The National Weather Service has issued a severe thunderstorm warning for Dodge, Treutlen, Laurens, and Telfair until 1:30 a.m.

It took firefighters about an hour to put out a fire at a Bleckley County convenience store Friday afternoon.

The fire was called in around 5 p.m. from Perry's Store on Highway 26 east. The store was open at the time.

Bleckley County Fire Chief Glenn Lord said the fire started in the store's attic and caused heavy damage throughout the store.

Employee Sam Blash was on duty. He says he was burning trash earlier in the evening when he went inside to help a customer.

"I got a customer and I came around front and about five or six minutes later this guy came by and he turned in here and said your building's on fire," says Blash.

Lord said the cause is unknown, but it's not believed to be suspicious.

He says it could have something to do with burning trash in the back of the building.

"Could have been an aerosol can went up against the side. It was wood inside and it went up against the wall into the attic," says Lord.

A Central Georgia group is working to minister to those struggling with addiction by using a twelve-step program with a spiritual approach, and they're completing their mission with the help of some faithful volunteers.

82-year-old Eddie Bush has a passion for helping others. That's why he says, for more than 30 years, he's been part of an organization called Carpenters for Christ.

"We go out into different places where there's need."

The group started in 1975 on mission trips for disaster relief in foreign countries," said Bush.