LRN PM Newscall June 22nd

North Central Louisiana is losing 245 jobs as a glass plant in Lincoln Parish tells its employees they are shutting its doors next month. Brooke Thorington has the story…

Cut 1 (30)  “…I’m Brooke Thorington” 

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A new poll on the governor’s race shows Republican Jeff Landry as the front-runner, while Democrat Shawn Wilson in position to claim the second run-off spot. Jeff Palermo has the story…

Cut 2 (31)  “….I’m Jeff Palermo”  

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The U.S. Coast Guard says wreckage from the missing submersible that was taking five people to the sunken site of the Titanic has been found. The pilot and four other crewmembers are believed to be dead according to the expedition company. LSU Professor Christopher Drew, Co-author of the Robert Ballard Memoir – the explorer who found the Titanic, says the lack of proper equipment made it difficult to find the vessel.

Cut 3 (13) “…the submersible.”

The submersible named Titan left Sunday with only 96 hours of oxygen and lost contact about an hour and 45 minutes into the dive. The vessel free falls one hundred feet a minute taking about an hour and a half to two hours to get to the sea floor. Oceangate says the submersible may have imploded. Drew says it’s possible that the underway expedition went out of control mid-water

Cut 4 (04)  “…obliterated.” 

Robert Ballard and his team discovered the wreck of the Titanic in 1985 in the North Atlantic. It lies at a depth of 12,500 feet off the coast of Newfoundland. Drew hopes this unfortunate tragedy will convince other thrill seekers not to try and visit the site…

Cut 5 (10)  “…be exploited.”

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Authorities have confirmed the heat-related death of 62-year-old Tina Perritt of Keithville, who was without power for an extended period. SWEPCO spokesperson Doug Warner says approximately 16,000 customers are still without power in Bossier and Caddo Parishes. More than 4,000 workers have responded to the widespread outages from last Thursday’s storms.

Cut 6 (11)  “…was done.” 

Warner says almost 800 poles were broken or fell to the ground and a large portion of the poles involved transmitters.

Cut 7 (08)  “…tranmission problems.” 

Warner says if you are still without power to contact SWEPCO. He says some customers could have damage to the weather head on their homes which is keeping power from reaching their property.

Cut 8 (11)  “…things down.” 

The line of storms that impacted northwest Louisiana a week ago today had reported wind gusts of up to 90 miles per hour.

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The small village of Simsboro in Lincoln Parish is in shock after learning the Ardagh Glass Packaging Plant will close next month. The plant’s 245 employees were told Wednesday and Simsboro Mayor Sybil Smalling-Foster says news of the closure is a complete surprise.

Cut 9 (09) “…unexpected.”

Smalling-Foster says the closure will have a large impact on the community of approximately 1,000 residents because Ardagh is one of the largest employers in the area.

Cut 10 (12)  “…nine-yards.”

About five years ago Smalling-Foster says the plant faced a similar fate but local legislators worked with the manufacturer to keep their doors open. She says it’s not just Simsboro that will be affected by the closure.

Cut 11 (10)  “…feel it.”

She says the plant will close on July 17th.

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A new poll on Louisiana’s governor’s race has Republican Attorney General Jeff Landry with 31-percent of the vote, Democrat Shawn Wilson 21-percent and the rest of the contenders in the single digits. ULM Political Science Professor Joshua Stockley says it’s not a surprise Landry continues to have a commanding lead…

Cut 12 (11) “…front runner” 

Republican candidates Sharon Hewitt, Richard Nelson, Stephen Waguespack and John Schroder are trying to take support away from Landry. Stockley says it will not be easy….

Cut 13 (13) “…front-runner” 

The Kitchens/Vantage poll surveyed 16-hundred likely voters last week. Four percent of the respondents said they will vote for Independent Hunter Lundy. Stockley says Wilson is in good position to make the run-off, but the former Louisiana transportation secretary has to boost his name recognition…

Cut  14 (12)  “…who he is”