Serving proudly since 1873 as the beautiful Nebraska Panhandle's first newspaper
Serving proudly since 1873 as the beautiful Nebraska Panhandle's first newspaper
Hundreds without power as crews work tirelessly around the clock to restore service
A local property in Sidney was affected by the hazardous Spring storm Saturday, April 6 in Sidney.
Sidney Sun-Telegraph
The Panhandle of Nebraska was rocked by a Spring snowstorm from the early hours of Saturday, April 6 into late afternoon on Sunday, April 7. A stark contrast to the bright and sunny 72 degrees experienced only days before, the unpredictable icy weather and howling winds that impeded travel on I-80 and Highway 30 from Big Springs to the Wyoming border forced the Nebraska State Patrol to close them in both directions. Strong gusts reaching over 75 mph in some areas made severe damage unavoidable. Numerous trees were uprooted or split in half from the ferocity of the winds, in some cases adding to the multiple power outages. As with most of the Panhandle, Sidney faces quite the cleanup in the aftermath.
The National Weather Service out of Cheyenne, Wyoming reported a strong thunderstorm that produced a landspout north of the village of Potter, with wind gusts topping 50 mph, as well as isolated hail storms. Defined as a tornado that does not arise from organized storm-scale rotation, it is not associated with a wall cloud. Landspouts are typically observed beneath towering cumulus clouds (often as no more than a dust whirl), and essentially are the land-based equivalent of a waterspout according to forecast.weather.gov. They are deemed as a non-threatening weather pattern, therefore no preventative measures were necessary.
Countless hours have been logged by Cheyenne County's devoted linemen who were joined by surrounding area crews in restoring power to the households affected by the storm. Many residents were forced to seek refuge with family, friends, or local hotels, as some areas may be without power until the end of this week.
The weather also impacted area schools' bus routes, attendance, and some track schedules. At least two area meets have been postponed to a later date, out of caution.
According to Kelli Chaon, Customer Engagement Manager for Wheat Belt Public Power District, 13 of their linemen, four linemen from McCook PPD, four linemen from Midwest Electric, 10 linemen from Dawson PPD, and a five-man contracting crew from Premier Power, assembled as a force, working together to bring the area back to some form of normalcy.
The bulk of the crews have been working diligently north of Sidney, northwest of Gurley, east of Gurley, and near Redington. The latest count is 550+ poles down on the ground, or damaged, throughout the WBPPD service territory. As of 5 pm Monday, they had been able to restore power to around 400 meters with around 1100 meters still out of power.
In addition to the professional crews, neighbors were out doing all they could to help. Chaon said, "We greatly appreciate our local farmers who have come out and helped our crews maneuver through the mud."
As of the time the Sun-Telegraph went to press, there was no estimated restoration time given for any specific areas.
Please know the crews are doing everything they can to restore everyone's power as quickly and as safely as possible.
The dedication of these teams is unmatched.
Cheyenne County native, local business owner.
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