Central Catholic quarterback Caleb O'Con prepares to make a handoff during the Sept. 16 game against Patterson.
In this week's high school football:
Friday
--Central Catholic plays at Ville Platte
--Morgan City High plays at Kenner Academy
--Patterson plays at Amite
Saturday
--Berwick plays at Cohen
FRANKLIN — A St. Mary Parish Council topic Wednesday exhibited an odd bit of timing, but the subject resonated in light of recent events: How many cell towers are too many, and how many are enough?
In the end, the council voted to allow a second cell tower to be built about half a mile from an existing tower in the Port of West St. Mary area.
Plans by Tillman Infrastructure of Lafayette to build the second tower predated Hurricane Ida, and were recommended for approval by the Planning & Zoning Commission before the storm came ashore at Port Fourchon on Aug. 29.
Construction of the second tower required rezoning, the rezoning required a new ordinance, and the ordinance required a public hearing. That happened Wednesday night before the regular meeting at which the council was to take up the rezoning ordinance.
And into the public hearing stepped Wendell Clark, an attorney representing SBA Structures, the owner of the existing cell tower.
The new tower will duplicate services without offering anything new for consumers, Clark argued.
The current tower serves AT&T and Verizon customers and the FirstNet communications for first responders. The providers use the tower under lease with SBA, Clark said.
He believes AT&T is encouraging the construction of multiple towers in order to lower the cost of leasing space on towers.
And that, Clark argued, runs against parish land use rules, which say “development should be coordinated with the physical and natural environments, placing a premium upon developing in harmony with existing natural features” and “development activity can be strengthened through development in St. Mary Parish that is cost effective, well designed, and sensible.”
“For the parish,” Clark told the council, “it’s a ‘how many towers do you want on the landscape?’ issue.”
Predictably, a spokesman for Tillman, the company that wants to build the second tower, didn’t embrace that view.
“They’re trying to monopolize,” said John Mitchell of Tillman. “He doesn’t know for certain becauce I don’t know what we’ll be offering.
“It’s a power grab,” Tillman said. “It’s a money grab.”
What could have been minor zoning dispute took on some added weight after Ida.
For days after the storm, many St. Mary people lost cellphone service even though the hurricane damage wasn’t severe here.
And the problems went beyond the inability to post on Facebook or call relatives with “I’m OK” messages.
Police communications were also disrupted by the lack of cell service, forcing some officers to dig out older, outdated communications equipment.
During the council discussion, Chairman Dean Adams and Councilman Patrick Hebert of Morgan City argued in favor of allowing the second tower on pro-business grounds.
Councilman Rodney Olander made the case that Ida showed what can happen when a tower goes out of operating. Two towers would offer a better chance of maintaining service, Olander said.
The council approved the ordinance that would allow the second tower’s construction without objection.
Federal disaster aid remains elusive because of political gamesmanship in Washington as Louisiana residents struggle through Hurricane Ida’s lasting impacts and the remaining effects of natural disasters dating to last hurricane season.
After visiting New Orleans and other hard-hit areas of southeast Louisiana following Hurricane Ida, President Joe Biden agreed to request supplemental recovery aid from Congress. The request also included long-sought assistance for southwest Louisiana, which has endured four declared natural disasters since August 2020.
Louisiana’s supplemental funding, however, has been lumped into a $28 billion natural disaster package that is tied to raising the nation’s debt ceiling – a highly political affair.
House Democrats passed a $3.5 trillion government funding bill that would raise the current $28.7 trillion debt limit to an undetermined amount and allow Democrats to use a procedural process known as reconciliation to pass trillions of dollars in social spending, climate change agenda items and election reforms without any Republican votes.
The construction of the spending proposal led to Louisiana congressmen voting against disaster aid for the state.
U.S. Rep. Clay Higgins, R-La., who represents southwest Louisiana, voted against the legislation and predicted the House bill would fail in the U.S. Senate.
“Our hurricane recovery needs should not be held hostage,” Higgins said. “I support a clean bill that includes the disaster relief we’ve been demanding for a year.”
