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.

 

 

 

 

 

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.

LINCOLN, Neb. (AP) — A proposal to reinstate the winner-take-all system for Nebraska’s presidential electors has stalled in the Legislature.

Supporters on Tuesday fell two votes short of the support needed to overcome a filibuster by senators who opposed the bill. The 31-18 vote effectively kills it for the rest of the year.

Nebraska and Maine are the only states where it’s possible to split electoral votes between opposing presidential candidates, though other states have considered the practice. Two of Nebraska’s electoral votes are awarded to the statewide winner, while the remaining three are distributed by congressional district.

The state split its electoral votes for the first time in 2008, when Democrat Barack Obama captured one from the 2nd congressional district in Omaha on his way to the presidency.

GERING, Neb. (AP) — A trial is beginning for a Nebraska teenager accused of helping plot a fatal attack on a Scotts Bluff County corrections officer.

Seventeen-year-old Guy Eagle Elk, of Lisco, has been charged as an adult with felony aiding and abetting assault in the Feb. 14, 2014, death of jail guard Amanda Baker. A jury was selected on Monday and is scheduled to hear testimony Tuesday in the trial in Scotts Bluff County District Court in Gering.

Eagle Elk is accused of showing 16-year-old Dylan Cardeilhac, of Torrington, Wyoming, how to strangle Baker.

Cardeilhac has been convicted in Baker’s death and has been sentenced to 60 years to life in prison.

LINCOLN, Neb. (AP) — Nebraska Attorney General Doug Peterson is recovering at his home after surgery to address early stages of prostate cancer.

Peterson went into surgery Friday afternoon. His spokeswoman, Suzanne Gage, said Monday that the early-phase cancer was detected during a doctor’s appointment in December.

Gage says the doctors told her they felt the surgery was successful. Peterson will be conducting business from home this week.

In 2013, then-Attorney General Jon Bruning underwent successful surgery to remove part of his colon and surrounding lymph nodes after he was diagnosed with colon cancer.

LINCOLN, Neb. (AP) — A Nebraska law that allows the public to know the names and backgrounds of finalists for top government jobs is sometimes ignored and frequently challenged.

Open-government groups say they often see a new push for secrecy whenever a school superintendent or university president’s job comes open. In January, the Omaha Public Power District was criticized for refusing to disclose four finalists for its open CEO job.

As part of Sunshine Week, The Associated Press is highlighting the disclosure law, which has survived despite bills in the Legislature that could have undermined open searches for some offices. None have passed.

Supporters say disclosing job candidates makes it harder to recruit a large, high-quality pool.

Allen Beermann of the Nebraska Press Association says releasing finalist names serves the interest of taxpayers.

A 28-year-old North Platte man is dead following a motorcycle accident on Highway 30 in Hershey.

At around 6:35 a.m., on Monday morning, deputies with the Lincoln County Sheriff’s Office and Hershey First Responders responded to an injury motorcycle accident on Highway 30, between Canal Street and Lincoln Street, in Hershey.

According to authorities, an investigation revealed that Kevin S. Engleman was riding a 2001 Harley Davidson motorcycle westbound on Highway 30, when he swerved to miss a dog in the roadway and lost control of the motorcycle.

Deputies say the accident rendered Engleman disabled in the westbound lane of the road.

Witnesses immediately attempted to help Engleman when, in the confusion, a westbound pickup struck him.

Deputies say it appears the driver of the pickup could not see Engleman because of the darkness.

Engelman was pronounced dead at the scene.

The investigation into the accident is ongoing.

A mid-morning nap in the parking lot of a North Platte truck stop has led to felony charges for a Holdrege couple.

At around 10:00 a.m., on March 15, an officer with the North Platte Police Department responded to Flying J, 3400 South Newberry Road, to conduct a welfare check after police were notified that a man was slumped over the steering wheel of a silver Ford Taurus.

The officer located the vehicle and observed 45-year-old Jack Woodke, 21-year-old Michelle Grigg and two small children, ages one and two, asleep in the vehicle.

The officer made contact with the couple and learned they both had active warrants out of Phelps County.

After the duo was taken into custody, officers conducted a search of the vehicle and located a glass pipe containing marijuana, paraphernalia commonly used to consume methamphetamine and marijuana, paraphernalia used in the distribution of methamphetamine and marijuana, 320 grams of marijuana, 11 grams of THC wax compound and 15 grams of methamphetamine.

In the end, Woodke and Grigg were transported to the Lincoln County Detention Center and charged with two counts of felony possession of marijuana with intent to deliver, felony possession of methamphetamine with intent to deliver, felony child abuse, and possession of drug paraphernalia.

Once at the jail, officers located more meth on Woodke’s person, along with around $1,500 cash.

The children were transported to Great Plains Health for basic medical care, and placed in the custody of the Nebraska Department of Health and Human Services.

As of Monday afternoon, Woodke and Grigg were being held at the LCDC without bond.

LINCOLN, Neb. (AP) — The state of Nebraska has received nearly $4.5 million to help businesses grow and create jobs.

The U.S. Treasury Department recently awarded the money to the Nebraska Department of Economic Development.

The money will be used to help companies in the early stages of their development grow. The money will be used for loans and investments in businesses.

This is the third installment of money the state has received from the Treasury Department. Altogether, Nebraska has received $13.17 million since October 2011.

SIDNEY, Neb. (AP) — Reconstruction work is scheduled to begin this week on eastbound and westbound Interstate 80 in western Nebraska.

The Nebraska Roads Department says the work area will run from Reference Post 51 to Reference Post 62 in the Sidney area.

Traffic will be reduced to head-to-head travel on the westbound lanes while work on the eastbound lanes is being performed. The eastbound construction work is expected to be finished by October 2016.