washingtontimes--2020-10-17--Louisiana ballot has questions on abortion, sports betting

BATON ROUGE , La .
( AP ) - Beyond the presidential and congressional races , Louisiana voters are sifting through questions in the fall election about abortion rights , sports betting and tax policy .
Seven statewide constitutional changes and a parish-by-parish proposition on sports wagering are on the Nov. 3 ballot , with early voting already underway .
Top of that list , voters will decide whether to enshrine anti-abortion language in the Louisiana Constitution , under a proposal overwhelmingly backed by lawmakers in 2019 that is generating fierce social media campaigns , rallies and in-person events for @ @ @ @ @ @ @ , if passed , would rewrite the state governing document to ensure it does not offer protections for abortion rights .
A handful of other conservative states have enacted similar constitutional provisions .
They would come into play if the U.S. Supreme Court ’ s Roe v. Wade decision that legalized abortion nationwide is overturned .
Abortion opponents want to ensure if states can determine the legality of the procedure , a federal court could not rule Louisiana ’ s constitution confers rights that keep lawmakers from limiting or banning abortion .
Legislators @ @ @ @ @ @ @ in Louisiana if Roe v. Wade is thrown out .
“ We are seeing a disturbing trend in other states where the state Supreme Courts are finding a ‘ right to abortion ’ in their state constitutions , thus taking the issue out of the hands of the people and placing it into the judiciary , ” Angie Thomas , association director of Louisiana Right to Life Associate , said in a statement .
Abortion rights supporters say the constitutional change would lay the groundwork for outlawing abortions entirely in Louisiana .
“ @ @ @ @ @ @ @ attack in Louisiana , and this dangerous amendment must be defeated , ” Planned Parenthood Gulf Coast said in a statement promoting a virtual town hall in opposition to the amendment .
At the end of the list , voters are seeing a question asking whether they want to legalize sports betting in their parishes .
The wagering only will be legal in parishes where a majority of those casting ballots agree .
But even in those parishes , people interested in betting will have to wait a year or more to do @ @ @ @ @ @ @ licensing , regulation and tax structures will be required .
Two years ago , residents of 47 of Louisiana ’ s 64 parishes agreed to legalize fantasy sports competitions for online cash prizes , suggesting a similar number of parishes likely could support authorizing sports wagering .
Six other amendments are facing voters : -Amendment 2 would change the way oil and gas wells are assessed for property taxes , allowing a well ’ s production to be included in determining the fair market value .
-Amendment 3 would allow lawmakers to use @ @ @ @ @ @ @ ” fund to offset costs tied to federally declared disasters , like a hurricane .
-Amendment 4 would recalculate Louisiana ’ s cap on annual growth in government to make it harder for lawmakers to increase spending beyond certain limits .
The change would take effect in mid-2022 .
-Amendment 5 would let manufacturers and local government agencies negotiate payment arrangements for new projects .
Those financial deals would replace property taxes the companies could otherwise owe for the industrial expansions .
-Amendment 6 would allow higher-income homeowners to qualify for a special @ @ @ @ @ @ @ -Amendment 7 would lock up Louisiana ’ s unclaimed property dollars , which are owed to residents , in a trust fund that could not be used to pay for state operating expenses .
The nonpartisan Public Affairs Research Council of Louisiana has released its yearly online guide to the proposals .

BATON ROUGE, La. (AP) - Beyond the presidential and congressional races, Louisiana voters are sifting through questions in the fall election about abortion rights, sports betting and tax policy.
Seven statewide constitutional changes and a parish-by-parish proposition on sports wagering are on the Nov. 3 ballot, with early voting already underway.
Top of that list, voters will decide whether to enshrine anti-abortion language in the Louisiana Constitution, under a proposal overwhelmingly backed by lawmakers in 2019 that is generating fierce social media campaigns, rallies and in-person events for and against the amendment.
Amendment 1, if passed, would rewrite the state governing document to ensure it does not offer protections for abortion rights. A handful of other conservative states have enacted similar constitutional provisions. They would come into play if the U.S. Supreme Court’s Roe v. Wade decision that legalized abortion nationwide is overturned.
Abortion opponents want to ensure if states can determine the legality of the procedure, a federal court could not rule Louisiana’s constitution confers rights that keep lawmakers from limiting or banning abortion. Legislators passed a law years ago prohibiting abortion in Louisiana if Roe v. Wade is thrown out.
“We are seeing a disturbing trend in other states where the state Supreme Courts are finding a ‘right to abortion’ in their state constitutions, thus taking the issue out of the hands of the people and placing it into the judiciary,” Angie Thomas, association director of Louisiana Right to Life Associate, said in a statement.
Abortion rights supporters say the constitutional change would lay the groundwork for outlawing abortions entirely in Louisiana.
“Once again, reproductive rights are under attack in Louisiana, and this dangerous amendment must be defeated,” Planned Parenthood Gulf Coast said in a statement promoting a virtual town hall in opposition to the amendment.
At the end of the list, voters are seeing a question asking whether they want to legalize sports betting in their parishes.
The wagering only will be legal in parishes where a majority of those casting ballots agree. But even in those parishes, people interested in betting will have to wait a year or more to do so. Additional legislation to create the licensing, regulation and tax structures will be required.
Two years ago, residents of 47 of Louisiana’s 64 parishes agreed to legalize fantasy sports competitions for online cash prizes, suggesting a similar number of parishes likely could support authorizing sports wagering.
Six other amendments are facing voters:
-Amendment 2 would change the way oil and gas wells are assessed for property taxes, allowing a well’s production to be included in determining the fair market value.
-Amendment 3 would allow lawmakers to use the state’s “rainy day” fund to offset costs tied to federally declared disasters, like a hurricane.
-Amendment 4 would recalculate Louisiana’s cap on annual growth in government to make it harder for lawmakers to increase spending beyond certain limits. The change would take effect in mid-2022.
-Amendment 5 would let manufacturers and local government agencies negotiate payment arrangements for new projects. Those financial deals would replace property taxes the companies could otherwise owe for the industrial expansions.
-Amendment 6 would allow higher-income homeowners to qualify for a special freeze in their property tax assessments.
-Amendment 7 would lock up Louisiana’s unclaimed property dollars, which are owed to residents, in a trust fund that could not be used to pay for state operating expenses.
The nonpartisan Public Affairs Research Council of Louisiana has released its yearly online guide to the proposals.
___
Follow Melinda Deslatte on Twitter at http://twitter.com/melindadeslatte.


washingtontimes--2020-10-17--Alabama woman ministers to families of homicide victims

