Greene County comes together in time of need!

To say the past week has been tough for Greene County would be a major understatement.

First, two tornadoes hit the county last Tuesday and Wednesday, leaving a path of destruction that needed cleaned up. Power was out, homes were damaged, and debris was everywhere.

Then it started raining late Friday, and continued into Saturday morning. It came down hard. The flooding that followed has been called historic.

The White River flood stages topped the 1913 flood.

Worthington has been shut off from the rest of the world since Sunday, with the exception of State Road 67 north. As of Tuesday afternoon, all other routes in and out of town were shut off because of the flooding.

Bloomfield was hit hard to the north, south, and west. State Road 54 was closed, cutting off the county's main route from east to west. It's now open.

In Jasonville, water has been off since Saturday and because of the flooding, it may be a while before the water line can be repaired.

Volunteers worked feverishly near the levee between Lyons and Marco to make sure it didn't break. The National Guard sent 100 Guardsmen to that project to help.

On down the river in Elnora and Odon, it's not much better.

This area is blessed with many things, and No. 1 is the caring people who always volunteer in a time of need.

Not just 20 or 50, but hundreds and thousands. If something needs done, all you need to do is ask.

The Greene County Daily World has played a small part in that effort. We have tried to keep our Web site updated as much as possible, passing along road closing information and anything else officials want posted.

We also have tried to bring people the human side of the tragedy.

Have we succeeded?

Our Web site statistics from Monday can answer that:

* Total hits: 434,034

* Page views: 86,424

* Unique visitors: 6,850

We've also received a lot of comments from people in Greene County about the information on our Web site, and also from those who have moved away but still have family in the area.

The following is a sampling of those comments:

* "My heart is just breaking for our many friends and family in Worthington. I would like to send a special message to a lifelong friend: Mindy I am so sorry about your house. Please know I am thinking about you and praying for you guys every minute. With heartfelt prayers and much love." This came from someone in southern California.

* "I live in Worthington, but am currently deployed in Iraq. My heart and prayers are with all of you in Worthington. I am frustrated because I cannot be there to help out. I wish I could bring the water over here, we are in need of it. My wife and mother both live there; I wish all of you God's speed."

* "I am not sure who is covering the flooding in Worthington, but I am very impressed with the online news. I live in Pickerington, Ohio, but my mom lives in Worthington, and I am able to keep her updated on things she may not know, since she doesn't have a computer. I just wanted to say thanks for doing a great job of keeping us informed. I do have a concern about the elderly or people who take medicine on a regular basis, what will they do if they run out of their medication?" This person's concern was answered in a news story later that day.

* "My dad's girlfriend is from Worthington, and she is stranded in Linton as well. She has a daughter, 20, that is eight months pregnant. I am hoping this is over soon, she is like my sister, and the stress is not good on her, being pregnant and all. God bless you all, and good luck too all of you with water damage! Thanks again for a great job!"

There's no need to go on, because you get the idea.

Another area where the Web site has helped out is that readers were able to share their personal information about road closings.

Many people would ask if a certain road was open in the area, and someone who may have traveled that road or knew someone who did, would answer.

The newspaper wasn't able to deliver Tuesday's paper to Worthington and most of the eastern part of the county Monday night because of the flooding.

Once State Road 54 was opened west of Bloomfield, the papers were delivered to stores and pay boxes. If you didn't get a Tuesday paper, you'll receive it today.

Let's hope the rain holds off for a while, and we can get back to normal.

Thanks to all the volunteers who have helped to this point, and all who will help over the next several days.

Greene County truly is a great place to live!