A two-year-old was found dead inside a home in Webster Parish Thursday. Minden Police responded to reports of an unresponsive child and found the little girl buckled in a car seat along with a 10-month-old child also in a car seat. Both had been left without supervision. Minden Police Chief Jared McIver says this case is gut-wrenching to the entire community.

Cut 5 (09) “…that’s even tougher”

Investigators are trying to determine exactly how the little girl died. The 10-month-old child was uninjured.

Whooping Cough cases are on the rise across the country including Louisiana. The Louisiana Department of Health says we may reach record high numbers with 164 cases already reported this year. Whooping Cough is highly contagious and especially dangerous for children under a year old. There were 40 hospitalizations last year and there have been two infant deaths. It’s especially important to protect infants. Vaccinations are available but not until a baby is 2 months old. Children and adults are encouraged to keep current with their pertussis vaccinations.

Polls will be open in about half of Louisiana’s parishes Saturday. Various proposals and candidates will be on their ballots. Joel Watson with the Secretary of State’s office says several areas will hold runoff elections from earlier primaries, while others will vote on sales taxes, millages, bonds, and charter amendments and he recommends an easy way to learn about the items on the ballots.

Cut 8 (09) “…gonna be on there.”

Crawfish prices are at their lowest level of the season, according to the Crawfish-App. Co-founder of the Crawfish App, Laney King, says May is usually when we see the lowest prices…

Cut 12 (10) “…Mother’s Day.”

Two children were found locked in car seats inside a house in Webster Parish with no adult supervision, and one of them has died. Minden Police were called to the house mid-morning Thursday on a report of a two-year-old child being found unresponsive inside the house. The girl could not be resuscitated. Minden Police Chief Jared McIver says investigators are trying to determine exactly how the little girl died.

Cut 3 (12) “…off the airway.”

Advocates gathered outside the State Capitol this week to draw attention to food insecurity. Pat VanBurkleo, the executive director of Feeding Louisiana, says one thing that doesn’t nearly get enough attention is hunger on college campuses.

Cut 10 (07) “…having more food.”

Voters in about half of Louisiana’s parishes will head to the polls Saturday to elect local officials and decide on various ballot proposals. Joel Watson with the Secretary of State’s office says Voters in Lake Charles will decide whether to re-elect Nic Hunter as mayor. He’s being challenged by Democrat Marshall Simien. In East Baton Rouge Parish, voters will decide a special primary for House District 67, tax propositions, and runoff races, including two council seats in the new city of St. George.

Cut 7 (03) “…all over the state.”

Crawfish prices held steady this week after a recent drop, with live crawfish averaging $2.60/lb—season lows. Some spots offer sacks under $100, even as low as $50. Boiled crawfish dropped to $4.89/lb. May offers peak supply and lowest prices, making it the ideal time to buy.

Two children were found locked in car seats inside a house in Webster Parish with no adult supervision, and one of them has died. Minden Police were called to the house mid-morning yesterday on a report of a two-year-old child being found unresponsive inside the house. Police Chief Jared McIver says investigators want to know who was supposed to be home supervising the children.

Cut 4 (10) “…that’s just negligence.”

The second child who’s ten months old was uninjured.

Advocates gathered outside the State Capitol this week to draw attention to food insecurity. Pat VanBurkleo, the executive director of Feeding Louisiana, says they especially wanted to let state lawmakers know that many things affect hunger

Cut 9 (10)  “…their hunger issues.”

Voters in about half of Louisiana’s parishes will head to the polls tomorrow to elect local officials and decide on various ballot proposals. Joel Watson with the Secretary of State’s office says several areas will hold runoff elections from earlier primaries, while others will vote on sales taxes, millages, bonds, and charter amendments.

Cut 6 (12) “…in your area.”

Voters in Lake Charles will decide whether to re-elect Nic Hunter as mayor. He’s being challenged by Democrat Marshall Simien.

Police in Minden are investigating the death of a toddler inside a home. Andrew Greenstein reports.

