Free Republic

The Atlantic's hurricane drought is over, and it is now the longest on record. Isaias reached hurricane strength over the Gulf Wednesday night, according to the National Hurricane Center. That is later than the first hurricane of any season on record, surpassing the 7 p.m. Oct. 7 mark set in 1905. Isaias is the ninth named storm of 2026. The first eight were all tropical storms, three of them hit the Gulf Coast, and none reached hurricane strength. In mid-September, Tropical Storm Fay came closest to hurricane status, peaking at 70 mph, 4 mph short of the Category 1 threshold....

Tropical Storm Isaias has formed in the Bay of Campeche. Hurricane Watches will likely be required for a portion of the U.S. northern Gulf coast later today. Additional strengthening is in the forecast. Mash the graphics below to enlarge. All links and images are self-updating. NHC Public Advisories NHC Discussions Tropical Tidbits by Levi Cowan

Two Louisiana brothers are facing terrorism charges for their alleged role in a twisted scheme to fund Hamas under the guise of Gaza humanitarian aid – and they were brought down with the help of the NYPD. Abdel Adhami and his sibling Omar Adhami were busted in the Pelican State last month for allegedly raising money online and funneling it to Saleem Alzaq, a member of the terror group who regularly uses social media to post Hamas propaganda, according to newly unsealed federal indictments. Abdel allegedly funneled more than $83,000 to Hamas from 2023 to 2026 while his brother is...

Milo Yiannopoulos, a self-described libertarian and professional internet troll who became known for his controversial right-wing political views, is in ICE custody. A spokesperson for the Department of Homeland Security told NBC News that ICE arrested Yiannopoulos, a United Kingdom national, on Thursday at the Louis Armstrong New Orleans International Airport in Kenner, Louisiana.

Washington — Far-right political commentator Milo Yiannopoulos is currently in Immigration and Customs Enforcement custody, according to the agency's online detainee database. Reports indicate Yiannopoulos, who is British, was in New Orleans ahead of a concert headlined by the artist formerly known as Kanye West scheduled for Friday night. TMZ first reported Yiannopoulos' status. CBS News has reached out to the Department of Homeland Security and ICE for additional details and the basis for his apprehension. ...

IBERIA PARISH, La. (KLFY)– The Port of Iberia is already seeing interest from companies looking to position themselves near SpaceX’s newly announced project in Vermilion Parish, and port leaders believe that could translate into new investment and jobs across Acadiana. Port of Iberia Executive Director Craig Romero said companies from across the country have been contacting the port for roughly a year, even before the SpaceX project was officially announced. “We’ve had a number of companies from all parts of the United States call, big companies that are calling, inquiring during the last 12 months,” Romero said. “They just want...

A substitute teacher in Louisiana was arrested after authorities say she triggered false active shooter alerts at five schools, prompting security responses across the district. Lytonja Barfield, 58, was booked on five counts of menacing after an investigation into the alerts Wednesday, Caddo Parish Sheriff Henry Whitehorn Sr. announced. The Caddo Parish Sheriff's Office began investigating after officials with the Caddo Parish School Board contacted the agency about possible threats after emergency alerts at several schools. ... "We are cooperating fully with the Caddo Parish Sheriff’s Office as they continue their investigation into the matter. Ms. Barfield is no longer...

A Russian national was busted hauling nearly 800 pounds of methamphetamine on a Louisiana interstate, which officials touted as “one of the largest” seizures in the state’s history. Anton Vitalyevich Rakov was pulled over for a traffic stop in his 18-wheeler on I-12 in Denham Springs — about 20 miles outside Baton Rouge — on Tuesday, the Livingston Parish Sheriff’s Office said on Facebook. Rakov, whom officials described as a “deportable Russian national,” was arrested over his illegal status in the US, which led officials to search the semi-truck’s trailer and discover “approximately 358.14 kilos (789.56 lbs) of methamphetamine.” “One...

Like Joe Biden’s infamous June 2024 debate performance, where he exposed himself to the world as incapable of continuing his presidency, former Chief Medical Advisor to the President Dr. Anthony Fauci’s non-testimony at Wednesday’s Senate Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs Committee hearing may go down as one of the quickest and harshest falls from grace in recent memory. Although people with brains knew long ago that the fibbin’ doctor was a fraud who severely mismanaged the pandemic, made a mockery of the Constitution while chasing ever-more fawning news coverage, and ruined countless lives, the mainstream media and gullible leftists have...

Congress on Thursday split on advancing a pair of war powers resolutions aimed at forcing President Donald Trump to abandon his war with Iran, as the conflict escalates into a deadly new phase and oil tops $100 a barrel. The moves were the first vote since Trump informed Congress that he restarted the war with Iran following the breakdown of peace negotiations. The conflict’s revival after weeks of a shaky ceasefire comes just months before the U.S. midterm elections. It threatens to scramble the majority Republicans’ plan to maintain their razor-thin majorities. The Senate on Thursday voted 47-49 to kill...