U.S. Rep. Garret Graves, R-La., who is from Ida-affected southeast Louisiana, thanked Biden for authorizing hurricane funding relief and proceeded to vote against the House spending proposal because of what he called a debt ceiling “poison pill.”
“At the last minute, Speaker (Nancy) Pelosi added a poison pill to the bill that allows the Biden Administration to increase the national debt from the current $28,700,000,000,000 ($28.7 trillion) without limit. The current debt is equivalent to $87,000 for every man, woman and child,” Graves said in a statement.
Democratic congressman Troy Carter, who represents New Orleans, applauded the spending bill, saying it contains “crucial funding for Louisiana disaster recovery for the state to rebuild from Hurricane Ida and other recent disasters.”
“Louisianians have been through a lot and this bill recognizes that struggle. It also helps us to begin working on those challenges,” Carter said.
U.S. Senate Repub-lican leader Mitch McConnell, R-Ky., has pledged no Republican support for the $3.5 trillion House measure, which he said plays “Russian roulette” with the U.S. economy.
Moderate and progressive Senate Democrats also are at odds over the bill’s multitrillion price tag, which not only complicates disaster relief and the national debt ceiling debate, but also a scheduled Monday vote on a $1 trillion bipartisan infrastructure bill.
U.S. Sen. Bernie Sanders, I-Vt., said he and the progressive wing of the Senate would not support the infrastructure bill if the $3.5 trillion government funding proposal was lowered.
U.S. Sen. Bill Cassidy, R-La., who helped negotiate the bipartisan infrastructure agreement, echoed that Louisiana’s disaster assistance is being “held hostage,” which he said was “inexcusable.”
“Recovery after [Hurricane Ida] is a two-pronged approach,” he said Thursday on social media. “It starts with disaster aid, but finishes with the bipartisan infrastructure bill to prepare us for the next storm before we’re back in the same situation.”
Louisiana’s other U.S. Senator, Republican John Kennedy, met Wednesday with Gov. John Bel Edwards, a Democrat, and U.S. Sens. Richard Shelby, R-Ala., and Susan Collins, R-Maine, in Washington to discuss the state’s recovery needs.
Shelby is the top Republican on the Senate Appropriations Comm-ittee, and Collins is the lead Republican on the Senate Appropriations Subcommittee on Transportation and Housing and Urban Development.
Legislators from southwest Louisiana are imploring state and federal lawmakers to remember still-devastated rural communities from last hurricane season as they now consider Hurricane Ida recovery aid.
Louisiana’s southwest region was first damaged by Hurricane Laura more than a year ago. The Category 4 hurricane was followed by three separate declared natural disasters, which interrupted power restoration, housing and critical relief efforts for months.
Many areas remain devastated despite numerous intervening appeals for federal supplemental aid, lawmakers said. That changed earlier this month, however, when President Joe Biden authorized supplemental funding in conjunction with Hurricane Ida disaster relief after the storm hit New Orleans and many southeastern parishes, then continued as far north as New York City.
While approved, it’s unclear when the funding will make it to long-suffering rural communities as the federal aid depends on congressional budget negotiations.
“I think the silver lining is that Ida also got the northeast and that probably got everybody’s attention,” state Rep. Tanner Magee, R-Houma, told elected officials from southwestern communities Monday during a joint committee meeting at the state Capitol. “Without the damage there, we might be in the same boat. It seems maybe that helped out both your area and my area that Ida continued to cause problems across the United States.”
State Sen. Beth Mizell, R-Franklinton, and state Rep. Ryan Bourriaque, R-Abbeville, offered sobering assessments of southwestern communities they contend have been left behind.
“I just want to remind the state as a whole that the frustration you feel with no connectivity through the storm (Hurricane Ida), rural Louisiana feels every day,” Mizell said. “We’re in the aftermath of a disaster all the time. I want to drive that point home.”