Cut 1 (33) “…I’m Andrew Greenstein.”

A Jefferson Parish jury took less than an hour to convict Bunnak Landon of first degree murder in the brutal death of six-year-old Bella Fontenelle of Harahan. Landon killed her boyfriend’s child and left her body in a buck on the child’s mother’s front lawn. Landon claimed she was insane at the time of the crime.

The Louisiana Legislature is debating a comprehensive nutrition bill that, among other things, would ban SNAP recipients from using their benefits to buy soft drinks Governor Jeff Landry is not waiting for that bill to reach his desk….

Cut 13 (06) “….food stamp program”

The only real power the executive order has is that it directs the Department of Children and Family Services to request a waiver from the USDA to prohibit food stamp recipients from buying soda and candy.

If you are a crawfish lover than head over the Breaux Bridge Crawfish Fest in St. Martin Parish. Publicity Director Angelique Bernard says mudbugs will be prepared in many different ways and there’s more than just crawfish…

Cut 8 (15) “…under the tent”

The Breaux Bridge Crawfish Fest runs through Sunday.

Governor Jeff Landry signs an executive order that directs the Louisiana Department of Children and Family Services to seek a waiver from the USDA that would ban food stamp recipients from using their benefits to purchase sodas and candy. Landry says if SNAP recipients want to buy these products, they can use their own money…

Cut 14 (11) “…that’s wrong”

Two children were found locked in car seats inside a house in Webster Parish with no adult supervision, and one of them has died. Minden Police were called to the house mid-morning yesterday on a report of a two-year-old child being found unresponsive inside the house. The girl could not be resuscitated. Minden Police Chief Jared McIver says investigators are trying to determine exactly how the little girl died.

Cut 3 (12) “…off the airway.”

Chief McIver says investigators also want to know who was supposed to be home supervising the children.

The Breaux Bridge Crawfish festival is this weekend. There have been reports with other festivals in the state serving imported seafood, but Publicity director of the Breaux Bridge Crawfish Festival, Anquelique Bernard says the mudbugs at their festival are harvested from Louisiana waterways…

Cut 9 (09) “…coming from”

Today there will be a crawfish eating contest today. Contestants will try to eat two and a half pounds of crawfish as fast as they can.

Another hurricane season begins June 1^st and this year the National Hurricane Center will begin issuing official forecasts 72 hours out if they believe a tropical wave or disturbance will intensify quickly and impact land…

Cut 6 (16) “…and other products”

That’s Director Michael Brennan, who says Hurricane Helene quickly intensified into a Category 4 hurricane last year and caused significant damage in Florida.

Louisiana is the latest state to seek a waiver from the USDA to prohibit SNAP recipients from purchasing soda and candy with their benefits…

Cut 3 (30) “…I’m Andrew Greenstein”

The Minden Police Department is investigating the death of a two-year-old child who was locked into a child seat inside a home. It’s unknown how long the toddler was left unattended. Authorities say it’s possible the two-year-old was  choked because of how she was fastened into the car seat.

Another hurricane season begins June 1^st and the National Hurricane Center says it continues to improve its forecasting. Director Michael Brennan says one area of improvement is predicting rapid intensification of a storm…

Cut 5 (10) “…early 2010s”

Brennan says this year, the National Hurricane Center will produce an official forecast track for unnamed storms as early as 72 hours in advance before that system grows into a hurricane and impacts coastal areas.

The biggest crawfish festival in the state starts today. The Breaux Bridge Crawfish Festival runs through Sunday, and Publicity Director Angelique (AHN-zhu-leek) Bernard says you can get crawfish prepared in many ways.

Cut 7 (11) “…it’s delicious.”

Admission is ten dollars today, 15 dollars tomorrow and five dollars on Sunday; or you can buy a weekend pass for 25 dollars.

