LINCOLN, Neb. (AP) — Nebraska lawmakers have advanced a bill that could help them anticipate financial downturns similar to the one that created the 2009 state budget crisis.
Lawmakers gave the bill first-round approval on Tuesday with a 36-0 vote. If it’s approved, the Legislature’s fiscal office would submit annual reports to lawmakers predicting possible changes in state revenue and federal funding.
Sen. Heath Mello of Omaha, chairman of the Appropriations Committee, says the information could help lawmakers set future state budgets.
Lawmakers balanced the budget during the 2009 crisis with a combination of spending cuts and federal money, and at several points considered a tax increase. Supporters of the bill say the federal government is unlikely to provide emergency money to states in the future.
KEARNEY, Neb. – Although he’s still in his first season playing hockey in the United States, Tri-City Storm defenseman Mattias Goransson has made up his mind. He wants to stay.
Goransson has committed to play collegiately at the University of Massachusetts-Lowell with the River Hawks in the Hockey East conference.
A native of Grums, Sweden, Goransson visited the school’s campus last week and said it was all he needed to see.
“It was a great visit,” Goransson said “I really liked the campus and the rink was awesome. The players showed me around where they lived, and I really liked that everything was close.”
The defenseman has appeared in all 52 games this season for the Storm, scoring six goals and adding 19 assists for 25 points.
It has been an adjustment for the six-foot, three-inch blueliner, who had to learn to play on a smaller ice surface than what he was used to in Sweden. Goransson credited Tri-City assistant coach JB Bittner with helping him make the necessary changes.
“I’ve worked with JB almost every day it’s helped me improve my skills,” Goransson said. “The rink was new for me. It took time to get used to playing on the smaller ice but he’s really helped me get comfortable, be in the right position with my gap control, and protect myself when I get hit.
“You don’t have as much time here, but I can use my size here much more than I could on the bigger ice.”
Goransson, who played for Brynas J20 in Sweden during the 2013-14 season, said he values the chance to play at the next level while attending classes.
“It’s a big opportunity for me to combine school and hockey,” Goransson said. “You don’t have that opportunity in Sweden on a high level. It feels great to secure the next couple years, knowing what I’m going to do. I’m feeling good with it.”
Joining Storm forward Nick Master, who is already committed to play at UML, the two will become the fifth and sixth players in Storm history to move on to Lowell, and the first to wear a Redhawks sweater since Bill Eiserman in 2012. Bobby Robins, who made his NHL debut earlier this season with the Boston Bruins, played in Lowell from 2002-06 after spending the 2001-02 season in Kearney.
Including Goransson, Tri-City now has 19 players committed to play Division I college hockey.
Goransson is the sixth player on the roster to commit to a school in the Hockey East, joining Master, Tory Dello and Bobby Nardella (Notre Dame), Garrett Gamez (Providence College), and Christopher Brown (Boston College).
Tri-City leads the Western Conference with 70 points, and is one point behind the Youngstown Phantoms for the USHL lead with eight games remaining in the regular season.
“We want to win the Anderson Cup,” Goransson said. “We’re still in the race there. That’s exciting; we still have much to play for. We’re trying to make the best of it and get a good spot in the playoffs.”
The Storm will have a chance to clinch a playoff berth this weekend, hosting Des Moines for two games. Friday’s contest begins at 7:30 p.m., whileSaturday’s is at 7:05.
For more information and to purchase tickets, contact the Viaero Event Center Box Office at 308.338.8011 or visit www.stormhockey.com.
Tammy Lamoyne (Kenton) Daniels 56, of Wamsutter, WY. passed away on March 13, 2015 from diabetic complications. Tammy was born on August 12, 1958 in Mullen Ne. She was raised north of Thedford on the family ranch; she spent most of her life in the Sandhills of Nebraska. She was most recently a resident of Wamsutter, WY. Tammy enjoyed music, singing, rodeo, and gold prospecting as hobbies and areas of interest.
She was survived by her companion William Jones; her children, Amanda From, Samantha From, and Tagg (Jayme) From and their children; siblings, Charles (Shot) Kenton, Cathy Williams, Debora Allen, Sharron Kenton and Freddy Kenton; as well as many nieces, nephews, and cousins.
