BREAUX BRIDGE, La. — On Tuesday morning Luiteneant Governor Billy Nungesser alongside the Louisiana Seafood Promotion and Marketing Board pardoned one lucky crawfish. For the second year the ceremony was held at Parc des Ponts Breaux in Breaux Bridge.
Nungesser said this year’s season looks completely differen because of weather, impacting the outcome of crawfish.
“This year fighting the drought an the freeze, having a shortage up to this point bringing new attention to to how important this industry is,” Nungesser said.
The LSU AgCenter estimated the potential loss of crawfish this year to be worth $140 million. Nungesser said he’s asking for federal aid as a result of this.
“We’ve asked to get some federal disaster money for this industry that’s been devastated especially this year,” Nungesser said.
"To work with our congressman and the ag commissioner to try to get some federal help to this industry. It’s hundreds of millions of dollars affected this industry. And it’s the restaurants, It's the packages, the fisherman, it's everybody. It’s a triple affect when you don’t have crawfish it affects everyone.”
Breaux Bridge Mayor Ricky Calais also said the season will look different this year.
“I think people that I talked to have said that the amount of crawfish that would be harvested over the upcoming months will be considerably less than in a normal season,” Calais said. “So hopefully we have enough crawfish to last to and through there crawfish festival. But it has been a tough year for the crawfish fishermen.”
Owner of Crawfish Haven and Mrs. Rose’s Bed & Breakfast Barry Toups was the craw-fisherman who brought the pardoned crawfish named Sherbin from his pond. He said its looking up for a plentiful crawfish season compared to last month.
“It was pretty bad,” Toups said. “But things have picked up in the last week. it’s actually looking pretty good I think we’re gonna have a few crawfish. They’re a little small right now but in the next couple of weeks we should be okay.”
The crawfish "Sherbin" was named in honor of Henderson Mayor Sherbin Collette who will remember this day forever. He said he's been involved with the pardoning since the beginning.
"This is great," Collette said. "This is one of the greatest things that's happened to me in 20 years, in my life to tell you the truth."
After the ceremony, "Sherbin" the crawfish was released in Lake Fausse Pointe.
