Another 44 people are reported dead from COVID-19 today bringing the state’s total to 884 dead from the disease caused by coronavirus infections. With many employers still shut down due to the risk of spreading the virus, a record number of workers have filed for unemployment insurance. Governor Edwards encourages all Louisiana residents who have lost work or hours to file for unemployment at Louisiana-works-dot-net
This week the first of the 600 dollar federally enhanced unemployment checks began going out.
Families and businesses in north Louisiana are picking up the pieces following a tornado outbreak on Easter. President of the Ouachita Parish Police Jury Shane Smiley says around 250 families have been displaced from their homes and two public housing communities took a significant hit, including one about a mile from the airport.
Cut 5 (10) “…were damaged there.”
A suspected tornado did an estimated 25-30 million in damages at the Monroe Regional Airport. Abraham says they’ve reached out to both state and federal officials to begin the process of getting aid for the airport and other businesses that have been destroyed.
Abraham says he saw debris littered runways, destroyed buildings, and the remains of small jets poking out from under a collapsed hangar.
Entergy reports 200 poles, 450 spans of wire, and 50 transformers will either need to be repaired or replaced and thousands are still without power due to Easter storm system. Entergy Louisiana spokesperson David Freese says they’re pulling in emergency workers to get it done.
SWEPCO is reporting eight-thousand of its Louisiana customers are without power as well.