Tornado Warning

Someone give KATV a pat on the back.

I don't usually involve myself in the television wars, but I'm proud of the folks at Channel 7. Although I know that 60 or 65 of the state's 75 counties couldn't care less about the severe weather in southeast Arkansas Saturday, KATV knew their priorities. Even if it was just so they could make sweeps-week promos to say that "Seven is News," they did the right thing by interrupting a silly Big East basketball game to track every mesocyclone and hook echo that popped up on radar.

Honorable mention goes to KTHV who broke into programming occasionally. Unfortunately, KARK & KLRT have identified their intended market and it must not include southeast Arkansas as their craptastic Saturday afternoon programming was more important than live weather coverage.

Central Arkansas dodged the bullet. The storms swept through quickly and even though we heard a bit of thunder, life wasn't too bad up here on Park Hill. So, the afternoon was spent watching storms pop up and sweep around everyone Terri & I know back home... Crossett. Monticello. Lacey. Dumas. McGehee. Dermott.

Fortunately, as of now, everyone we know fared pretty well. Of course, that's tempered by knowing that the good folks of Dumas took a direct hit yesterday... and if the reports of no fatalities hold up through the coming days, it will truly be a miracle.

Watching the news coverage of the damage in Dumas brought back some memories. I spent the first 10 years of my life there and I know some of the places along the tornado's path well. Judging by the video I've scene, ground zero seems to be shared by a Fred's and a Mad Butcher grocery store. The Fred's store was once a Wal-Mart, which we know is the center of living in any small town. And although the Cossey family tended to be Piggly Wiggly supporters, I remember at least one Halloween haunted house at the Mad Butcher. In the apartments across the street from the Mad Butcher lived my first elementary school love, a blond-haired girl named Samantha Williams.

Dumas hasn't exactly blossomed since the Cossey family packed up and headed west in 1987. According to city-data.com, they've lost more than 7% of their population since the last census. There's a core group of folks over there that have fought to save their city. Unfortunately, I have a feeling that their fight got quite a bit tougher after yesterday afternoon.