State Treasurer John Schroder has some harsh words for FEMA and their delay of reimbursing the Calcasieu Parish School Board. Brooke Thorington has more.
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State health officials report a sixth child has died from COVID-19 during the state’s fourth surge. Jeff Palermo has more…
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As south Louisiana works to recover from the damage caused by Hurricane Ida nearly three weeks ago, State Insurance Commissioner Jim Donelon says some companies continue to deny evacuation expenses to policyholders if there was not an official evacuation order in place.
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Donelon reminds the companies and the public that he has the power to override an insurer’s refusal to provide such coverage during a declared emergency such as that ordered by the governor.
Cut 4 (10) “…contracts that exist.”
Donelon won’t standby and do nothing should an insurance carrier say no to 14-days of evacuation expenses related to Ida.
Cut 5 (12) “…this crisis situation.”
Donelon is expecting some companies to take legal action to nullify his order. He notes that some insurers dropped policyholders since Katrina because of various other legal obligations, but Donelon says about 30 smaller regional carriers have stepped in to pick up the slack.
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Houma Police are mourning the loss of one their own. 21-year old Austin Bush was killed in a single-vehicle crash Thursday morning after his car struck a log and ended up in a drainage basin and became fully submerged. Houma Police Chief Dana Coleman fondly recalls Bush’s goal to serve the public when he interviewed for the job.
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Coleman says Bush was just weeks away from completing the cadet academy and was driving to his post at the Houma Civic Center which is a distribution site for Hurricane Ida supplies. Coleman says the recent weeks have been challenging since the hurricane and the death of a young officer is even more difficult.
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Coleman says Bush had a bright future with the department and the young cadet told him since he was a child, he always knew he wanted to be a police officer.
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State Police are investigating the crash.
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LSU is a 20 point favorite tomorrow night when they host Central Michigan. Tigers coach Ed Orgeron is not expecting an easy game. He says the Chippewas have run the ball well in their two games this season
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Nichols has rushed for 214 yards and has two touchdowns on the season. The Tigers enter the game ranked 93rd in total offense. Orgeron hopes to see improvement on that side of the ball in this game…
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Louisiana State Treasurer John Schroder says he’s extremely with FEMA and their lengthy delay in reimbursement for school construction in Calcasieu Parish due to hurricanes Laura and Delta. Schroder says the delay has forced the state bond commission to approve an emergency request for $50-million to help the school system resume construction.
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Schroder says FEMA has only remitted $116 thousand of the Calcasieu Parish School Board’s nearly $300-million in reimbursement requests.
The school board has already used $40 million in insurance proceeds,$20 million in School Board General Fund money, and $100 million in bond proceeds to begin initial repair work. Schroder says of the state bond money if the school board doesn’t receive funds from FEMA …
Cut 12 (06) “…the bond.”
Schroder says a reimbursement request means the money has already been spent and the school system is having to pay for construction and in the meantime, students are trying to learn in classrooms with leaky roofs. He says after a year two hurricanes it’s time for FEMA to send funds.
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Schroder says he’s hopeful the state’s congressional delegation can successfully convince FEMA to accelerate recovery from the 2020 hurricanes.
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A total of 22 students have been arrested over the past two days at Southwood High School in Shreveport after multiple fights broke out on campus. Caddo Parish Sheriff’s office spokesperson, Bia Roldan, says nine deputies responded to the school Thursday when a fight broke out in front of the student center.
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Roldan says on Friday morning another eight students, two groups of teenage girls ages 14 to 17, were arrested for fighting.
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All of the students arrested were charged with disturbing the peace and face possible expulsion. Roldan says one student was charged with battery on an assistant school principal.
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All of the students arrested are under the age of 17, except for 18-year-old Devin Welch was pepper-sprayed. He’s accused of making threatening statements to the school’s resource officer and a school staff member. He’s charged with resisting and interference with the operation of a school.