We have a brand new updated website! Click here to check it out!

Co-Pilot Lands Jet in Omaha After Pilot Becomes Ill

United-AirlinesOMAHA, Neb. (AP) — A United flight made an unscheduled landing in Omaha after the pilot became ill.

United spokeswoman Karen May said Tuesday that Flight 1637 was on its way from Des Moines to Denver on Monday night when the decision was made to set down in Omaha. The co-pilot landed the Boeing 737 without incident just after 9 p.m., and May says the pilot was taken to a local hospital.

May says United put up the passengers overnight in Omaha, and they’re scheduled to complete their travel later Tuesday. May says there were 154 passengers and six crew members aboard the original flight.

May said Tuesday that the captain “is OK.” She wouldn’t provide other information about him or her.

Lincoln Police: Nothing Suspicious in Baby’s Death

lincoln-policeLINCOLN, Neb. (AP) — Authorities say investigators have found nothing that suggests a crime was involved in the death of a 4-month-old girl.

Officers were sent to the Lincoln home after a frantic 911 call a little before 8:45 a.m. Monday. The caller said the baby had been found unresponsive. The child was declared dead at the scene.

Police Capt. Danny Reitan said investigators don’t consider the death suspicious.

Man Rescues Elderly Bellevue Neighbor from Fire

fire-graphicBELLEVUE, Neb. (AP) — A neighbor has rescued a 92-year-old Bellevue woman from a fire at her mobile home.

Authorities say the fire was reported about 11:30 a.m. Monday.

Curtis Carrington says he saw smoke and fire underneath the home’s front porch, so he kicked down a door into the home and grabbed Alvera Sonner, who was in the kitchen. Two other people in the home also escaped.

Bellevue Battalion Chief Kurt Strachota says the fire cause is still under investigation.

4 Arrested During Drug Bust Near Lincoln School

DRUG-BUSTLINCOLN, Neb. (AP) — Lincoln police say they have arrested four people during a drug bust at a home less 500 feet from an elementary school.

Authorities found a cache of meth, marijuana, cocaine, heroin and prescription drugs when they searched the home on Friday.

Police say they arrested 51-year-old Luis A. Velez and 58-year-old Daniel Kuta, who live in the apartment about 450 feet from Prescott Elementary School. Both were charged with possession of methamphetamine with intent to deliver within 1,000 feet of a school. Velez also faces a firearm charge.

Also arrested were 33-year-old Amanda Beardt and 24-year-old Tara Allgood. Police say they possessed methamphetamine. Prosecutors haven’t yet filed charges.

Attorneys for those arrested weren’t yet listed in online court records.

1 Killed, 1 Injured in Crash Into Omaha House

police-lights-redOMAHA, Neb. (AP) — Authorities say a man is dead and a woman is in serious condition after a car crashed into a house in Omaha.

Police say 50-year-old Charles Tolbert Jr. was found dead outside the vehicle when officers and medics arrived shortly after 3:30 a.m. Monday. The vehicle’s driver, 49-year-old Danyell Stanfield, was taken to the Nebraska Medical Center in serious condition.

The vehicle crashed into a home at 3701 North 38th Street in Omaha.

Police say they’re still investigating. No other details were released.

Woman Fatally Injured in Southeast Neb. Crash

fatal-accidentFAIRMONT, Neb. (AP) — A 36-year-old woman has died after a car crash on a rural road in southeast Nebraska.

The Fillmore County Sheriff’s Office says the crash occurred a little before 2:30 p.m. Saturday on County Road 12 near Fairmont. Deputies say the northbound car went out of control, ran into a ditch, rolled and hit a telephone pole.

The driver, Janelle Klassen, of Clarks, was pronounced dead later at Fillmore County Hospital in Geneva. The crash is being investigated.

Pioneer Village Gets $1 Million Donation Match Offer

pioneer-villageMINDEN, Neb. (AP) — An anonymous donor has offered to match up to $1 million in unrestricted donations to Pioneer Village in Minden.

Two donations announced last week totaled $126,000. Pioneer Village foundation board member Larry Wilcox called them “a good start to our campaign.”

The donations follow on the heels of good financial news that came from the Nebraska Supreme Court earlier this month. The court reversed a 2011 decision by the Nebraska Tax Equalization and Review Commission said Pioneer Village’s motel and campgrounds should not get the same property tax exemptions as the museum.

Pioneer Village museum says it has the world’s largest private collection of Americana, with about 50,000 exhibits in 28 buildings on 20 acres of land in the south-central Nebraska community.

Former Omaha Teacher Leaves $2.5M to Iowa Library

council-bluffs-public-libraryCOUNCIL BLUFFS, Iowa (AP) — A former schoolteacher has left her $2.5 million estate to the Council Bluffs Public Library Foundation.

Ann Cook died Dec. 16, 2012. She was 70.

Cook was a Council Bluffs resident who taught school across the Missouri River in Omaha from 1964 to 1997. After retirement she volunteered more time to the Friends of the Library organization.

Library Foundation President Steve Krohn says the money will help the organization’s efforts to supplement book collections, fund various programs and buy new technology.

Cook’s attorney, Gary Faust, is a member of the foundation board, too. He says Cook “had a great deal of love for the library. She wanted to see it continue to prosper.”

Faust says Cook inherited much of her wealth and lived frugally.

Tear Gas Ends Standoff on West Side of Omaha

standoffOMAHA, Neb. (AP) — Tear gas has forced a man to leave a home on the west side of Omaha, ending a 10-hour standoff.

Douglas County deputies responded to the Elkhorn neighborhood home after a relative called 911 and said the man was acting in a threatening manner. The man’s relatives got out of the home safely, but the man refused to come out despite conversations with negotiators.

The man left the home around 10 a.m. after tear gas was fired into it. He was described as 23 years old. His name wasn’t released.

Most Nebraska Schools to Offer Same-Sex Benefits

gaymarriageOMAHA, Neb. (AP) — Nearly all Nebraska school districts and some cities and counties will soon begin offering insurance benefits to legally married same-sex couples.

The changes are being made in response to last June’s U.S. Supreme Court ruling that negated part of the federal Defense of Marriage Act.

Blue Cross Blue Shield decided to change its policy effective Jan. 1 because of the high court’s ruling, and that company insurers all but three of the state’s 249 school districts.

It wasn’t immediately clear how many people would be affected by the change because Nebraska doesn’t recognize same-sex marriage.

The Human Rights Campaign, which advocates for gays and lesbians, says Nebraska lags behind other states in offering benefits to same-sex couples.

That group says 67 percent of Fortune 500 companies offer same-sex partner benefits.

Copyright Eagle Radio | FCC Public Files | EEO Public File