Louisiana

The Louisiana coastland home to the U.S.’s first climate refugees

The Louisiana coastland home to the U.S.’s first climate refugees

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Pointe aux Chene native Mel Guidry still lives steps away from where he played as a kid, but nowadays, one can only swim there. Like much of this area of coastal Louisiana, where man’s degradation of natural protections has exacerbated the effects of erosion and storms, the yard was swallowed by water. In Isle de Jean Charles, a smaller community to the south, more than 90 percent of the original land mass is gone, prompting the first relocation due to climate change paid for by U.S. tax dollars.

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National Trust’s 11 Most Endangered Historic Places 2016

National Trust’s 11 Most Endangered Historic Places 2016

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The National Trust for Historic Preservation annually complies a list to identify “important examples of the nation’s architectural and cultural heritage that are at risk of destruction or irreparable damage.” The designation can help galvanize grassroots and political support for protecting sites, but isn’t always welcomed by locals. Here are looks at eight from this year’s cohort, many of which are in urban areas.

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Louisiana remembers Alton Sterling

Louisiana remembers Alton Sterling

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Members of the African-American community in Baton Rouge, Louisiana, mourned the death of Alton Sterling with vigils and protests this week. Bearing signs with slogans such as #BlackLivesMatter and #NoJusticeNoPeace, many gathered near the Triple S Food Mart where Sterling was shot by a police officer on July 5th, leading the Department of Justice to open a civil rights investigation.

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Covering Katrina: Sun photographers remember hurricane’s devastation

Covering Katrina: Sun photographers remember hurricane’s devastation

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Ten years ago on Aug. 29, Hurricane Katrina, a Category 3 storm, slammed into the Gulf Coast states causing massive destruction from Florida to Texas, with New Orleans taking the brunt of the blow. The Baltimore Sun photo staff was there from the beginning to document the devastation with photographers in New Orleans, Mississippi and Texas. Ten years later we take a look back at the images they captured and the impact this deadly storm had on the region.

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The Red River is flooding

The Red River is flooding

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A rising Red River was covering streets and, in some instances, entering homes in northwestern Louisiana, rising to more than five feet above its 30-foot flood stage in Shreveport.

Caddo Sheriff’s spokeswoman Cindy Chadwick said at least a dozen Caddo Parish homes had flooded last weekend — some with at least a foot of water — along the Red or its tributaries. There was flooding reported on major Shreveport area thoroughfares and scattered evacuations in some areas.

“There are other areas where, if you don’t have water in your home, it’s knocking at your door,” Chadwick said. — Associated Press reporting

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