• Today: Mostly sunny, with a high near 90. Northeast wind 6 to 14 mph, with gusts as high as 20 mph.
• Tonight: Partly cloudy, with a low around 60. Northeast wind 3 to 7 mph.
• Tuesday: Mostly sunny, with a high near 91. East southeast wind 5 to 13 mph.
• Tuesday Night: A 20 percent chance of showers and thunderstorms. Mostly cloudy, with a low around 64. East southeast wind 8 to 14 mph, with gusts as high as 20 mph.
• Wednesday: Mostly sunny, with a high near 92. South wind 7 to 9 mph.
• Wednesday Night: Partly cloudy, with a low around 64.
• Thursday: Mostly sunny, with a high near 92.

LOUISVILLE, Ky. (AP) — Kentucky bourbon companies are making more booze than they have since the 1970s, but the high production also holds an inherent risk.

To put it in bartenders’ lingo: Distillers are putting up the tab for millions of rounds of bourbon years before it’s even ordered.

Hitting the right moment — a big supply meshing with big demand — could mean a serious payday for one of Kentucky’s landmark traditions. Missing the target would leave bourbon makers awash with supply and leave future production in question, particularly for the craft distilleries that have seen a recent boom in popularity.

ARNOLD, Neb. (AP) — Authorities are investigating a rollover crash that killed one person and injured another in central Nebraska.

The Custer County Sheriff’s Office says the accident happened on Highway 92 about two miles west of Arnold around 3:30 a.m. Sunday.

One of the two occupants of the vehicle was thrown from it as it rolled. That person was killed.

The other occupant of the vehicle was injured in the crash and taken to Callaway Hospital for treatment. But that person is expected to survive.

The identities of the crash victims were not immediately released.

LINCOLN, Neb. (AP) — Entrepreneurs who want to turn their recipes into businesses can get help from experts at the University of Nebraska-Lincoln.

The Food Processing Center at UNL offers seminars that introduce people to the food production business and help them determine whether they want to go into business.

The seminars cover the regulations that apply to food businesses and the basics of market research and profit analysis.

If the entrepreneurs want to continue building a business, then UNL offers a follow-up program that offers individualized advice on starting a food business.

More information is available online at https://fpc.unl.edu/small_business .

OMAHA, Neb. (AP) — Union Pacific is again offering grants to help communities along the railroad promote safety.

The Omaha, Nebraska-based railroad will award grants worth between $500 and $5,000 to organizations that apply before Sept. 30.

Union Pacific says it is looking for programs that will educate people about railroad safety and rail crossing hazards.

Last year, the railroad awarded 21 grants. More information on the program is available online at www.UnionPacificCares.com .

LINCOLN, Neb. (AP) — Nebraska lawmakers will have a new debate next year over immigration, an issue that could influence the 2014 governor’s race.

Republican Pete Ricketts and Democrat Chuck Hassebrook remain sharply divided over whether Nebraska should continue to deny driver’s licenses for young immigrants who qualify for the Obama administration’s deferred-action policy.

The policy grants a temporary reprieve to youths bought to the country illegally as children, who have pursued an education or served in the military and kept a clean criminal background.

Ricketts says those who arrived in the country illegally shouldn’t receive privileges intended for legal residents. Hassebrook says denial of driver’s licenses effectively punishes the youths for their parents’ decisions.

Sen. Jeremy Nordquist says he will introduce a bill to reverse Nebraska’s policy when lawmakers convene in January.

GRAND ISLAND, Neb. (AP) — The Nebraska Game and Parks Commission will debut an interactive outdoor exhibit at this year’s Nebraska State Fair that will include an aquarium, waterfall and archery range.

The Outdoor Encounter, housed in the new Nebraska Building, includes a 5,900-gallon aquarium stocked with more than 150 fish commonly found in Nebraska. Scenic features include a waterfall, plunge pool, 150-foot meandering stream and mural modeled after the Niobrara River Valley.

An indoor archery range and shooting gallery will offer fairgoers a chance to try shooting sports. The exhibit will also include a 4,500-square-foot outdoor area with playground equipment, pollinator garden and seating areas.

The Nebraska State Fair begins Friday and runs through Sept. 1.

OMAHA, Neb. (AP) — The Nebraska Supreme Court has revived the case against two utility employees accused of violating campaign laws.