Bourriaque recounted how Hurricane Laura devastated lower Cameron Parish, saying electricity failed to be restored until Thanksgiving week, or nearly three months after the hurricane’s Aug. 27 landfall.
“Schools have been slow to recover,” Bourriaque said. “No church has been restored in lower Cameron Parish of any denomination.”
Bourriaque said the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) failed to resolve the area’s housing crisis. Requests for temporary housing trailers were submitted in September and October of last year, he said.
“FEMA approved the requests on April 28 of this year,” said Bourriaque. “It’s not a question of eligibility.”
Bourriaque added that FEMA’s substantial damage estimations, which are required for National Flood Insurance Program coverage, occurred three months after Hurricane Laura and showed half of all business and residential structures in lower Cameron Parish were at least 50% damaged.
One third of the damaged structures were 100% destroyed, Bourriaque said.
“Our colleagues in the southeast are going to learn all too well,” he said.
Lake Charles Mayor Nic Hunter began his public testimony with the assertion that communities in southwest Louisiana have been impacted by natural disasters more than any other area in the country over the past year.
After Hurricane Laura, Hurricane Delta slammed into the southwest region – a record-tying fourth named storm to hit Louisiana last year. Delta was followed by a “once-a-generation” winter storm, Hunter said, which was followed by severe flooding in May.
“It’s hard for me to talk about some of these things,” Hunter said before reading a list of current Lake Charlies statistics, which included a 14% decline in public school enrollment, 45% increase in drug overdose deaths, 47% increase in unpaid property taxes and 833% increase in blight properties.
When asked why supplemental aid never arrived, Hunter blamed politics in Washington.
“It’s a pathetic answer,” he said.
Hunter acknowledged that Lake Charles and neighboring communities wouldn’t have been approved for supplemental funding by the Biden administration but for the damage caused by Hurricane Ida. While expressing gratitude, he said “the devil will be in the details.”
“Southwest Louisiana needs help,” Hunter said. “I ask that southwest Louisiana not be forgotten.”
During Monday’s legislative committee meeting, Gov. John Bel Edwards was in Washington with Louisiana’s congressional delegation urging federal lawmakers to expedite hurricane relief funding.
Happy birthday Saturday to Wendy from Ed, Mary and you’re your family and friends … Happy birthday Saturday to William Gray and Sunday to Danny Williams from family, friends and Ira … Happy third birthday Sunday to Carter Mayon, love you, the Mayon, Netterville and Zerangue families … Belated happy birthday Ted Waguespack from Ed, Mary and all your family and friends.
Editor’s note: The charges listed here and the narratives that go with them are provided by the police agencies that made the arrests. Guilt or innocence has not been determined in court.)
Arrest reports from local law enforcement agencies include cases of battery and possession of drugs, including meth and a little-known anticonvulsant.
Morgan City
Chief James F. Blair reporte that the Morgan City Police Department responded to 42 calls for service within the last 24-hour reporting period and made these arrests beginning Wednesday.
—Wynesha Deasia Webb, 18, Wren Street, Morgan City, was arrested at 11:45 a.m. Wednesday on a warrant alleging possession of stolen things under $1,000.
—Aris Michael Granger, 34, Joseph Street, Morgan City, was arrested at 1:52 a.m. Thursday on 16th Judicial District Court warrants alleging failure to appear for an imposition hearing, and on charges of disturbing the peace (intoxicated), resisting an officer by giving false information and possession of drug paraphernalia.
St. Mary
Sheriff Blaise Smith advised that over the last 24-hour reporting period, the Sheriff’s Office responded to 47 complaints and made these arrests:
—Winter Nicole Verrett, 37, Franklin, was arrested at 8:44 a.m. Tuesday on a warrant alleging failure to appear on the charge of simple battery. Verrett was released on a summons to appear Dec. 1.
—Irving Lumpkin Jr., 38, Franklin, was arrested at 11:47 a.m. Tuesday on charges of improper lane usage, driving under suspension and possession of marijuana.
Lumpkin was released on a summons to appear Dec. 1.
