Entergy continues to make progress in getting power restored to the more than 900-thousand that were left in the dark by Hurricane Ida.  More than 90-percent of Entergy’s customers have had their power restored post-Ida. John Hawkins, the utility’s Vice President of Distribution Operations, sums up the situation this way.

cut 23  (05) “…is unprecedented.”

The utility reported Tuesday that all but 87-thousand customers are still waiting to get their electricity back on.

Senator Bill Cassidy is taking a staunch approach to those for whatever reason are shunning Covid19 approved vaccines in favor of ivermectin, an antiparasetic drug.

Cut  21     (10)   Fda approved vaccine.

Cassidy says if anything, there are far lower hospitalizations and deaths for those who have been vaccinated, versus the number of deaths for those hospitalized with the coronavirus and had relied on ivermectin.

The State Fire Marshal’s Office is prepared to take action if flooding rains from Tropical Storm Nicholas materialize as expected.  Spokesperson Ashley Rodrique says the staging of dozens of boats for potential water rescues took place Monday in Lafayette. Tthe area of flooding rains is likely to stretch across south Louisiana and she says there are numerous assets ready to respond as heavy rains from Nicholas sweep across the state.

Cut 7 (12) “..home fire stationsl”  

By the way, if you’re hoping to offset the money you’ve shelled out for a generator or chain saw FEMA may be able to offset those expenses.  But, Nate Custer says there are restrictions for reimbursement requests and if denied you can appeal.

Cut 13    (10)   ought to get.

Reimbursement for generators is 800-dollars, and 250 for chainsaws.

The storm named Nicholas. A Category One hurricane when it hit the Texas coast, now downgraded to a tropical depression, but still expected to drop huge amounts of rain across Louisiana for the next couple of days. Calcasieu Parish Sheriff Tony Mancuso says the National Guard is standing for rescues, should they be needed … and other first responders are standing by…:

CUT 04                  (07)        “…that happen”

Calcasieu is asking motorists to stay off the roadways now through Wednesday evening.

Did you have to buy a generator because of Hurricane Ida? How about a chainsaw? FEMA is offering up to $800 reimbursal for either, with some restrictions. Spokesman Nate Custer…:

CUT 12                  (07)        “…of the disaster”

This is for purchases made between August 25^th and September 25^th. For details, go to DisasterAssistance.gov.

Nicholas continues to make its way eastward across Louisiana; expected to give us a healthy dowsing of rain and possible flash floods. National Weather Service forecaster Stacy Denson…:

CUT 09                  (06) “…we’re currently seeing”

Some meteorologists expect we’ll see Nicholas break up and fizzle out over our state within the next 24 to 36 hours.

And, just in time for Nicholas…utility company Entergy reports they have restored power to about 90% of their customers left powerless by Hurricane Ida. It took 15 days to get this far, but Ida was the 5^th strongest storm to ever hit the U.S.A. Entergy says, as of this morning, about 87-thousand customers remain without power. The storm originally killed power for over 900-thousand Entergy accounts. They hope to have ALL power restored by the month’s end.

Nicholas made landfall as a Category One Hurricane along the Texas coast during the overnight hours and it threatens to produce flooding rains in Louisiana. Jeff Palermo has the story…:

CUT 01             (31)      “…Jeff Palermo”

State Police at Troop E report an 11-year-old boy from Trout was killed in a car crash on state Highway 773 in La Salle Parish. Troopers say the car’s 17-year-old driver went off the roadway and hit several trees. Despite the child passenger being belted in, he was pronounced dead at the scene. An investigation is underway.

The state Fire Marshal’s Office stands ready to help should Tropical Storm Nicholas dump flooding rains on Louisiana. Spokesperson Ashley Rodrigue says Marshal Butch Browning’s agency feels well prepared to respond to whatever rescues are needed as Nicholas moves through…:

CUT 08             (06)      “…first responder partners”

Officials in Calcasieu Parish are asking residents to please stay off the roads unless your travel is absolutely necessary.

If you had to buy a generator or a chainsaw after Hurricane Ida, FEMA is offering you some help. Spokesman Nate Custer says the maximum reimbursal is $800, and there ARE some restrictions that apply…:

CUT 14             (11)      “…from your home”

Tropical Storm Nicholas is whipping through southeast Texas, slowly heading towards Louisiana.  Nearly the entire the state is seeing rainfall, with south Louisiana experiencing heavier rainfall and stronger storms. Stacey Denson with the National Weather Service in Lake Charles says the center will be over Louisiana tomorrow. She says expect lots of steady rain, some flash flooding and then… some improvement in a couple days…:

CUT 11  (11)         “…we’re currently seeing”

As Nicholas and the threat of heavy rainfall moves into Louisiana, Southwest parishes prepare for the hit. Calcasieu Parish Sheriff Tony Mancuso says they are prepared in case any residents find themselves in peril….:

CUT 03(12)        “…may need”

Mancuso says they also have the National Guard in place to assist with any rescues if needed.

