Here's a look at news making headlines in your parish for Wednesday, January 7, 2026.
VERMILION PARISH
The city of Abbeville is upgrading its street lights through new federal funding with a project that honors the memory of a young woman who died in a traffic crash.
The Ramsie Baumgardner Street Lighting Upgrade will replace 650 old halogen lights with energy-efficient LED fixtures throughout the city. Officials say the project is funded by a $497,000 federal grant and named after 18-year-old Ramsie Kate Baumgardner, who died in a head-on crash on Highway 167 in January 2022.
Baumgardner's stepmother helped secure the grant funding for the lighting improvements.
LAFAYETTE PARISH
Caregivers and families dealing with Alzheimer's disease and other dementias can get free help at a conference in Lafayette on Wednesday.
The Alzheimer's Association Louisiana Chapter will a caregiver conference at the Hilton Garden Inn near the Cajundome from 8 a.m. to 5 p.m., featuring community resource tables and expert speakers.
Organizers say breakfast and lunch are provided free.
And a Louisiana state-chartered bank is expanding services in Lafayette with a groundbreaking ceremony on Monday.
Red River Bank will break ground on its new banking center at 1800 Camellia Boulevard in River Ranch, with a ceremony scheduled to kick off at 3 p.m.
Officials say this will be the bank's second full-service location in Acadiana.
