Weather Blamed for at Least 5 Deaths in Louisiana

NEW ORLEANS (AP) — Louisiana officials are blaming five deaths on storms that hit the state this week, with four of the fatalities involving motor vehicles and floodwaters. The other death involved a power outage that caused a failure of oxygen equipment for a 76-year-old man in East Baton Rouge Parish. Rain has caused flash flooding in parts of south Louisiana since Monday. Still recovering from two hurricanes last year, southwest Louisiana has been especially hard hit. National Weather Service radar showed rain continuing to roll inland from the Gulf of Mexico on Thursday afternoon. Forecasters said southwest Louisiana and east Texas could see another 3 inches of rain in the coming days.