Louisiana
Louisiana detected seven new CWD positives since July – Mississippi's Best Community Newspaper
Louisiana detected seven new CWD positives since July
Published 3:15 pm Monday, February 19, 2024
- This map shows the CWD zones for Louisiana and the radius used to place part of Concordia Parish in the CWD management zone. (Courtesy LDWF)
TENSAS PARISH — Louisiana Department of Wildlife and Fisheries detected seven new Chronic Wasting Disease positives in the 2023 to 2024 hunting season. Deer Program Manager Johnathan Bordelon said additional sample results are pending so there could be new positives.
Chronic Wasting Disease is a 100 percent always fatal disease to deer and other members of the cervidae family. CWD is caused by an infectious prion, a misfolded protein, shed by infected deer in bodily fluids. Healthy deer contract CWD by direct contact with infected deer or indirect contact with prions in the environment. Prions are known to persist in the soil.
Louisiana hunters submitted more than 2,300 samples in the 2023 to 2024 hunting season for Chronic Wasting Disease testing. Bordelon said surveillance goals were met in northeast Louisiana. All of the 19 positives found in Louisiana were in Tensas Parish.
“All detections have been along the Mississippi River in Tensas Parish. More results to come,” Bordelon said. “Once all results are available, we will assess the distribution of positives to inform future mitigation. At this time, no change in the distribution of detections is welcome news. Continued surveillance and adherence to mitigation efforts are as important as ever.”
It is important to remember areas of Concordia Parish north and east of US 425 and US84 are in the Chronic Wasting Disease Management Zone while portions to the west are not in the zone. A 25 mile radius from a southern positive detected in Tensas Parish placed the north portion of Concordia Parish in the zone last June.
CWD in Mississippi
Across the Mississippi River from Tensas Parish, Mississippi Department of Wildlife, Fisheries and Parks detected a positive in Claiborne County in January. The positive in Claiborne County is considered suspect until it is confirmed by a national laboratory.
Mississippi State University Deer Lab detected CWD prions in a scrape in Claiborne County during a research project last summer.
MDWFP reported the positive deer was not clinical, or showing symptoms. Deer typically show symptoms in the late stages of the disease, which can take 12 to 18 months after infection.
MDWFP’s dashboard map shows the CWD positive was detected west of Port Gibson approximately three miles from the state boundary line of the Mississippi River and about 10 miles from positives in Tensas Parish.
Hunters submitted 8,269 samples for Chronic Wasting Disease testing in FY2024. MDWFP’s dashboard reports 108 positive detections in FY2024. More samples and positives could come in over the next few weeks from southeast Mississippi.
A CWD Update is expected at the MDWFP Commission meeting this Thursday. The meeting will be at Black Prairie Wildlife Management Area in Crawford.
Louisiana ranks among the top 10 most affordable states to retire, according to a new study from Retirement Living, a national journal of retirement research.
Researchers analyzed each state’s housing costs, living expenses and tax friendliness to compile the ranking. Louisiana, they say, is the eighth most affordable state for retirees.
In Louisiana, the median monthly rent for a one-bedroom apartment is $932, the median home sale price is $255,000, monthly grocery spend per capita is $272, the average price per gallon of regular gas is $4, the average Medicare Advantage monthly premium is $13.35 and the average effective property tax rate is 0.55%.
West Virginia is the most affordable state to retire, followed by Mississippi, Alabama, Oklahoma, Arkansas, Kentucky, Missouri, Louisiana, Indiana and Kansas. Researchers describe the South as “the sweet spot for an affordable retirement.”
The most expensive state to retire, meanwhile, is California, followed by Hawaii, Washington, Oregon, Colorado, New Jersey, Massachusetts, Utah, New York and Minnesota.
Read Retirement Living’s full report here.
BATON ROUGE, La. (WAFB) – With hurricane season approaching, the Louisiana Coastal Protection and Restoration Authority is bringing the community together to prepare before a storm forms.
“We can’t stop disasters from happening. We can’t stop hurricanes from happening. But what we can do is equip our communities with the resources that they need to prepare for these storms ahead of time,” said Jayda Morris, CPRA outreach manager.
