Baton Rouge news

• Phyllis Schlafly, social conservative movement figure, dies at 92

  05-09-2016 18:59
  
  Washington - Phyllis Schlafly, a prominent anti-feminist and early leader of the social conservative movement, died Monday at the age of 92 at her home in St. Louis.Schlafly, an outspoken voice against the liberalism of the 1960's and 1970's, was a towering figure in what emerged as the modern religious right. Her death was confirmed by the Eagle Forum, the Missouri-based advocacy organization she led."Her focus from her earliest days until her final ones was protecting the family, which she und
  
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• Clinton residents begin gutting homes following flood

  05-09-2016 18:40
  
  CLINTON – The town of Clinton was one of the first areas hit by the recent historic flooding. Now residents are beginning the process of gutting their homes.Sheilla Flowers has lived in her Clinton neighborhood for nearly five decades. Her home base is now a ghost town with pile of debris lining the roads."August the 12th, I'll never forget it," Flowers said.Flowers evacuated within hours, but came back to her neighborhood and saved nearly 30 people."At that time I wasn't thinking and
  
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• EBR school buses prep for students' return since flood

  05-09-2016 17:53
  
  BATON ROUGE – Students in East Baton Rouge will head back to school on Tuesday and the school system wants to make sure that kids will continue to have the option of riding the bus.With the start of each school bus, bus drivers' number one concern is the students' safety."We got to make sure that the buses are safe for the kids," Sylvester Stewart, East Baton Rouge bus driver, said.To ensure the buses are safe following the flood, 27 of them were taken to a car mechanic shop to be chec
  
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• Extended hours at OMV for flood victims

  05-09-2016 17:26
  
  BATON ROUGE - Not all government workers get the Labor Day holiday off. Louisiana's Office of Motor Vehicles had one office open Monday at Independence Boulevard for flood victims.Since the disaster, drivers have turned in about 400 license plates a day mostly from flooded out cars. The OMV is accommodating with extended hours.Most offices in the area will be open 8 a.m. - 6:30 p.m. Tuesday through Friday and 8 a.m. - 4:30pm on Saturday.The agency hopes to have extended hours f
  
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• I-10 East at Perkins Road reopens following closure due to car fire

  05-09-2016 17:07
  
  BATON ROUGE – All lanes of I-10 East at Perkins Road near Acadian Thruway are now open after an afternoon closure due to a vehicle fire. Congestion has reached Washington Street. According to DOTD, the vehicle fire caused the left lane of I-10 West to close to traffic also, but it is now open. According to BRPD, preliminary information revealed that a multi-vehicle crash happened at the location and one of the vehicles flipped and caught on fire. According to
  
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• I-10 East at Perkins Road closed due to car fire

  05-09-2016 17:07
  
  BATON ROUGE – I-10 East at Perkins Road near Acadian Thruway is closed due to a vehicle fire. Congestion has reached Washington Street. According to DOTD, the vehicle fire caused the left lane of I-10 West to close to traffic, but it is now open. According to EMS, there are no reports of injuries. Authorities are currently responding to the scene. Stay with WBRZ on Facebook and Twitter for the latest updates.Permalink| Comments
  
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• Disaster site opens in Walker for flood victims

  05-09-2016 16:38
  
  WALKER- Thousands of people who apply for a loan to rebuild their homes won't get approved. Strict guidelines must be met to qualify.
  It's called repayment ability. If your loan to debt ratio isn't just right, you can forget about those low interest Small Business Administration loans that are being offered by the feds.
  Everything inside Jonathan Thibodeaux's Denham Springs house is in a heaping pile on the curb of his street. The father of two lost everything. His family had to leave by boat.
  "
  
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• Far-away asteroid named after Queen frontman, Freddie Mercury, on birthday

  05-09-2016 16:25
  
  LONDON - Queen guitarist Brian May says an asteroid in Jupiter's orbit has been named after the band's late frontman Freddie Mercury on what would have been his 70th birthday.May says the International Astronomical Union's Minor Planet Centre has designated an asteroid discovered in 1991, the year of Mercury's death, as "Asteroid 17473 Freddiemercury."May, who has a doctorate in astrophysics from Imperial College, London, says the newly named asteroid is "just a dot of light, but it's a very spe
  
