Man Run Over By Float @ Mardi Gras

Link to MSNBC Story By AP
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Mardi Gras parade float kills man
23-year-old dies after event ends in town in southern Louisiana
The Associated Press
updated 8:07 p.m. MT, Sat., Feb. 21, 2009

NEW ORLEANS - Police in Louisiana say a man died after he fell off a Mardi Gras parade float and it hit him on Saturday.

It happened after a parade in the Cajun town of Carencro, about 130 miles west of New Orleans.

Lafayette Parish Sheriff's Lt. Craig Stansbury says the 23-year-old was hit as the float drove away from the parade route. Police didn't release his name because they hadn't notified his family.

Toxicology tests will be performed on the driver and rider.

Crowds in cities and towns across Louisiana are jamming parade routes this weekend as part of celebrations leading up to Mardi Gras, or Fat Tuesday, just before Ash Wednesday ushers in Lent.