A one-year-old in Laurel, Miss., had a blood lead level that was too high, which led Mississippi health officials to visit the city in Jones County in 2015. The child’s blood lead level of 43µg/dL was close to the 45µg/dL level that would have required urgent medical attention.
Nearly three decades ago, most of the once-bustling businesses in downtown Laurel, Miss., had shuttered their windows, and the brick streets that criss-crossed the Pine Belt town’s center were void of pedestrians and drivers alike. Today, downtown Laurel is enjoying a resurgence thanks to locals and outside assistance. As always throughout its history, like that of other Mississippi towns, it’s complicated.
May 8, 2021, was the 70th anniversary of the electrocution of Willie McGee in Mississippi’s traveling electric chair, a grim milestone in the history of civil rights in Mississippi. All these years later, McGee’s family continues to mourn his life and confront the impact of the tragic and undoubtedly unjust circumstances surrounding his death.
Echoing arguments he last made when another Democrat, Barack Obama, was president, U.S. Sen. Roger Wicker spoke out against President Joe Biden and congressional Democrats’ $1.9-trillion economic-stimulus plan today, claiming it “would add to the mountain of debt that our children and grandchildren will have to pay.”
Almost 500 unfilled slots for COVID-19 vaccine appointments remained available for today by Sunday evening along with 400 unfilled openings for Tuesday.
Mississippi Gov. Tate Reeves lashed out today at “so-called experts” in the medical field as he continued to defy their pleas for him to reissue a statewide mask mandate.
With COVID-19 cases ramping up, Mississippi’s capital city and several others have run out of ICU beds.
Mississippi reported 1,612 new COVID-19 cases today—more than on any day since July 30, when the summer surge hit its peak with 1,775 cases. The Mississippi State Department of Health also reported an additional eight deaths today.
From dinner and drinks at Footprint Farms in west Jackson to meeting and feeding Corona the alpaca in a small town north of Laurel, agritourism is a way to build business and community. And during the pandemic, people are looking for ways to have fun outside, especially during cool fall weather.
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