MONTGOMERY , Ala. ( AP ) - As a soft rain fell outside Kershaw YMCA , dozens gathered to listen as Furlesia Bell talked during an annual prayer vigil and balloon release for homicide victims .
She held a butterfly - plastic and pink and covered in glitter - but the metaphorical representation of the bauble was the important part .
She held the physical representation of change .
Of a metamorphosis that she underwent , at first unwillingly , but then accepted with grace .
It represented the change that all family members of homicide victims would too go @ @ @ @ @ @ @ of navigating .
It ’ s a burden to be on the journey .
Bell describes the butterfly in three parts .
There is the “ ugly stage.
” The stage where the caterpillar slinks along with unknowing purpose .
It knows it has a job to do , but doesn ’ t quite know why .
It moves through life until the second state where it tucks itself away in a safe shell for its transformation before reaching the final state , its re-emergence into a strong being .
It ’ s @ @ @ @ @ @ @ minister - has dedicated herself , over and over again .
The first time not by choice , but now she willingly goes on this journey supporting other siblings , parents , children and spouses who too have lost a loved one to homicide .
Ask those who know Bell how she ’ d best be described and you won ’ t get the same answer twice .
Fireball .
Tenacious .
Driven .
Mentor .
Minister .
Warrior queen .
“ Shero , ” as her friend Cubie Rae Hayes describes her @ @ @ @ @ @ @ of grieving Montgomerians together online in her “ Murder in Montgomery ” Facebook group , giving them a space to cry , to be angry , to laugh , to talk about their cases or to talk about anything but them .
Her work with the Triple J Initiative , the nonprofit she started in honor of her brother , has brought together the children of Montgomery for Summer camps , taught them God ’ s guidance and prepared them for school with supplies .
Her work has cracked cases and her determination @ @ @ @ @ @ @ brother ’ s case , has led to justice for families of other cold cases .
And for that work , Bell is the Montgomery Advertiser ’ s October Community Hero .
Bell ’ s own transformation started six years ago when her brother , Charlie Jay McCord , was gunned down in his barber shop on Mount Meigs Road .
She can recount these moments with striking clarity .
“ The doctor looked at me and he said he got shot , he told me how many times and he told me @ @ @ @ @ @ @ said , “ and he said ‘ I tried to do everything I could to save him but it was the bullet to the head that killed him.
‘ ” Bell was suddenly sent upon a path she couldn ’ t control .
And she slinked upon it like the caterpillar in her metaphor .
She went into autopilot mode and collected her mother who wouldn ’ t leave the hospital without her daughter .
She knew that was her job , to take care of her mother who was now inconsolable .
@ @ @ @ @ @ @ , with the help of others , and she sat blankly at the dining room table .
Then she pounded her fists on the wooden surface out of anger .
And just as quickly as stage one of the butterfly process came , she slipped into stage two - the chrysalis phase .
The usual words of affirmation , of condolences , exchanged in times of grief often fell on deaf ears for those who have lost a loved one to homicide , Bell said .
“ You have a lot of people @ @ @ @ @ @ @ it ’ s gon na be OK , ” she said .
“ We know it ’ s never going to be OK. That does not register for our families .
So we ’ re inside this kind of cocoon stage where we really have to come to terms with how we ’ re gon na cope with what ’ s going on.
” The tough exterior these families put up protect them .
They can retreat to them when life seems overwhelming .
But they also transform while nestled inside these walls @ @ @ @ @ @ @ transformation is to a place of calm , peace if possible .
When Bell re-emerged from under the tragedy of losing her brother , she found her stride fighting for justice for McCord , ministering to children in his honor and mentoring grieving families .
This process of grieving a victim of homicide is never the same from case-to-case and Bell understands that .
At first , Bell used to reach out to the families who ’ d lost loved ones , but not everyone was receptive of that .
Now , she @ @ @ @ @ @ @ to reach out to her .
Though sometimes God puts it on her heart to reach out to a family , she said .
That ’ s how she met Ericka Davis .
Davis and Bell first crossed paths at the steps of the state Capitol .
Davis ’ son , Rickem Samuel , had gone missing in 2016 after last being seen with two co-workers .
He was found dead three months later on South Hopper Street .
The two of them began passing comments back and forth .
Then those turned @ @ @ @ @ @ @ friendship .
They became “ sisters in good trouble , ” as Bell calls them .
Bell was just the right person to be put in Davis ’ path , the mother said .
She ’ d been angry , and suffering a pain that no mother should have to experience .
Bell wrapped her arms around Davis and sheltered her at times .
“ She protects at all cost , ” Davis said of Bell .
“ The families in her Murder in Montgomery group , they ’ re like her children.
@ @ @ @ @ @ @ shell and the comfort of Bell ’ s guidance , began to ask God what her role in this community was .
“ I start praying .
‘ Lord where do I fit in in this ?
Where do I fit in in Murder in Montgomery , ’ ” Davis said .
“ I can relate to these mothers who have lost children .
She ’ s pulling me in to help her fight the battle.
” Bell stays up late and gets up early , often ministering to families either privately or @ @ @ @ @ @ @ in her and divulges tips because they feel safe with her .
“ She ’ s helped solve cases that way , ” Davis said .
“ I really wish she were on the police force .
I feel like if I knew her better back when my son was killed , she would have solved his case .
I really do believe that.
” Sometimes , Bell will make appearances beside families as they hold vigils , balloon releases or rallies for their lost loved one .
And sometimes she ’ s @ @ @ @ @ @ @ offer a hand to hold .
“ It ’ s about compassion , ” Bell said .
“ You have to have compassion for these families .
I refer to them as sisters and brothers .
They ’ re my family and they refer to me as the same , because this is what we are .
We didn ’ t ask to be on this journey , but for whatever reason we ’ re on this journey together.
” Small in stature , Bell approaches each family with care .
She has @ @ @ @ @ @ @ that ’ s critical in ministering to grieving families .
But while she may appear delicate , a fact she ’ s reminded of as she overcomes health setbacks , she remains steadfast and resolute .
District Attorney Daryl Bailey and Montgomery County Commission Dan Harris learned quickly that Bell was not a woman to ignore .
Bailey and Bell met at a time when she was highly frustrated with the investigation into her brother ’ s murder .
“ As time went by , we had conversations about how to try to @ @ @ @ @ @ @ unsolved , ” Bailey said .
“ And because of her , it sparked an interest on my part to look into that and , you know , began to notice that there were literally hundreds of cases in Montgomery that were unsolved.
” In an effort to remedy that , Bell brought the idea for a cold case unit to the table .
The jurisdictional ping pong that occurred between the police department , Montgomery County Sheriff ’ s Office and Bailey ’ s office though slowed progress on the unit .
@ @ @ @ @ @ @ office would oversee the work , funding had to be secured .
Bell wrote to her commissioner , Harris , pleading for funding for the unit , calling him every two weeks to get an update .
On the day of the commission vote , Bell said she felt she ’ d gone as far as she could .
“ I had this spiritual awakening and it was like God was telling me ‘ you ’ re at 100 and you can ’ t go any farther , ’ ” she said .
@ @ @ @ @ @ @ the meeting and I couldn ’ t .
I knew that I couldn ’ t speak because I ’ ve got to be obedient to the Lord.
” So she was , and therefore she didn ’ t speak .
But others did , unbeknownst to them .
Davis , one of those who spoke , thought she was simply signing in to say she was present for the meeting , not to speak .
God works in mysterious ways , Bells said .
Before the meeting , Harris was sure they had @ @ @ @ @ @ @ the unit .
“ Several members of her group were at the meeting and several of them got up and really testified , ” Harris said .
“ And I think , at least one , maybe more , commissioners were touched .
Ultimately the vote passed 4-1.
” Since the inception of the unit , warrants have already been issued in two cold cases to include one against Ibraheem Yazeed , the man accused of killing Aniah Blanchard .

KIRSTEN FISCUS, The Montgomery Advertiser

MONTGOMERY, Ala. (AP) - As a soft rain fell outside Kershaw YMCA, dozens gathered to listen as Furlesia Bell talked during an annual prayer vigil and balloon release for homicide victims.
She held a butterfly - plastic and pink and covered in glitter - but the metaphorical representation of the bauble was the important part.
She held the physical representation of change. Of a metamorphosis that she underwent, at first unwillingly, but then accepted with grace. It represented the change that all family members of homicide victims would too go through, or were in the process of navigating. It’s a burden to be on the journey.
Bell describes the butterfly in three parts.
There is the “ugly stage.” The stage where the caterpillar slinks along with unknowing purpose. It knows it has a job to do, but doesn’t quite know why. It moves through life until the second state where it tucks itself away in a safe shell for its transformation before reaching the final state, its re-emergence into a strong being.
It’s a journey that Bell - an ordained minister - has dedicated herself, over and over again. The first time not by choice, but now she willingly goes on this journey supporting other siblings, parents, children and spouses who too have lost a loved one to homicide.
Ask those who know Bell how she’d best be described and you won’t get the same answer twice.
Fireball. Tenacious. Driven. Mentor. Minister. Warrior queen. “Shero,” as her friend Cubie Rae Hayes describes her.
Her work has brought a community of grieving Montgomerians together online in her “Murder in Montgomery” Facebook group, giving them a space to cry, to be angry, to laugh, to talk about their cases or to talk about anything but them.
Her work with the Triple J Initiative, the nonprofit she started in honor of her brother, has brought together the children of Montgomery for Summer camps, taught them God’s guidance and prepared them for school with supplies.
Her work has cracked cases and her determination and tenacity for justice in her own brother’s case, has led to justice for families of other cold cases. And for that work, Bell is the Montgomery Advertiser’s October Community Hero.
FINDING PURPOSE IN TRAGEDY
Bell’s own transformation started six years ago when her brother, Charlie Jay McCord, was gunned down in his barber shop on Mount Meigs Road.
She can recount these moments with striking clarity.
“The doctor looked at me and he said he got shot, he told me how many times and he told me where he got shot,” Bell said, “and he said ‘I tried to do everything I could to save him but it was the bullet to the head that killed him.‘”
Bell was suddenly sent upon a path she couldn’t control. And she slinked upon it like the caterpillar in her metaphor. She went into autopilot mode and collected her mother who wouldn’t leave the hospital without her daughter. She knew that was her job, to take care of her mother who was now inconsolable.
Bell got to her house and inside, with the help of others, and she sat blankly at the dining room table. Then she pounded her fists on the wooden surface out of anger. And just as quickly as stage one of the butterfly process came, she slipped into stage two - the chrysalis phase.
The usual words of affirmation, of condolences, exchanged in times of grief often fell on deaf ears for those who have lost a loved one to homicide, Bell said.
“You have a lot of people coming up to you and say that it’s gonna be OK,” she said. “We know it’s never going to be OK. That does not register for our families. So we’re inside this kind of cocoon stage where we really have to come to terms with how we’re gonna cope with what’s going on.”
The tough exterior these families put up protect them. They can retreat to them when life seems overwhelming. But they also transform while nestled inside these walls. Bell is there to ensure that transformation is to a place of calm, peace if possible.
When Bell re-emerged from under the tragedy of losing her brother, she found her stride fighting for justice for McCord, ministering to children in his honor and mentoring grieving families.
MINISTERING WITH COMPASSION
This process of grieving a victim of homicide is never the same from case-to-case and Bell understands that.
At first, Bell used to reach out to the families who’d lost loved ones, but not everyone was receptive of that. Now, she makes herself available and waits for families to reach out to her. Though sometimes God puts it on her heart to reach out to a family, she said. That’s how she met Ericka Davis.
Davis and Bell first crossed paths at the steps of the state Capitol. Davis’ son, Rickem Samuel, had gone missing in 2016 after last being seen with two co-workers. He was found dead three months later on South Hopper Street.
The two of them began passing comments back and forth. Then those turned into phone conversations and from those a friendship. They became “sisters in good trouble,” as Bell calls them.
Bell was just the right person to be put in Davis’ path, the mother said. She’d been angry, and suffering a pain that no mother should have to experience. Bell wrapped her arms around Davis and sheltered her at times.
“She protects at all cost,” Davis said of Bell. “The families in her Murder in Montgomery group, they’re like her children.”
Davis, tucked in her own shell and the comfort of Bell’s guidance, began to ask God what her role in this community was.
“I start praying. ‘Lord where do I fit in in this? Where do I fit in in Murder in Montgomery,’ ” Davis said. “I can relate to these mothers who have lost children. She’s pulling me in to help her fight the battle.”
Bell stays up late and gets up early, often ministering to families either privately or on Facebook Live. The community confides in her and divulges tips because they feel safe with her.
“She’s helped solve cases that way,” Davis said. “I really wish she were on the police force. I feel like if I knew her better back when my son was killed, she would have solved his case. I really do believe that.”
Sometimes, Bell will make appearances beside families as they hold vigils, balloon releases or rallies for their lost loved one. And sometimes she’s there just in case, ready to offer a hand to hold.
“It’s about compassion,” Bell said. “You have to have compassion for these families. I refer to them as sisters and brothers. They’re my family and they refer to me as the same, because this is what we are. We didn’t ask to be on this journey, but for whatever reason we’re on this journey together.”
MOVED TO SILENCE
Small in stature, Bell approaches each family with care. She has a soft touch, a compassionate touch that’s critical in ministering to grieving families.
But while she may appear delicate, a fact she’s reminded of as she overcomes health setbacks, she remains steadfast and resolute. District Attorney Daryl Bailey and Montgomery County Commission Dan Harris learned quickly that Bell was not a woman to ignore.
Bailey and Bell met at a time when she was highly frustrated with the investigation into her brother’s murder.
“As time went by, we had conversations about how to try to provide help to the cases that went unsolved,” Bailey said. “And because of her, it sparked an interest on my part to look into that and, you know, began to notice that there were literally hundreds of cases in Montgomery that were unsolved.”
In an effort to remedy that, Bell brought the idea for a cold case unit to the table. The jurisdictional ping pong that occurred between the police department, Montgomery County Sheriff’s Office and Bailey’s office though slowed progress on the unit.
Once it was decided Bailey’s office would oversee the work, funding had to be secured. Bell wrote to her commissioner, Harris, pleading for funding for the unit, calling him every two weeks to get an update.
On the day of the commission vote, Bell said she felt she’d gone as far as she could.
“I had this spiritual awakening and it was like God was telling me ‘you’re at 100 and you can’t go any farther,’ ” she said. “They wanted me to speak at the meeting and I couldn’t. I knew that I couldn’t speak because I’ve got to be obedient to the Lord.”
So she was, and therefore she didn’t speak. But others did, unbeknownst to them. Davis, one of those who spoke, thought she was simply signing in to say she was present for the meeting, not to speak. God works in mysterious ways, Bells said.
Before the meeting, Harris was sure they had secured a 3-2 vote in favor of the unit.
“Several members of her group were at the meeting and several of them got up and really testified,” Harris said. “And I think, at least one, maybe more, commissioners were touched. Ultimately the vote passed 4-1.”
Since the inception of the unit, warrants have already been issued in two cold cases to include one against Ibraheem Yazeed, the man accused of killing Aniah Blanchard.


