WINNEBAGO, Neb. (AP) — Authorities say an 87-year-old man was injured by an explosion at his home south of Winnebago in northeast Nebraska.

Tony Pycha was found in the wreckage of his home Monday morning and was eventually taken to an Omaha hospital for treatment.

The Thurston County Sheriff’s Office and fire investigators say a malfunctioning propane heater caused the blast and resulting fire.

LINDSAY, Neb. (AP) — Authorities have released the name of a Humphrey man who was killed when a tractor engine exploded.

The Platte County Sheriff’s Office identified the man as 30-year-old Jeffrey Jarecki. He was pronounced dead at the scene on a farm outside Lindsay.

Sheriff’ Ed Wemhoff says Jarecki was working on the tractor in a machine shed when the engine blew up around 9:30 a.m. Monday.

OMAHA, Neb. (AP) — The Omaha City Council has approved the creation of a nonprofit to give subsidies to groups that bring convention business to town.

The council voted 7-0 Tuesday to approve a resolution that allows the creation of the nonprofit.

Council members say they were satisfied by answers to questions raised about transparency mechanisms. The questions had forced postponement of a vote earlier this month.

Convention and Visitors Bureau Director Keith Backsen says the nonprofit won’t have to release detailed information about how much Omaha gives to groups that bring conventions to Douglas County. Backsen says releasing that information gives other cities a competitive advantage. He also says the nonprofit will be able to move quicker than the City Council in approving subsidies to secure conventions.

OMAHA, Neb. (AP) — An Omaha priest is recovering after being hit by a vehicle as he walked from morning Mass to the church rectory in west Omaha.

Omaha police say the accident happened around 7:30 a.m. Tuesday, when the Rev. Joseph Sund was crossing Eagle Run Drive at 143rd Circle. Police say the 30-year-old Sund was hit by an SUV, causing him to be hospitalized with a concussion.

Sund, who was ordained last year, is the associate Pastor at St. Vincent De Paul Catholic Church.

Police continue to investigate the accident.

WINNEBAGO, Neb. (AP) — Authorities say an 86-year-old man has died after a head-on collision in northeast Nebraska’s Dakota County.

The accident occurred around 5:45 p.m. Monday on U.S. Highway 77. The Dakota County Sheriff’s Office says in a news release that Matthew Pilcher, of Winnebago, was driving north when the highway turned into a four-lane section and he continued northbound in a southbound lane. His van rammed head-on into an oncoming pickup.

The Sheriff’s Office says Pilcher was killed. The pickup driver was treated for minor injuries.

OMAHA, Neb. (AP) — Staff members say progress is slowly happening at an Omaha middle school dealing with unruly student behavior that has sometimes been violent this school year.

Nathan Hale Magnet Middle School held its second meeting Monday to update parents about steps being taken to address the behavioral issues. Omaha Public Schools Superintendent Mark Evans told parents that additional staff members would be sent to the school, including a social worker, a new dean of students and a special education supervisor.

Parents were also informed of new mentoring opportunities for students.

Overwhelmed teachers had asked the school district to provide help, saying students were roaming the halls, being disrespectful and starting fights. Teachers have received additional training on classroom management and using technology to raise student engagement.

MADISON, Neb. (AP) — A Norfolk resident has been given 50 to 70 years in prison for the crash deaths of two men.

Online court records say 23-year-old Brandon Plante was sentenced Monday in Madison County District Court in Madison. He’d pleaded guilty to two felony counts of vehicular homicide after prosecutors dropped a drunken driving charge and another misdemeanor charge.

Authorities say Plante was driving north in a southbound lane of U.S. Highway 81 on June 26 when he struck an oncoming vehicle driven by 32-year-old Tar Eh. Eh and a passenger in the vehicle, 32-year-old Yeh Htoo, were fatally injured. Both lived in Norfolk.

OMAHA, Neb. (AP) — Authorities have released the name of a man who was killed in a fiery car crash on the northwest side of Omaha.

The Douglas County Sheriff’s Office identified the man as 32-year-old Gary McGaha, who lived in Omaha.

The Sheriff’s Office says McGaha lost control of his car around 6:15 p.m. Friday. It ran off the slippery roadway, rammed into a tree and burst into flames.

LINDSAY, Neb. (AP) — A 30-year-old Nebraska man died when the tractor he was working on exploded inside a machine shed on his family’s farm.

The Platte County Sheriff’s office says the incident happened around 9:30 a.m. Monday on a farm outside Lindsay, Nebraska.

The sheriff’s office says the man was working on a tractor when it experienced mechanical issues that caused an explosion.

The man was severely injured and could not be revived. His name wasn’t immediately released Monday.

The accident remains under investigation by the Platte County Sheriff’s Office.

Anyone with additional information regarding this accident is asked to contact the Platte County Sheriff’s Office at 402-564-3229 or Platte County Area Crime Stoppers at 402-563-4000.