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• Three-year-old in Bush drowns in family swimming pool

  05-09-2016 15:08
  
  BUSH – The St. Tammany Parish Sheriff's Office reported the drowning of a three-year-old girl on Sunday.The incident occurred on Sunday around 10 a.m. in the 82000 block of Highway 21 in Bush, LA after family members discovered their three-year-old daughter unresponsive in their swimming pool.The mother of the girl told authorities that the three-year-old was in the living room playing and watching television. The mother walked away for a few minutes and when she returned, the
  
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• Man arrested for attempted murder after running over ex-wife's girlfriend

  05-09-2016 14:30
  
  BATON ROUGE – Baton Rouge Police arrested a man for attempted second degree murder after running over his ex-wife's girlfriend with his vehicle.The incident occurred on Sept. 3 in the 1100 block of North 36th Street. BRPD arrived on the scene to find the woman laying in the middle of the street and was able to tell police that 39-year-old Francis Hardnett ran her over with his vehicle. The woman was later transported to the hospital for her injuries.Police spoke with three wit
  
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• More than 100K households issued in DSNAP benefits during first two weeks

  05-09-2016 13:58
  
  BATON ROUGE – The Louisiana Department of Children and Family Services has assisted 109,610 households and issued more $43.9 million in DSNAP benefits in the first two weeks of its operations.The second week of the program wrapped up on Saturday in Acadia, Ascension, East Baton Rouge and Lafayette. Staff issued $25.3 million to 62,843 residents in the second week alone.The department opens its third week of operations Tuesday, Sept. 6, through Saturday, Sept.10, from 
  
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• Mobile disaster recovery center opens in Livingston Parish for flood victims

  05-09-2016 13:48
  
  BATON ROUGE – A mobile disaster recovery center has opened in Livingston Parish to assist flood victims.The center is open from 8 a.m. to 6 p.m., seven days a week until further notice. The center is located at the following address:Recreation Center at Sidney Hutchinson Park
  13470 Ball Park Road
  Walker, LA 70785Victims may locate other centers by visiting fema.gov/disaster-recovery-centers, calling the FEMA Helpline at 800-621-3362, or downloading the FEMA mobile app. Disaster recover
  
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• Les Miles suspends offensive lineman Josh Boutte for one game

  05-09-2016 13:41
  
  BATON ROUGE – LSU football coach Les Miles has suspended offensive lineman Josh Boutte for one game.The suspension is for his personal foul on Wisconsin defensive back D'Cota Dixon during the Tigers' season-opener on Saturday. Miles said Boutte will sit out LSU's home-opener against Jacksonville State on Saturday night."Josh made a mistake and will serve a one game suspension because of it," Miles said. "Even though this was done by mistake, a play like this does not belong in the game
  
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• Pandas no longer on endangered species list, but still vulnerable

  05-09-2016 13:20
  
  The International Union for Conservation of Nature said in a report released Sunday that the panda has been taken off the "endangered" species list and is now classified as "vulnerable."The change reflects its growing numbers in the wild of southern China. According to the report, the wild panda population increased to 1,864 in 2014 from 1,596 in 2004 as a result of agencies enforcing poaching bans and expanding forest reserves. However, the report did cite that climate change is predicted to el
  
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• U.S. Soccer star Megan Rapinoe kneels during national anthem

  05-09-2016 13:15
  
  CHICAGO - U.S. soccer star Megan Rapinoe knelt during the national anthem Sunday night before the Seattle Reign's 2-2 tie with the Chicago Red Stars in the National Women's Soccer League."It's the least I can do. Keep the conversation going," Rapinoe tweeted about her actions in protest of racial injustice and minority oppression.Quite honestly, being gay, I have stood with my hand over my heart during the national anthem and felt like I haven't had my liberties protected," she said, "so I can a
  
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• Man accused of breaking into home, painting dog purple

