Authorities began combing through the wreckage today caused by a reported tornado that killed one person and injured three others in central North Carolina.
A possible tornado touched down on the outskirts of Greensboro late Thursday as severe storms swept across the Southeast, damaging homes and businesses in at least three other states.
One person was killed in a small truck that overturned in a parking lot west of Greensboro, said Guilford County emergency services director Alan Perdue. He said three others were injured, one when the storm knocked down a wall at a distributing business, and that authorities were looking for any others in an industrial park on the edge of town.
Storms also ripped through Virginia late Thursday and early today, damaging homes and threatening to flood some areas.
Earlier Thursday, an apparent tornado also wrecked a shopping area in Mississippi and strong winds flipped a mobile home in Alabama. In south-central Tennessee, at least four homes and a few barns were damaged.
- Associated Press
Gas prices hit another new high
Oil rose above $126 a barrel for the first time today, bringing its advance this week to nearly $10, as investors questioned whether a possible confrontation between the U.S. and Venezuela could cut exports from the OPEC member. Gas prices, meanwhile, rose above an average $3.67 a gallon at the pump, following oil's recent path higher.
Light, sweet crude for June delivery vaulted to a new record of $126.20 in morning trading on the New York Mercantile Exchange before retreating to trade up $1.09 at $124.78 a barrel.
Oil's surge is pushing retail gas prices higher. The national average price of a gallon of regular gas jumped 2.6 cents overnight to a record $3.671 a gallon according to a survey of stations by AAA and the Oil Price Information Service. The Energy Department expects prices to peak at a monthly average of $3.73 in June, though many analysts say national average prices could rise as high as $4. Consumers in many regions, including parts of California and Hawaii, are already paying that much.
- Associated Press
Woman pregnant with 18th child
It's a happy Mother's Day for an Arkansas woman - she's pregnant with her 18th child.
Michelle Duggar, 41, is due on New Year's Day, and the latest addition will join seven sisters and 10 brothers. There are two sets of twins.
"We've had three in January, three in December. Those two months are a busy time for us," she said, laughing.
The Duggars' oldest child, Josh, is 20, and the youngest, Jennifer, is nine months old.
The fast-growing family lives in Tontitown in northwest Arkansas in a 7,000-square-foot home. All the children - whose names start with the letter J - are home-schooled.
Duggar has been been pregnant for more than 11 years of her life, and the family is in the process of filming another series for Discovery Health.
Duggar said she's six weeks along and the pregnancy is going well. She and her husband, Jim Bob Duggar, said they'll keep having children as long as God wills it.
- Associated Press
WHAT'S COMING UP ON MACON.COM
- Bibb County commissioners are holding a pre-budget hearings retreat today at Lake Tobesofkee. We'll let you know how it goes.
- Several construction projects are planned or under way at Fort Valley State University. We'll update you on where they stand.
VISIT US AGAIN SOON
We invite you to check out our Web site again tomorrow for the Midday Update. Monday through Friday, Online Editor Beth MacFadyen will bring you timely information about what Telegraph staffers are working on, plus news we think you need to know immediately. Send feedback to bmacfadyen@macon.com
