Getting scooped: The two-year-old nonprofit news organization The Lens says it wants to beat The Times-Picayune “to the punch on stories they’re not doing, but we don’t want them to go out of business.” To read more about The Lens, which is run by former Times-Picayune staffers, click here. Also, check out its illustration of New Orleans’ residents reading Monday and Tuesday issues of The Times-Picayune—issues which will fade away this fall—here. And for dessert, check out CNNMoney‘s take on why the newspaper’s switch to digital won’t work here.
Blame ‘ponding’: The National Weather Service says flooding could occur Saturday and Sunday with heavy rains, following a “ponding” of water today as a moisture-rich tropical air mass advances northward from the Gulf of Mexico. A flood watch is in effect for Greater Baton Rouge from 10 a.m. today until Sunday evening. Rainfall could exceed six inches over the next three days with some areas getting two to three inches of rain at a time.
Shipping news: Harvey Gulf International Marine of New Orleans says it has signed an agreement with Bee Mar to purchase all of Bee Mar’s vessels and assets: 10 offshore supply vessels, new-generation offshore support vessels and eight deepwater towing vessels. The agreement beefs up Harvey Gulf’s vessel line to 32 ships, including 24 deepwater vessels. Upon closing the deal, Harvey Gulf—founded in 1995—will have operations in the Gulf of Mexico, Alaska, Israel, Saudi Arabia and Mozambique.
Today’s poll question: Will LSU sweep Stony Brook in the super regional today and Saturday?