Northern Gulf of America and near Florida (AL91): An area of low pressure located over the northeastern Gulf of America continues to become better defined and the associated shower and thunderstorm activity is gradually increasing. Continued gradual development is expected, and a tropical depression is likely to form later today or on Monday as the system moves slowly northward or northwestward. Interests along the northern Gulf coast from Florida, Alabama, Mississippi, and Louisiana should monitor the progress of this system, as tropical storm watches or warnings could be required for portions of the area later today. In addition, this system...

BATON ROUGE - The former head of Impact Charter School, her family members and an independent contractor were indicted by a federal grand jury on Thursday in connection with the embezzlement of school funds. The school's previous CEO Chakesha Scott, her husband Eric Scott, their daughter Courtney Scott and contractor Sam Green were named in a criminal indictment filed in the Middle District of Louisiana. The four are accused of conspiring with one another to use school funds for personal use and creating false documents to make the payments appear as business expenses, a scheme that allegedly spanned from 2018...

A quiet Louisiana parish is set to become home to the world's largest data center, stirring unease among residents. Tech giant Meta announced Monday it is expanding its massive Hyperion data center in Richland Parish to five gigawatts of computing power, increasing its investment in the project to $50 billion. Local leaders hailed the project, saying it has already boosted the economy and created hundreds of jobs despite still being under construction. Governor Jeff Landry said the data center construction has ignited 'economic progress' the state has never seen before. 'It's going to create 7,500 construction jobs, more than 1,000...

A local pastor has filed a lawsuit claiming Baton Rouge’s library system unlawfully fired him after he refused to use someone’s preferred gender pronouns. The Rev. Luke Ash filed the suit Thursday alleging that the East Baton Rouge Parish Library terminated his employment a year ago because of his religious beliefs, which Ash said prevented him from using a co-worker’s preferred gender pronouns. He is also the lead pastor at Stevendale Baptist Church in Baton Rouge, per the church’s website. Ash is represented by Liberty Counsel, a Christian civil liberties law firm, and said the library’s inclusivity policy violated his...

An arrest warrant for Louisiana Attorney General Liz Murrill was issued Thursday, minutes after a 16-count felony indictment was handed down in New Orleans Criminal District Court. The Republican state official’s bond totals $400,000, records show, which include $25,000 for each felony charge. Murrill is accused of eight counts of malfeasance in office and eight counts of intimidation. A New Orleans grand jury reviewed evidence this week about whether Murrill sought to intimidate local New Orleans public officials, including Mayor Helena Moreno and District Attorney Jason Williams, sources said. Murrill told the officials in May that they had imperiled their...

Welcome to Louisiana Saturday Night, when we are hosting a runoff in the party primaries for U.S. Senate. Expect a low-turnout affair tonight, with early voting suggesting 14-17% turnout when it's all said and done. Why the low turnout? Most of the excitement was about getting U.S. Senator Bill Cassidy out of office. Since he didn't qualify for the runoff... Mission accomplished, as far as most voters are concerned. Their job is done. But the race for the party nomination for the GOP has been ugly, with State Treasurer and original member of the Congressional Freedom Caucus John Fleming taking...

A Louisiana man is accused of drugging his pregnant teenage daughter with abortion pills without her knowledge and causing the premature birth of her baby. Jamelle Kelly, 39, of Carencro, is facing charges of attempted feticide and the abuse of his 17-year-old daughter, KATC reported. The Carencro Police Department said Kelly allegedly slipped abortion drugs to his daughter, who was 23 weeks pregnant. The FDA only recommends taking abortion drugs up to ten weeks of pregnancy. His daughter then became ill and went to the hospital, where she underwent an emergency cesarean delivery, according to the report. The baby was...

A Louisiana influencer has gone viral for his mugshot after he was arrested for allegedly stealing from an oil change business where he used to work.

Is your business "needed"? Bizarrely, in many states, if you want to start a business, you first must convince bureaucrats that your business is "needed." Four years ago, Louisiana blocked social worker Ursula Newell-Davis from helping kids with special needs. Bureaucrats said she hadn't proved her business was needed. "Why does the state of Louisiana have the right to stop me from doing what I love?" she asks in this update video. Good question. Newell-Davis has a master's degree and a social work license. For two decades, she's helped kids with special needs. One, Kamal, told us he struggled to...

Georgia Secretary of State Brad Raffensperger became the latest enemy of President Donald Trump’s to lose a Republican primary on Tuesday. Billionaire Rick Jackson and Lt. Gov. Burt Jones advanced to a runoff election for the GOP nomination for Georgia governor — locking out Raffensperger, who rose to prominence defending Georgia’s 2020 election results but struggled to gain traction among his party’s increasingly MAGA base. Raffensperger’s defeat is another sign of Trump’s grip on the GOP, following the president’s wins ousting state Republican senators who clashed with him over redistricting in Indiana and Sen. Bill Cassidy’s loss in Louisiana on...