Louisiana Logging Council President John Keith is appealing to U.S. House Speaker Mike Johnson for help for loggers. In a letter to Congressman Johnson, Keith is asking for the for temporary suspension of the federal excise tax on heavy trucks, trailers and tires used in farming and logging. He writes that "a heavy truck or trailer pays a 12 percent federal excise tax on the first retail sale ... that's over $21,000 in tax before the truck ever hauls its first load," on a $18

A Vernon Parish man is accused of timber theft in Rapides Parish following an investigation of Louisiana Department of Agriculture and Forestry Enforcement agents, according to LDAF. James R. Fredieu was arrested by Vernon Parish Sheriff's Office deputies Sept. 10. He was later booked into the Rapides Parish Jail on one count of timber theft under $25,000, according to an LDAF press release. The press release said enforcement agents responded to a timber theft complaint Aug.

Brian Todd Middleton of Colfax A Colfax man was arrested in connection with a wildfire in Rapides Parish, according to the Louisiana Department of Agriculture and Forestry (LDAF). Brian Todd Middleton, 38, of Flores Road in Colfax, reportedly fled the scene of a fire near 418 Cabra Hill Road in Rapides Parish on Sept. 10, according to LDAF, when LDAF and local fire crews, as well as Rapides Parish Sheriff's Office personnel arrived on the scene. Following an investigation by

Updated 8/26/26 Three more parishes were added to a growing list of fire ban issuances, bringing the total to 28 as of Wednesday, Aug. 26. Extended dry weather and high temperatures led to 25 parishes in Louisiana to issue burn bans. According to the Louisiana Department of Agriculture and Forestry website, most of the 28 parishes are listed as High or Very High levels for fire danger. Parishes that have so far issued burn bans as of Wednesday, Aug. 26 are: Acadia Allen Beaur

Severe dry conditions have led four Louisiana parishes to issue burn bans this week. Jonathan Brazzell, a hydrologist for the National Weather Service in Lake Charles, said that although weather patterns dumped a lot of rain on the state in June, the spigot was closed afterward. "It just shut off," he said. "It's a flash drought." Parishes with burn bans as of Thursay morning, (Aug. 6, 2026) included Caldwell, DeSoto, Union and Washington. Check out a map of parishes that hav

Paula Vizinat stands next to the Louisiana Champion Hercules Club tree, also known as the toothache tree for its numbing properties if bark or leaf is chewed, with her English Setters Patch, from left, and Luz. The tree is on property that has been in Vizinat's family for decades. (Submitted photo) Sometimes landowners find a nugget of interest in their forest that they never knew was there. For Paula Vizinat, it was the toothache tree. The Hercules Club, Zanthoxylum clava-he