Latest local news, weather and high school sports from the Midlands

Paranoia, anxiety grow over Gulf Coast oil spill

People along the Gulf Coast have spent weeks living with uncertainty, wondering where and when a huge slick of oil might come ashore, ruining their beaches — and their livelihoods.

The anxiety is so acute that some are seeing and smelling oil where there is none. And even though the dead turtles and jellyfish washing ashore along the Gulf of Mexico are clean, and scientists have yet to determine what killed them, many are just sure the flow of crude unleashed by the explosion at BP's Deepwater Horizon is the culprit. Read more 

Delicate work unfolds a mile beneath Gulf 

Engineers are racing to stem the disastrous oil leak a mile beneath the Gulf of Mexico, relying on a series of highly technical — and in some cases unprecedented — maneuvers.

They have deployed an armada of remote-controlled submarine robots that are essentially turning wrenches to try to repair malfunctioning equipment and cap the leak while spraying chemicals from a wand into the muck to disperse the oil. Read more 

Attention shoppers: Gulf spill could affect you

The tentacles of the Gulf of Mexico oil spill could reach beyond the coast to just about anyone who drinks coffee, eats shrimp, likes bananas or plans to buy tires.

The slick has forced the shutdown of the gulf's rich fishing grounds and could spread to the busy shipping lanes, tying up the cargo vessels and driving up the price of many commodities. Read more 

Group ready to save animals in Gulf Coast

A group of southwest Georgians are prepping for a trip to save animals affected by the oil spill in the Gulf Coast.

Licensed Wildlife Rehabilitator Amanda Barber says the group of about 10 will go to the Pensacola area to help rescue thousands of animals covered in oil. Read more 

Local restaurants already feeling oil spill impact

As the oil creeps onto the Gulf Coast shorelines from an oil spill last week, southwest Georgia is bracing for impact.

Restaurants in Albany that serve seafood are expecting seafood prices to skyrocket and are getting ready for a seafood shortage. Read more 

Video: Fisherman frustrated in Mississippi