washingtontimes--2020-10-17--A dangerous mix: Rural living, chronic illness and COVID-19

PRAIRIE , Miss .
( AP ) - COVID-19 hit Prairie native Shirley Judd suddenly and hard .
One day in late August , she felt fine ; the next , she could barely move .
As soon as the symptoms struck , Judd called her aunt to take her to West Point to see a doctor , where she tested positive for COVID-19 .
“ When I got home , I had to go straight to bed .
I couldn ’ t even sit up or do anything .
I had headaches starting off , and I was just @ @ @ @ @ @ @ said .
“ After about four days , or five , that ’ s when my throat got so sore I couldn ’ t swallow .
I couldn ’ t eat anything.
” She visited another doctor in Houston on Labor Day and received shots and antibiotics .
By Wednesday , her condition worsened .
She was losing weight , and her mouth was swollen .
At approximately 8 a.m. , she checked into the North Mississippi Medical Center in Tupelo for treatment .
What made Judd ’ s experience more harrowing was @ @ @ @ @ @ @ chronic illness that affects the central nervous system .
Judd is 53 and has been on disability for the condition since 1987 .
She has had two hip replacements because of MS , and changes treatments every two years .
She receives infusion treatments every six months and thought her initial illness resulted from MS flaring rather than a COVID-19 diagnosis .
The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention have long said people with underlying medical conditions and older adults are at increased risk for severe illness from COVID-19 .
While the National @ @ @ @ @ @ @ evidence suggests MS doesn ’ t increase the risk of dying from the COVID-19 , possible long-term consequences of MS , age and higher levels of disability can increase the risk of being hospitalized for COVID-19 .
Judd ’ s primary concern was maintaining her household while recovering , and she ’ s grateful family members stepped in to help .
Family friend Lee Thomas did most of her cooking and cleaning , and cousins Yolanda Ewing and Chris Ewing helped bring supplies and food to her .
“ Everything and everybody was @ @ @ @ @ @ @ I got straightened out and could get around , ” Judd said .
“ That was a blessing.
” Judd also received financial support from Okolona-based nonprofit Excel Inc. by applying for the COVID-19 Support Fund , which is available to people affected by COVID-19 .
The organization paid her water and light bills while she was recovering .
“ With Excel , I appreciate what they did because at the time , I couldn ’ t do anything , ” Judd said .
“ It was a blessing and a miracle.
” @ @ @ @ @ @ @ a rural community , both factors the CDC claims might require extra precautions against COVID-19 .
As of Oct. 11 , Black Chickasaw residents of Non-Hispanic and unknown ethnicity were 49 % of Chickasaw ’ s 777 cases since March 11 , according to the Mississippi State Department of Health .
The U.S. Census Bureau estimates Black people are approximately 45 % of Chickasaw ’ s population .
Statewide , Black people account for 48 % of COVID-18 cases as of Oct. 4 , despite only representing 38 % of the state ’ @ @ @ @ @ @ @ make up 57 % of the state population , but only represent 44 % of Mississippi ’ s COVID-19 cases .
Long-standing systemic health and social inequities put both people from racial and ethnic minority groups and rural communities at increased risk of getting sick and dying from COVID-19 , according to the CDC .
Discrimination , health care access , occupation , income and education gaps and housing are all factors that cause people of color to be at higher risk .
Judd ’ s mother lives with her , and she @ @ @ @ @ @ @ only son .
She mostly stays home except to go to the doctor , but believes she possibly caught COVID-19 from family transmission .
Her mother , who Judd cares for , caught COVID-19 after she did and also went into the hospital for three days .
Rural communities are also impacted by less access to health care and insurance , are more likely to be smokers , or suffer from high blood pressure and obesity .
For Judd , living in Prairie meant she had to travel over 15 minutes whenever she @ @ @ @ @ @ @ the time Judd reached Tupelo for additional treatment , it was more than two weeks after her diagnosis , and she now tested negative for the virus .
Despite this , Judd wasn ’ t yet in the clear .
Concerned by swelling around Judd ’ s throat , doctors performed an X-ray and found a cyst had developed on her tonsils , requiring emergency surgery .
This was in early September .
“ It hurt , and it was so painful , but they had to do what they had to do @ @ @ @ @ @ @ do it right then , ” Judd said .
After surgery was complete and she was healing , Judd realized how serious her condition had become .
Her doctor told her without surgery , the cyst would have been life-threatening .
“ I knew it was bad , but I didn ’ t know what it was , ” she said .
Since surgery , Judd can eat and swallow much better , and follow-up appointments with her doctor have confirmed her tonsils are healing .
She ’ s also continued with regular @ @ @ @ @ @ @ flu shot .
The first week out of the hospital was rough , but Judd said she started feeling better by the second week and was able to get up again .
“ When I started getting up , washing , that ’ s when I knew I was feeling good .
I just got up and started doing things around the house , and sweeping up , ” Judd said .
“ Day by day , week by week rather , it was getting better and better.
” While she was scared @ @ @ @ @ @ @ is grateful she made it through .
While she didn ’ t take COVID-19 as seriously before , she said her experience required her to lean on her faith .
She prayed often , asking the Lord for strength to face COVID-19 .
“ If it wasn ’ t for the good Lord , I couldn ’ t have made it , ” Judd said .
“ I don ’ t see how I made it with the condition I was in already , but I made it through .
”

PRAIRIE, Miss. (AP) - COVID-19 hit Prairie native Shirley Judd suddenly and hard. One day in late August, she felt fine; the next, she could barely move.
As soon as the symptoms struck, Judd called her aunt to take her to West Point to see a doctor, where she tested positive for COVID-19.
“When I got home, I had to go straight to bed. I couldn’t even sit up or do anything. I had headaches starting off, and I was just shaking, throwing up,” Judd said. “After about four days, or five, that’s when my throat got so sore I couldn’t swallow. I couldn’t eat anything.”
She visited another doctor in Houston on Labor Day and received shots and antibiotics. By Wednesday, her condition worsened. She was losing weight, and her mouth was swollen. At approximately 8 a.m., she checked into the North Mississippi Medical Center in Tupelo for treatment.
What made Judd’s experience more harrowing was that she has multiple sclerosis, a chronic illness that affects the central nervous system. Judd is 53 and has been on disability for the condition since 1987. She has had two hip replacements because of MS, and changes treatments every two years. She receives infusion treatments every six months and thought her initial illness resulted from MS flaring rather than a COVID-19 diagnosis.
The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention have long said people with underlying medical conditions and older adults are at increased risk for severe illness from COVID-19. While the National Multiple Sclerosis Society website states that current evidence suggests MS doesn’t increase the risk of dying from the COVID-19, possible long-term consequences of MS, age and higher levels of disability can increase the risk of being hospitalized for COVID-19.
Judd’s primary concern was maintaining her household while recovering, and she’s grateful family members stepped in to help. Family friend Lee Thomas did most of her cooking and cleaning, and cousins Yolanda Ewing and Chris Ewing helped bring supplies and food to her.
“Everything and everybody was really good about helping me out until I got straightened out and could get around,” Judd said. “That was a blessing.”
Judd also received financial support from Okolona-based nonprofit Excel Inc. by applying for the COVID-19 Support Fund, which is available to people affected by COVID-19. The organization paid her water and light bills while she was recovering.
“With Excel, I appreciate what they did because at the time, I couldn’t do anything,” Judd said. “It was a blessing and a miracle.”
Judd is also Black and lives in a rural community, both factors the CDC claims might require extra precautions against COVID-19. As of Oct. 11, Black Chickasaw residents of Non-Hispanic and unknown ethnicity were 49% of Chickasaw’s 777 cases since March 11, according to the Mississippi State Department of Health. The U.S. Census Bureau estimates Black people are approximately 45% of Chickasaw’s population. Statewide, Black people account for 48% of COVID-18 cases as of Oct. 4, despite only representing 38% of the state’s 3 million residents. White residents make up 57% of the state population, but only represent 44% of Mississippi’s COVID-19 cases.
Long-standing systemic health and social inequities put both people from racial and ethnic minority groups and rural communities at increased risk of getting sick and dying from COVID-19, according to the CDC. Discrimination, health care access, occupation, income and education gaps and housing are all factors that cause people of color to be at higher risk. Judd’s mother lives with her, and she often watches her young grandchild for her only son. She mostly stays home except to go to the doctor, but believes she possibly caught COVID-19 from family transmission. Her mother, who Judd cares for, caught COVID-19 after she did and also went into the hospital for three days.
Rural communities are also impacted by less access to health care and insurance, are more likely to be smokers, or suffer from high blood pressure and obesity.
For Judd, living in Prairie meant she had to travel over 15 minutes whenever she needed to see a doctor. By the time Judd reached Tupelo for additional treatment, it was more than two weeks after her diagnosis, and she now tested negative for the virus.
Despite this, Judd wasn’t yet in the clear. Concerned by swelling around Judd’s throat, doctors performed an X-ray and found a cyst had developed on her tonsils, requiring emergency surgery. This was in early September.
“It hurt, and it was so painful, but they had to do what they had to do … (and) they had to do it right then,” Judd said.
After surgery was complete and she was healing, Judd realized how serious her condition had become. Her doctor told her without surgery, the cyst would have been life-threatening.
“I knew it was bad, but I didn’t know what it was,” she said.
Since surgery, Judd can eat and swallow much better, and follow-up appointments with her doctor have confirmed her tonsils are healing. She’s also continued with regular MS treatments and plans to get a flu shot. The first week out of the hospital was rough, but Judd said she started feeling better by the second week and was able to get up again.
“When I started getting up, washing, that’s when I knew I was feeling good. I just got up and started doing things around the house, and sweeping up,” Judd said. “Day by day, week by week rather, it was getting better and better.”
While she was scared to have COVID-19 with MS, she is grateful she made it through. While she didn’t take COVID-19 as seriously before, she said her experience required her to lean on her faith. She prayed often, asking the Lord for strength to face COVID-19.
“If it wasn’t for the good Lord, I couldn’t have made it,” Judd said. “I don’t see how I made it with the condition I was in already, but I made it through.”