FEMA is offering Hurricane Ida victims help with the expense of generators or chainsaws. Dave Brannen reports…:

CUT 02  (30)        “…Dave Brannen”

A Baton Rouge shop owners goes viral in a video of her and a shoplifter wrestling for a bag of stolen goods. Abby Bullock owns the Wanderlust by Abby boutique, and says she wasn’t about to let the unidentified thief out with over $800 in merchandise. Video of the kerfuffle has been viewed over 360-thousand times.

Tropical Storm Nicholas is whipping through southeast Texas, slowly heading towards Louisiana. Stacey Denson with the National Weather Service in Lake Charles says a flash flood watch is in effect for the southern half of the state…

Cut 10 (07)   15 inches possible.” 

Denson says it might not be until Thursday until weather conditions improve

Parish offices and schools are closed today in Calcasieu Parish in anticipation of flooding from Nicholas and even though it’s extremely tempting to view damage left by a storm, Calcasieu Parish Sheriff Tony Mancuso highly encourages residents to refrain from sightseeing because vehicle traffic can force water into homes in low-lying areas and that’s when most accidents occur.

Cut 5 (10) “…stranded.”

The State Fire Marshal’s Office is prepared to act if flooding rains from Tropical Storm Nicholas materialize as expected.  Spokesperson Ashley Rodriquez says there are numerous assets ready for the call to service as heavy rains from Nicholas sweep across the state.

Cut 7 (12) “..home fire stations”  

FEMA is providing reimbursements for generators and/or chainsaws for those in Ida affected parishes and there are certain criteria that must be met. If FEMA doesn’t approve your request for reimbursement agency spokesman Nate Custer says there is an appeal process.

Cut 13 (10)    ought to get”

Entergy reports that more than 90-percent of their customers have had their power restored post-Ida. Approximately 87-thousand Entergy customers are still without service.

Tropical Storm Nicholas is whipping through southeast Texas, slowly heading towards Louisiana.  Nearly the entire state is seeing rainfall, with south Louisiana experiencing heavier rainfall and stronger storms. Stacey Denson with the National Weather Service in Lake Charles says the center of the storm will not reach the Bayou State until tomorrow.

Cut 9 (06) “…we’re currently seeing.” 

And that would be light to moderate rainfall with some heavy pockets of rain now and then, with the potential for localized flooding.

While schools and government buildings in Calcasieu Parish are closed today in hopes of keeping motorists off the road, Sheriff Tony Mancuso says first responders however and the National Guard are at work ready to assist if needed.

Cut 4  (07) “…that happen.” 

Mancuso also highly discourages residents from sightseeing after the storm as a courtesy to first responders.

There’s help from FEMA available to those who qualify for reimbursement of generator or chainsaw purchases related to Hurricane Ida.  Agency spokesman Nate Custer says there are guidelines for say the maximum payout of 800-dollars for a generator.

Cut 12 (07) “of the disaster”  

And, in certain conditions, FEMA will provide a reimbursement of up to 250-dollars for chain saws needed to deal with trees downed blocking access to homes due to Ida.

The 504-pound alligator suspected of killing a 71-year-old Slidell man the day after Ida made landfall has been captured. St. Tammany Parish Sheriff’s Office Captain Lance Vitter says Sheriff Randy Smith promised the family of Timothy Satterlee, Sr. that they would do all they to locate his body.

Cut 13 (11) “…captured.”

Tropical Storm Nicholas is moving slowly inland bringing the threat of rain over the next two says to the Bayou State. Nicholas made landfall early this morning along the southeast Texas coastline and has the potential to cause flooding in southwest Louisiana today. Calcasieu Parish Sheriff Tony Mancuso says they are prepared in case any residents find themselves in peril.

Cut 3 (12) “…may need”

The State Fire Marshal’s Office is prepared to take action if flooding rains from Tropical Storm Nicholas materialize as expected.  Spokesperson Ashley Rodrique says the staging of dozens of boats for potential water rescues took place Monday.

Cut 6 (10) “…come about first.” 

Boat teams are prepared to act and move wherever rescue efforts are needed.

Another tropical system is set to dump large amounts of rain on Louisiana over the next couple of days with Governor Edwards advising the public to stay aware of this dangerous situation.  More from Dave Brannen.

