A tornado hit Jackson last Friday. Pretty rare, pretty big deal. Ever since, we’ve been amping the energy online – with a flashy breaking news layout – and in print – with all-tornado fronts and extra pages. Good decision I think. Our Web site has seen a 25% increase in traffic this week. Our many weather videos, which we plopped prominently on the front, are getting record views.

So when should it end? When should the site lose the emergency mode? Here we are four days after the tornado; is the story getting tired?

Not if the community justifies the coverage. Not only are we getting more views, but accolades. Actual compliments. Plus, more than 5,000 people are still without power, so we’re not out of the woods yet. In fact, with the mounds of debris piling up on the curbs, we’re deeper in wood.

God. I couldn’t stop myself.

I say watch the site traffic. Let the readers decide when they’ve had enough.