washingtontimes--2020-10-17--‘Not just shop class:’ Gulfport teacher wins $50K award

GULFPORT , Miss .
( AP ) - For nearly 15 years , Robert Caylor has taught Gulfport High students how to repair cars and watched as they started careers as mechanics all over the Coast , but on Oct. 14 , he was rewarded in a different and surprising way .
Caylor got $ 50,000 from the Harbor Freight Tools for Schools Prize for Teaching Excellence .
The prizes honor skilled trades teachers at public schools around the country .
Caylor is one of just 18 winners nationwide , selected from more than 600 applicants this year .
Caylor @ @ @ @ @ @ @ ceremony at school .
Students lined the hall outside his classroom and cheered as he returned from the cafeteria .
He said he was smiling underneath his face mask .
“ Watching the kids grow up , I see them from the time they ’ re really young and have never held a tool , to the time they ’ re professional mechanics , ” he said .
Unlike many classes that last for just part of a school year , Caylor ’ s students study with him for their junior and senior @ @ @ @ @ @ @ they can use for the rest of their lives , whether or not they pursue a career in mechanics or engineering .
Three of Caylor ’ s current students stood in line for pieces of the cake prepared in Caylor ’ s honor , with frosting trim in Gulfport High ’ s blue and orange .
Senior Charles Nobles said he plans to go to college and wants to be able to fix his own cars for the rest of his life .
Junior Eric Mitchell wants to join the Air Force , @ @ @ @ @ @ @ getting from Caylor ’ s class will help him as a pilot or engineer .
And Dhafir Freeman , a junior , wants to become a mechanic .
Caylor ’ s class is showing him what that might look like .
“ I ’ m not really academically secure , so I ’ m just trying to make a way in life , ” he said .
“ We learn something new everyday.
” Why did Caylor become a high school teacher ?
The short answer is Hurricane Katrina .
The storm destroyed @ @ @ @ @ @ @ His son was a student at Gulfport High at the time , and the school had an opening for an automotive technology teacher .
Caylor applied and started working in 2006 .
Over the years , he ’ s built relationships with local companies so he can tailor his teaching to the skills that will make his students competitive for jobs after graduation .
He invites guest speakers to introduce his students to particular skills , like bodywork .
At many high schools , students in automotive technology classes practice on the same @ @ @ @ @ @ @ , students learn in part by repairing parents ’ , teachers ’ and other students ’ cars for free .
The class does about $ 30,000 in free auto repair work every year , Caylor estimated .
In his shop , a beat-up 1970 Mustang is one of the vehicles hanging from the ceiling in the open space .
This is Project Mustang , launched around Christmas last year .
The goal is to replace all the old parts and carefully restore the body .
“ We ’ re going to make it @ @ @ @ @ @ @ Caylor said .
The honor Caylor received was launched in 2017 by Eric Smidt , the founder of tool retailer Harbor Freight Tools .
The aim is to honor teachers of skilled trades , who have long provided diverse opportunities for high school students .
“ We really believe skilled teachers are unsung heroes , ” said Erin Walsh , consulting program director of Harbor Freight Tools for Schools , who Zoomed into Wednesday ’ s ceremony for Caylor .
“ They don ’ t get the recognition they deserve.
” A recent @ @ @ @ @ @ @ last few decades , vocational education programs in American schools have declined , largely due to anxieties about academic performance starting in the 1980s .
Schools increased academic requirements for students and reduced opportunities for skill- and career-focused classes .
Since 1985 , federal funding for vocational training has dropped 35 % .
There ’ s been something of a resurgence in career and technical education in the last several years , but Caylor ’ s colleague Dave Huffman still feels there is a stigma against skilled trades classes .
Huffman and fellow @ @ @ @ @ @ @ Schools teaching award three years ago .
“ People think it ’ s just for kids who aren ’ t going to college , ” Huffman said .
“ It ’ s not just shop class , it ’ s more than that.
” To date , all three of Mississippi ’ s winners of the teaching prize are Gulfport High teachers , Walsh said .
Along with the money , Caylor will receive an all-expenses-paid trip to Los Angeles every summer ( COVID-19-permitting ) for a conference with other winners of the @ @ @ @ @ @ @ said the conference is an opportunity to learn from diverse colleagues .
This year ’ s conference was virtual , but he and Wadsworth came away with at least one idea they could implement at Gulfport : tool bags that virtual students could check out to work on projects at home .
Caylor will receive $ 15,000 from the prize , and the rest will support Gulfport High ’ s skilled trades classes .
He said he hasn ’ t decided exactly what he ’ ll do with his winnings .
But a @ @ @ @ @ @ @ dogs to run around and lots of toys for two new grandchildren are probably in the works .

GULFPORT, Miss. (AP) - For nearly 15 years, Robert Caylor has taught Gulfport High students how to repair cars and watched as they started careers as mechanics all over the Coast, but on Oct. 14, he was rewarded in a different and surprising way.
Caylor got $50,000 from the Harbor Freight Tools for Schools Prize for Teaching Excellence. The prizes honor skilled trades teachers at public schools around the country. Caylor is one of just 18 winners nationwide, selected from more than 600 applicants this year.
Caylor learned he had won in a surprise ceremony at school. Students lined the hall outside his classroom and cheered as he returned from the cafeteria. He said he was smiling underneath his face mask.
“Watching the kids grow up, I see them from the time they’re really young and have never held a tool, to the time they’re professional mechanics,” he said.
Unlike many classes that last for just part of a school year, Caylor’s students study with him for their junior and senior years. They learn technical skills that they can use for the rest of their lives, whether or not they pursue a career in mechanics or engineering.
Three of Caylor’s current students stood in line for pieces of the cake prepared in Caylor’s honor, with frosting trim in Gulfport High’s blue and orange. Senior Charles Nobles said he plans to go to college and wants to be able to fix his own cars for the rest of his life.
Junior Eric Mitchell wants to join the Air Force, and thinks the training he’s getting from Caylor’s class will help him as a pilot or engineer.
And Dhafir Freeman, a junior, wants to become a mechanic. Caylor’s class is showing him what that might look like.
“I’m not really academically secure, so I’m just trying to make a way in life,” he said. “We learn something new everyday.”
TEACHING AND SERVING
Why did Caylor become a high school teacher? The short answer is Hurricane Katrina. The storm destroyed his auto shop and his home. His son was a student at Gulfport High at the time, and the school had an opening for an automotive technology teacher. Caylor applied and started working in 2006.
Over the years, he’s built relationships with local companies so he can tailor his teaching to the skills that will make his students competitive for jobs after graduation. He invites guest speakers to introduce his students to particular skills, like bodywork.
At many high schools, students in automotive technology classes practice on the same car month after month. At Gulfport, students learn in part by repairing parents’, teachers’ and other students’ cars for free.
The class does about $30,000 in free auto repair work every year, Caylor estimated.
In his shop, a beat-up 1970 Mustang is one of the vehicles hanging from the ceiling in the open space. This is Project Mustang, launched around Christmas last year. The goal is to replace all the old parts and carefully restore the body.
“We’re going to make it Cruisin’ The Coast worthy,” Caylor said.
A NATIONAL HONOR
The honor Caylor received was launched in 2017 by Eric Smidt, the founder of tool retailer Harbor Freight Tools. The aim is to honor teachers of skilled trades, who have long provided diverse opportunities for high school students.
“We really believe skilled teachers are unsung heroes,” said Erin Walsh, consulting program director of Harbor Freight Tools for Schools, who Zoomed into Wednesday’s ceremony for Caylor. “They don’t get the recognition they deserve.”
A recent article in EducationNext explains that over the last few decades, vocational education programs in American schools have declined, largely due to anxieties about academic performance starting in the 1980s. Schools increased academic requirements for students and reduced opportunities for skill- and career-focused classes. Since 1985, federal funding for vocational training has dropped 35%.
There’s been something of a resurgence in career and technical education in the last several years, but Caylor’s colleague Dave Huffman still feels there is a stigma against skilled trades classes. Huffman and fellow teacher Patrick Wadsworth won the Tools for Schools teaching award three years ago.
“People think it’s just for kids who aren’t going to college,” Huffman said. “It’s not just shop class, it’s more than that.”
To date, all three of Mississippi’s winners of the teaching prize are Gulfport High teachers, Walsh said.
Along with the money, Caylor will receive an all-expenses-paid trip to Los Angeles every summer (COVID-19-permitting) for a conference with other winners of the award from around the country.
Huffman said the conference is an opportunity to learn from diverse colleagues. This year’s conference was virtual, but he and Wadsworth came away with at least one idea they could implement at Gulfport: tool bags that virtual students could check out to work on projects at home.
Caylor will receive $15,000 from the prize, and the rest will support Gulfport High’s skilled trades classes.
He said he hasn’t decided exactly what he’ll do with his winnings. But a fence around his yard for his three dogs to run around and lots of toys for two new grandchildren are probably in the works.


