June 2019

Hidden oil spill: New study contradicts owner’s claims

NEW ORLEANS (AP) — A new federally led study of oil seeping from a platform toppled off Louisiana’s coast 14½ years ago found releases lower than other recent estimates, but contradicts the well owner’s assertions about the amount and source of oil.

Oil and gas have been leaking into the Gulf of Mexico since a subsea mudslide caused by Hurricane Ivan on Sept. 15, 2004, knocked over a Taylor Energy Co. production platform, which dragged and broke a bundle of well pipes. Taylor capped nine wells but said it couldn’t cap 16.

Trump order seeks disclosure of hospital prices

WASHINGTON (AP) — President Donald Trump will sign an executive order Monday that calls for upfront disclosure by hospitals of actual prices for common tests and procedures to help keep costs down, administration officials said.

Health and Human Services Secretary Alex Azar told reporters the idea is to give patients practical information that they can use to keep costs down. For example, if a hospital charges $3,500 for a type of echocardiogram and the same test cost $550 in a doctor’s office, the patient might go for the lower-price procedure to save on copays.

Carol Ann Hebert

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LAKE ARTHUR - Funeral services for Carol Ann Hebert, 65, of Lake Arthur will be held at Matthews and Son Funeral Home on Wednesday, June 26, 2019, at 3 p.m., with Reverend Charles McMillin officiating. Visitation will be held at the funeral home today, Tuesday, June 25, 2019, from noon until 10 p.m., with a rosary recited at 6 p.m. by Donna Guidry. Visitation will resume Wednesday at 8 a.m. until the time of her funeral service. Carol will be laid to rest in St. Anthony’s Cemetery. On Dec.

Effie Benoit

Funeral services for Mrs. Effie Benoit, 89, of Alexandria, formerly of Jennings, was held Sunday, June 23, 2019, at 3 p.m. in Miguez Funeral Home Chapel, with Rev. Robert Daniel and Rev. Kirk Jones officiating. Burial followed in Greenwood Cemetery.

New phase in 2020 race tests Dems’ aggression

NEW YORK (AP) — The unwritten rules that have so far prevented the Democratic presidential contest from devolving into all-out conflict are about to be tested.

The early front-runner , former Vice President Joe Biden, has so far fended off the relatively gentle wrath of his rivals. The shortcomings of his most ambitious opponents like Vermont Sen. Bernie Sanders and Massachusetts Sen. Elizabeth Warren have been largely overshadowed. And the fiery concerns of lesser-known candidates, such as former Maryland Rep. John Delaney and entrepreneur Andrew Yang, have been all but ignored.

Feds probe ‘quality’ of repairs on plane in Hawaii crash

HONOLULU (AP) — Federal investigators will review repair and inspection records on the skydiving plane that became inverted before crashing shortly after takeoff on Oahu’s North Shore, killing all 11 people on board in the deadliest civil aviation accident since 2011.

The same plane that crashed Friday sustained substantial damage to its tail section in a 2016 accident while carrying skydivers over Northern California.

Repairs were then made to get the plane back into service, National Transportation Safety Board officials said at a news conference Sunday.

New technology helps search teams find people in wilderness

HONOLULU (AP) — Yesenia D’Alessandro loaded a GPS tracking app on her cellphone and trudged into a remote Hawaii forest, joining more than 100 other volunteers looking for a missing hiker.

She climbed through muddy ravines, crossed streams and faced steep drop-offs in the thick tangle of trees and ferns where her college friend Amanda Eller vanished last month.

“You have to search everywhere,” said D’Alessandro, who flew in from Maryland. “You have to go down to that stream bed, even though you don’t want to. She could be down there.”

Fifty years later, the moon is still great for business

NEW YORK (AP) — Fifty years after humans first visited, businesses are still trying to make a buck off the moon.

Hundreds of millions of people were riveted when Apollo 11 landed on the moon on July 20, 1969. Naturally, marketers jumped at the chance to sell products from cars and televisions, to cereal and a once-obscure powdered drink called Tang.

They are at it again in 2019, as the 50th anniversary of the giant leap for mankind approaches.

Stocks start the week sideways ahead of trade talks

NEW YORK (AP) — U.S. stocks moved sideways in early trading Monday on Wall Street after notching their third straight weekly win.

Investors eased into trading ahead of a highly anticipated meeting between the U.S. and China’s leaders later this week. The world’s two largest economies have been embroiled in a trade war that has taken the market on a volatile roller-coaster ride this year and Wall Street is hoping for a deal.

Technology and financial stocks did most of the heavy lifting and acted as a counterweight for losses in the health care and energy sectors.

Big finish for Jennings

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KAPLAN – The Jennings 12u Softball All-Stars notched a fourth-place finish at the PONY Section Tournament held at multiple sites around the Vermillion Parish area over the weekend. Fourteen teams from throughout South Louisiana competed at the three-day event, with Jennings making it to the third day of finals play.