The Louisiana Legislature is debating a comprehensive nutrition bill that, among other things, would ban SNAP recipients from using their benefits to buy soft drinks. Governor Landry is not waiting for that bill to reach his desk as he’s signed an executive order banning soda and candy purchases from  Louisiana’s food stamps program…

Cut 15 (09) “…water over soda”

Democrats in the Louisiana Legislature oppose the idea of restricting SNAP recipients from using their cash assistance to purchase of soda.

There was enough opposition in the House Natural Resources Committee to kill a bill that would give parish governments the ability to permit carbon sequestration wells in their parish. Locals are concerned about the environmental impacts, but LSU law professor Keith Hall testified the Louisiana Department of Energy and Natural Resources should be the agency that permits these projects…

Cut 11 (12) “…House Bill 4.

Another hurricane season is right around the corner and one of the new things  the Hurricane Center will do this year…is provide forecast tracks earlier for unnamed storms that are expected to intensify rapidly….

Cut 1 (34) “…I’m Sean Richardson”

There’s an enhanced risk for severe weather for all of north Louisiana, most of central Louisiana and a part of southwest Louisiana for this afternoon and into tonight. Forecasters say we could see damaging winds, large hail and tornadoes can not be ruled out.

As the legislature continues to debate a bill that, among other things, would ban SNAP recipients from using their benefits to buy soft drinks, Governor Landry is taking it one step further.

Cut 13 (06)  “…food stamp program.”

Landry says if SNAP recipients want to buy those products, they can do so with their own money and not with taxpayer money.

The House Natural Resources Committee has voted down a bill that would have allowed parishes to vote on whether to permit carbon sequestration wells in their areas. There was passionate testimony on both sides, including from 16-year-old Avery Williams, who expressed concerns about storing carbon dioxide below ground…

Cut 10 (13) “…in our future.”

Industry leaders expressed concern this bill would complicate permitting and hinder a growing industry where carbon dioxide emissions are captured from the air and stored underground.

Looking for something to do this weekend? Why not take in the biggest crawfish festival in the state. Colleen Crain reports.

Cut 2 (33) “…I’m Colleen Crain.”

The second weekend of Jazz Fest in New Orleans ramps up today. Luke Combs is one of the main headliners.

In Sulphur, the state high school softball tournament resumes with semifinal action.

And tomorrow is election day, voters in Lake Charles will decide whether to re-elect Nic Hunter. He’s being challenged by Democrat Marshall Simien.

As debate on a bill that would ban SNAP recipients from using their benefits to buy soft drinks works its way through the legislature, Governor Landry is taking it one step further. Andrew Greenstein reports.

Cut 3 (30) “…I’m Andrew Greenstein.”

This week the state Senate approved a bill that would prohibit public water systems in Louisiana from adding fluoride to the water. Dentists oppose the effort, they say it will result in more cavities and tooth decay. But U-S Health Secretary Robert F Kennedy Junior says there’s a link between fluoride and lower IQs in children.

Legislation that would have allowed parish government to vote on carbon sequestration well permits failed to pass the House Natural Resources Committee. Industry groups opposed the bill. Matt Coday, president of the Oil and Gas Workers Association, says environmental groups like the Sierra Club are using this bill to push their agenda…

Cut 12 (14) “…what powers Louisiana”

The bill failed on a ten to six vote.

The start of the hurricane season is about a month away and National Hurricane Center Director Michael Brennan says this year they will begin issuing official forecast tracks and watches and warnings earlier for tropical systems that have yet to form into a depression…

Cut 4 (08) “…coastal areas”

Brennan says it’s in response to unnamed storms rapidly intensifying into a hurricane in a short period of time.

The National Hurricane Center is enhancing how it communicates weather threats to the public. Sean Richardson reports.

Cut 1 (34) “…I’m Sean Richardson.”

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Looking for something to do this weekend? Why not take in the biggest crawfish festival in the state. Colleen Crain reports.

Cut 2 (33) “…I’m Colleen Crain.”

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As debate on a bill that would ban SNAP recipients from using their benefits to buy soft drinks works its way through the legislature, Governor Landry is taking it one step further. Andrew Greenstein reports.