washingtontimes--2020-10-17--Dredge scarcity could make rebuilding coast slower, costly

NEW ORLEANS ( AP ) - Just as Louisiana begins an ambitious slate of projects to rebuild its crumbling coastline , the essential ingredients - sea sand and river silt - will be harder to come by .
That ’ s not because these materials are rare ; the Gulf of Mexico and Mississippi River are loaded with the stuff .
But the dredges needed to dig up and move sand , silt and sediment are increasingly scarce .
“ What we ’ re seeing right now is a massive demand on a limited dredge fleet , ” said Col. @ @ @ @ @ @ @ Army Corps of Engineers ’ New Orleans District .
“ So as the state looks to do a lot of coastal restoration projects … what I foresee is increasing competition .
With that limited supply and increasing demand , it won ’ t surprise me if prices go up.
” The Corps is the nation ’ s top customer of the nation ’ s relatively small , mostly privately owned dredge fleet .
In the Gulf region , only about 20 of the cutterhead dredges preferred for large-scale projects are available .
But @ @ @ @ @ @ @ Coastal Protection and Restoration Authority projects exceeds the region ’ s dredge capacity for all of this year , next year and every month in 2022 except December , according to a recent Corps assessment .
And this doesn ’ t even factor in the demand generated by private sector projects .
The dearth of dredges is likely to delay or balloon the budgets of several projects the state is counting on to substantially slow the rate of land loss , improve habitat for fish and birds , and protect New Orleans and @ @ @ @ @ @ @ hurricanes and tropical storms .
“ These restoration projects are our first line of defense , ” Murphy said .
It ’ s because the projects are so important that the state plans to pour an immense amount of money , time and effort into them .
At least 10 large coastal restoration projects that rely heavily on dredged material are planned in Louisiana over the next three years .
They include a vast marsh rebuild of the Bayou Sauvage National Wildlife Refuge in New Orleans East , reviving the LaBranche wetlands near @ @ @ @ @ @ @ that protect Port Fourchon in southern Lafourche Parish , the service hub for most of the oil and gas production in the Gulf of Mexico .
One project , which recently received $ 100 million from a fund set aside by BP after the Deepwater Horizon oil disaster , is expected to break the state ’ s record for the largest volume of dredged sediment used on a single project .
More than 16 million cubic yards of sediment - enough to fill the Superdome three times - will be dredged and piled @ @ @ @ @ @ @ Pass near Venice and the mouth of the Mississippi River .
The project would rebuild a low coastal ridge and 1,700 acres of marsh and boost storm protections for Jean Lafitte and Barataria Bay .
Another record-breaking project is the large marsh creation effort the CPRA plans to undertake later this year in Lake Borgne on the east edge of St. Bernard Parish , about 10 miles from New Orleans .
The $ 115 million project , also funded with BP money , will use dredged material to revive almost 3,000 acres of @ @ @ @ @ @ @ a saltwater bay that has grown wider as its marshlands have eroded .
The revived marsh would provide a large buffer against storm surges aimed at St. Bernard and New Orleans East .
“ It ’ s by far our largest wetland-creation project we ’ ve done , ” CPRA Executive Director Bren Haase said .
Greg Grandy , CPRA ’ s deputy director and a former manager of barrier island restoration projects , said the sheer volume of projects and the amount of sediment needed to complete them is unprecedented .
“ @ @ @ @ @ @ @ in dredging , ” he said .
“ It ’ s not just the amount of dredge projects but also the amount of sediment dredged.
” Until recently , the CPRA typically needed dredges on one or two projects per year , and the volume of dredged material averaged around 4 million cubic yards .
This year and next , the agency will need more than 13 times that amount .
The CPRA hasn ’ t yet assessed how the scarcity of dredges will affect its projects , but similar difficulties in the @ @ @ @ @ @ @ overruns .
A slowing pace for restoration projects could mean the protection they offer comes too late , depending on when and where the next batch of hurricanes strike .
Citing Louisiana ’ s history with storms and land loss , a report from Tulane University last month said the high cost and low availability of dredges should be top concern for state leaders .
“ Nothing should be more paramount than incentivizing investment in dredging to reduce costs for coastal erosion , ” the report said .
The boom in projects requiring @ @ @ @ @ @ @ with the U.S. dredge fleet .
Chief among them : skyrocketing costs .
Between 2003 and 2012 , dredging prices increased 117 % while the amount of material dredged in the U.S. rose by less than 10 % , according to the Government Accountability Office .
Protectionist policies , including the Foreign Dredge Act of 1906 and the Jones Act , effectively banned foreign companies from dredging in U.S. waters .
All dredges must be U.S.-built , U.S.-operated and U.S.-crewed .
Restricting foreign dredges may have helped some American companies , but the @ @ @ @ @ @ @ small , closed market dominated by just four firms that now handle 98 % of all private-sector dredge work .
The Corps ’ own fleet of dredges , which once boasted 14 high-capacity units , has been whittled down to just four amid a push for privatization that started in the 1970s .
The current fleet of private dredges is smaller , older and less efficient than what ’ s found on the international market , where competition remains fierce .
European dredging companies have greatly expanded their capacity and are now the @ @ @ @ @ @ @ services .
In contrast , the combined capacity of all U.S. hopper dredges , which can dig and transport material , amounts to less than a third of what one Dutch firm can offer , according to data from the Corps and international dredging organizations .
Costs are much lower outside the U.S. as well .
The 2018 restoration of Whiskey Island , Louisiana ’ s biggest beach rebuild project to date , cost $ 118 million and used 15.8 million cubic yards of dredged sand .
A similar project in the Netherlands @ @ @ @ @ @ @ and managed to move nearly two times as much sand .
Opening up the U.S. to foreign dredges , a policy change opposed by President Donald Trump ’ s administration , won ’ t be happening any time soon .
In the meantime , CPRA officials say they ’ ll make do with whatever dredge work they can squeeze out of the domestic market .
Grandy said there are a few hopeful signs .
Fuel prices are low , and if they continue that way , costs could remain manageable .
A few @ @ @ @ @ @ @ soon-to-come additions to their fleets , potentially freeing up vessels for work in Louisiana .
“ Having some dredgers coming online would really help , ” he said .

TRISTAN BAURICK, The Times-Picayune/The New Orleans Advocate

NEW ORLEANS (AP) - Just as Louisiana begins an ambitious slate of projects to rebuild its crumbling coastline, the essential ingredients - sea sand and river silt - will be harder to come by.
That’s not because these materials are rare; the Gulf of Mexico and Mississippi River are loaded with the stuff. But the dredges needed to dig up and move sand, silt and sediment are increasingly scarce.
“What we’re seeing right now is a massive demand on a limited dredge fleet,” said Col. Stephen Murphy, commander of the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers’ New Orleans District. “So as the state looks to do a lot of coastal restoration projects … what I foresee is increasing competition. With that limited supply and increasing demand, it won’t surprise me if prices go up.”
The Corps is the nation’s top customer of the nation’s relatively small, mostly privately owned dredge fleet. In the Gulf region, only about 20 of the cutterhead dredges preferred for large-scale projects are available. But the potential workload of Corps and state Coastal Protection and Restoration Authority projects exceeds the region’s dredge capacity for all of this year, next year and every month in 2022 except December, according to a recent Corps assessment. And this doesn’t even factor in the demand generated by private sector projects.
The dearth of dredges is likely to delay or balloon the budgets of several projects the state is counting on to substantially slow the rate of land loss, improve habitat for fish and birds, and protect New Orleans and other populated areas from surging waters from hurricanes and tropical storms.
“These restoration projects are our first line of defense,” Murphy said.
It’s because the projects are so important that the state plans to pour an immense amount of money, time and effort into them. At least 10 large coastal restoration projects that rely heavily on dredged material are planned in Louisiana over the next three years. They include a vast marsh rebuild of the Bayou Sauvage National Wildlife Refuge in New Orleans East, reviving the LaBranche wetlands near Kenner and bulking up the emaciated wetlands that protect Port Fourchon in southern Lafourche Parish, the service hub for most of the oil and gas production in the Gulf of Mexico.
One project, which recently received $100 million from a fund set aside by BP after the Deepwater Horizon oil disaster, is expected to break the state’s record for the largest volume of dredged sediment used on a single project. More than 16 million cubic yards of sediment - enough to fill the Superdome three times - will be dredged and piled across a section of coast in Spanish Pass near Venice and the mouth of the Mississippi River. The project would rebuild a low coastal ridge and 1,700 acres of marsh and boost storm protections for Jean Lafitte and Barataria Bay.
Another record-breaking project is the large marsh creation effort the CPRA plans to undertake later this year in Lake Borgne on the east edge of St. Bernard Parish, about 10 miles from New Orleans. The $115 million project, also funded with BP money, will use dredged material to revive almost 3,000 acres of marsh in Borgne, which is actually a saltwater bay that has grown wider as its marshlands have eroded. The revived marsh would provide a large buffer against storm surges aimed at St. Bernard and New Orleans East.
“It’s by far our largest wetland-creation project we’ve done,” CPRA Executive Director Bren Haase said.
Greg Grandy, CPRA’s deputy director and a former manager of barrier island restoration projects, said the sheer volume of projects and the amount of sediment needed to complete them is unprecedented.
“We’ve had a significant uptick in dredging,” he said. “It’s not just the amount of dredge projects but also the amount of sediment dredged.”
CUTTING COSTS
Until recently, the CPRA typically needed dredges on one or two projects per year, and the volume of dredged material averaged around 4 million cubic yards.
This year and next, the agency will need more than 13 times that amount.
The CPRA hasn’t yet assessed how the scarcity of dredges will affect its projects, but similar difficulties in the past have caused lengthy delays and cost overruns.
A slowing pace for restoration projects could mean the protection they offer comes too late, depending on when and where the next batch of hurricanes strike.
Citing Louisiana’s history with storms and land loss, a report from Tulane University last month said the high cost and low availability of dredges should be top concern for state leaders.
“Nothing should be more paramount than incentivizing investment in dredging to reduce costs for coastal erosion,” the report said.
HIGHER COST, LESS COAST
The boom in projects requiring large volumes of sediment underscores longstanding challenges with the U.S. dredge fleet. Chief among them: skyrocketing costs. Between 2003 and 2012, dredging prices increased 117% while the amount of material dredged in the U.S. rose by less than 10%, according to the Government Accountability Office.
Protectionist policies, including the Foreign Dredge Act of 1906 and the Jones Act, effectively banned foreign companies from dredging in U.S. waters. All dredges must be U.S.-built, U.S.-operated and U.S.-crewed.
Restricting foreign dredges may have helped some American companies, but the policies had the effect of creating a small, closed market dominated by just four firms that now handle 98% of all private-sector dredge work.
The Corps’ own fleet of dredges, which once boasted 14 high-capacity units, has been whittled down to just four amid a push for privatization that started in the 1970s.
The current fleet of private dredges is smaller, older and less efficient than what’s found on the international market, where competition remains fierce. European dredging companies have greatly expanded their capacity and are now the world’s leading exporters of dredging services.
A LOCAL EXAMPLE
In contrast, the combined capacity of all U.S. hopper dredges, which can dig and transport material, amounts to less than a third of what one Dutch firm can offer, according to data from the Corps and international dredging organizations.
Costs are much lower outside the U.S. as well. The 2018 restoration of Whiskey Island, Louisiana’s biggest beach rebuild project to date, cost $118 million and used 15.8 million cubic yards of dredged sand. A similar project in the Netherlands was completed for about half the cost and managed to move nearly two times as much sand.
Opening up the U.S. to foreign dredges, a policy change opposed by President Donald Trump’s administration, won’t be happening any time soon. In the meantime, CPRA officials say they’ll make do with whatever dredge work they can squeeze out of the domestic market.
Grandy said there are a few hopeful signs. Fuel prices are low, and if they continue that way, costs could remain manageable. A few U.S. dredging firms have announced new or soon-to-come additions to their fleets, potentially freeing up vessels for work in Louisiana.
“Having some dredgers coming online would really help,” he said.


