Guiding you through breaking a news story

At any point in the day, anything can happen.
If you're a reporter, this could mean either two things. for one, the breaking news could mean a chance to get the story first and really make a name for yourself, or two, it could mean you will be dropping everything you are working on of lesser importance to make sure you get accurate and quality coverage of whatever it is that might be happening.
Here in the office we have a police scanner.
Monday late morning, the unofficial word through the scanner was ammunition fire in Oley Township.
A day before deadline for a weekly paper, proofreading, prelim production and staying on top of readying a paper goes out the window as I try to determine where the shooting is in case I can speak with the police.
There is no exact way to describe what you feel when you drive to the location of a potential tragedy.
Part of you wants everything to be a misunderstanding: neighborhood children setting off fireworks?
Part of you would prefer something news-related without any serious injuries.
Fortunately, the latter happens and I have a well-informed conversation with the Oley Township police.
Voila: I have a news story done an hour after the initial report breaks.
...
Then, I return to the office, where everything else I was worrying about is waiting on my desk in a neat pile.
I am left with a satisfactory feeling that everything went relatively well, and that, true believers, is what makes the job rewarding.