Posted by: Melissa McKinney - bio | email

MONTGOMERY, AL (WSFA) - A local woman is still in shock after hearing that her cousin was among those killed by pirates in Somalia.

Carol Kloess was working when her husband called her to say pirates killed Phyllis Macay and three other Americans onboard her yacht--The Quest.

Kloess couldn't believe it. The first thought that went through her mind was, "It's not true."

"I actually think I went into shock," said Kloess.

Kloess never thought the last time she'd see Macay would be on a computer screen. She looked at her cousin's online blog, which was how she kept track of her travels.

MONTGOMERY, AL (WSFA) - Two State Farmers' Markets are among the first casualties of a slashed state budget.

Commissioner John McMillan has announced that the Markets at Fairview and Fairgrounds in Montgomery, operated by the Alabama Department of Agriculture and Industries, will cease operations due to budget cuts.

“Due to the fact that these two markets, both located in Montgomery, have been operating at a significant loss, we have no choice but to close them in an effort to save taxpayer dollars to meet our other obligations,” McMillan said.

The closures will be effective March 1.

The Alabama Farmer's Federation said this is an unfortunate situation.

"We hate to see cuts for Agriculture and businesses in Alabama." said AFF representative Mac Higginbotham. "This is a challenging time for our state. State agencies and businesses are having to make cuts to meet budget requirements."

The Montgomery Catholic varsity golf team overcame a sluggish start with a strong finish to capture first place in the Auburn Invitational Monday at Indian Pines Golf Club.

Junior Jacob Stinson shot a 73 to earn medalist honors and junior Jason Katz shot a 77 to lead the Knights to a two-shot victory over host Auburn High School. Katz was named to the all-tournament team.

The Knights shot a team score of 313. Sophomore Chapman Barranco had an 81 and junior Corey Jackson had an 82. Zach Jones, an eighth-grader, shot an 87.

The Knights are back in action Feb. 28 and March 1 in the annual Blue-Gray Invitational at Wynlakes and Lagoon Park.

Pictured: Montgomery Catholic Varsity Golf team members Corey Jackson, Jacob Stinson, Chapman Barranco, Jason Katz, Zach Jones, and Coach Mike Barranco with the winning trophy of the Auburn High School Invitational at Indian Pines Golf Club.