washingtontimes--2020-10-17--Displaced, distraught, Louisiana evacuees languish in hotels

BATON ROUGE , La .
( AP ) - Languishing in a tiny hotel room , their three young children buzzed around them on two beds pushed together .
A pile of donated toys sat on the floor near a baby stroller that doubles as a cart to fetch groceries .
Cockroaches lurked on the inside of an open cabinet near a mini refrigerator .
“ We ’ re not complaining about it .
It ’ s a place to live , ” said Skyla M. Thomas , 20 .
“ But at the same time , it ’ s @ @ @ @ @ @ @ Quaylon Pitre , thought they had stability 125 miles away on the outskirts of Lake Charles , La.
, where Pitre worked as a casino security guard .
Thomas cared full-time for their children , including an infant who has been diagnosed with Down syndrome .
They rented a three-bedroom house with a yard .
Family members were nearby .
That was before Hurricane Laura screamed across the Louisiana shoreline on Aug. 27 with sustained winds of more than 150 mph , devastating their home and thousands of others .
They now are @ @ @ @ @ @ @ across hundreds of miles who have been without a permanent home for six weeks .
Their numbers are expected to swell after Hurricane Delta rumbled ashore Oct. 9 night with Category 2 strength about 15 miles east of Laura ’ s landfall , raking many of the same areas with a second round of whipping winds and flooding .
It was yet another cruelty in an already challenging 2020 , with dual hurricanes hitting southwestern Louisiana during a pandemic and an economic collapse .
Thousands of displaced and distraught residents now face another @ @ @ @ @ @ @ , sometimes in seedy hotels far from home , hoping that the Federal Emergency Management Agency will come to their rescue with temporary homes , funding , anything .
Thomas and Pitre are living in a two-level hotel with rooms that open to a parking lot strewn with trash and discarded furniture .
A sex-toy shop is next door .
The couple is paying about $ 50 per night , relying in part on food stamps and meals delivered by a good Samaritan , Allen Keller , they said .
Pitre is collecting @ @ @ @ @ @ @ to get back to work in Lake Charles , where hotels are mostly either too expensive for them or have been damaged or destroyed , he said .
They left behind in Lake Charle a car that needed a new constant-velocity joint and wasn ’ t safe to drive long distances , they said .
“ We ’ re not just used to walking .
We were mobile , ” Pitre said .
“ I ’ m not just the type to sit on my butt and collect money.
” Lake Charles Mayor @ @ @ @ @ @ @ there were about 6,600 documented evacuees from Lake Charles outside the city after Laura .
Overall , about 7,968 people who evacuated for Laura are occupying 3,457 hotel rooms in Louisiana and Texas , FEMA said in a statement in response to questions from The Washington Post .
Some are from rural , coastal Cameron Parish , where homes were swept away in a cauldron of storm surge , howling winds and driving rain .
Hunter has pleaded with FEMA for a “ rapid and robust housing plan , ” he said , @ @ @ @ @ @ @ next couple of weeks , the first temporary housing units - trailers , most likely - will arrive in Lake Charles and the surrounding area .
Those with yards will be able to put their temporary housing there .
Those in apartments probably will have to live on the outskirts of the city in trailers on recreational vehicle lots .
“ It can ’ t happen a moment too soon , ” Hunter said , noting that many of the evacuees have low or moderate incomes .
“ We need to get people @ @ @ @ @ @ @ rooms and get them back home.
” FEMA Administrator Pete Gaynor told the Weather Channel in an interview that the agency has had about 1,500 employees on the ground in southwestern Louisiana to respond to Laura and that they are working on damage caused by both storms .
“ I think you ’ ll see a head start , and hopefully you ’ ll see progress pretty quickly , ” he said .
Though the agency keeps a stock of housing units on standby , officials are working to purchase additional units and @ @ @ @ @ @ @ FEMA told The Post .
It also temporarily put on hold work on housing for Laura evacuees when it became clear that Delta ’ s arrival was imminent .
“ Units are currently being identified and moved to Louisiana from FEMA ’ s existing inventory , ” the agency said .
“ Additional units are being purchased off the lot from local dealers , and FEMA continues to receive units manufactured under existing FEMA contracts at its Louisiana staging area.
” Each evacuee ’ s story is different , but all involve a @ @ @ @ @ @ @ Chenier , a small coastal community nearly wiped out by Hurricane Laura , Lori and Vince Theriot evacuated before the storm , renting hotel rooms in Baton Rouge and thinking they would be back home in a few days .
But their house , built in 1984 more than 13 feet above the ground , was swamped with about three feet of water after Laura hit , Lori Theriot said .
The home appears to have mostly survived the wind , she said , but repairing it will take months .
Electricity is @ @ @ @ @ @ @ at the earliest .
Since leaving Grand Chenier , the Theriot family shuttled for a time between several hotels , unable to remain where they were because they did not extend their stay long enough ; their lodging already had been promised to someone else .
Lori Theriot found space in a friend ’ s Lake Charles apartment that survived both storms intact , she said .
Her husband , who works on an offshore oil platform , has returned to sea .
He hopes to retire next year , and they are @ @ @ @ @ @ @ miles inland near Sweet Lake , La .
They want to turn the house in Grand Chenier into a camp .
“ You hate to build and put a lot of money into something , ” Theriot said .
“ But where do you go ?
What ’ s far enough ?
” A few miles away , Cindy and Eugene Jones evacuated their home in the town of Creole , a few miles from the Gulf of Mexico , about two days ahead of Laura ’ s landfall to a hotel 40 @ @ @ @ @ @ @ the storm had intensified to a Category 4 monster , they scrambled back , gathered keepsakes and evacuated farther to Baton Rouge .
Aside from a crumpled roof left behind , the entire home , built 12 feet above the ground , is gone .
The family has relocated again to a temporary home in Nederland , Tex.
, something for which they express gratitude .
But the Jones family is still fighting to get insurance money , Cindy Jones said .
A FEMA representative told them they can not seek any additional @ @ @ @ @ @ @ help paying for the hotel rooms they used , she said .
They , too , are planning to move farther inland .
“ We were much luckier than a lot of folks , ” she said .
“ But we haven ’ t received a cent from anyone as of today.
” In Lafayette , 75 miles east of Lake Charles , hotels swelled with evacuees after Hurricane Delta .
Some had been without homes since the first storm .
Martha Smith has cared for her mother and aunt , both 91 @ @ @ @ @ @ @ homes uninhabitable , Smith said .
Her aunt Dolores has dementia , and when she wakes up in a hotel confused about her surroundings , Smith reminds her of what has happened .
At the same time Smith is negotiating moving the family between hotel rooms , she has organized recovery of their homes while remote .
With the sixth anniversary of her husband ’ s death approaching , the burden gnaws at her .
“ It ’ s overwhelming because life keeps going on , ” Smith said .
Back in Baton @ @ @ @ @ @ @ extended family are trying figure out what comes next .
Her sister and her sister ’ s children and partner joined them in Baton Rouge at the same hotel after seeking refuge in Texas .
They had little more than the clothes they were wearing when they left the hurricane zone .
Skyla Thomas said FEMA approved an initial $ 1,000 payment to help them cover the hotel rooms .
But the family was denied when they applied for more housing money , even though she had all of her hotel receipts , @ @ @ @ @ @ @ , Alyissa Thomas , 19 , and Alyissa ’ s partner , Xavier P. Buckner , 27 , were in similar straits .
The lease to Alyissa Thomas ’ s apartment in Lake Charles was terminated after a tree landed on the building and part of the roof was ripped off by Laura ’ s wind , she said .
She graduated from high school this year and was hoping to go to college or veterinary school .
Instead , she is hoping to get a FEMA trailer so she can start over @ @ @ @ @ @ @ .
“ It hurts so much because I worked so hard to get where I was with me and my kids , ” she said , her voice cracking .
Downstairs , Skyla Thomas ’ s voice caught as she described her children ’ s baby books and other keepsakes being devoured in the hurricane .
She said she called FEMA recently about getting a trailer and was told they were under inspection .
No additional information was available .
“ It ’ s a standstill , ” she said .
“ You @ @ @ @ @ @ @ waiting for FEMA.
” Meryl Kornfield in Lafayette , La.
, contributed to this report .