  05-09-2016 12:55
  
  OAK BLUFFS, Mass. - Police say a man broke into a home on Martha's Vineyard and painted the resident's dog purple.The Cape Cod Times reports that Felix Reagan is charged with breaking and entering in the daytime with the intent to commit a felony, cruelty to animals, larceny of a motor vehicle and related crimes.Police responded to an Oak Bluffs neighborhood around 2:30 p.m. Saturday for a report that a man had stolen a vehicle, crashed it and then fled on foot.Soon after, officers were called t
  
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• Boil water advisory for Dan Delee Road in East Feliciana

  05-09-2016 12:38
  
  EAST FELICIANA – A boil water advisory has been issued for Dan Delee Road in East Feliciana Parish.Water District #7 has experienced problems with their water supply system resulting in the water being of questionable microbiological quality. As a precaution, the water district is issuing a boil advisory effective immediately until lifted.The advisory will be lifted upon notification from the Louisiana Department of Health and Hospitals that water samples collected from the supply syst
  
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• Bill Cosby could get trial date at evidence hearing Tuesday

  05-09-2016 12:28
  
  PHILADELPHIA - Bill Cosby could learn the date of his felony sexual assault trial when he returns to court Tuesday near Philadelphia.The 79-year-old Cosby is accused of drugging and molesting a woman he mentored at Temple University in 2004.The charges come after Cosby's deposition in her lawsuit was unsealed last year.The actor dubbed America's Dad for his popular 1980s TV show testifies about giving women alcohol or pills before sexual encounters.Cosby now hopes to keep the deposition out of t
  
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• Judges hear arguments Sept. 28 on monuments to Civil War era

  05-09-2016 12:16
  
  NEW ORLEANS - The court battle over four New Orleans monuments honoring Civil War era figures will be heard by a federal appeals court on Sept. 28. The 5th U.S. Circuit court recently set the date in a case that pits the city against some preservationists and supporters of the monuments.Mayor Mitch Landrieu urged removal after police said a white supremacist killed nine parishioners inside the African-American Emanuel AME Church in Charleston, South Carolina, in June of last year. The City Counc
  
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• Mississippi man dies walking across US 90 in Louisiana

  05-09-2016 12:13
  
  NEW IBERIA - Louisiana State Police say a 34-year-old Mississippi man was hit by an SUV and killed as he walked across U.S. 90 near New Iberia.Master Trooper Brooks David says Jason Newburn of Hattiesburg was hit about 8:30 p.m. Saturday near the intersection of U.S. 90 and Louisiana Highway 329, about 2½ miles from New Iberia.He says the investigation is continuing.David says the driver of the 2006 Volvo SUV took a breath test and was not impaired.Permalink| Comments
  
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• Building collapses in Tel Aviv construction zone

  05-09-2016 08:44
  
  TEL AVIV, Israel - Israel's national rescue service says at least two people are dead after a multilevel underground parking garage at a construction site collapsed today in Tel Aviv. Some 22 people were injured and authorities say four people are still missing in the rubble.Permalink| Comments
  
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• Multiple bomb blasts in different Syrian cities

  05-09-2016 08:41
  
  DAMASCUS, Syria - The Islamic State group has claimed responsibility for a bomb blast that killed at least five people in the northeastern Syrian city of Hasakeh.The extremist group's Aamaq media agency posted that this morning's suicide attack killed and wounded 15 people.Syrian state media said the attacker blew himself up on his motorcycle at a traffic circle.The Syrian Observatory for Human Rights monitoring group said three Kurdish Syrian police officers were killed in the blast.At least 38
  
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• Red Cross casework starting for $125/person aid

  05-09-2016 08:16
  
  BATON ROUGE - The American Red Cross says it's beginning recovery casework to help people connect with services other than the Federal Emergency Management Agency.Senior vice president Harvey Johnson says the Red Cross can also provide $125 per person to people who have major damage to their homes but don't qualify for federal disaster assistance. That would mean $500 for a family of four.The agency says the recovery casework is starting even as volunteers continue to operate shelters, serve mea
  
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