Police and Fire Briefs for May 11, 2008

• By ADVOCATE STAFF REPORT
• Published: May 11, 2008 - Page: 2B - UPDATED: 2:30 a.m.

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Residents at Lakewood Quarters Retirement Community were evacuated Saturday evening following reports of smoke and light haze at the facility, according to a press release from the St. George Fire Protection District.

Two residents reported difficulty breathing and were treated on the scene, one by Emergency Medical Services personnel and the other by Acadian Ambulance personnel. Neither required hospitalization.

Units arrived to find light haze and a smoke smell in the building, but no fire was found, and the origin of the smoke was unknown. It was thought elevator equipment may have malfunctioned, but a service technician found no trouble, according to the press release.

Facility staff and firefighters evacuated all residents from the first floor and most from the second floor.  A number of second floor residents were held in a stairwell to be evacuated if conditions warranted.

Numerous ambulances were on standby during the event.

Residents were allowed to re-enter the building at 10:10 p.m.

Information for this report came from a press release from the St. George Fire Protection District and written after The Advocate's press time.

-- 2theadvocate.com staff

Wreck on I-10 East shuts down traffic
The eastbound traffic on Interstate 10 was shut down for several hours Saturday afternoon while Louisiana State Police worked to clear a wreck from the roadway.

The wreck happened at 11:56 a.m. when a Toyota Scion traveling east on I-10 east of Highland Road swerved onto the median and struck a tree, Louisiana State Police spokesman Trooper Johnnie Brown said.

The impact threw the vehicle’s engine across the highway, forcing police to shut down the interstate while the state Department of Transportation and Development poured sand on liquid leaking from the engine.

I-10 eastbound traffic was allowed to flow again about 3:30 p.m., Brown said. Eronda Simon, 34, of Baton Rouge, the driver of the Scion, suffered minor injuries and was taken to a hospital by Acadian Ambulance.

She was cited for careless operation of a vehicle, Brown said.