The agency hosted an event featuring interactive storm simulations and a full model of the Mississippi River.
“If you do it now, like on a sunny day like today, you’re ready to go for the rest of the season,” Jay Grymes said.
El Niño may reduce storms, but Louisiana still at risk
State Climatologist Jay Grymes said an El Niño pattern may reduce the number of storms in the Atlantic but warned against a false sense of security.
“In those 25 years, Louisiana, some part of the state has been impacted by 29 storms. That’s one a year, regardless of El Niño. So that should tell you something,” Grymes said.
He said the bigger concern is storms that can form in the Gulf with little warning.
“If we’re going to get a storm, it very possibly could be one that bubbles up in the Gulf and doesn’t give us five or seven days to track it coming our way. It gives us 40 hours to get ready for a landfall. So it’s imperative that you go ahead and do it now,” Grymes said.
Preparation goes beyond stocking water
Preparing now includes walking through yards, checking trees, and knowing whether everyone in the family can survive two weeks without power.
PhD students with the LSU College of the Coast and Environment gave the community a virtual reality experience that puts users inside a storm.
“If they wear the goggles or play with the Apple Vision Pro, they can understand how high will the flood be, and they can know how dangerous is the hurricane scenario,” said Yixuan Wang.
The VR simulation uses real historical data to show users what compound flooding looks like in New Orleans and surrounding areas. The goal is to make the science real for people who can’t picture what a flood map means.
“It’s just to let you understand the environment. We will add the audios, the different sound of the wind and the storm. And you can see how tense of the rainfall around you,” Wang said.
Organizers said the event is about making sure that when a storm threatens the area, families already know their plan.
Information from the event is available on CPRA’s website. Hurricane season runs through Nov. 30.
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BATON ROUGE, La. (WAFB) – Louisiana homeowners can get financial help to upgrade their roofs and ensure they can better stand up to strong storms.
According to the Louisiana Department of Insurance, registration for next Louisiana Fortify Homes Program lottery opens at 8 a.m. on Monday, June 1. The registration period will stay open through 5 p.m. on Friday, June 19.
Under the latest round of the program, 3,000 grants of up to $10,000 will go out. After applying, homeowners will get placed into a lottery and will be randomly selected.
There are many specific benefits of having a roof upgraded through the Louisiana Fortify Homes Program. Officials said the roofs have stronger shingles that can protect against hail up to two inches wide, sealed roof decks to help prevent water damage, and stronger edges to keep wind from getting underneath.
Homeowners with a fortified roof can also get a certificate to receive a discount on insurance premiums.
“At the end of the day, this program is about more than just roofs,” said Louisiana Insurance Commissioner Tim Temple. “It is about protecting families, it is about strengthening communities, and it is about putting Louisiana in a stronger position—both physically and economically—to face the challenges ahead.”
Only people living in Ascension Parish, Livingston Parish, Assumption Parish, Tangipahoa Parish, Acadia Parish, Calcasieu Parish, Cameron Parish, Iberia Parish, Jefferson Parish, Jefferson Davis Parish, Lafayette Parish, Lafourche Parish, Orleans Parish, Plaquemines Parish, St. Bernard Parish, St. Charles Parish, St. James Parish, St. John the Baptist Parish, St. Martin Parish, St. Mary Parish, St. Tammany Parish, Terrebonne Parish, and Vermilion Parish are eligible to apply for the latest round of the program.
People living in a newly built home, mobile home, or condominium are not qualified.
For a detailed list of eligibility requirements, click here.
If a person registered for the program previously, he or she must do so again. The person will also need to provide the following information:
- A homestead exemption on the primary residence.
- A policy of insurance that provides wind coverage for the primary residence.
- A flood insurance policy on the primary residence if it is in a special flood hazard area.
For more information about applying, click here.
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Click here to subscribe to our WAFB 9 News daily digest and breaking news alerts delivered straight to your email inbox.
Watch the latest WAFB news and weather now.
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