Our prayers go out the victims of the storms that blasted the South on Wednesday and into the early hours Thursday. There was death and destruction of near-Biblical proportions suffered by our neighbors in Alabama and in northwest Georgia. The sight of the storm that ravaged Tuscaloosa was absolutely astounding.

We were for the most part quite lucky here in Newton County, with most of us losing nothing but a little sleep as the storms blew through just after 1 a.m.
Even our friends in Newborn, which seemed to sustain the most damage in the area, were lucky. There were no injuries and no loss of life there.

Trees were down. Power was out. Roads were blocked, all within some 90 seconds of wind-whipped fury.
But Newborn was still there, and the cleanup began. Volunteers were out in force, according to Mayor Roger Sheridan.

Once again, citizens of Newton County have shown their mettle, pulling together to help those in need. This is indeed a great place to live, and we have much to be thankful for.