Action 3 News - Omaha, Nebraska News, Weather, and Sports | Downtown North Bend Businesses Burn To Ground
Member Center:
North Bend, NE: Ashes and rubble. That is all that is left on a stretch of main street in the town of North Bend. A stunning scene by the light of day after billows of smoke cloud the sky Monday night. Thirteen fire departments doused curtains of water on downtown trying to save it. Now, six thriving businesses are closed wondering if they'll ever re-open.
A day later fire still smolders under charred buildings as people survey what's left after a blaze rips through downtown North Bend and Greg Kuglers home. Tuesday morning Kugler surveyed what was his apartment. Kugler says, "I look at here and see I got nothing, that's what I see. It's all gone. Everything I've collected all my life is gone." Kugler rented the space above the Pour House Bar. Now thick sheets of ice hang on wood beams and the drapes are frozen and marred with soot.
Corrine Giggee stopped by the devastated scene to look at what is left. "This is a huge chunk of North Bend and a huge chunk is gone and I think a lot of people are really hurt and upset. It's shocking," she says. It is a shock that is seared on Wednesday's historic headline. The North Bend Eagle reads "Downtown Burns". One of the destroyed buildings housed the newspaper. Lois Lambley ran the newspaper for 19-years. Now she stands in awe as the hub of a small community lay in shambles. Lambley says, "It records everything births, deaths, marriages everything in between. It's the history of the town."
The fire department believes electrical wiring sparked the massive blaze. The heat from the fire was so hot above the bar, the fire department brought in a front loader and tore down the building to let it burn itself out.
As for Kugler he has nothing, but says today could have been even more devastating. "I'm good that's the main thing, no body got hurt. That's what counts," the fire victim says. Friends have set up a fund to help Kugler get back on his feet. People wanting to donate can contact the Platte Valley Bank.
Many people worried the North Bend Eagles' newspaper history when up in smoke. Action 3 News learned from Lambley many of the papers are archived at the state historical society and are saved on computers.
The state fire marshall is investigating for an official cause to the fire.
Reported By: Liz Dorland, ldorland@action3news.com
