016 13:06
  
  Had 50-79 record in four seasons.
  
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• How to watch LSU Pro Timing Day Monday

  14-03-2016 12:54
  
  Nine former Tigers will participate; 22 were there last season.
  
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• UPDATE: La. Guardsmen rescue over 4,000 residents during severe weather

  14-03-2016 12:41
  
  BATON ROUGE - The Louisiana’s National Guardsmen currently have 1,197 Guardsmen assisting with emergency flood operations which include evacuations, search and rescue, distribution of water and meals, security and shelter support and distribution of sand bags and sand bag filling machines.The LANG has rescued over 4,255 citizens, 354 pets and has issued over one million sand bags.
  The Guardsmen have also issued more than 71,570 bottles of water to Richland, Natchitoches, Vernon and Win
  
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• Ponchatoula residents return home, salvage what they can following historic flood

  14-03-2016 12:13
  
  BATON ROUGE - Some Tangipahoa residents returned home Monday night for the first time since historic floodwaters infiltrated their homes Friday.
  People in on Ponchatoula neighborhood began salvaging what they could and assessing the damage. At least half of the 70 homes in the subdivision were damaged by high water.
  Yards flooded over the weekend were filled with debris Monday night as people began the long process of fixing the damage left behind."You see this stuff on tv, but you never thing i
  
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• Gov. John Bel Edwards addresses lawmakers Monday

  14-03-2016 12:06
  
  BATON ROUGE - Governor John Bel Edwards said he wants more from lawmakers as they began work Monday.The regular legislative session began around lunchtime, just a few days after a special session on the budget ended.  The regular session will run until June 6.The governor said not enough progress has been made in raising taxes or making government cuts that solve the budget issues facing Louisiana.  Budget experts are still figuring out lawmakers' las
  
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• Residents keep watchful eye on Amite River as it crests, begins to recede

  14-03-2016 12:05
  
  LIVINGSTON - Most of the Amite River has already reached flood stage and begun receding, but part of the river won't crest until Tuesday morning.It's already crested in Denham Springs, Bayou Manchac and Port Vincent and should be back below flood stage at all three locations by Thursday evening. The river still hasn't crested in French Settlement but that will likely happen Tuesday morning.The Livingston Parish Office of Homeland Security and Emergency Preparedness is watching water levels close
  
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• Livingston, Ascension Parish requests residents to submit property damage reports

  14-03-2016 11:55
  
  LIVINGSTON - Livingston Parish President Layton Ricks and the Livingston Parish Office of Homeland Security and Emergency Preparedness (LOHSEP) are requesting that Livingston Parish residents report all property damage and losses to the Emergency Operations (EOC) Hotline at 225-686-3996 or via email at [email protected] information needed is: owner name, address, telephone numbers, type of damage, inches of water in home and whether residents have insurance.
  The Hotline will be in operation Tues
  
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• Ascension Public Schools to hold public forum for school construction bond election

  14-03-2016 11:18
  
  DONALDSONVILLE - Ascension Public Schools will hold public forums for the next two weeks about the April 9 school construction bond election.
  In April, the Ascension Parish School Board will ask voters to extend an existing 15.08 millage to fund school construction projects such as building three new primary schools, a new middle school and site planning for a future high school. Also, there will be several renovation projects, security upgrades and outdoor covered play areas built at primary sc
  
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• Kellogg: Investigation under way after video of man urinating on assembly line

  14-03-2016 09:00
  
  NEW YORK - Kellogg says a criminal investigation is under way after a video surfaced online showing a man urinating on one of its factory assembly lines.
      
  The company says it learned of the video Friday and immediately alerted authorities. It says the criminal investigation is being conducted by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration.
      
  The graphic video shows a man urinating on an assembly line, then panning to a sign with the Kellogg
  
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• Flood water receding from Bossier City homes

  14-03-2016 08:41
  
  BOSSIER CITY - The water has started to recede from the flooded subdivisions in Bossier City in northern Louisiana.
      
  National Weather Service forecaster C.S. Ross in Shreveport says it will take at least a week before home owners will be able to get back to their homes and assess the damage.
      
  In the eastern part of Bossier Parish near Haughton, Ross says the water should drain from the Tall Timbers subdivision by Monday afternoon.
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• UPDATE: Mississippi driver dies in La. Hwy 429 crash, State Police say

  14-03-2016 08:19
  
  St. Amant - Troopers from Louisiana State Police Troop A investigated a single vehicle crash on LA 429 east of LA 431 in Ascension Parish that occurred on Sunday around 10 p.m.
  State Police report the crash took the life of 21-year-old Tyler Talbert of Toomsuba, MS.According to State Police, Talbert was traveling westbound on LA 429 in a pickup truck and for unknown reasons, ran off the right side of the roadway after a left hand curve.Talbert’s truck stuck a utility pole and overturne
  
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• Ascension OHSEP urges residents to 'stay vigilant'

  14-03-2016 07:11
  
  ASCENSION- Leaders in Ascension Parish are urging residents to stay vigilant as the area prepares for more flood waters to move in.
  The Ascension Parish Office of Homeland Security and Emergency Preparedness is urging residents north of LA Hwy 42 to be prepared as the Amite River prepares to crest. The river topped out at 15.5 feet near Bayou Manchac, one foot lower than orginally predicted. Officials forecast the river will crest at Port Vincent Tuesday at 11.5 feet.
  While both of the cresting
  
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• March 14, 2016 Morning News Pop

  14-03-2016 06:51
  
  Here are today's top stories:Thousands of homes flooded, Edwards to tour west La. New legislative session, same budget problems SU men's hoops earns 16 seed in NCAA tourneyDrying time Updates all day, every day:FACEBOOK | TWITTERPermalink| Comments
  
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• New legislative session, same budget problems

  14-03-2016 05:55
  
  BATON ROUGE- Louisiana's lawmakers are kicking off a new legislative session, with the same financial problems that have kept the state staggering from one budget crisis to the next.
      
  The House and Senate were unable to fully dig out of the budget gaps in a contentious special session on taxes that ended only days ago. They start the three-month regular session Monday staring down an $800 million shortfall for the fiscal year that begins July 1.
   &nbsp
  
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• Breached levee prompts evacuations in northeast Louisiana

  14-03-2016 04:42
  
  NEW ORLEANS- Officials say reports of a breached levee prompted evacuations in a rural northeastern Louisiana community, but residents are being allowed to return to their homes after flooding was less severe than expected.
      
  Caldwell Parish Sheriff's Deputy Jack McKeithen says the department began evacuating residents in rural Hebert after receiving word Sunday evening that a levee was topped and 2 to 4 feet of water could be headed for the area.
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• Livingston Parish residents brace for Amite River crest

  14-03-2016 04:22
  
  LIVINGSTON- Residents in Livingston Parish are bracing for more flooding Monday morning. Officials are telling people to prepare for high water that will be moving through the area sometime early this week.
  The Amite River has not yet crested near French Settlement and Port Vincent. People in the Springfield area are also keeping an eye on the rising water levels. Residents are doing what they can to protect their property and belongings before the water rushes in.
  Officials in Livingston Parish
  
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• President Obama declares major disaster for Louisiana following storms, floods

  14-03-2016 00:43
  
  The funding will go to individuals affected in northwest Louisiana.
  
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