—Travante Malik George, 32, Gray, was arrested on at 3:32 p.m. Tuesday on a charge of illegal possession of stolen firearms.
George was released on a $6,000 bond.
—Steve Michael Scully Sr., 55, Morgan City, was arrested at 2:50 p.m. Tuesday on a warrant alleging failure to appear on the charge of possession of methamphetamine. Bail has not been set.
—Constance Nicole Bertrand, 33, Berwick, was arrested at 3:12 p.m. Tuesday on two warrants alleging failure to appear on the charges of possession of methamphetamine and possession of pregabalin, a medication intended to treat epilepsy patients.
Bail has not been set.
—Dakota Enterkin, 18, was arrested at 5:13 p.m. Tuesday on a charge of domestic abuse battery.
Bail was set at $2,500.
—Lavontre Jerome Johnson, 21, was arrested at 9:27 p.m. Tuesday on a charge of possession of stolen things.
Johnson was released on a $5,000 bond.
—Michael Cousson, 56, Berwick, was arrested at 11:56 p.m. Tuesday on charges of speeding and driving under suspension.
Cousson was released on a summons to appear Dec. 1.
—Charles Jefferson Guyote Jr., 31, was arrested at 1:25 a.m. Wednesday on charges of expired or no inspection sticker, no taillights and possession of methamphetamine.
Guyote also was named in an active warrant alleging failure to appear on the charge of criminal neglect of family.
Bond has been set at $13,053.15.
—Brittany Broussard, 31, New Iberia, was arrested at 1:56 p.m. Wednesday on charges of possession of drug paraphernalia. Broussard was released on a summons to appear Dec. 1.
Willie E. Crumb, 43, Sunset, was arrested at 3:15 p.m. Wednesday on charges of expired or no inspection sticker, expired license plate and driving under suspension.
Crumb was released on a summons to appear Dec. 1.
St. Martin
Sheriff Becket Breaux reported these arrests:
—Joshua Roberts, 37, Grandpoint Highway, Breaux Bridge, was arrested Tuesday on a charge of second-degree battery.
—Billy Williams, 18, Isadore Drive, St. Martinville, was arrested on charges of possession of a firearm while committing or attempting a crime, possession with intent to distribute marijuana, possession of drug paraphernalia, obstruction of justice (evidence tampering), possession of Schedule II drugs and violation of controlled dangerous substance laws.
The following are the radio dispatch logs from the Morgan City Police Department. To report unlawful or suspicious activity, call the police department at 985-380-4605.
Wednesday, Sept. 22
5:38 a.m. 2300 block of La. 70; Complaint.
6:52 a.m. Area Martin Luther King Boulevard and Allison Street; Animal complaint.
8:58 a.m. Area Keith Street; Animal complaint.
9:03 a.m. 2400 block of Tiger Drive; Juvenile problems/two arrests.
9:23 a.m. 700 block of Myrtle Street; Complaint.
9:43 a.m. Area U.S. 90; Be on the lookout.
9:54 a.m. 2300 block of La. 70; Complaint.
10:55 a.m. 900 block of Railroad Avenue; Theft.
11:21 a.m. 600 block of Maine Street; Medical.
11:52 a.m. 400 block of Kidd Street; Two arrests.
11:56 a.m. 700 block of Myrtle Street; Arrest.
12:24 p.m. 7300 block of La. 182; 911 hang up.
1:56 p.m. 700 block of Myrtle Street; Arrest.
2:21 p.m. 2300 block of La. 70; Theft.
2:35 p.m. 700 block of Myrtle Street; Arrest.
2:46 p.m. 2400 block of Tiger Drive; Juvenile problems/two arrests.
3:09 p.m. Area U.S. 90 Westbound; Be on the lookout.
3:23 p.m. Area U.S. 90; Complaint.
4:40 p.m. 700 block of Brashear Avenue; Accident.
4:45 p.m. 2400 block of Apple Street; Complaint.
