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Lincoln Nightclub Heavily Damaged by Fire

lincoln-fire-departmentLINCOLN, Neb. (AP) — Investigators are working to determine what caused a fire that heavily damaged a Lincoln bar and knocked out power in the surrounding area.

The fire started at the Karma Nightclub and Cabaret around 7:15 p.m. Saturday. Everyone was evacuated safely, but it took several hours to control the fire.

The club’s owner Kyle Baun says he was heartbroken when he arrived to see his business in flames.

The roof collapsed during the fire. Lincoln Fire Battalion Chief Leo Benes said the business is a total loss.

Karma had been open just over a year. Previously the club was called The Q.

Bryan Ruhs, who worked as a DJ, says it was hard to watch the fire because the club was the first gay bar he ever went to.

Storm Forces Some Flight Cancellations in Nebraska, Iowa

NDOT-SNOW-PLOWOMAHA, Neb. (AP) — The winter storm has forced airlines to cancel some flights in Nebraska and Iowa, but the airports are operating normally despite the snow.

The main problem area Sunday for airports in Omaha, Lincoln and Des Moines was flights headed to and from Chicago. Most of the cancellations involved one of Chicago’s two major airports.

Eppley Airfield spokesman Tim Schmitt says about 20 flights to and from Omaha were cancelled because of the storm. But the airport had two runways clear and planes were landing without problems.

Lincoln airport officials said there had only been a couple cancellations Sunday.

Des Moines International Airport spokesman Andrew Wall says a few flights were cancelled Sunday, but those were mostly the ones that go back and forth to Chicago all day.

Air Force Sending Students to UNO for Leadership Development

unoOMAHA, Neb. (AP) — A new program will allow some of the top security specialists working for U.S. Strategic Command to study leadership at the University of Nebraska at Omaha this semester.

The group of 10 that begins their 13 weeks of study at UNO this weekend includes some of the top civilian security specialists.

The students in the program were chosen by leaders at Strategic Command, which is based at Offutt Air Force Base.

In addition to graduate-level leadership coursework, the students will have the chance to learn from business leaders from Union Pacific and First National Bank.

Children at Nebraska Child Care Under 21-Day Quarantine

health-alertFREMONT, Neb. (AP) — Several children attending a Washington County child care are under a 21-day quarantine after health officials announced that a child with a confirmed case of the measles could have exposed others at the facility to the disease.

Terra Uhing, executive director of Three Rivers Health Department, said her department has been working with Little Blossom’s Childcare to identify possible exposures.

Uhing said any child not vaccinated is being held out for 21 days.

Uhing says the Blair child care facility was caring for several children younger than a year old — too young to have been vaccinated for measles.

Plan Unveiled for Hotel on Omaha Medical School Campus

UNMCOMAHA, Neb. (AP) — Plans have been unveiled for a hotel on the University of Nebraska Medical Center campus near a cancer treatment center also in the works.

The hotel would be built along Farnam Street between 42nd and 44th Streets, on the University of Nebraska Medical Center campus. The preliminary plan is being presented to the Omaha Planning Board next week.

The developer, Tetrad Property Group, would demolish the former Premier Bank branch at the site.

The new hotel would be expected to serve, among other customers, families and patients of the $320 million Fred & Pamela Buffett Cancer Center.

Tetrad also is developing the cancer center, expected to open in 2017.

Teenage Driver Killed in Crash West of Omaha

sarpy-co.-sheriffOMAHA, Neb. (AP) — A 17-year-old driver has died in a single-vehicle rollover crash near 180th and Cornhusker Road just southwest of Omaha.

The 9 p.m. Friday crash killed Tyler Hanson, a student at Millard West High School.

Sarpy County Sheriff’s Lt. Mark Trapp says Hanson was heading north on 180th Street when he lost control of the car. Trapp says the car rolled at least once before Hanson was thrown, then pinned beneath the car.

Two witnesses nearby tried to pull Hanson from the wreckage before Sarpy County Sheriff’s deputies arrived, but were unsuccessful.

Hanson was pronounced dead at the scene.

Crash in Lincoln Kills 1, Injured 4 Others

fatal-accidentLINCOLN, Neb. (AP) — A three-car crash in Lincoln has left one person dead and three others injured.

The crash happened Friday night near 70th and Cornhusker Highway in Lincoln. Police say a westbound car crossed the center line and collided head-on with two other cars. Authorities say the driver of the westbound car is dead. That person has not yet been identified.

Rescue crews took four other people in the other vehicles to local hospitals with injuries not believed to be life-threatening.

The bypass bridge near 70th and Cornhusker was closed for nearly four hours after the crash.

Nebraska Filmmaker Guilty of Tax Credit Fraud in Iowa

Dennis Brouse
Dennis Brouse

DES MOINES, Iowa (AP) — A Nebraska filmmaker accused of faking a purchase agreement to get Iowa state tax credits has been convicted of first-degree fraud.

64-year-old Dennis Brouse was convicted Friday by a Polk County jury and faces up to 10 years in prison when he’s sentenced in March.

It was the second trial for Brouse, of Plattsmouth, Nebraska, after the Iowa Court of Appeals overturned a felony fraud conviction in April citing confusing jury instructions.

Prosecutors said Brouse bought a 38-foot camper trailer from an elderly couple for $10,500 in cash, but claimed the trailer cost twice that much in a statement for tax credits that he turned in to the state.

Lincoln Man Hit, Killed While Crossing the Street

lincoln-policeLINCOLN, Neb. (AP) — A man has died after being hit by a car while crossing a street near downtown Lincoln.

The accident happened just after 5 a.m. Saturday near 27th and O Streets.

Lincoln police have not released any other information on the accident and have not yet revealed the name of the man killed.

Omaha Police Say Man Turns Self in for Fatal Hit-and-Run

OMAHA, Neb. (AP) — Police say an arrest has been made in a fatal hit-and-run that killed a pedestrian on an Omaha street.

Police said in a news release Saturday that 76-year-old Roy Yeck was hit by a vehicle as he was trying to cross 30th Street shortly after 1 a.m. Friday. Police say the driver of the vehicle did not stop.

Yeck was taken to an Omaha hospital, where he died Friday afternoon. An autopsy has been ordered.

Police say that by Friday evening, a 44-year-old man turned himself in to Omaha Police Headquarters. The man was arrested on suspicion of leaving the scene of a personal injury accident causing death.

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