GateHouse papers in Louisiana and Arkansas prepared for Hurricane Isaac and responded as the storm swept in.
Louisiana Group Publisher Glenn Stifflemire made plans to ensure the papers got out well in advance of Hurricane Isaac's arrival. He also put editors on notice to use social media and keep their websites updated.
Allison Hudson took heed.
When the building housing Donaldsonville Cheif lost power and internet access, editor Hudson took to her iPhone.
"We did get the papers out Monday, but couldn't get them printed [the press in Baton Rouge lost power], so that's when I said, 'Let's take it to social media., " she said Thursday.
She went out into the community, letting people know she was posting information continuously to Facebook and Twitter, and gave her phone number to store owners and community members, telling them to keep her updated. She spoke hourly with the mayor's office.
And the recent group project on hurricane preparedness the Louisiana papers had collaborated on couldn't have been more timely.
"I took the papers that had the group project and gave them out," Hudson said.
Hudson took photos with her iPhone and solicited photos from fans and followers on social media.
"People have been uploading photos, texting photos - it's been great," she said,
Folks on social media have also thanked the paper for the constant stream of information.
"Awesome coverage of hurricane preparations in D'ville," one fan wrote on their Facebook wall.
As of Thursday afternoon, Hudson couldn't get to the office, so she wasn't sure what condition it's in.
Regional editor Brian Trahan, who is the editor of the Southwest Daily News in Sulphur, La., reports the papers located further west fared better than those in Donaldsonville, Gonsalves and Plaquemine.
"We didn't quite catch the storm like the east side papers did," he wrote in an email Thursday, "We didn't open the office Wednesday, but I uploaded stories and photos on the websites from my house. I kept in constant contact with the National Weather Service, the local government officials etc. As far as the east side papers, they are still without phones and internet today, but they now have power. The problem for Gonzales, Plaquemine and Donaldsonville is to keep an eye on the water levels. Flooding was the big culprit with this storm. There has been widespread flooding and I know all three of those communities are along the Mississippi River. There are several tributaries fed by the Mississippi that are rising and there is some flooding problems."
Papers in Arkansas are battening down the hatches.
"We have flash flood warnings out," Arkansas regional editor Wendy Ledbetter said in an email Thursday. "I think it will hit us pretty good from what they're forecasting but the northern properties should be okay."
We'll update this story when we have more information.
GateHouse papers in Louisiana and Arkansas prepared for Hurricane Isaac and responded as the storm swept in.
Louisiana Group Publisher Glenn Stifflemire made plans to ensure the papers got out well in advance of Hurricane Isaac's arrival. He also put editors on notice to use social media and keep their websites updated.
Allison Hudson took heed.
When the building housing Donaldsonville Cheif lost power and internet access, editor Hudson took to her iPhone.
"We did get the papers out Monday, but couldn't get them printed [the press in Baton Rouge lost power], so that's when I said, 'Let's take it to social media., " she said Thursday.
She went out into the community, letting people know she was posting information continuously to Facebook and Twitter, and gave her phone number to store owners and community members, telling them to keep her updated. She spoke hourly with the mayor's office.
And the recent group project on hurricane preparedness the Louisiana papers had collaborated on couldn't have been more timely.
"I took the papers that had the group project and gave them out," Hudson said.
Hudson took photos with her iPhone and solicited photos from fans and followers on social media.
"People have been uploading photos, texting photos - it's been great," she said,
Folks on social media have also thanked the paper for the constant stream of information.
"Awesome coverage of hurricane preparations in D'ville," one fan wrote on their Facebook wall.
As of Thursday afternoon, Hudson couldn't get to the office, so she wasn't sure what condition it's in.
Regional editor Brian Trahan, who is the editor of the Southwest Daily News in Sulphur, La., reports the papers located further west fared better than those in Donaldsonville, Gonsalves and Plaquemine.
"We didn't quite catch the storm like the east side papers did," he wrote in an email Thursday, "We didn't open the office Wednesday, but I uploaded stories and photos on the websites from my house. I kept in constant contact with the National Weather Service, the local government officials etc. As far as the east side papers, they are still without phones and internet today, but they now have power. The problem for Gonzales, Plaquemine and Donaldsonville is to keep an eye on the water levels. Flooding was the big culprit with this storm. There has been widespread flooding and I know all three of those communities are along the Mississippi River. There are several tributaries fed by the Mississippi that are rising and there is some flooding problems."
Papers in Arkansas are battening down the hatches.
"We have flash flood warnings out," Arkansas regional editor Wendy Ledbetter said in an email Thursday. "I think it will hit us pretty good from what they're forecasting but the northern properties should be okay."
We'll update this story when we have more information.
