Winds From Severe Storms Damage Trees, Homes and Knock Out Power in Eastern Nebraska

LINCOLN–(KFOR July 12)–The severe weather got an early start early Wednesday morning in eastern Nebraska, leaving behind damage to homes, businesses and trees, while knocking out power.

Severe thunderstorm warnings, at one point, included an 18-county area over portions of northeast, east-central and southeast Nebraska, as storms were racing southeastward as high as 80 mph, according to one weather bulletin statement from the National Weather Service office in Valley.  While no injuries have been reported so far, damaging winds were reported in Stanton, Yutan and Bancroft.  In Stanton, a tree fell on a home.  A large tree also fell in Yutan in eastern Saunders County, while further north from there winds caused widespread tree damage in and around the town of Bancroft in Burt County.  Power poles were snapped off and a roof to a machine shed was blown off, too.

As the storms moved southeast, winds at the National Weather Service office in Valley in northwestern Douglas County were clocked at 71 mph and a gust of 67 mph was reported at Eppley Airfield in Omaha.  At one point, as many as 40,000 OPPD customers in the Omaha area were without electricity.

In the Lincoln area, winds gusted up to 60 mph at the Lincoln Airport.  Across the city, there were reports of power outages and lines down, while tree damage was also reported in some older neighborhoods.  No reports of any injuries.

In southern Lancaster County, just south of Lincoln, a private weather station near Martell recorded a wind gust of 65 mph and a storm spotter in Firth reported a gust of 63 mph.  Power was knocked out in several areas around Lincoln, with 2,200 LES customers were without power at the height of the storm.