The lower Mississippi River is being dredged to accommodate bigger ships.  Kevin Barnhart has the story.

 Cut 1 (30) “…I’m Kevin Barnhart” 

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LSU hires a new passing game coordinator and the Tigers will also play a game in New Orleans in the near future. Jeff Palermo has the details…

cut  2 (31) “…I’m Jeff Palermo”

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State Police is investigating a fatal officer-involved shooting in Lafayette. The deceased has been identified at 40-year old Jeremy Todd Baham of Lafayette. Trooper Thomas Gossen says the shooting happened last night on Kaliste Saloom Road.

Cut 3 (10)  “…(x2) with a weapon” 

Gossen says two officers approached Baham and that’s when things got physical and took a turn.

Cut 4 (12) “…more information.”

The officer involved in the incident received non-life threatening injuries.

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North Louisiana remains under a flash flood watch until six pm tomorrow night and two school systems canceled classes today due to flooding, Morehouse and West Carroll Parish Schools. National Weather Service Meteorologist Nicholas Fenner says northeast Louisiana has already seen a lot of rain

Cut 5 (09)  “…five inches.”

Fenner says the rain slacks off a little today, but more heavy rainfall is expected…

Cut 6 (09) “…northeast Louisiana”

The Ouachita Parish Police Jury has declared a state of emergency as the Monroe area braces for flooded roads and rivers. Fenner says there is an elevated risk for flash flooding…

Cut 7 (09) “…same location.”

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The Army Corps of Engineers announces a plan to spend $85 million this year to deepen the lower Mississippi River to 50 feet.  Port of New Orleans spokesperson Matt Gresham says the initial phase will see work done on the first 30 miles of the river.

Cut 8 (11) “…about Oak Alley.”

The goal is to deepen the river to 50 feet.  Gresham says that allows for several southeast Louisiana ports to accept larger cargo ships built to take advantage of the Panama Canal’s expansion.

Cut 9 (12) “…the Panama Canal.″

The Corps estimates a national economic benefit of $127.5 million annually.  It’s a project that has been pushed for a long time and Gresham says a study indicated that improvements offer an 80-to-1 cost-to-benefit ratio.

Cut 10 (10) “…than a decade.”

The project is expected to cost nearly $240 million, with the state covering more than $100 million, with an annual maintenance cost of $17.7 million.

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LSU Football Coach Ed Orgeron has hired former Rams head coach Scott Linehan to be the Tigers new passing game coordinator. Linehan has also been a former offensive coordinator in Dallas, Minnesota, Miami, and Detroit. Tiger Rag Editor Ron Higgins says it’s an interesting hire

Cut 11 (07) “…20 years.”

Orgeron told a Baton Rouge radio station that Linehan and offensive coordinator Steve Ensminger will be a great combination with the former NFL coach helping with third-down and red zone game planning.

Higgins says most of Coach O’s coaching hires have worked, so we’ll have to wait to see if Linehan can help keep LSU’s offense humming along

Cut 12 (11) “…to recruit”

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LSU football will kick-off the 2022 and 2023 seasons by facing Florida State. The 2022 season opener will take place in the Superdome in New Orleans and the following year the two teams will meet in Orlando. Sugar Bowl CEO Jeff Hundley says they’ve spent about two years trying to put this game together…

Cut 13 (10) “…neutral sites.”

Hundley says each school will be given 30-thousand tickets that they can sell to their fans and that number could go up depending on demand. He says they expect F-S-U fans will be excited to spend Labor Day weekend in New Orleans and they know LSU fans will be there

Cut 14 (09) “…full house.”

Hundley says the game in New Orleans and Orlando will be played on Sunday of Labor Day weekend at the request of TV…

Cut 15 (10) “…great”

A state health official says the number of LSU mumps cases is up to 12 and one of the students living on campus has been quarantined. Matt Doyle has the story…

Cut 1 (29) “…I’m Matt Doyle” 

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A science teacher at Northwestern Middle School in Zachary being held in jail on a $225,000 bond, accused of having a sexual relationship with a 15-year-old student.  Kevin Barnhart has the story.

cut  2 (31) “…I’m Kevin Barnhart”

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The northern half of the state is under a flash flood watch until Wednesday night as moisture and upper-level disturbances are expected to interact with a cold front to produce locally heavy rainfall. National Weather Service Shreveport Meteorologist Jason Hansford says several inches of rain will fall over the next few days…

Cut 3 (06)  “…Wednesday evening” 

There’s also a slight risk for severe weather for central and northeast today and Hansford says more severe weather will roll into the Bayou State on Wednesday.

Cut 4 (12) “…Wednesday evening.”

Hansford says today’s severe weather threat stretches from Lufkin, Texas, across Natchitoches, Ruston, and Monroe and into Mississippi. He says the storms will be isolated…

Cut 5 (10)  “…flooding.”

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The statewide average price for a gallon of gasoline is currently at $2.11, down about a nickel from this time last week and 21 cents from last month.  Uncertainty over tensions between the US and Iran earlier this year resulted in an uptick of prices, but AAA fuel analyst Don Redman says the recent drop follows an annual pattern.

Cut 6 (07) “…the whole year.”

A gallon of gas is still about 12 cents higher than this time last year and that gap is closing.  Redman says dropping trend may not last much longer.

Cut 7 (11) “…production even more.”

At $50 per barrel, crude oil prices are at their lowest point in a year.  Redman says an additional factor that could result in an uptick in prices is the transition from winter-grade gas to summer-grade gas.

Cut 8 (07) “…about $2.50 a gallon.”

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We’re up to 12 cases in the LSU centered mumps outbreak that was first made public with five cases reported last week.

State Immunization Director Dr. Frank Welch says all students need to receive both doses of the MMR vaccine to protect against further spread, along with the usual health and safety advice.

Cut 9 (10) “…season”

Mumps feels like a particularly nasty cold, and also involves visible swelling of the salivary glands.

Welch says there’s been a nationwide string of mumps outbreaks on college campuses. He says college dorm rooms, parties, and sporting events are perfect places to spread the virus.

Cut 10 (11) “…does” 

An LSU tennis match over the weekend was canceled when it was discovered a tennis player had been infected.

Finding a ground zero in the outbreak has been difficult so far. Welch says that’s because there’s a significant lag between when you are infected, and when you show symptoms.

Cut 11 (09) “…exposed.”

There is one reported case of a student living on campus who is currently being quarantined in their apartment.

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A science teacher at Northwestern Middle School in Zachary is accused of having a sexual relationship with a 15-year-old student.  34-year-old Ellarea Silva is currently on leave after her arrest on Thursday.  Zachary Police Chief David McDavid says the relationship appeared to be a summer fling.

Cut 12 (10) “…in the media.”

Investigators are combing through the evidence on the student’s cell phone.

Silva was arrested Thursday after nearly a week of suspension without school leaders elaborating as to why.  City councilman Lael Montgomery is rallying supporters calling for the resignation or removal of Principal Debby Brian as a result.  The Baton Rouge chapter of the NAACP is expected to back Montgomery, but McDavid says there was not a cover-up in the investigation.

Cut 13 (07) “…and social media.”

McDavid says they are asking parents to talk to their children to see if Silva’s actions extended beyond this one child.

Cut 14 (12) “…investigation on that.”

Silva’s bond is set at $225,000. Silva faces several charges including indecent behavior with a juvenile, carnal knowledge of a juvenile and oral sexual battery.