The Louisiana Department of Health advises the public not to use tap water to clean and store contact lenses to avoid getting a rare but serious eye infection. Kace Kieschnick has the story.
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It was by a much smaller margin than originally anticipated; but nevertheless, Julia Letlow will be the next U.S. Senator from Louisiana. Andrew Greenstein reports.
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In a race decided by 25-thousand votes, Republican Julia Letlow has been elected U.S. Senator. Jeff Palermo has the story.
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The Louisiana Department of Health is urging the public not to use tap water for nasal rinsing or to clean or store contact lenses to prevent a rare but serious amoeba infection. State Epidemiologist Theresa Sokol says there have been ten cases of Acanthamoeba (uh-kan-thuh-MEE-buh) infections since 2024.
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Sokol says in five of the cases, the eye infection resulted in permanent vision loss.
Sokol says two serious infections have been reported this year, including one involving the brain that was fatal. Both patients had weakened immune systems and reported using tap water in nasal irrigation devices.
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Sokol says these infections are rare, but proper precautions can reduce the risk. That includes using the right type of water for nasal rinsing and following proper contact lens hygiene.
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Sokol says drinking tap water is not considered a risk for Acanthamoeba.
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While gas prices are starting to come down, they’re still much more expensive than they were last year. According to Triple-A Louisiana, the current statewide average is just under $3.70 a gallon. That’s about a quarter cheaper than a month ago, but about $1.10 more than the statewide average at this time last year. Don Redman with Triple-A says as has been the case all year long, Iran has a lot to do with these high gas prices.
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Redman says the price of crude is coming down, with prices now under 100 dollars a barrel.
Redman says the price of diesel is also coming down – $5.75 a gallon, 13 cents cheaper from a month ago.
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It ended up being by a much smaller margin than originally expected. Nonetheless, Julia Letlow beat Jamie Davis in Louisiana’s U.S. Senate race, keeping that Senate seat in the Republican party. While many had expected Letlow to win by double digits, her final margin of victory ended up being only two points – 51 to 49 percent. Out of 1.46-million votes cast, Letlow beat Davis by less than 26-thousand votes. LSU political science professor Robert Hogan says in the end, it ended up being more interesting for the Letlow campaign than what they had hoped for.
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Hogan says while this race did not result in a win for the Democrats, this is one which they can build on, especially given the lack of financial support it received from the national Democratic party. Hogan says while Davis will not be going to Washington, his strong showing may indicate that this won’t be the last Louisiana has heard from him.
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As for the congressional races, the four incumbents – Steve Scalise, Troy Carter, Clay Higgins and Mike Johnson – all won their open primaries outright. Districts five and six will be decided in runoffs, both of which will feature a Republican and a Democrat. In District Six, Republican Blake Miguez will go up against Democrat Chauna Banks. Hogan says while Miguez will be heavily favored in the runoff, his showing in the primary could open the door a sliver for Banks.
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And in District Five, Democrat Pat Moore will face Republican Gabe Firment.
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Julia Letlow is the state’s first Republican woman to be elected to the U-S Senate as she narrowly defeated her Democratic opponent, Jamie Davis. Letlow will leave her seat in the U.S. House to replace Bill Cassidy.
Letlow won by only 25-thousand votes. A stunning result considering she was expected to win easily after the primary races concluded in May. Her victory came on a night where the Democratic Party took back control of the U.S. House and Senate.
Letlow was first elected to Congress in 2021 after the passing away of her husband Luke Letlow, who died from complications from Covid days before he was set to be sworn in as Louisiana’s Fifth District Congressional representative. Julia Letlow says she decided to get into politics because of her young children.
Davis nearly pulled off a remarkable victory. He was a political unknown, a farmer from Tensas Parish, who led a grassroots campaign that picked up momentum as President Trump’s approval ratings fell. Davis says he’s not done fighting for what every citizen in this state deserves.
Davis finished his concession speech by saying that Governor Jeff Landry has been put on a notice, a hint that he may run for governor next year.
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UL Lafayette will host South Alabama as the Cajuns look to get back on track after the bye week. Both teams are 2-and-2 in conference play and need a win to stay alive in the race for the Sun Belt West. ULL coach Michael Desormeaux says the Jaguars are a tough opponent.
Desormeaux says there is still a lot of season left and their two close losses do not define the team. He says the defense could get a boost with the potential return of redshirt senior safety Collin Jacob on Saturday. Jacob had 29 tackles in 5 games before suffering an injury against Arkansas State.
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It’s Bama week for LSU. This game is where Tigers legends are born for many fans, and this year’s matchup has as high of stakes as any as both teams fight to stay alive in the College Football Playoff race. Arizona State transfer quarterback Sam Leavitt has been electric the last few weeks, but he knows this could be a legacy-defining game.
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Not only is this the most important game Lane Kiffin’s Tigers have faced this season, it also comes against their most talented opponent so far. Leavitt says it will be a big test for the LSU offense, but one he is looking forward to.
Leavitt says his hamstring is back to 100-percent after the week off, and he feels as good as he has all season.
Alabama was somewhat shockingly ranked fifth in the first College Football Playoff rankings of the season while LSU came in at 14th. Just outside the 12-team playoff, the Tigers have critical matchups with three teams in the top 15 this month, but Leavitt says he is not paying attention to the numbers next to the names.
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