OFFERING AID

Above Gov. Mike Beebe and U.S. Rep. Vic Snyder listen to concerns of area residents at a Red Cross shelter Friday afternoon as state Sen. Shane Broadway looks on. Saline County was among five counties in Arkansas declared a disaster area after Thursday-Friday storms that left damage and destruction in their wake. Several areas of the county including Benton, Bryant and Haskell, received heavy damage. Some areas not hit by the tornado itself awakened to flooding, with as much as four inches of rain falling overnight. The governor met with residents affected by the storm at a Red Cross shelter set up at First Pentecostal Church in Bryant before touring the damaged areas.