WAYNE, Neb. (AP) — A large field fire in northeastern Nebraska has been extinguished with the help of seven different fire departments.
The fire Friday afternoon in Wayne County burned around 260 acres of field and 100 hay bales. The fire was in a rural area outside of Wayne.
Officials say winds and dry conditions helped spread the fire.
Norfolk, Winside, Wisner, Humphrey, Wayne, Hoskins and West Point fire departments all responded. No one was hurt.
OMAHA, Neb. (AP) — A 14-year-old boy has been killed in a crash near the Bob Kerrey Pedestrian bridge in Omaha.
Police say the crash was reported around 2:25 a.m. Saturday, and first responders found a car that had been speeding, lost control and hit a utility pole.
Police say the 15-year-old driver and another front seat passenger were wearing seat belts and were not injured. But 14-year-old Kevin Ramirez-Cabrera in the back seat was taken to a nearby hospital, where he died of his injuries. Investigators say he was not wearing a seat belt.
RICHLAND, Neb. (AP) — A Columbus woman has been killed in a rollover crash along U.S. Highway 30 near Richland.
A Colfax County sheriff’s deputy spotted the crash around 2:15 a.m. on a county road just east of an exit to Richland.
The deputy says a man and a woman were thrown from the sport utility vehicle and taken by ambulance to a Columbus hospital, where the woman was pronounced dead.
Officials say the man’s injuries are serious, but that he is expected to live.
Authorities have not yet released the names of the man or woman pending notification of family members.
Authorities have not determined who was driving, but are investigating. Investigators say neither was wearing a seat belt at the time of the crash.
OMAHA, Neb. (AP) — Like their Republican colleagues across the country, Nebraska’s congressional delegation members are facing boisterous crowds at town hall meetings demanding answers on everything from health care to a slew of President Donald Trump’s actions since taking office in January.
U.S. Sen. Ben Sasse got a dose at constituent meetings in Omaha and Aurora on Friday. Despite the early hour of his first appearance at 8 a.m. in a west Omaha high school, about 500 people showed up to pepper him with questions and concerns. Most dealt with the GOP health care reform plan, but some people expressed outrage over Trump’s cabinet picks and habit of posting on social media.
A day earlier, U.S. Sen. Deb Fischer fielded similar crowds and questions in Holdrege and Kearney.
ASH HOLLOW, Neb. (AP) — A fire chief says dozens of firefighters have put out a wildfire that blackened an estimated 7 square miles in the southern Nebraska Panhandle.
Blue Creek Rural Fire District Chief David Dymak (DEYE’-mak) said Friday that the blaze was reported about 2:45 p.m. Thursday about 5 miles south of Lewellen. It began on an unoccupied farmstead and burned across fields of prairie grass and wheat stubble, whipped along by winds gusting to 40 mph. Dymak says some farm outbuildings were damaged as well.
He says his department was aided by nine more, amassing nearly 110 firefighters to battle the flames. Some are still on the scene, keeping watch for flare-ups.
He also says farmers aided firefighters by turning over field sections to eliminate the fuel of dried vegetation.
AINSWORTH, Neb. (AP) — Authorities will get to keep nearly $41,000 seized during a traffic stop in Brown County.
Authorities say a Nebraska state trooper stopped a speeding vehicle Jan. 6 on U.S. Highway 183. Brown County Attorney David Streich has said the trooper gained permission to search the vehicle and found the cash in a bag. Both people in the vehicle denied any knowledge of the money, leading the trooper to seize it.
A district court judge ruled Tuesday that the money was used in violation of drugs laws and ordered the cash to be forfeited. After court costs are deducted, the money will be divided between the Brown County Drug Law Enforcement Fund and the local school district.
LINCOLN, Neb. (AP) — Supporters of a bill that would more than triple Nebraska’s tax on cigarettes say it would discourage teenagers from smoking.
Doctors and other medical professionals urged a legislative committee on Friday to endorse a bill that would raise the state’s cigarette tax from 64 cents per pack to $2.14. Revenue from the additional $1.50 tax would be split between the state’s general fund and funds used for behavioral health programs.
Retailers say the increased tax would cause Nebraska smokers to buy cigarettes in other states. They say Nebraska stores along the Iowa border saw a boost in cigarette sales when Iowa raised its cigarette tax.
Nebraska’s cigarette tax is among the 10 lowest in the country.
VALENTINE, Neb. (AP) — A South Dakota man has been sentenced to prison for the 2015 death of a northern Nebraska resident.
30-year-old Tylor Krogman, of White River, South Dakota, was sentenced Friday to 10 to 18 years. He was convicted of manslaughter in the July 11, 2015, death of 64-year-old Ed Mathiesen, of Valentine.
An autopsy showed Mathiesen died of blunt force trauma and neck injuries. Krogman told investigators that he’d gone to Valentine for a bachelor party and gotten into an altercation with Mathiesen, but couldn’t remember the details.
A North Platte man allegedly passed up on a chance to go home early this morning and instead was lodged at the Lincoln County Detention Center.
According to North Platte police, an officer was investigating a disturbance at around 1:40 a.m. near the intersection of North Willow and West 11th Streets.
Police say that as the officer was speaking to a witness involved with that investigation, a male subject, later identified as 31-year-old Asa Call, came up behind the officer’s patrol car and began “impeding the officer’s investigation,” even though he was not involved in the incident the officer was dealing with.
Call was asked to leave and complied.
The officer then transported his witness to a local motel to continue his investigation. Once again, as the officer spoke to the witness, Call arrived on the scene and began to harass the officer.
After Call reportedly ignored several verbal commands to leave the area, the officer attempted to place him in custody. As he did so, police say Call became physically combative and resisted the officer’s attempts.
Additional officers arrived on the scene and assisted with taking Call into custody.
In the end, Call was transported to the LCDC and charged with felony 3rd-degree assault on a peace officer, obstruction of justice and resisting arrest.
Both Call and the officer sustained minor injuries.
JC Penney has announced the latest of its stores across the country that will be closing soon and, unfortunately, it includes the North Platte location located in the Platte River Mall.
Click the link for a full list of closures:
