All of us have some fairly simple needs as human beings. Sure, we need food, water, shelter, etc.

But beyond those, human beings want to be understood, and we, generally, like to feel as if we’re doing good work and providing help to others, too.

Too often in our society, we look at citizens who have broken society’s laws as outcasts. But aside from a few truly evil individuals, the vast majority of people who are incarcerated share much of those basic human needs that the free citizens need, too.

Perhaps that’s why the recent help fighting the floods went so well here. Not only were lots of local, free citizens working for the greater good, but a small army of incarcerated people was also working around the clock to save life and property.

When the City of Natchez was looking for a fast way to fill thousands of sandbags to protect low-lying areas at Natchez Under-the-Hill and the Natchez Waste Water Treatment Plant, among others, all they had to do was make one phone call.

Inmates from the Adams County Correctional Center were called into action. City crews said in no time the inmates were filling sandbags faster than city crews could haul them off.

Across the river in Concordia Parish, inmate labor was also used to help erect temporary levees around buildings and water wells on the Vidalia Riverfront.

Without their help the fight against the highest flood in modern history would not have gone as well as it did.

Our community is forever grateful to the inmates whose labor and sweat was poured out to save property they may never set eyes upon and the prison staff that helped ensure their work was performed safely.