Cut 3 (30) “…I’m Andrew Greenstein.”

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The National Hurricane Center is enhancing how it communicates weather threats to the public. Director Michael Brennan says the potential tropical cyclone product allows for an early forecast for systems that have not become tropical storms.

Cut 4 (08) “…coastal areas.”

Brennan says the NHC has made a lot of progress in the past five to 10 years in forecasting rapid intensification.

Cut 5 (10) “…early 2010’s.”

Brennan says with the 2025 Atlantic hurricane season approaching, these updates aim to improve preparedness and public safety. He urges Louisiana residents to stay informed and prepared.

Cut 6 (13) “…ready or evacuating.”

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The biggest crawfish festival in the state starts today. The Breaux Bridge Crawfish Festival runs through Sunday, and Publicity Director Angelique (AHN-zhu-leek) Bernard says you can get crawfish prepared in many different ways.

Cut 7 (11) “…it’s delicious.”

Bernard says there’s a lot more to the Crawfish Festival than indulging in those tiny tasty crustaceans.

Cut 8 (15) “…under the tent.”

There are also two crawfish eating contests – today, it’s how fast you can eat two and a half pounds of crawfish; and tomorrow, it’s how much crawfish you can eat in 45 minutes. And at this festival, you are assured that the crawfish is harvested right here in the Pelican State.

Cut 9 (09)  “…it’s coming from.”

Admission is ten dollars today, 15 dollars tomorrow and five dollars on Sunday; or you can buy a weekend pass for 25 dollars.

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A House bill that would have allowed parishes to vote on whether to permit carbon sequestration wells in their areas has failed in a 10-6 committee vote. The House Natural Resources Committee heard passionate testimony from citizens, including from 16-year-old Avery Williams, who expressed concerns about storing carbon dioxide below ground…

Cut 10 (13) “…in our future.”

Rosepine Republican Charles Owen’s bill sought to give local governments a voice in permitting decisions, which are currently handled by the Louisiana Department of Energy and Natural Resources. Supporters emphasized community rights, while opponents, including industry leaders, argued the bill would hinder business growth and complicate permitting. Keith Hall, who’s a law professor at LSU, argues that local governments regulate land use, but Carbon Capture is below the ground.

Cut 11 (12) “…House Bill 4.”

Matt Coday, the president of the Oil and Gas Workers Association, says environmentalist groups like The Sierra Club are using HB 4 to push their agenda.

Cut 12 (14) “…what powers Louisiana.”

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As the legislature continues to debate a bill that, among other things, would ban SNAP recipients from using the money to buy soft drinks, Governor Landry is taking it one step further.

Cut 13 (06)  “…food stamp program.” (Landry signs executive order banning candy and soda from state’s food stamp program)

Landry says if those people want to buy those products, they can do so with their own money and not with taxpayer money.

Cut 14 (11) “…that’s wrong”

Landry says a healthy Louisiana means a stronger Louisiana.

Cut 15 (09) “…water over soda.”

As for the similar bill in the legislature, Patrick McMath’s bill passed the Senate Health and Welfare Committee and will soon be heard on the House floor.

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The second-ranked LSU baseball team will begin a three-game series tomorrow night against the Texas A&M Aggies. The Tigers are third in the SEC in pitching with a team ERA of 3.75 and second in hitting, with a team batting average of .312. Former LSU star and ESPN college baseball analyst Todd Walker says LSU’s offense is more than good enough to win it all…

Cut 16 (20) “…yes.”

It’s been a struggle for the Aggies this season. A&M was ranked number one in the preseason, but slumped offensively at the start of the season and they are 8-13 in the SEC. Coach Jay Johnson says despite the record the Aggies have a formidable record…

Cut 17 (20)  “…good challenge.”

LSU should be a confident team heading into this series as the Tigers are coming off a hard fought series victory over defending national champion Tennessee. Johnson says confidence is such a big part of baseball…

Cut 18 (17)  “…everything.”