HALSEY, Neb. (AP) — Fire officials say a blaze that burned 1,043 acres of the Nebraska National Forest is now fully contained.

Tim Buskirk, the forest’s Bessey District ranger, says the blaze was contained Wednesday afternoon. He says a few crew members will continue to monitor the area for flare-ups, but most have been released to their home units or to other assignments.

The fire started with a mid-day lightning strike on Saturday, approximately 22 miles southeast of Halsey. No private lands, structures or outbuildings were damaged.

Buskirk says authorities will now focus on assessing the damage to roads, trails and other parts of the forest.

The entire Nebraska National Forests & Grasslands remains under fire restriction orders, and fireworks are not allowed anywhere on National Forest System lands.

OMAHA, Neb. (AP) — Police say alcohol was a factor in an Omaha car crash that killed one person and left another injured.

Authorities say 20-year-old Vidal Becerra was westbound in Omaha Wednesday when the Volkswagen Jetta he was driving struck a railroad tie retaining wall, and then a wooden utility pole. Police say the car then flipped and landed on its roof, partially ejecting a front-seat passenger.

Authorities who responded to the scene just before 8:30 p.m. say the unidentified passenger was killed. Becerra was taken to a hospital with minor cuts to his head and arms, and then arrested on suspicion of criminal homicide.

A rear-seat passenger, 26-year-old Eduardo Corona, refused medical treatment and was booked on an outstanding warrant.

LINCOLN, Neb. (AP) — Police say one man is dead and another is injured after an overnight shooting in a Lincoln neighborhood.

Local media reports that a 41-year-old was killed and an 18-year-old was injured during the shooting late Wednesday. Police say an alleged hit-and-run accident led to a confrontation, which escalated to the shooting.

Neighbors who watched it unfold told the news station that the mother of a child who was reportedly hit was arguing with a motorist. One witness said a dark SUV pulled up in front of the house in Lincoln, and that at least three people got out and started shooting.

SCOTTSBLUFF, Neb. (AP) — Authorities in western Nebraska say a 27-year-old former college basketball player died unexpectedly after discovering his home had been burglarized.

Local media reports that former Western Nebraska Community College standout Fernando Bonfim Wilson died Saturday night of natural causes.

Scottsbluff Police Capt. Brian Wasson says officers were responding to a report of a burglary at Wilson’s home when they received another call from his wife. Officers found Wilson unresponsive and he was taken to a local hospital, where he was pronounced dead.

Police are investigating the burglary and do not have any suspects.

The 7-foot-tall Wilson played for WNCC for two seasons from 2003-2005, averaging double figures in points and rebounds. He then played one year at Southern Utah before transferring to Chadron State for his senior year.

BELLEVUE, Neb. (AP) — Nebraska family members of one of the four airmen killed during a plane crash while fighting wildfires in South Dakota say he always wanted to serve his country.

Local media says that family members say Major Ryan David  was a Bellevue native who leaves behind a 10-year-old son. They say he was deployed six times by the Air Force, including to the war in Iraq.

David was one of four members of the North Carolina National Guard that died when their C-130 crashed Sunday while fighting a wildfire in the Black Hills of South Dakota. The cause is under investigation.

David’s cousin, Felicia Nofuente, says he was “always ready and willing to serve.” His aunt says he was a big guy with a teddy bear for a heart.

LINCOLN, Neb. (AP) — The U.S. Department of Agriculture has awarded $1.7 million to help an eastern Nebraska village build a water treatment plant.

USDA Rural Development officials say the new plant will help the village of Bellwood clean its water supply, which is contaminated with arsenic.

The money was provided through the USDA’s Rural Development Water and Waste Disposal Loan and Grant program.

Maxine Moul, the agency’s Nebraska State director, says the project will help the community secure a safe and clean water supply.

LINCOLN, Neb. (AP) — The Lancaster County Board and the city of Lincoln are ditching their traditional phone service in favor of an Internet-based system that will collectively save them more than $600,000 per year.

The county board agreed Tuesday to enter into a package deal with the city to install and use Voice Over Internet Protocol, a phone system that uses Ethernet cables and an Internet network to connect parties.

County budget director Dennis Meyer says the initial investment for new phones for the county is $800,000 and $1.1 million for the city, but the payments would be spread over four years and have no budget impact.

Local media says the two governments currently spend $941,000 per year on more than 2,600 phone lines.

HASTINGS, Neb. (AP) — Residents of Hastings say they are frustrated with an apparent spree of vandalism to vehicles that has left tires slashed and car windows broken.

Local media says vandals have been reported in at least three areas of the city in recent days.

Bryan Resser says he found his new truck Monday morning with a flat tire, a punctured hole in a side panel and other marks and carvings. He says he doubts police will find whoever did it but he hopes the spree stops soon.

Resident Andrea Dieken says both of her family’s cars had tires slashed, and her husband saw almost every single car on the street had similar damage.

A police sergeant told the television station there are no leads yet in the case.

LINCOLN, Neb. (AP) — A ranger who is overseeing the fire-fighting effort at the Nebraska National Forest says earlier, prescribed burns helped prevent more widespread damage.

Tim Buskirk of the forest’s Bessey Ranger District said Wednesday that the fire did not damage any park structures, outbuildings, or private land. The fire is nearly 100 percent contained, having scorched more than 1,000 acres.

The fire started with a lightning strike Saturday at the hand-planted national forest in the Nebraska Sandhills. Buskirk says investigators will spend the next several days assessing the damage to see whether U.S. Forest Service officials need to replant trees. Officials have not estimated damage costs.

Buskirk says officials recently held a controlled burn to thin the forest, which kept the fire from spreading too quickly.