The cyclosporiasis outbreak is the biggest in the country’s history. Joe Gallinaro reports.
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Ruston Mayor Ronny Walker says Louisiana’s first Buc-ee’s is on schedule for a spring 2027 opening. Kace Kieschnicki has more.
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Louisiana’s 100 cases of cyclosporiasis only represents a very small percentage of the number of cases across the country. Dr. Fred Lopez, a professor of medicine at LSU Health New Orleans, says the current cyclosporiasis outbreak is the biggest in the nation’s history, and the number is mind-boggling.
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Michigan accounts for more than half of that number, with ten-thousand cases – and that now includes two deaths, with both of those people having underlying health conditions. Lopez says while the outbreak has been traced to contaminated lettuce, local lettuce at this time is in the clear.
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Lopez says cyclospora is normally prevalent in the warm months, namely May through August; and while lettuce is the most common source of the parasite, it has been found in other produce as well.
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Ruston Mayor Ronny Walker says Louisiana’s first Buc-ee’s is on schedule to open in April. The 74-thousand-square-foot travel center located on Interstate 20 will house 120 gas pumps. The city has completed an eight-million-dollar project to update the roads near Buc-ee’s, and Walker says some parts of the project are ahead of schedule.
Cut 6 (09) “…island substructure’s up.”
Buc-ee’s is expected to employ around 200 workers when it opens. Walker says management job listings will be posted in the coming months, and wages for hourly employees start at upwards of 18-dollars an hour. He says it will be a great opportunity for workers throughout North Louisiana.
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Walker says city officials have watched other Buc-ee’s locations to prepare for the impact it will bring to Ruston. He says Ruston’s infrastructure is part of what brought the investment in the first place, and he receives almost weekly calls about potential investment nearby.
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Walker says Ruston has spent over 250-million dollars on infrastructure in the last decade.
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Speculation is running rampant as to whether Jeanine Pirro is still the U.S. Attorney for the District of Columbia after she was seen leaving the West Wing of the White House wheeling a big box. This, after President Trump harshly criticized her for dropping charges against former Olympic canoeist David Hearn, who Trump says vandalized the reflecting pool. While not explicitly taking sides in the matter, Senator Bill Cassidy says he understands why Pirro made the decision she made.
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On President Trump’s plan to sell early access to his Truth Social posts, Cassidy says he’s greatly concerned about that, especially since Trump’s posts could have a profound effect on things like the stock market.
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Cassidy says allowing people early access to presidential messaging based on their ability to pay for it is wrong.
Cut 11 (09) “…the same access.”