The Northwest Rural Public Power District employees are accused of using public money to pay for radio ads that questioned the cost-effectiveness of wind energy. The ads ran in 2010 after Michael Van Buskirk, a wind energy proponent, announced his candidacy for the utility’s board.

The Nebraska Accountability and Disclosure Commission later fined the employees $2,000 each, saying they violated state law by spending public money on campaign ads. The men appealed, and a judge in Lincoln County overturned the commission, saying the ads didn’t mention the election or Van Buskirk’s candidacy.

But the Nebraska Supreme Court on Friday said the judge should consider whether the ads were intended to influence the election.

(From North Platte Police Department Public Information Officer, Rodney Brown)

This is an exciting and quite often chaotic time for families.  Routines of sleeping in, hanging out in front of the television and summer sports are suddenly interrupted by back-to-school early mornings.  Across the city of North Platte and throughout surrounding areas children are preparing to return to school.  Although as a driver you should always be cautious while operating a motor vehicle, the North Platte Police Department would like to remind drivers to pay attention over the next few weeks.  All drivers need to recognize the special safety needs of pedestrians, especially those younger children, who are the least predictable and hardest to see.

Generally, pedestrians have the right-of-way at all intersections; however, regardless of the rules of the road or right-of-way, you as a driver are obligated to exercise care and caution.  It is at crosswalks that drivers need to be particularly attentive.

 

• Drivers should not block the crosswalk when stopped at a red light or waiting to make a turn. Do not stop with a portion of your vehicle over the crosswalk.  Blocking the crosswalk forces pedestrians to go around your vehicle and puts them in a dangerous situation.
• Always stop when directed to do so by a school patrol sign, school patrol officer or designated crossing guard.
• Come to a complete stop prior to the crosswalk.
• All 50 states require that traffic in both directions stop on undivided roadways when the stop sign is extended and students are entering or exiting a school bus.

 

Children riding bicycles create special problems for drivers because they are often inexperienced and not capable of proper judgment in determining traffic conditions.  On most roadways, bicyclists have the same rights and responsibilities as other roadway users and often share the same lane.  Bicyclists can be hard to see. The riders are exposed and easily injured in a collision. Pay particular attention at intersections.  Some tips are:

 

• The most common causes of collisions are drivers turning in front of an oncoming bicycle or turning right, across the path of the bicycle.  You should wait for the cyclist to pass before attempting to turn
• When passing a bicyclist proceeding in the same direction, do so slowly and leave at least a distance between you and the bicycle of no less than 3 feet. Maintain this clearance until you have safely passed the bicycle.
• Watch for bicycle riders turning in front of you without looking or signaling, especially if the rider is a child.
• Take extra precautions in school zones and neighborhood areas where children and teenagers might be riding.
• Watch out for bikes coming out of driveways or from behind parked cars or other obstructions.

Safety is also a responsibility of parents and guardians.  The Police Department encourages those responsible to accompany their students over the first few days.  This ensures our youth get to school safe and on time.  Be a good role model.  Children imitate their parents and model their behavior so you need to tell them and show them how to be safe pedestrians.

• Always cross at marked crosswalks and try avoiding running across the roadway.
• Obey any pedestrian signals and look left right left. By doing this you insure that the road is clear in both directions before crossing.
• If a vehicle approaches, attempt to make eye contact with the driver to be sure they see you before you cross.
• Look before walking past stopped vehicles. Do not cross just because a driver waves you on. Be sure all lanes are clear first.

• Choose the safest route and walk it with your children. Look for the most direct route with the fewest street crossings. Try to choose routes where school safety patrols will be present. Children under age 10 should walk with an adult or older child every day because they do not have the necessary skills to judge the speed or distance of oncoming traffic. Also, their peripheral (side) vision is 1/3 less than that of adults.

The NPPD wishes everyone a successful school year.  Be Safe.

LINCOLN, Neb. (AP) — A newly released report says Nebraska’s preliminary unemployment rate inched up to 3.6 percent in July.

That’s a tenth of a point above the revised June rate of 3.5 percent but four-tenths of a point under the July 2013 rate of 4 percent.

The Nebraska Labor Department said in the report released Friday that the new Nebraska figure remained well below the preliminary national unemployment rate of 6.2 percent in July, which was a tenth of a point above the revised June figure of 6.1 percent.