It’s always a good idea to plan your day, look ahead in an effort to make the most of your time.

Then there are days like Wednesday.

It’s 6 a.m., there are children to wake up, dress, feed and get off to school.

There’s coffee to make for my wife and maybe a bowl of cereal to fix for myself.

Then … Beep, Beep … there’s a text:

“ Suspect has escaped from Warren County Jail.”

As I am reading that text, almost at the exact same moment, you can hear the plans for your day completely going off the rails. With the exception of the coffee mind you; that’s just too important to forget.

As someone who has enjoyed a career in newspapers for more than 20 years, there are those days when breaking news happens. And, very rarely have I ever explained to others just what takes place.

It’s now 6:05 a.m. and I am feverously typing a text and Facebook messages to those who work in our newsroom. As soon as I hit send, and they start reading, you can also hear their plans for the day going off the rails.

Now while other media outlets were putting out information, there are levels of scrutiny and verification that we require before we share anything. We like to hear news from those in authority, rather than nearly confirmed rumors and reports.

When it comes to a breaking news story, such as the one we continue to chase, information changes, new facts emerge and earlier stories reports no longer are viable.

There is a dance we dance between getting information out quickly and getting the correct information out. We want to be first all the time, but we’d rather be the first ones right.

It’s 6:30 a.m., there are calls being placed to law enforcement officials. Messages are left, some calls are answered. A story is now beginning to be put together.

At 7 a.m. we now have enough for a story, but there’s another angle that must be researched. The Warren County Jail is located in downtown, close to a number of schools.

Are those schools located near the jail being put on lock down? What is being done?

A call to Superintendent Chad Shealy is made after 7 a.m., promptly answered, and information shared.

Yes, there is soft lockdown at Academy of Innovation. The school was searched and extra law enforcement is one hand. The middle schools near by are also getting attention.

Now, the initial story is read and approved for online shortly before 8 a.m.

Links to the story are placed on Facebook, Twitter and a breaking news email is sent out to thousands of addresses.

It’s now 8:15 a.m., we have a reporter downtown, looking for additional information and taking photos.

Oh, and the editor Jan Griffey just called me and asked if I would be writing a column for today’s edition. I tend to forget at times.

In this case, there was a column already prepared, on a completely different topic, that now has to be discarded.

It’s close to 9 a.m. and still no word on this suspect, a dangerous man connected to the brutal killing of Sharon Wilson last year.

Our editorial deadline for most days is 9:30 a.m., I have a strong feeling we won’t be making that deadline today. Maybe 10:30 or so.

Breaking news is something that happens. It is something that newsrooms are trained to handle.

While we strive to remain object in our coverage, we do worry, we do have concerns. We also, as residents of Vicksburg and Warren County, are ever thankful of those who serve in our law enforcement.

Although the news of the day derailed our plans, I will never be able to imagine what this jailbreak did to those at the jail, or those at the sheriff’s department and police department.

Let us hope by the time this column is read that Rafael McCloud is back behind bars.

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Tim Reeves is publisher of The Vicksburg Post. You may reach him at tim.reeves@vicksburgpost.com.