BATON ROUGE, La. (AP) - Languishing in a tiny hotel room, their three young children buzzed around them on two beds pushed together. A pile of donated toys sat on the floor near a baby stroller that doubles as a cart to fetch groceries. Cockroaches lurked on the inside of an open cabinet near a mini refrigerator.
“We’re not complaining about it. It’s a place to live,” said Skyla M. Thomas, 20. “But at the same time, it’s disgusting.”
She and her partner, Quaylon Pitre, thought they had stability 125 miles away on the outskirts of Lake Charles, La., where Pitre worked as a casino security guard. Thomas cared full-time for their children, including an infant who has been diagnosed with Down syndrome. They rented a three-bedroom house with a yard. Family members were nearby.
That was before Hurricane Laura screamed across the Louisiana shoreline on Aug. 27 with sustained winds of more than 150 mph, devastating their home and thousands of others. They now are part of a diaspora of evacuees spread across hundreds of miles who have been without a permanent home for six weeks. Their numbers are expected to swell after Hurricane Delta rumbled ashore Oct. 9 night with Category 2 strength about 15 miles east of Laura’s landfall, raking many of the same areas with a second round of whipping winds and flooding.
It was yet another cruelty in an already challenging 2020, with dual hurricanes hitting southwestern Louisiana during a pandemic and an economic collapse. Thousands of displaced and distraught residents now face another indignity: They are waiting for help, sometimes in seedy hotels far from home, hoping that the Federal Emergency Management Agency will come to their rescue with temporary homes, funding, anything.
Thomas and Pitre are living in a two-level hotel with rooms that open to a parking lot strewn with trash and discarded furniture. A sex-toy shop is next door.
The couple is paying about $50 per night, relying in part on food stamps and meals delivered by a good Samaritan, Allen Keller, they said. Pitre is collecting unemployment for the moment and is eager to get back to work in Lake Charles, where hotels are mostly either too expensive for them or have been damaged or destroyed, he said. They left behind in Lake Charle a car that needed a new constant-velocity joint and wasn’t safe to drive long distances, they said.
“We’re not just used to walking. We were mobile,” Pitre said. “I’m not just the type to sit on my butt and collect money.”
Lake Charles Mayor Nic Hunter told The Washington Post that there were about 6,600 documented evacuees from Lake Charles outside the city after Laura. Overall, about 7,968 people who evacuated for Laura are occupying 3,457 hotel rooms in Louisiana and Texas, FEMA said in a statement in response to questions from The Washington Post. Some are from rural, coastal Cameron Parish, where homes were swept away in a cauldron of storm surge, howling winds and driving rain.
Hunter has pleaded with FEMA for a “rapid and robust housing plan,” he said, and has been told that within the next couple of weeks, the first temporary housing units - trailers, most likely - will arrive in Lake Charles and the surrounding area. Those with yards will be able to put their temporary housing there. Those in apartments probably will have to live on the outskirts of the city in trailers on recreational vehicle lots.
“It can’t happen a moment too soon,” Hunter said, noting that many of the evacuees have low or moderate incomes. “We need to get people out of shelters, out of hotel rooms and get them back home.”
FEMA Administrator Pete Gaynor told the Weather Channel in an interview that the agency has had about 1,500 employees on the ground in southwestern Louisiana to respond to Laura and that they are working on damage caused by both storms.
“I think you’ll see a head start, and hopefully you’ll see progress pretty quickly,” he said.
Though the agency keeps a stock of housing units on standby, officials are working to purchase additional units and have others built to meet demand, FEMA told The Post. It also temporarily put on hold work on housing for Laura evacuees when it became clear that Delta’s arrival was imminent.
“Units are currently being identified and moved to Louisiana from FEMA’s existing inventory,” the agency said. “Additional units are being purchased off the lot from local dealers, and FEMA continues to receive units manufactured under existing FEMA contracts at its Louisiana staging area.”
Each evacuee’s story is different, but all involve a struggle of some kind.
In Grand Chenier, a small coastal community nearly wiped out by Hurricane Laura, Lori and Vince Theriot evacuated before the storm, renting hotel rooms in Baton Rouge and thinking they would be back home in a few days.
But their house, built in 1984 more than 13 feet above the ground, was swamped with about three feet of water after Laura hit, Lori Theriot said. The home appears to have mostly survived the wind, she said, but repairing it will take months. Electricity is not expected in their neighborhood until December at the earliest.
Since leaving Grand Chenier, the Theriot family shuttled for a time between several hotels, unable to remain where they were because they did not extend their stay long enough; their lodging already had been promised to someone else.
Lori Theriot found space in a friend’s Lake Charles apartment that survived both storms intact, she said. Her husband, who works on an offshore oil platform, has returned to sea. He hopes to retire next year, and they are planning to build a home about 30 miles inland near Sweet Lake, La. They want to turn the house in Grand Chenier into a camp.
“You hate to build and put a lot of money into something,” Theriot said. “But where do you go? What’s far enough?”
A few miles away, Cindy and Eugene Jones evacuated their home in the town of Creole, a few miles from the Gulf of Mexico, about two days ahead of Laura’s landfall to a hotel 40 miles inland. When they saw that the storm had intensified to a Category 4 monster, they scrambled back, gathered keepsakes and evacuated farther to Baton Rouge.
Aside from a crumpled roof left behind, the entire home, built 12 feet above the ground, is gone. The family has relocated again to a temporary home in Nederland, Tex., something for which they express gratitude.
But the Jones family is still fighting to get insurance money, Cindy Jones said. A FEMA representative told them they cannot seek any additional compensation until that is handled, including help paying for the hotel rooms they used, she said. They, too, are planning to move farther inland.
“We were much luckier than a lot of folks,” she said. “But we haven’t received a cent from anyone as of today.”
In Lafayette, 75 miles east of Lake Charles, hotels swelled with evacuees after Hurricane Delta. Some had been without homes since the first storm.
Martha Smith has cared for her mother and aunt, both 91, after Laura left both of their homes uninhabitable, Smith said.
Her aunt Dolores has dementia, and when she wakes up in a hotel confused about her surroundings, Smith reminds her of what has happened.
At the same time Smith is negotiating moving the family between hotel rooms, she has organized recovery of their homes while remote. With the sixth anniversary of her husband’s death approaching, the burden gnaws at her.
“It’s overwhelming because life keeps going on,” Smith said.
Back in Baton Rouge, Thomas and members of her extended family are trying figure out what comes next. Her sister and her sister’s children and partner joined them in Baton Rouge at the same hotel after seeking refuge in Texas. They had little more than the clothes they were wearing when they left the hurricane zone.
Skyla Thomas said FEMA approved an initial $1,000 payment to help them cover the hotel rooms. But the family was denied when they applied for more housing money, even though she had all of her hotel receipts, she said.
Upstairs, her sister, Alyissa Thomas, 19, and Alyissa’s partner, Xavier P. Buckner, 27, were in similar straits. The lease to Alyissa Thomas’s apartment in Lake Charles was terminated after a tree landed on the building and part of the roof was ripped off by Laura’s wind, she said. She graduated from high school this year and was hoping to go to college or veterinary school.
Instead, she is hoping to get a FEMA trailer so she can start over and provide her two children some stability.
“It hurts so much because I worked so hard to get where I was with me and my kids,” she said, her voice cracking.
Downstairs, Skyla Thomas’s voice caught as she described her children’s baby books and other keepsakes being devoured in the hurricane.
She said she called FEMA recently about getting a trailer and was told they were under inspection. No additional information was available.
“It’s a standstill,” she said. “You’re stuck. We’re waiting for FEMA.”
Meryl Kornfield in Lafayette, La., contributed to this report.


washingtontimes--2020-10-17--Owners hope to rebuild historic inn destroyed by fire