4:55 p.m. Area U.S. 90 Westbound/Brashear Avenue Exit; Stalled vehicle.
4:59 p.m. Area Belanger Street and Federal Avenue; Accident.
5:21 p.m. 3100 block of Roselawn Drive; Juvenile problems.
6:01 p.m. 5000 block of Railroad Avenue; Civil.
6:36 p.m. 1500 block of North Third Street; Complaint.
6:37 p.m. Levee Road to Front Street area; Complaint.
6:38 p.m. 700 block of Everett Street; Theft.
7 p.m. 2400 block of Apple Street; Juvenile problems.
8:05 p.m. 1200 block of David Drive; Alarm.
8:09 p.m. Veterans Boulevard and La. 70 area; Accident.
10:00 p.m. Seventh Street and Ditch Avenue area; Welfare concern.
11:36 p.m. 200 block of Glenwood Street; Loud music.
Thursday, Sept. 23
12:32 a.m. 900 block of Seventh Street; Miscellaneous.
1:23 a.m. 7400 block of La. 182; Drunk/arrest.
1:46 a.m. 600 block of Kentucky Street; Patrol.
4:25 a.m. 700 block of Fourth Street; Patrol.
As Louisiana continues to recover from Hurricane Ida, Ochsner Health is deploying its mobile care unit across the state to deliver COVID-19 vaccines, testing, and urgent care services in locations where community members may also pick up critical items like nonperishable food, water, and other household and cleaning supplies.
Ochsner’s upcoming mobile unit will be at the following locations from 9 a.m. to 4 p.m.:
—Monday, Sept. 27
Montegut Lions Club
164 S Legion Drive,
Montegut, 70377
—Tuesday, Sept. 28
Sacred Heart Catholic Church
15300 W Main St.
Cut Off, 70345
These health care services are available on a walk-up basis at local churches and other community centers where the mobile unit is stationed.
Ochsner has a physician or provider available at the unit to answer questions and provide medical services to community members, as needed.
These events are a part of Ochsner’s broader community response effort following Hurricane Ida, and they align with Ochsner’s goals of building a healthier state by enhancing healthcare access and delivering care to underserved communities with the goal of promoting health equity for all.
At Ochsner Health’s mobile clinic community members can:
—Be treated by an onsite provider for some minor injuries and other triage urgent care needs;
—Ask questions of physicians or nurse practitioners about prescriptions and ongoing treatment;
—Access Ochsner Anywhere Care, a telehealth platform for instant urgent care visits;
—Set up future appointments;
—Get the Moderna or Pfizer COVID-19 vaccines;
—Get a rapid COVID-19 test with same-day results.
It was welcome news when rubber rationing was lifted at the end of World War II, and it may have been welcomed more in south Louisiana than in many other places.
Tires, and the inner tubes that kept them round, were the first things to be rationed after major rubber-producing countries such as Malaya and the Dutch East Indies fell to the Japanese.
That may not have caused as much of a problem here as it did in some other places, because a lot of people were still using (or began to use again) the horse and buggy they’d relied on for years.
But rubber was used in plenty of other things that either disappeared or became strictly rationed ─ gloves, raincoats, hot water bottles, girdles, toys, and, importantly, boots.
That included hip boots worn by hunters and trappers, the smaller ones used by fishermen or by farmers who waded in rice fields, and everyday boots worn by workmen when the rains rained down on south Louisiana.
Many folks here had a tough time deciding between a good pair of boots and a new tire for a car or truck that required gasoline that was also hard to get.
Some boots were still being made, but not nearly enough.
Ladies could still find galoshes, but workmen needed a special certificate to buy their boots, and they were expensive, if they could be found at all.
For more than three years, fishermen and farmers and trappers had to suffer with wet feet caused by leaky ones held together by inner tube patches ─ or by wading without any boots at all.
That’s why the Abbeville Meridional considered it front-page news when L. M. Goldberg, chairman of the Vermilion Parish War Price and Rationing Board announced, at the end of September 1945 that Regulation 6-A, the restriction on rubber boots, had been lifted.
