Friday, August 19, 2011

Can America's 'best hometown' survive?

Hackleburg, Alabama (CNN) -- In a small town that has lost almost everything, there is no shortage of questions.
First came the spiritual and philosophical questions -- the ones residents of this community of nearly 1,500 faced immediately after the 210 mph winds of a massive April tornado nearly wiped them off the map.
Was it God's wrath or natural tragedy? As residents rounded up and burned or shipped the debris that was once their town, they mourned their 18 neighbors who died, and weighed how to feel about their fate.
About 150 people left town. Those who remained held tightly to each other. And now, more than two months later, they await answers to another set of questions: practical, bricks-and-mortar decisions that will shape the town's future and affect their daily lives.
Hackleburg's two schools are gone. So is its only grocery store. Its only pharmacy. Only doctor's office. And major employer.
Will Wrangler -- the "Mercedes Benz" of Hackleburg -- rebuild its giant distribution center?
Will the Piggly Wiggly -- "the Pig," as most folks call it -- come back?
What will happen if they don't

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