Cut 1 (32) “…I’m Dave Brannen”

Governor Edwards will have a press conference at 3:30 today with an update on Tropical Storm Nicholas.

19-year old Kevione Faulk, a student worker on the LSU football staff and daughter of running backs coach Kevin Faulk has died. She died on Monday and a cause of death is not known at this time.

Governor John Bel Edwards says to expect Tropical Storm Nicholas to be downgraded to a depression as it enters southwest Louisiana, but noting that it doesn’t take a named storm to bring dangerous conditions to the state.

Cut 4 (05) “…the primary concern.”

The governor says the rains that Nicholas brings to the state could exacerbate the problem of getting more Ida storm victims out of the dark after weeks without power.

Nicholas made landfall along the Texas coastline this morning and State Climatologist Barry Keim says the system has the potential of bringing storm surge as far east as Rutherford Beach.

Keim says Nicholas will weaken to a Depression but expects the system to leave its calling card in the form of heavy rain in Louisiana.

Cut 8 (10) “…the track.”

Keim says while the eye of the storm is only expected to be in the state for a day, he says we’ll feel the effects for a number of days.

The Louisiana Department of Revenue is taking steps to provide state tax relief following Hurricane Ida. LDR Secretary Kimberly Lewis says the department is granting automatic filing extensions to both individual and business taxpayers in the 25 parishes placed under a disaster declaration by the governor.

Cut 10 (09) “…and severance taxes.” 

The automatic extended due date to file returns is now January 3, 2022.

The 504-pound alligator suspected of killing a 71-year-old Slidell man the day after Ida made landfall has been captured. St. Tammany Parish Sheriff’s Office Captain Lance Vitter says Sheriff Randy Smith promised the family of Timothy Satterlee, Sr. that they would do all they could to locate his body.

Cut 13 (11) “…captured.”

The alligator was located on Monday, two weeks after Satterlee was last seen.

Tropical Storm Nicholas is moving through southeast Texas towards the Louisiana border. Governor Edwards says the forecast calls for Nicholas to bring heavy rainfall and potentially damaging flash flooding to the southern half of the state over the next couple of days. Edwards says Nicholas arrives as work continues to restore power to hard-hit areas of Ida…
cut 6 (12) “…period of times”
According to the Louisiana Public Service Commission, 110-thousand customers had still not had their power restored due to Ida.

Louisiana Revenue Secretary Kimberly Lewis says taxpayers may be eligible for state sales tax refunds to personal property destroyed by Ida…
cut 11 (09) “…our website”
For more information read the instructions on the Natural Disaster Claim for Refund.

The 504-pound alligator that claimed the life of a 71-year old Slidell man has been located, two weeks after he was last seen in knee-deep water outside his home in Avery Estates. Brooke Thorington has more.
Cut 3 (31) I’m Brooke Thorington.”

The LSU football program is mourning the death of Kevione Faulk, the 19-year-old daughter of running backs coach Kevin Faulk. Kevione, who was a student worker on the football staff, died Monday morning. A cause of death was not known.

Tropical Storm Nicholas is moving through southeast Texas and it’s not in a hurry to get out of the Gulf South region. The National Hurricane Center’s official forecast track calls for Nicholas to be downgraded to a depression late tonight and then just hover over southwest Louisiana until at least Thursday. State Climatologist Barry Keim…
cut 7 (06) “….needless to say”
Governor John Bel Edwards says you don’t have to go back too far to know that depression can be as troublesome as a hurricane…
cut 5 (12) “….singificant property damage”
Nicholas actually reached hurricane strength before making landfall during the overnight hours in Matagorda Peninsula, Texas. Because Nicholas’ track has shifted south, the potential impacts for north Louisiana have lessened.

The St. Tammany Parish Sheriff’s Office believes they have found the 504-pound alligator that killed 71-year-old Timothy Satterlee Senior of Slidell. Satterlee encountered the alligator in Hurricane Ida floodwaters while checking on something in his shed. His 68-year-old wife tried to assist her husband, but the gator go to him before she could get help. Captain Lance Vitter with the St. Tammany Sheriff’s office…
cut 18 (08) “…the community”
The alligator has been killed and an autopsy will be conducted to see if Satterlee’s remains are inside the alligator’s stomach.

The Louisiana Department of Revenue is taking steps to provide state tax relief following Hurricane Ida. LDR Secretary Kimberly Lewis says the department is granting automatic filing extensions to both individual and business taxpayers in the 25 parishes placed under a disaster declaration by the governor.
Cut 10 (09) “…and severance taxes.”
The automatic extended due date to file is now January 3, 2022. However, Lewis says it is not an extension to pay any taxes due.