He said the regulation had applied to six types of boots, including “hip boots, Storm King boots (a three-quarter rubber boot), heavy type knee boots, light type rubber boots about knee high, and pacs [sic] and bootees less than 10 inches high.”
“In this section, agricultural workers and professional trappers especially will be benefitted by the removal of the restrictions,” Goldberg said.
“Duck hunters and fishermen also, who have found it difficult to secure certificates since most were reserved for essential workers, will be pleased.”
Those folks and others were indeed pleased by the news, but it took a while for the bootmakers to get waders onto store shelves in south Louisiana, or anyplace else.
Most of the manufacturers had been busy making boots for soldiers or other war material, and it took them some time to get back to making waders good for the marsh, and setting up the distribution lines to get them into the stores.
Besides that, rubber stayed in short supply for months after the war’s end, and car makers grabbed the lion’s share of what was available to meet the nationwide demand for car tires.
Most people in south Louisiana still patched old boots and grumbled over wet feet for months.
For all intents and purposes, Regulation 6-A remained in effect, no matter how pleasing the announcement of its demise.
A collection of Jim Bradshaw’s columns, "Cajuns and Other Characters," is available from Pelican Publishing. You can contact him at jimbradshaw4321@gmail.com or P.O. Box 1121, Washington LA 70589.
Holidays are conducive to festive atmospheres. Whether it’s seasonal celebrations for Christmas or Chanukah or summertime soirees on Fourth of July or Labor Day weekends, there’s no denying festive vibes tend to prevail when holidays turn up on the calendar.
Weddings also are marked by festive atmospheres, and many couples are tempted to make their nuptials even more jovial by saying “I do” during holiday weekends.
Before making that decision, couples may want to consider a host of factors as they try to determine if a holiday weekend wedding is for them.
Availability
Guest availability is a big consideration for couples as they try to decide if holiday weekend weddings are a good fit. Many families have holiday traditions that they might be reluctant to give up. For example, families who build their annual vacations around the Fourth of July may already have booked their trips by the time the wedding date is announced.
Couples who anticipate inviting a sizable number of guests may want to avoid holiday weekend weddings to ensure all of their friends and family members will be in attendance.
Travel
Travel is another potential red flag for holiday weekend weddings. Asking guests to travel during weekends that are notoriously busy in regard to travel may be asking too much or it might make things more convenient for some guests.
A 2019 report from the Transportation Security Administration indicated that nearly 27 million passengers were expected to pass through airport screening checkpoints during that year’s Thanksgiving travel period. Some guests may be reluctant to travel on busy holiday weekends, while others who are already traveling to the wedding destination may see holiday weddings as a great way to see their families and attend a wedding without having to pay for separate flights.
In addition, some guests may be more likely to travel during a holiday weekend knowing they can return home at their leisure since they don’t have to work on Monday. Couples can gauge their guests’ temperatures on holiday weekend travel before making their decision.
Cost
Cost is always a consideration when planning a wedding, and it merits consideration for couples toying with the idea of getting married on or around a holiday as well.
Venues tend to be less expensive on Fridays and Sundays, so couples who tie the knot on holiday weekends when no one has to work on Monday might save a considerable sum of money by tying the knot on Sunday. But venues and vendors may charge couples more if they get married on the Saturday of a holiday weekend.
Competition for venues and vendors also may be greater during holiday weekends as people celebrate the holiday. That means couples may have to spend more to book their desired venues and vendors if they hope to get married during holiday weekends.
Couples must consider a host of factors as they try to determine if holiday weekend weddings are right for them.
Getting married?
The Daily Review publishes engagement and wedding announcements as a free, public service.
Submission for engagement announcements should be received approximately four weeks prior to the wedding. Wedding story submissions should be received no later than 60 days following the wedding.
Emailed photographs should be send as an original size file of a large digital format.
Forms are available from The Daily Review office at 1014 Front St. in Morgan City or by going online to StMaryNow.com.
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Fax: 985-384-4255