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Limbs and trees are falling around the county as the remnants of Hurricane Gustav continue to batter Arkansas. Union County Judge Bobby Edmonds said Tuesday morning that his office has had multiple calls about downed trees — as many as eight large trees in all.

Scanner traffic is busy today with reports of downed limbs all over the city. A transformer blew near Ashley’s Furniture earlier this morning and several businesses along North West Avenue lost power.

Power has been restored to most areas at this time.

Edmonds said residents should use caution when traveling around the city and county.

“We would ask everyone to be alert, especially if they see roadways that appear flooded,” he said. “Don’t ever try to drive down a road that appears flooded. You never know what kind of shape the road may be in under the water. Things can get out of hand very quickly.”

Edmonds said he felt that because rains have been slow and steady, flash flooding will likely not be an issue.

The forecast through Wednesday and part of Thursday calls for a 100 percent chance of rain, heavy at times, with wind gusts up to 45 miles per hour.

UPDATE — RAINFALL TOTAL AS OF 11:35 A.M., ACCORDING TO THE ARKANSAS FORESTRY COMMISSION: 2.07 INCHES

UPDATE 2 — EL DORADO POLICE DEPARTMENT SCANNER TRAFFIC IS REPORTING THAT TREES AND POWER LINES ARE DOWN IN THE AREA OF MORNING STAR ROAD AND MT. HOLLY ROAD.

UPDATE 3 — If you’re heading toward the Silver Hill United Methodist Church, be warned that there’s a large tree partially blocking Silver Hill Loop. No damage reports.

El Dorado businessman Richard Mason made the High Profile cover inside Sunday’s Arkansas Democrat-Gazette.

The story traced Mason’s roots from a boy in Norphlet to one of Union County’s most successful businessmen.

Along the way, Mason and his wife, Vertis, have restored dozens of El Dorado buildings, helping to revitalize a once-struggling downtown.

Gustav, now a weakening tropical depression, will continue to dump rain on much of Arkansas through the end of the week. We haven’t seen many flooding problems yet, but keep your eyes peeled for possible flash floods.

Winds are whipping outside. Lights flickered and went out twice this morning at my home in Ouachita County. Hopefully no one will be without power long.

Also, I saw several large tree limbs and at least one tree down on property along Calion Road this morning.

At the peak, 2,500 were without power in Union County. Entergy says that all power should be restored by Wednesday.

From the Times-Picayune:

“The southeast Louisiana exodus filled highways with gridlock, grief and anxiety over the weekend, as hundreds of thousands of motorists fled the threat of Hurricane Gustav for higher ground farther inland. Now with the storm spinning safely in the distance, evacuees are grappling with yet another anxious question: When should I come home?

“To their certain dismay, the answer was not immediately available Monday. Announcements are due today, with the earliest allowed re-entry likely Wednesday.”

Click here for more.

UPDATE — El Dorado shelters are still filled with evacuees, although some of the more adventuresome are making their way home today. Look for more in Wednesday’s News-Times.

Check out the political “crop art” someone made in a field in Mayflower. Click here for access.

At one point on Monday, El Dorado had the highest number of Hurricane Gustav evacuees in the state, according to the South Arkansas Chapter of the American Red Cross. Sandy Matheney, director of the SACARC, said that as of 6 p.m., 426 people were staying at six shelters inside the city.

Matheney has been running non-stop since around 2:45 a.m. Sunday morning, when she fielded the first call from someone in need: A Louisiana family searching for a place to stay. They were parked at a gas station on Hillsboro Street with little money and nowhere to sleep.

Matheney immediately coordinated with officials from the College Avenue Church of Christ to open the first emergency shelter in El Dorado.

Since then, “things have been going great,” Matheney said. “We have had volunteers from all sorts of faith-based organizations and in the community. Everyone has really stepped up.”

Other shelters have been set up at St. John Missionary Baptist Church, the First United Methodist Church, Mount Union Baptist Church, Immanuel Baptist Church and at the Salvation Army — each one offering meals, hot showers and a place for evacuees to rest their heads for the next several days.

Matheney said she didn’t know how many evacuees were staying at El Dorado hotels, but “I want them to know that they can come to any of our shelters to get a free meal.”

El Dorado is no stranger to hosting hurricane evacuees. During Hurricane Katrina in 2005, the city hosted more than 1,000 residents who fled the powerful storm. Matheney said that Hurricane Gustav has brought less evacuees to town.

“It’s certainly not on a Katrina level,” Matheney said. “And it’s not near as chaotic because Katrina evacuees came in waves. And this time we are much more organized. We learned a lot of lessons with Katrina. The community is more prepared this time, and the Red Cross is more prepared.”

At a shelter set up inside the First United Methodist Church in El Dorado, senior pastor Jim Polk is visiting with folks he hasn’t seen since Katrina. Polk said that several — probably half — of the 71 people at his shelter told him that they drove north with El Dorado and the Methodist church specifically in mind.

“They felt like the would be among friends here,” Polk said. “We remembered each other, we caught with each other, and it feels like one big family.”

Donations to the Red Cross — which are used to provide shelter, food, counseling and other assistance to victims of disasters — can be made online at www.redcross.org or by calling 1-800-REDCROSS. Donors can also contact the SACARC, 404 South West Ave., El Dorado, 71730, by calling (870) 863-8196.