69 people have died in 51 home fires in the state so far this year. Those 51 fires are 15 more than what the state had at the same time last year. Ken Pastorick with the State Fire Marshal’s Office says it’s important that residents have smoke alarms in their homes so they have a fighting chance to survive.
He says Operation Save-A-Life provides free smoke alarms and installations for residents who don’t have a smoke alarm.
AARP says almost a million Louisianans provide in home care to older loved and Director of Advocacy for AARP Louisiana, Andrew Muhl, says it’s a huge burden on the family caregivers, in both time and money.
AARP says 80-percent of family caregivers spend their own money to pay for their aging loved ones’ needs, averaging more than seven-thousand dollars a year while the state puts a disproportionate amount of money towards nursing homes instead of in-home care.
The 119th State Fair of Louisiana begins today in Shreveport and will run through November 16th. Andre Champagne has more.
Cut 1 (34) “…I’m Andre Champagne.”
A new study by Leaders for a Better Louisiana says the Early Childhood Education Fund is in danger of running out of money by 2030. The fund was established in 2017 as a dollar-for-dollar match to local communities which raise money for early childhood education. It was seeded with a one-time appropriation of 40-million dollars, with dedicated revenue streams added on later. But Better Louisiana Chief Policy Officer Barry Erwin says the fund is not keeping up with local contributions.