According to a recent study, states across the country were graded based on financial literacy and financial education and Louisiana failed tremendously. Teiko Foxx has more.
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After the State Fire Marshal prompted the reopening of closed cases, they’ve made nine arrests in Tangipahoa Parish. Brooke Thorington has more.
Cut 2 (32) “….I’m Brooke Thorington.”
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Louisiana is 2023’s second least financially literate state according to a recent WalletHub study. Louisiana ranked 50 of 51 states as one of the least financially literate states. WalletHub Analyst, Jill Gonzales says Louisiana ranks poorly in several categories including “unbanked households”.
The study shows Louisianans also rank low in sustainable spending – with large credit card bills and spending more money than earned. Gonzales says consumer habits in Louisiana show poor money management and on average only, the minimum amount is paid on credit card bills.
WalletHub’s wallet literacy survey that analyzes mortgage, interest rate, and retirement literacy ranked Louisiana below average. Overall, the state is the third worst education state in the country and ranked 18th in high school financial literacy scores. Gonzales says making an impact in education would be a step towards increasing basic concepts in money management for all ages.”
The importance for people to be smart about their finances became even more pronounced during the COVID-19 pandemic and remains crucial in the present during this period of high inflation.
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For the past seven months investigations from the State Fire Marshals Office and the Hammond Fire Department have resulted in nine arrests in seven arson cases. State Fire Marshal Chief Dan Wallis reopened several closed investigations and spokesperson Ashley Rodrigue says one case involving three suspects is allegedly linked to two Hammond house fires and more.
Cut 6 (08) “…partners involved.”
The reopened cases include house, vehicle, and business fires from August 2022 and January 2023.
The Christmas Eve fire at the Hammond Walmart is among the cases. Rodrigue says the suspect confessed it was set to create a distraction so he could steal merchandise and it was tips and overwhelming media coverage that assisted in closing that case.
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Rodrigue says assistance from the State Fire Marshal’s Office allowed the Hammond Fire Department to re-examine the seven arson cases.
Cut 8 (08) “…on our tip-line.”
You can find the tip line number and the ability to submit an anonymous tip at their website, sfm.dps.louisiana.gov under the report information concerning arson fires tab.
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Shipbuilding giant Edison Chouest (pronounced: shwest) is constructing a 260-foot-long vessel that will be used to support offshore wind turbines. The vessel is being built at the LaShip shipyard in Houma and it’s called E-C-O Edison. LaShip General Manager Wally Naquin says the job has involved 275-thousand work hours and has another year to go…
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It’s being built for a Danish firm called Orsted, who builds and operates wind farms around the globe. Vice President of Orsted Windpower Mikeel Maehlisen says it will be used to maintain wind farms in the Northeast…
Maehlisen says the E-C-O Edison will house 60 workers who will temporarily live on the vessel while they perform maintenance on turbines in a wind farm…
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Four Louisiana parishes rank in the top ten for the largest percentage of population loss between 2021 and 2022. The four parishes were impacted by Hurricane Ida, which hit southeast Louisiana in August of 2021. Demographer Greg Rigamer says population loss was expected following the Category Four storm…
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According to Census data, St. John the Baptist lost five-percent, Terrebonne four-percent, Plaquemines and St. Charles Parishes three-percent between 2021 and 2022. Rigamer says after a natural disaster, wealthy communities recover quickly, but that’s the not case when a large percentage of the storm victims are low-income..
Rigamer says people will also leave an area if they are not adequately protected from flooding…