Central Nebraska Flooding Claims One Life

Authorities in south-central Nebraska say the flash flooding there has claimed the life of a woman. The Dawson County Sheriff’s Office says 46-year-old Shelly Masoner, of Eustis, died Wednesday from injuries she received Tuesday when her vehicle was caught in moving water on Highway 21 and was swept away. Authorities say her car ended up rolling into a ditch filled with water.

Masoner’s is the first death attributed to flooding in the area after 9 inches of rain fell in Buffalo, Dawson, Frontier, Gosper, Kearney and Phelps counties overnight Monday.

The flood crest from Monday night’s rain in Central Nebraska is making its way down the Platte river, and causing difficulty along other major streams including the Wood River, which is expected to cause flooding in several communities.

The Platte river crested two feet above flood stage at Kearney Tuesday night.  Its projected to crest two and a half feet above flood stage at Grand island thursday afternoon, with lesser rises as far downstream as Leshara and Ashland through Monday.