GREAT FALLS , Mont .
( AP ) - The owners of a historic hotel on Main Street in Augusta that burned down over the weekend are planning to rebuild a new hotel that they hope will become the western community ’ s next treasure .
The new Bunkhouse Inn , if it is rebuilt , will capture the western character and history that marked its predecessor , but modern conveniences will be included , owner Matt Folkman told the Great Falls Tribune .
“ It ’ s just watching history disappear , ” Folkman said of the Oct. 10 @ @ @ @ @ @ @ to rubble and stunned the community of 300 residents in the heart of ranching country on the east slopes of the Rocky Mountains .
The heat from the flames was so intense firefighters made the decision to bulldoze the hotel before shooting flames jumped to other buildings on Main Street including next-door Latigo and Lace .
At one point , residents formed a line , like a fire brigade passing buckets of water , to hand artwork from Latigo and Lace to a building across the street to protect it from heat and @ @ @ @ @ @ @ got to determine how to get the pile of debris removed , ” Folkman , 51 , said Tuesday morning , when he and Lori , 46 , his wife and co-owner , were waiting to hear from an insurance adjustor .
Also on Tuesday , the Folkmans still were waiting for the final report on the cause of the fire , which brought firefighters from neighboring communities to assist .
“ Their suspicion is there was maybe some sort of faulty wiring inside a wall that maybe smoldered for hours before it @ @ @ @ @ @ @ said .
“ I think the official ruling will be undetermined.
” At this point , the goal is to rebuild , Folkman said .
He estimates the cost at $ 600,000 to $ 700,000 .
Replicating the charm and history of the two-story , 4,300-square-foot hotel revered by locals and international travelers alike isn ’ t possible Folkman said .
But the Folkmans are confident that they can build a new hotel with modern conveniences that will mimic the “ bunkhouse tradition ” while making the community proud .
“ It will @ @ @ @ @ @ @ for decades , ” Folkman said .
The fire has sparked memories of the important role the hotel played in the community over the decades .
Residents got married at the Bunkhouse .
It was a prom venue for others .
“ Just all sorts of fun little stories , ” Folkman said .
Locals aren ’ t the only ones with fond memories .
Much of the traffic the Folkmans saw at the hotel was visitors heading to Glacier National Park to the north or hiking the Continental Divide National Scenic Trail @ @ @ @ @ @ @ ’ s Rocky Mountains .
Even during the COVID-19 pandemic , international travelers were paying customers .
“ We had hikers come in from Italy , Australia , you name it they hiked through here , ” Matt said .
“ They love the community.
” Matt and Lori moved to Augusta from western Montana ’ s Bigfork .
Matt , who is self-employed , originally arrived in the community to work as a construction superintendent on an area ranch .
“ It was remote and in all honesty , there ’ s @ @ @ @ @ @ @ were willing to move to a small town like this as opposed to moving and living in Great Falls , Kalispell , Bozeman , that had more conveniences , ” Matt said .
“ It literally didn ’ t take me a month to fall in love with the people in town here.
” A year ago , the Folkmans purchased Wagons West RV Park and Motel , located a block from the Bunkhouse .
Saturday , the day the Bunkhouse Inn burned down , was the one-year anniversary of that purchase .
@ @ @ @ @ @ @ and Lori reopened a restaurant that had been closed for 12 years .
They purchased the Bunkhouse Inn from Donna Hartelius of Great Falls , just a month before it was destroyed by the fire .
The family lived on the first floor .
“ My wife and I just love history and old buildings especially in this town and then that place popped up for sale , ” Folkman said .
“ We both just kind of jumped to own a building like that.
” The Hotel Gilman was originally constructed in @ @ @ @ @ @ @ located 2 miles northeast of Augusta on U.S. Highway 287 .
Gilman faded away in the 1920s .
“ They fought back and forth to be the dominate town , ” Matt Folkman said .
“ Augusta ended up winning out.
” After Gilman lost , Hotel Gilman was cut in half .
Mules were used to haul it up the road to Augusta .
“ There was a lot of character to that building , ” Folkman said .
Names of old coffee brands could be seen in the hallway floors .
@ @ @ @ @ @ @ the seams where the hotel had been cut in half .
“ They had little tacks and they had tacked right over the seam of the floor so you could still see the branding from back in the day , ” Folkman said .
Over the fireplace in a breakfast nook was a sketch of a cowboy riding a bronc in a pencil sketch , dated in 1913 .
A cowboy staying at the hotel - not Charlie Russell - who was lying on his back decided to sketch the piece on the @ @ @ @ @ @ @ covered by wallpaper .
The piece was discovered in a remodel , framed and placed above the fireplace .
“ It was just a really unique piece of art , ” Folkman said .
Each of the nine bedrooms had antique bed frames and the flooring was maple .
A bullet hole from a 1920s standoff remained in one spot on the floor .
During a remodeling a few years ago , the dropped ceiling was torn out to expose the original tin stamped ceiling tile .
Matt and Lori Folkman hope to @ @ @ @ @ @ @ the Bunkhouse Inn burned down Saturday .
“ It ’ s just watching history disappear , ” Matt said of the loss of the hotel , which was built in 1912 .
Lori Folkman is a Great Falls native who graduated from C.M .
Russell High School .
Her father and brother own Rowley ’ s Trucking in Great Falls .
The family has historic connections to the Rocky Mountain Front , settling in Bynum , a tiny unincorporated community north of Augusta , 100 years ago .
Ernest Rowley , Lori ’ @ @ @ @ @ @ @ Augusta and ran a meat locker with his wife , Doris , that today is the home of Latigo and Lace .
The couple also managed the Bunkhouse Inn through the 1970s .
Rebuilding the Bunkhouse is big commitment , Matt Folkman said .
He and Lori want to bring it back because of the community ’ s strong connection to it and its important location on Main Street .
“ It ’ s piled rubble on the ground , ” Folkman said .

GREAT FALLS, Mont. (AP) - The owners of a historic hotel on Main Street in Augusta that burned down over the weekend are planning to rebuild a new hotel that they hope will become the western community’s next treasure.
The new Bunkhouse Inn, if it is rebuilt, will capture the western character and history that marked its predecessor, but modern conveniences will be included, owner Matt Folkman told the Great Falls Tribune.
“It’s just watching history disappear,” Folkman said of the Oct. 10 fire that reduced the iconic Bunkhouse Inn to rubble and stunned the community of 300 residents in the heart of ranching country on the east slopes of the Rocky Mountains.
The heat from the flames was so intense firefighters made the decision to bulldoze the hotel before shooting flames jumped to other buildings on Main Street including next-door Latigo and Lace.
At one point, residents formed a line, like a fire brigade passing buckets of water, to hand artwork from Latigo and Lace to a building across the street to protect it from heat and smoke damage.
“We’ve got to determine how to get the pile of debris removed,” Folkman, 51, said Tuesday morning, when he and Lori, 46, his wife and co-owner, were waiting to hear from an insurance adjustor.
Also on Tuesday, the Folkmans still were waiting for the final report on the cause of the fire, which brought firefighters from neighboring communities to assist.
“Their suspicion is there was maybe some sort of faulty wiring inside a wall that maybe smoldered for hours before it became a fire,” Matt Folkman said. “I think the official ruling will be undetermined.”
At this point, the goal is to rebuild, Folkman said. He estimates the cost at $600,000 to $700,000.
Replicating the charm and history of the two-story, 4,300-square-foot hotel revered by locals and international travelers alike isn’t possible Folkman said.
But the Folkmans are confident that they can build a new hotel with modern conveniences that will mimic the “bunkhouse tradition” while making the community proud.
“It will be the first new building in town for decades,” Folkman said.
The fire has sparked memories of the important role the hotel played in the community over the decades.
Residents got married at the Bunkhouse. It was a prom venue for others.
“Just all sorts of fun little stories,” Folkman said.
Locals aren’t the only ones with fond memories.
Much of the traffic the Folkmans saw at the hotel was visitors heading to Glacier National Park to the north or hiking the Continental Divide National Scenic Trail, which includes 820 miles along Montana’s Rocky Mountains.
Even during the COVID-19 pandemic, international travelers were paying customers.
“We had hikers come in from Italy, Australia, you name it they hiked through here,” Matt said. “They love the community.”
Matt and Lori moved to Augusta from western Montana’s Bigfork.
Matt, who is self-employed, originally arrived in the community to work as a construction superintendent on an area ranch.
“It was remote and in all honesty, there’s not a whole lot of people who were willing to move to a small town like this as opposed to moving and living in Great Falls, Kalispell, Bozeman, that had more conveniences,” Matt said. “It literally didn’t take me a month to fall in love with the people in town here.”
A year ago, the Folkmans purchased Wagons West RV Park and Motel, located a block from the Bunkhouse.
Saturday, the day the Bunkhouse Inn burned down, was the one-year anniversary of that purchase.
At the Wagons West location, Matt and Lori reopened a restaurant that had been closed for 12 years.
They purchased the Bunkhouse Inn from Donna Hartelius of Great Falls, just a month before it was destroyed by the fire. The family lived on the first floor.
“My wife and I just love history and old buildings especially in this town and then that place popped up for sale,” Folkman said. “We both just kind of jumped to own a building like that.”
The Hotel Gilman was originally constructed in 1912 in the community of Gilman, located 2 miles northeast of Augusta on U.S. Highway 287. Gilman faded away in the 1920s.
“They fought back and forth to be the dominate town,” Matt Folkman said. “Augusta ended up winning out.”
After Gilman lost, Hotel Gilman was cut in half. Mules were used to haul it up the road to Augusta.
“There was a lot of character to that building,” Folkman said.
Names of old coffee brands could be seen in the hallway floors. The tin cans were used to cover the seams where the hotel had been cut in half.
“They had little tacks and they had tacked right over the seam of the floor so you could still see the branding from back in the day,” Folkman said.
Over the fireplace in a breakfast nook was a sketch of a cowboy riding a bronc in a pencil sketch, dated in 1913. A cowboy staying at the hotel - not Charlie Russell - who was lying on his back decided to sketch the piece on the ceiling. Over time the sketch was covered by wallpaper. The piece was discovered in a remodel, framed and placed above the fireplace.
“It was just a really unique piece of art,” Folkman said.
Each of the nine bedrooms had antique bed frames and the flooring was maple.
A bullet hole from a 1920s standoff remained in one spot on the floor.
During a remodeling a few years ago, the dropped ceiling was torn out to expose the original tin stamped ceiling tile.
Matt and Lori Folkman hope to build a new hotel in Augusta after the Bunkhouse Inn burned down Saturday. “It’s just watching history disappear,” Matt said of the loss of the hotel, which was built in 1912.
Lori Folkman is a Great Falls native who graduated from C.M. Russell High School. Her father and brother own Rowley’s Trucking in Great Falls.
The family has historic connections to the Rocky Mountain Front, settling in Bynum, a tiny unincorporated community north of Augusta, 100 years ago.
Ernest Rowley, Lori’s uncle, made his way to Augusta and ran a meat locker with his wife, Doris, that today is the home of Latigo and Lace. The couple also managed the Bunkhouse Inn through the 1970s.
Rebuilding the Bunkhouse is big commitment, Matt Folkman said. He and Lori want to bring it back because of the community’s strong connection to it and its important location on Main Street.
“It’s piled rubble on the ground,” Folkman said.