Mix of misery over the weekend

It was a mix of misery for Perry County residents over the weekend. First, unrelenting rains, then freezing rains as churches across the region let out, then traffic deaths in Williamson County because of it, then temperatures back down into the teens Sunday night.

The system even brought an EF2 tornado that touched down in Livingston County, Ky.

Rainfall totals ranged from 2.5 inches in Marion and Carbondale to an average 3.8 inches in Du Quoin and Pinckneyville. The city street departments set out cones in several neighborhoods where the water in ditches ran up over the streets and roads.

The rainfall is certain to help the waters of the Mississippi and restore ground water for farmers.