Here’s the latest with Hurricane Harvey….it’s nearly a Category Three storm as it’s bearing down on the lower and middle Texas Coasts. The five-day forecast track calls for Harvey to stall once it reaches landfall and then early next week, start to drift towards Louisiana…
cut 7 (10) “…right now”
That’s state Climatologist Barry Keim who says the official forecast track has Harvey as a Tropical Storm near the Texas-Louisiana border Wednesday morning.

Get ready to pay for higher gas prices, because Harvey is shutting down refinieries along the Texas coast….
cut 10 (12) “…15-cents”
Don Redman with Triple-A says the current statewide average is $2.14.

Surveillance video of a Shreveport woman stealing multiple bottles of liquor went viral and it helped authorities catch the alleged booze thief. Shreveport Police spokesperson Angie Willhite says the video shows 37-year-old Sekonie Jones putting the liquor in her purse, pants and even her bra….
cut 5 (09) “…on it”
Willhite says Jones walked out of the store with 11 bottles of alcohol on her person. She surrendered to authorities and charged with misdemeanor theft.

And other note on Harvey, LSU says it’s game next Saturday in Houston against BYU remains as scheduled.

Harvey is closing in on the Texas coast as a category two hurricane and it’s predicted to become a category three before landfall tonight near Corpus Christi. State Climatologist Barry Keim says the National Hurricane Center has Harvey meandering inland in Texas over the weekend but then shifting towards Louisiana…
Cut 6 (11) “…bay.”

Louisiana Department of Education is seeking to train over 500 Louisiana educators so they can serve as mentors to future teachers. Assistant Superintendent of Talent Hannah Diestsch says they are looking for passionate teachers…:
Cut 12 (10) “most useful”

You can find out more online at LouisianaBelieves.com

The $759 million dollar Powerball jackpot was hit in Massachusetts Wednesday, but here in Louisiana a Lake Arthur convenience store employee won $2 million. The manager of the Tiger Mart, April Lemaire, says the employee actually picked her own numbers…:
Cut 8 (11) “happy for her”

A viral Facebook post helped Shreveport Police put an alleged booze thief behind bars. A video with more than 20 million views shows 37-year-old Sekonie Jones stuffing bottles of liquor into her purse, her pants, and even her bra at a local store. Cpl. Angie Willhite says officers responded to the incident at the Thrifty Liquor Store on August 18.
Cut 3 (09) “for that alcohol”

Texas is bracing for the landfall of a major hurricane, but Louisiana is not out of the woods. Jeff Palermo has more…

Cut 3 (29) “I’m Jeff Palermo”

A Shreveport woman has been arrested after a video showed her stuffing bottles of liquor in her purse, pants, and even her bra at a convenience store. Shreveport Police say 37-year-old Sekonie Jones is charged with one count of misdemeanor theft. In a Facebook post, Jones says, “I hustle that’s what I do.”

A report by SmartAsset finds Louisiana is home to the third worst drivers in the country. Vice President of Financial Education AJ Smith says the Bayou State did poorly in most of their metrics.

Cut 4 (08) “of that factor”

The only category Louisiana did well in was the low rate of DUI arrests.

A woman in Jefferson Davis Parish is now a millionaire after winning $2 million in the Powerball. The woman works as an assistant manager at the Tiger Mart in Lake Arthur, and her manager April Lemaire says the winner still hasn’t decided how to spend the cash.

Cut 9 (09) “she actually won”

Lemaire says the winner will likely use the money to take care of her four children.

Forecasters say Harvey is now on the verge of becoming a category 3 Hurricane, and is still expected to make landfall overnight on the Texas coast near Corpus Christi. Stephen Carboni with the National Weather Service in Lake Charles says several models show Harvey will eventually turn east towards the Bayou State…:
Cut 15 (12) “or storm surge”
A mandatory evacuation for Cameron Parish is ordered for all areas south of the Intracoastal Waterway.

If maximum sustained winds reach 111 mph, Harvey will be classified as a Category 3 major hurricane. It strengthened overnight and forecasters expect it to intensify even more. Analysts also said you can expect gas prices to rise due to Harvey.

Louisiana is home to the third worse drivers in the nation, according to a report by SmartAsset. Vice President of Financial Education AJ Smith says they found a lot of Louisianans are looking up speeding tickets and parking tickets on the web, which could mean they’re accumulating tickets at higher rates…:
Cut 5 (08) “parking tickets”
She says Louisiana was also ranked low on vehicle fatalities and insurance rates.

Louisiana Department of Education is seeking to train over 500 Louisiana educators so they can serve as mentors to future teachers. Assistant Superintendent of Talent Hannah Diestsch says the Bayou State is changing the way teachers learn how to teach. She says the new method will be similar to how medical students become doctors.
Cut 10 (11) “teacher”
Mentors have to be nominated by their school systems by September 8th and training will begin this fall.