She was preceded in death by her parents, Genevieve E. (Hamilton) Kenton and Lamoyne J. Kenton.
Memorials are suggested in her name to Adams and Swanson Funeral Home; online condolences can be made at www.adamsswanson.com. Cremation was chosen and a public book signing and family reception will be 12:00 pm – 6:00 pm Saturday, March 21, 2015 at Adams and Swanson Funeral Home in North Platte Ne.
From left: Chief Dennis Thompson, Mayor Dwight Livingston and Emergency Management Director Brandon Myers meet with the media during a news conference Tuesday afternoon.
What could have been a tragedy for North Platte, especially residents in the northeast area of town, was averted thanks to a coordinated response by numerous agencies.
At around 2:15 p.m., on Monday, a fire near the nature trails on the northeast side of Cody Park was reported to the North Platte 911 Center.
Shortly thereafter, another caller reported a fire in the same area.
Within three minutes, the North Platte Fire Department, led by Chief Dennis Thompson, was on the scene and began coordinating a plan of attack.
According to Thompson, it was discovered that the fire was in an area, along the Platte River, that was not accessible by truck. Thompson said this meant the only way to battle the fire was to get right up on it, on foot, and fight it from there.
“If you’ve ever been in the area of the nature trails, there’s a lot of vegetation, overgrowth and trees, so this was going to be a fire that was going to take a lot of equipment and manpower to reach,” Thompson said.
Increasingly strong winds only made the fire move faster and become more unpredictable.
Thompson said the primary concern initially, was to protect residences that were in danger of being impacted by the fire. While there was never an official evacuation order, Thompson said residents that were close to the path of the fire were strongly encouraged to leave.
“We didn’t lose any structures that were inhabited, we did lose some auxiliary buildings, storage sheds and that sort of thing, but nobody was displaced from their homes on a permanent basis, ” said Thompson.
Thompson said the strong winds, along with the proximity of the fire to residences, prompted them to call for “mutual aid.”
The NPFD has an agreement with 11 other departments who support each other when assistance, in the form of equipment and personnel, is needed.
Thompson said six departments responded, bringing the total number of personnel on-scene to around 70.
Perhaps the biggest piece of the puzzle was assistance from aircraft.
Lincoln County Emergency Management Director, Brandon Myers, said two pilots responded to assist and played a vital role in fighting the fire.
According to Myers, Lincoln County Commissioner, Joe Hewgley, was contacted and a disaster declaration was issued for the County, which allowed them to utilize the North Platte Regional Airport and other resources.
Myers said the planes, one from Wallace and one from Broken Bow, were able to drop fire retardant on the fire and were essential in slowing the spread of the fire and in allowing firefighters to get the upper hand.
An air unit from the Nebraska State Patrol also relayed information on the fire to firefighters on the ground.
In the end, the fire burned approximately 110 acres, and no injuries were reported.
At one point, the fire did edge into Cody Park, but city officials say the animals in the park were never in any danger, and a plan was in place to protect them if necessary.
Highway 30, East 12th Street and the main lines of the Union Pacific Railroad were all shut down during the event.
While the fire was contained at around 9:00 p.m., Thompson said firefighters will remain on the scene for at least another 48 hours to monitor the area and extinguish any flare-ups.
Thompson said the response from the community was amazing, but not unexpected.
“Our community comes together on these types of things,” Thomson said. “We had a tremendous outpouring of people wanting to provide refreshments, food and anything they could to help. We just know that’s going to happen out here and we appreciate everybody that offered to help.”
Assistance was also provided by the North Platte Police Department, Lincoln County Sheriff’s Office, Nebraska State Patrol, American Red Cross, City of North Platte Employees and numerous other agencies.
The fire is being investigated by the Nebraska State Fire Marshal’s Office, and the cause has not yet been determined, nor has the financial cost to the city and county.
Anyone with any information is encouraged to contact local law enforcement.
The Mid-Plains Community College Rodeo Team recently signed five recruits for the 2015 – 2016 season.
