Rapides Regional Medical Center

Alexandria is a city in and the parish seat of Rapides Parish, Louisiana. It lies on the south bank of the Red River in almost the exact geographic center of the state and is the principal city of the Alexandria metropolitan area (population 153,922), which encompasses all of Rapides and Grant parishes. The city had an active Civil War past that included Union occupation and struggles over Union seizures of Confederate cotton, molasses, and wool supplies and the conflicts surrounding those seizures. The climate is humid subtropical with some continental influence in the winter. Summers are hot and humid, whereas winters are mild with occasional cold snaps. Tropical storms and hurricanes do impact Alexandria from time to time, but rarely cause severe damage, unlike areas closer to the coast.