Harvey has been upgraded to a dangerous Category 2 hurricane and continues to intensify on it’s track toward the Texas coast. Forecasters say it’s expected to become a major hurricane before making landfall. So what will this mean for Louisiana? Stephen Carboni with the National Weather Service in Lake Charles says large rainfall totals are expected in southwest Louisiana..:
Cut 14 (10) “at this point”
The forecast track from the National Hurricane Center calls for Harvey to make landfall either tonight or Saturday morning.

Louisiana is home to the third worse drivers in the nation, according to a report by SmartAsset. Vice President of Financial Education AJ Smith says there was just one area in their study where the state did not rank in the bottom…:
Cut 6 (10) “in the country”

The state Department of Education is seeking to train 500 teachers to become mentors for aspiring educators. Emelie Gunn has more…:
Cut 2 (30) “I’m Emelie Gunn”

The $759 million dollar Powerball jackpot was hit in Massachusetts Wednesday, but here in Louisiana a Lake Arthur convenience store employee won $2 million. The manager of the Tiger Mart, April Lemaire, says the employee actually picked her own numbers…:
Cut 8 (11) “happy for her”

Texas is bracing for the landfall of a major hurricane, but Louisiana is not of the woods. Jeff Palermo has more…:
Cut 3 (29) “I’m Jeff Palermo”

Louisiana is home to the third worst drivers in the nation, according to a report by SmartAsset. Vice President of Financial Education AJ Smith the state scored poorly in vehicle fatalities, insurance rates, and Google searches…:
Cut 4 (08) “of that factor”
Smith says at 86 percent, Louisiana has the 16th lowest rate of insured drivers in the country.

A southwest Louisiana mother of four is now a millionaire after winning $2 million in the Powerball. The woman works as an assistant manager at the Tiger Mart in Lake Arthur. Store manager April Lemaire says if anyone deserves to win, it’s her…:
Cut 7 (09) “giving person”
The Tiger Mart will receive a bonus of 20-thousand dollars for selling the ticket.

The state Department of Education announces a new program has launched that would let experienced teachers statewide get training to become mentors to aspiring educators. Assistant Superintendent of Talent Hannah Diestsch says these expert teachers will receive a one thousand dollar stipend if they are selected by their school district as mentors…:
Cut 11 (11) “resources”
You can find out more online at LouisianaBelieves.com.

What will Category 2 Hurricane Harvey bring to Louisiana? Stephen Carboni
with the National Weather Service in Lake Charles says the storm is expected
to deliver Texas damaging winds and life-threatening flooding. He says
Louisiana is also in for wet weather…:
Cut 13 (11) “storm surge”
In Cameron Parish, a mandatory evacuation has been issued for all areas south
of the Intracoastal Waterway.

Louisiana Department of Education is seeking to train over 500 Louisiana
educators so they can serve as mentors to future teachers. Assistant
Superintendent of Talent Hannah Diestsch says they are looking for passionate
teachers…:
Cut 12 (10) “most useful”
You can find out more online at LouisianaBelieves.com

A southwest Louisiana mother won $2 million in the Powerball…:
Cut 1 (29) “I’m Halen Doughty”

Baton Rouge Police have charged a 20-year-old Ponchatoula man with negligent
homicide for fatally shooting a 19-year-old Hammond girl as they were driving
down Florida Boulevard on Tuesday. Authorities say James Seymore was playing
with a hand gun, when it off, striking Briana Hornsby, who died at a local
hospital.

Hurricane Harvey is expected to reach Category 3 strength by the time the storm makes landfall in Texas. Eric Blake with the National Hurricane Center says the storm isn’t expected to move far inland, as it makes landfall early Saturday morning.

Cut 7 (08) “southeastern Louisiana”

Models show Harvey moving east towards Louisiana after making landfall, and Governor John Bel Edwards has already declared a state of emergency in anticipation of the storm. Extensive rainfall is expected, and the governor says citizens should prepare now.

Cut 11 (13) “government assistance”

Edwards says the biggest concern is in southwest Louisiana, but the entire state could see high rainfall totals.

Louisiana customers now have access to Walmart’s new Express Money Services. Company spokesperson Erin Hulliberger says this new feature will help shoppers save time while making in store money transfers.

Cut 14 (08) “our customers”

She says with Express Lanes in most Walmart stores, all Louisiana customers can enjoy this new feature.

More jobs are coming to Union Parish, as Foster Farms announces a $30 million expansion that will result in 50 new direct jobs and 42 indirect jobs. Farmerville Mayor Stein Baughman says this is huge for the parish.

Cut 4 (12) “Union Parish”

The poultry processing facility will also maintain over 1,000 existing jobs.