They are Shane Weber, Rowdy Moon, Riley Weehler, Trey Engel and Garrett Wickett.
Weber is a saddle bronc rider from Burwell. He is currently third in the Nebraska High School Rodeo Association. Weber will be seeking a degree in electrical technology.
Moon is a bareback rider from Sargent. Moon has qualified for the National High School Rodeo finals and is leading the state in bareback. Moon plans on studying business while attending Mid-Plains.
Weehler is a tie-down roper and team roper from Maloy, Iowa. Weehler is a two-time Iowa state champion and has qualified for nationals three times. He is currently fourth in the tie-down and second in the team roping for the state of Iowa. Weehler will be an agri-business major.
Engel is a bull-rider from Clarks, Nebraska. Engel is a two-time Iowa State Champion in bull-riding and a three-time national qualifier. Engel will study diesel technology in college.
Wickett is a bull-rider from Pierce. Wickett qualified for nationals as a junior and is currently second in the state. Wickett plans to major in agri-business in college.
VERDON, Neb. (AP) — A 37-year-old Falls City man has been killed in a rollover accident near Verdon in southeast Nebraska.
The Richardson County Sheriff’s Office says William Lester was headed south on Nebraska Highway 67 late Saturday night or early Sunday morning when he lost control of his pickup when he didn’t stop at the intersection with U.S. Highway 73.
The pickup ran into a ditch and then back onto the roadway before rolling several times, ejecting Lester. He was pronounced dead at the scene.
LINCOLN, Neb. (AP) — A new report says Nebraska’s preliminary unemployment rate dropped to 2.9 percent in January from the revised December figure of 3.1 percent.
The Nebraska Labor Department said in the report released Tuesday that the rate is a half-point under the January 2014 rate of 3.4 percent.
The new Nebraska figure remains well below the preliminary national unemployment rate of 5.7 percent in January.
KNOX DALE, Pa. (AP) — Police say a Pennsylvania woman high from smoking methamphetamine has fatally shot her husband after mistaking him for an intruder.
Police say 31-year-old Trista Zickefoose shot her 40-year-old husband, Greg, on Sunday night at their duplex apartment in Knox Township, about 80 miles northeast of Pittsburgh.
Authorities say that the couple had argued after smoking the drug together and that Trista Zickefoose later heard a noise that she believed was from an intruder. Police say she grabbed a 9 mm pistol she kept under her pillow and fired a warning shot.
Police say her husband tried to take the gun away from her, but she shot him in the chest. She remains jailed Tuesday on a charge of criminal homicide.
OMAHA, Neb. (AP) — A school board has approved a plan to convert Benson High School in Omaha into a career academy, which is a new twist on the traditional vocational schools.
The $1.8 million proposal to convert the school into Omaha Public Schools’ only career-oriented high school was unanimously approved Monday.
Career academies emphasize job training and give students multiple pathways to earn college credit or industry certifications. Benson students would study business and entrepreneurship; health professions; or construction and design.
Students will also learn how to obtain a job straight out of high school, or how to pursue a higher education degree.
Benson officials say that they need $1.8 million and a six-year commitment from the Omaha Public Schools’ school board to get the career academies going. The cost of the academy includes teacher training, eight new staff hires and other start-up costs.
CHICAGO (AP) — Researchers have identified common genetic traits that may explain how aspirin can help protect against colon cancer.
It’s too soon to recommend aspirin for colon cancer prevention and the needed genetic tests aren’t available outside of research. But they might be someday if future studies confirm the results.
Aspirin users were less likely than nonusers to get colon or rectal cancer if they had genetic traits found in about 90 percent of the participants. Cancer patients were less likely to have the beneficial traits, and less likely to be frequent aspirin users.
The results were published in Tuesday’s Journal of the American Medical Association.
Frequent aspirin use can cause intestinal bleeding so it’s not generally recommended for cancer prevention.
LINCOLN, Neb. (AP) — Nebraska lawmakers have advanced a bill that could help them anticipate financial downturns similar to the one that created the 2009 state budget crisis.
