Action 3 News - Omaha, Nebraska News, Weather, and Sports | NPPD Hurries to Restore Power in Kearney
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Kearney, NE - Power is still out for about 2,000 Nebraska Public Power customers affected by Thursday's brutal thunderstorms. NPPD says the outages affect mostly the Kearney area.
About 50 customers are in the dark in Aurora. Power crews are expected to work through the weekend to repair power lines downed by strong winds and tornadoes that swept through
central Nebraska.
Governor Dave Heineman has declared a state of emergency in the Kearney and Aurora areas. The Buffalo County Emergency Management director tells Action 3 News that "amazingly enough" there don't appear to be any injuries or deaths. A shelter has been set up to take in people who need a place to stay. The Salvation Army estimates more than 200 people arrived there for assistance on Thursday night. The shelter will remain open as long as needed.
There is also damage in Fairbury, after a tornado touched down in Jefferson County. Witnesses say there is "extensive damage" to part of the town.
The Nebraska State Patrol was forced to shut down Interstate 80 between York and east of Grand Island in both directions on Thursday night. The Interstate opened for travel on Friday.
The Buffalo County Emergency Manager reports "substantial" house and tree damage in the city of Kearney, especially in the northeastern part.
The Nebraska Emergency Management Agency tells Action 3 News there is damage to the Buffalo County Fairgrounds, to several buildings at the University of Nebraska Kearney campus, including student housing, and to numerous buildings in the city. There was a train derailment in the city, and numerous trucks off the road. Bill Crosier owns a gas station in northwest Kearney, the tornado ripped the roof off his building. The airport is closed because of structural damage.
Other problem areas include flood-stricken Dawson County, including the towns of Lexington and Cozad.
Reported by Carrie Murphy, cmurphy@action3news.com
Updated by Kathy Sarantos Niver, kathy@action3news.com
Update by Mark Barmann, mbarmann@action3news.com
