Winter storm blamed for Nebraska fatality
Posted: Wednesday, December 12, 2007
OMAHA (AP) -- A snow and ice storm that gripped the southern Plains caused problems as far north as Nebraska, where there were power outages, school closings and one death blamed on slick roads.
Power lines in the southeast part of the state were downed by falling trees and ice buildup, leaving thousands of residences and businesses without electricity on Tuesday.
In south-central Nebraska, a Ravenna woman died when a vehicle hit a Buffalo County snowplow.
Some flights in and out of Omaha's Eppley Airfield were canceled, and the funeral of one of the Omaha mall shooting victims was postponed until today.
Ice accumulations of a half-inch to an inch were reported along a line from Nebraska City west to Beatrice and points south, National Weather Service meteorologist Dave Fobert said.
Some 2,000 Nebraska Public Power District customers in nine communities were without electricity early in the day, spokesman Mark Becker said. About 70 percent of those customers had power by mid-afternoon.
About 1,800 Omaha Public Power District customers also lost power, most in the Humboldt area, spokesman Mike Jones said. Several hundred of those customers had their power restored by the afternoon, Jones said.
About 600 Norris Public Power District customers in the southern portions of Gage, Thayer and Jefferson counties were without power Tuesday afternoon, down from about 1,700 earlier in the day, operations manager Randy Evans said.
Authorities in Falls City asked water customers to conserve water Tuesday night. Because of the numerous power outages, Falls City hasn't been able to run the pumps that bring water from the plant south of Rulo.
The water tower is about half full now, and city officials hope the pumps will be usable by early today.
In Buffalo County, 47-year-old Laurie Shrader of Ravenna was killed when she lost control of her car and hit a snowplow 14 miles south of Ravenna.
The Buffalo County Sheriff's office said Shrader died at the scene. The driver of the snowplow -- Bryan Hibberd, 41, of Kearney -- and a passenger were uninjured. The sheriff's office said bad weather conditions contributed to the accident.
Power lines in the southeast part of the state were downed by falling trees and ice buildup, leaving thousands of residences and businesses without electricity on Tuesday.
In south-central Nebraska, a Ravenna woman died when a vehicle hit a Buffalo County snowplow.
Some flights in and out of Omaha's Eppley Airfield were canceled, and the funeral of one of the Omaha mall shooting victims was postponed until today.
Ice accumulations of a half-inch to an inch were reported along a line from Nebraska City west to Beatrice and points south, National Weather Service meteorologist Dave Fobert said.
Some 2,000 Nebraska Public Power District customers in nine communities were without electricity early in the day, spokesman Mark Becker said. About 70 percent of those customers had power by mid-afternoon.
About 1,800 Omaha Public Power District customers also lost power, most in the Humboldt area, spokesman Mike Jones said. Several hundred of those customers had their power restored by the afternoon, Jones said.
About 600 Norris Public Power District customers in the southern portions of Gage, Thayer and Jefferson counties were without power Tuesday afternoon, down from about 1,700 earlier in the day, operations manager Randy Evans said.
Authorities in Falls City asked water customers to conserve water Tuesday night. Because of the numerous power outages, Falls City hasn't been able to run the pumps that bring water from the plant south of Rulo.
The water tower is about half full now, and city officials hope the pumps will be usable by early today.
In Buffalo County, 47-year-old Laurie Shrader of Ravenna was killed when she lost control of her car and hit a snowplow 14 miles south of Ravenna.
The Buffalo County Sheriff's office said Shrader died at the scene. The driver of the snowplow -- Bryan Hibberd, 41, of Kearney -- and a passenger were uninjured. The sheriff's office said bad weather conditions contributed to the accident.
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