A campaign begins today in Louisiana that aims to get more pickup truck drivers to wear their seat belts. Don Molino has more…
================
A new report by the National Center for Health Statistics shows the suicide rate is up 24-percent from 1999 to 2014 and experts say Louisiana is being affected too. Emelie Gunn has more…
===================
The Buckle Up in Your Truck campaign begins today in Louisiana. Executive Director of the Louisiana Highway Safety Commission, John Leblanc says drivers of pickup trucks use their seat belts less often than drivers of other vehicles. He says this campaign is important to get more truck drivers to wear their seat belts, because it could save their lives.
Leblanc says 8 people have been killed in pickup truck accidents in the state since March. He says 25% of the registered vehicles in Louisiana are pickup trucks, and wearing a seat belt in these vehicles reduces the chance of fatality in an accident.
Leblanc says the goal of the campaign is voluntary compliance, but unfortunately they have seen an increase in truck drivers not buckling up for the past three years. He says wearing a seat belt is especially important in a pickup because those vehicles are taller than others.
The campaign runs through April 28.
====================================================
There is more bad news when it comes to job loss in the oil and gas sector. LSU economist Loren Scott says the low gas prices we’ve seen since August of 2014 have really hammered the industry. He says major companies are cutting back their drilling budget dramatically.
Gulf Island LLC based in Houma and Carbo Ceramics in New Iberia plan to lay off nearly 300 workers in June. Scott says there is some opportunity for those laid off to find other work but not enough for everyone who lost their job.
40 to 50 jobs employees of Helmerich & Payne International Drilling Co. in the Gulf of Mexico will also be laid off. Scott says the state is losing jobs at the rate of about 21-thousand a year. And he says a lot of big companies are planning to stop drilling in the Gulf.
===================================================
The Humane Society of Louisiana is holding seminars for law enforcement throughout the state to address animal cruelty. The first seminar was held yesterday in New Iberia, and Jeff Dorson, Executive Director of the Humane Society of Louisiana, says they hope to help law enforcement be better prepared for handling cases of animal cruelty.
Dorson says social media is helping them prosecute more cases of animal abuse because people are sharing evidence when they see it.
Dorson says they are teaching law enforcement officers about changes in the law, advances in technology, and how to handle case of animal abuse. He says there are also new developments in forensic pathology that can help them determine causes of death and what happened to animals that are brought in.
===================================================
A report by the National Center for Health Statistics finds the suicide rate in the US has increased by 24% from 1999 to 2014. LSU Health New Orleans Clinical Assistant Professor of Psychiatry Dr. Michelle Moore says there isn’t a specific reason why the number has gone up….
In the past week, two male students at Mandeville High School killed themselves within 48 hours of each other. Moore says it’s important to stop and talk to each other about the way we’re feeling and watch if a loved one is acting different than usual. She says parents really need to monitor what kids are posting on social media.
The report finds the suicide rate of women increased to 45-percent and males increased by 16-percent. Moore says the gap is narrowing between the genders.
===================================================