LSU is returning the Pete Maravich Assembly Center to normal after using it to produce personal protection equipment.  Kevin Barnhart has the story.

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If your child received free or reduced-price meals at school, you could receive an EBT card to make up for those lost meals due to school closures. Brooke Thorington explains.

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The Senate passes the Omnibus Tort Reform bill on a near party-line 29-8 vote. Matt Doyle has the story.

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The Louisiana Department of Health has made public a list of nursing homes and other long-term care facilities where residents and or staff have tested positive for COVID-19. Governor Edwards says you can find the 12-page document on LDH’s coronavirus webpage and click on the tab that says nursing homes

Cut 4 (11)_ “…deaths.”

Louisiana is reporting 4,084 total resident cases in nursing homes along with 987 resident fatalities and 1,737 staff cases. 

LDH has also issued formal guidance to all adult residential facilities on prevention measures going forward…

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And the Acadiana region is reporting an uptick in COVID cases. Assistant Health Secretary Dr. Alex Billioux says around 100 people at three crawfish farms have tested positive…

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The Pete Maravich Assembly Center at LSU has hosted a PPE production facility for about the last month and now the operation is wrapping up.  Director of Economic Development at LSU Greg Trahan says during that time, they made a big impact on the PPE needs of the state’s healthcare workers.

Cut 7 (06) “…10,000 face shields.”

Over one million square feet of billboard vinyl was used to make gowns and roughly 100 employees assisted in the project.  Trahan says the project showcased LSU’s ability to bring together different departments to tackle a project and do so in a highly productive manner.

Cut 8 (08) “…challenges like that.”

The project also produced over 2,000 gallons of hand sanitizer.  Trahan anticipates the project will have a long-lasting legacy at LSU.

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Louisiana public school students who received free or reduced-priced meals at school can now receive 285-dollars per child to offset the loss of those meals due to COVID-19 school closures. Louisiana has been approved by the USDA to issue Pandemic EBT cards to help feed approximately 600-thousand students. State Department of Education spokesperson Syndi Dunn

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The application is available online at the LDE website in a P-EBT portal or you can call 1-888-524-3578.

Dunn says families will receive up to $285 for each eligible child.

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Dunn says the state expects to begin mailing EBT cards as early as May 26.

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Dunn says benefits on the cards will expire in 365 days and you can now register now online for benefits until June 7^th.

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Legislation that seeks to reduce auto insurance rates by changing the state’s legal system clears the upper chamber on a veto proof 29-8 vote. River Ridge Senator Kirk Talbot says his measure would result in more jury trials and other reforms that aim to limit damage claims against insurance companies and other businesses. Talbot says these reforms will lead to at least a 10-percent savings more motorists…

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Talbot says Louisiana has some of the highest auto insurance rates in the country and these changes put Louisiana in line with other state’s tort policy. He says the legislation will also result in more companies writing auto insurance policies in Louisiana

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Tort reform is a major priority of Republican lawmakers and business lobbying groups. Many freshmen members made supporting tort reform a central message of their campaigns.

Democratic Senator Jay Luneau of Alexandria opposes the bill. He says it has been written with loopholes that allow insurers to skip out on passing along tort related savings.

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In committee, opponents testified that passage of the bill would lead to lower settlements for victims of corporate or personal negligence.

Luneau also targeted the legislation for undermining critical funding sources for local courts and says it fails to address the real reasons behind rising auto insurance rates.

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The legislation is pending House introduction.

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Pelicans executive vice president David Griffin says seven players worked out at the team’s training complex in Metairie yesterday on the first day it’s been open since March 20th. Griffin says they could have had more, but the NBA has put a lot of stringent restrictions in place when it comes to what players can do inside team facilities

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Players can work out with one staff member, but not with the head coach or an assistant. And the staff member who is working with the player must wear gloves if that person is rebounding for the player.

Play was halted with 18 games left in the regular season and the Pels 3.5 games back of the final playoff spot in the Western Conference. Griffin says when the season resumes, the schedule will likely look different

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It’s been reported the NBA is looking at resuming the season by holding games in Las Vegas and Orlando. But Griffin says there’s a chance games could be played in the Smoothie King Center, without fans…

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Oil prices rose to a two month high today at over 30 dollars a barrel on rising optimism about the world economy. Matt Doyle has the story.

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13 people are wounded following a shooting in Bogalusa at a memorial for a recent murder victim.  Kevin Barnhart has the story.

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A 27-year-old woman is dead and nine others are being treated at a hospital from severe weather that hit a rural area in northeast Acadia Parish last night. The one fatality took place on Prudence Highway north of Church Point.  Sheriff KP Gibson says a suspected tornado damaged several homes.

Cut 3 (09)  “with moderate damage.”  

Gibson says the loss of life could have been much worse as many residents were unprepared for the impact of the severe weather.

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Gibson says the community response in the aftermath has been tremendous.

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Damage has also been reported in Evangeline Parish.

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The price of oil has rebounded to over 30 dollars a barrel after sinking to negative numbers just a month ago.

LSU Center for Energy Studies Executive Director David Dismukes explains why…

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Dismukes says today’s notable spike was the result of new positive news related to vaccine development.

Oil started the year over 60 dollars a barrel, and while that is unlikely to return this year Dismukes says the industry can sustain at these prices.

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An industry survey indicated producers were bracing for massive layoffs, but Dismukes says if prices stay over 35 a barrel we should only lose 5,000 of the state’s 35,000 oil workers.

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Today’s prices in the low 30s represent a two month high for oil.

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The search continues for the gunmen involved in a mass shooting that wounded 13 people in Bogalusa on Saturday night. Major Wendell O’ Berry says between 500 to 800 people gathered at an intersection to remember the life of Dominique James, who was recently murdered. O’ Berry says as the crowd grew shots were fired…

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O’ Berry says 12 of the 13 victims were male and some are critically wounded.

Washington Parish Sheriff Randy Seal is calling on those that have information about shooting to come forward and talk to police, saying it is much more effective that marching in protest of the violence.

Cut 10 (10) “…our community back.”

Seal says various factors contribute to the city’s crime problem that produced the mass shooting.

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Governor Edwards is recommending to legislative leaders to use federal money to close a one-billion-dollar budget hole that’s been caused by the coronavirus pandemic. Commissioner of Administration Jay Dardenne says a portion of the rainy day fund can be used as well, leaving just 80-million dollars in cuts

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Dardenne says most of the projected cuts would occur within the Louisiana Department of Health’s budget. He says many other agencies are taking a two-percent cut, including higher education and there’s also a possibility more cuts will be needed later this year if the economy doesn’t rebound

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Dardenne says their proposal to lawmakers is to keep TOPS fully funded and they are not recommending a reduction in public school funding. Lawmakers have until July 1st to pass a budget, and it may take a June special session to get it done.

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A woman is dead and two juveniles were taken to the hospital after a train collided with their stalled out vehicle in Webster Parish.

State Police Trooper Brent Hardy says 51-year-old Rebecca Woodard of Minden and one juvenile were attempting to push the vehicle when the train came into view.

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Woodard was transported to the hospital where she later died. The juvenile in the vehicle sustained moderate injuries.

Hardy says Woodard and the juvenile had not managed to get the vehicle very far when the impact occurred.

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Hardy says if your vehicle ever becomes stranded on the track, immediate exit and get all other passengers away from the vehicle, then call the number on the nearby white and blue sign.

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The crash occurred on LA Highway 163 south of LA Highway 164.