COVID-19-related closures and cancellations

Here are recent developments and announced closures related to the coronavirus:

--The LHSAA has suspended the remaining winter and spring high schools sports. Practices are left to the individual schools.

--The South Louisiana Community College system has canceled classes Monday-Wednesday. The office will be closed Monday and reopen Tuesday. See related story.

--Saturday's Irish/Italian Parade in Morgan City has been postponed. No date has been set.

— St Mary public schools and Morgan City’s Central Catholic and Immanuel Christian School, along with K-12 schools across the state, will be closed starting Monday and until at least April 13.

—The same declaration by Gov. John Bel Edwards prohibits public gatherings of more than 250 people, including worship services with congregations of that size.

—Public four-year colleges and universities are instituting online classes in place of lectures, and two-year schools, including SLCC’s Young Memorial Campus, are preparing to follow their lead.

—The Legislature is “open for business,” House Speaker Clay Schexnayder and Senate President Page Cortez said in a press release.
There are no plans to curtail the current session, but the leadership is preparing ways to get constitutionally mandated legislation passed if the Legislature’s work is interrupted.

—The March 17 Community Concert Association performance by Celtic Angels has been postponed, the association said.
Currently, the concert has not been rescheduled, but the staff at CCA of Morgan City will evaluate all available options after the threat has passed.
CCA of Morgan City and Live On Stage will continue to monitor the situation and provide updates as new information becomes available.

— The Southern University Ag Center’s 10th Annual Louisiana Small Farmers Conference has been canceled.
The conference was scheduled for March 18-21 at the Felton G. Clark Activity Center and included a Hemp Summit and a book signing with Natalie Baszile, author of the Louisiana based novel “Queen Sugar.”

—The April 4 presidential preference primary, during which local Republican offices and local and state Democratic offices are to be filled, has been postponed for at least two months, the Secretary of State’s Office said.

— Out of an abundance of caution concerning COVID-19, effective immediately, all parole, pardon, revocation and administra-tive hearings are suspended for the next 30 days, the state said Friday.

—Head Start programs in St. Mary and Vermilion will suspend classes beginning Monday and will resume April 20, after the scheduled Easter break.

—Nursing homes and other health-care facilities are implementing strict limits on visits.

—The Morgan City and St. Mary Parish jails are banning visits. Morgan City police are suspending finger-printing as well.

—The Community Action Agency has suspended senior citizen dinners in Franklin and Morgan City.

—The Community Action Agency has canceled this year’s volunteer VITA help with income tax returns.

—The Songs on the Bayou songwriting contest in Morgan City has been postponed until October.

--The Acadiana Amateur Radio Association's annual hamfest in Rayne, billed as the largest gathering of radio amateurs and equipment vendors on the Gulf Coast, was forced to cancel Saturday's event by the state government's ban on large gatherings.