Nebraska Public Power District (NPPD) declared an unusual event at its Cooper Nuclear Station at 9:04 Saturday morning. The utility declared the emergency classification when site personnel discovered a hazardous gas environment in the basement of the plant. While investigating the gas, safety and plant personnel detected a fire within a pipe chase.
The station’s fire brigade extinguished the active fire at 9:51 a.m. but additional responders have been brought in to monitor the piping, assess any equipment damage, provide engineering support, and maintain a fire watch in the area until there is no long any potential for a fire to restart. At no time did plant conditions threaten public safety, and the plant remained stable and operating during the event. A NOUE is defined as unusual events, minor in nature, which have occurred or are in progress which indicate a potential degradation in the level of station safety at the station. If placed on a scale of 1 to 4, with 1 being the least serious level of an emergency and 4 being the most serious level of an emergency, a NOUE would equal a 1. In situations like this, plant personnel follow an emergency response plan and notify appropriate local, county, state, and federal agencies as part of their processes. Cooper Nuclear Station is located three miles southeast of Brownville near the Missouri River. It is owned and operated by the Nebraska Public Power District, with headquarters in Columbus. More information will be provided as it becomes available. Troopers with the Nebraska State Patrol (NSP) will be looking to remove drunk drivers from the road during the final two weeks of 2018 as part of a nationwide “You Drink & Drive, You Lose” campaign.
“The holidays are a wonderful time to travel, be with family, and celebrate,” said Colonel John Bolduc, Superintendent of the Nebraska State Patrol. “The last thing we want is for this festive time to be marred by tragedy. That’s why our troopers will be diligently watching for drunk drivers and taking them off the road.” The “You Drink & Drive, You Lose” enforcement runs from Friday, December 14 through Tuesday, January 1. Troopers across all regions of the state are participating, along with many other law enforcement agencies in Nebraska. NSP’s portion of the enforcement effort is made possible thanks in part to a grant for $25,000 from the Nebraska Department of Transportation – Highway Safety Office. “Drunk drivers present a danger to anyone on the road,” said Bolduc. “Anyone who plans to drink should plan ahead and take advantage of many options available to get home safely without getting behind the wheel.” Motorists who see a reckless, impaired, or dangerous driver are encouraged to report it to the Nebraska State Patrol by calling *55 from any cell phone. During a similar enforcement in 2017, troopers arrested 67 impaired drivers and another 28 for reckless driving.
Troopers with the Nebraska State Patrol (NSP) and many other agencies have responded to several bomb threats in communities around Nebraska today. No devices have been found and the threats are believed to be associated with others reported through the nation today.
The Nebraska Information Analysis Center (NIAC), led by NSP, has been in contact with the FBI as well as law enforcement agencies in numerous other states since the first reports of bomb threats in the region. At this point, there are no reports that any explosive device has been found associated with these threats. NSP is aware of numerous threats made in Omaha, Lincoln, McCook, Peru, Fremont, Falls City, and Dewitt. None of those threats are deemed to be credible. NSP and NIAC are working with federal authorities to determine the origin of the threats. The first flu-related death in Nebraska this season has occurred in the North Central District Health Department region, which covers Antelope, Boyd, Brown, Cherry, Holt, Keya Paha, Knox, Pierce and Rock Counties. A second death has also occurred in the Lincoln-Lancaster County Health department region. Both people were over 65.
Flu is slowly increasing across the state. “Flu can be life-threatening disease for some people and it can make any of us sick,” said Dr. Tom Safranek, State Epidemiologist with DHHS. “That’s why we recommend flu vaccine for everyone—from babies 6 months and older to adults 100 and over. It’s our best protection against the flu,” Vaccination can reduce flu-related illnesses, visits to the doctor, missed work & school and flu-related hospitalizations. The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention recommends flu vaccine for everyone 6 months and older. Certain people are at greater risk for serious complications, and it’s extremely important they receive vaccine:
Flu vaccine is safe, effective and rigorously tested. The most common reaction people may experience from a flu shot is soreness and redness at the injection site. After vaccination, it takes about two weeks for the body to build immunity. Flu shots are still being offered across the region. Check with your local clinic or call the health department at 402-336-2406. In addition to vaccination, protect yourself from the flu and other winter illnesses by:
For more flu information, visit the NCDHD website at www.ncdhd.ne.gov, DHHS website at www.dhhs.ne.gov/flu or the CDC website at www.cdc.gov/flu. UPDATE: Vivian Svehla has been located.
* * * An Endangered Missing Advisory has been activated to determine the whereabouts of Vivian Svehla. The Harlan County Sheriff's Office is attempting to locate Vivian Svehla, a 79-year old-white female. She was last seen wearing black pants, a white shirt and a maroon jacket. Svehla is 5 feet tall, 182 pounds with white hair and blue eyes. Svehla is missing from Alma, Nebraska, and suffers from dementia. If you have information about Vivian Svehla please call 911 or the Harlan County Sheriff's office at 308-928-2147. The CDC is warning everyone to not eat, serve or sell ANY romaine lettuce while the investigation on the E. Coli outbreak continues.
This includes whole heads of lettuce, hearts of romaine, chopped romaine, organic romaine and salad mixes with romaine. Romaine has been linked to 32 E. Coli O157 infections in 11 states. Thanks to a partnership with two local businesses, the Nebraska State Patrol (NSP) troopers in Troop B will have a new tool to assist in a wide variety of situations.
NSP has received a 2019 Can-Am Defender Max UTV from Curry Brothers Motorsports in Columbus. The UTV will be utilized for search and rescue, SWAT Team and Police Service Dog deployment, processing crime scenes in rural areas, and medivac missions. This is the result of a user relations loan program through Curry Brothers which allows the dealership to lend a UTV to law enforcement agencies. The use of the UTV is for a 12-month term and is free of charge to NSP and the citizens of Nebraska. When the current term of the agreement expires, the dealership will take the vehicle back into its inventory to be sold and will provide another unit to the Patrol. This allows NSP to provide better, safer, and more efficient service to Nebraskans with the help of local businesses committed to assisting with public safety. The Cargill beef processing plant in Schuyler has also chipped in, providing financial assistance to NSP for the purchase of a trailer to transport the UTV to areas where it will be deployed. The Nebraska State Patrol would like to thank John Curry, owner of Curry Brothers Motorsports, and Sammy Renteria, Plant Manager for Cargill, for their commitment to help the Nebraska State Patrol and the people of Nebraska. National news may have you concerned about the turkey you have in your freezer for your upcoming Thanksgiving feast. Check your labels before tossing the turkey. As of November 5th, the Center for Disease Control (CDC) has reported 164 Salmonella cases in 35 states related to turkey exposure. This has left many worried and placed pressure on the United States Department of Agriculture (USDA) to release more details about the contaminated turkey products.
As of November 15th, the USDA has released that Jennie-O Turkey Store Sales, LLC is recalling approximately 91,388 pounds of raw ground turkey products that may be associated with the outbreak of Salmonella. These ground products were produced on September 11th, 2018 and include several original and seasoned 1lb ground turkey products that have use by dates of 10/1/18 or 10/2/18. Some customers may have these products in their freezers for later use and are encouraged to check all labels of their ground turkey products. Regardless of the turkey product you have in your freezer, the North Central District Health Department (NCDHD) encourages you to practice safety when preparing raw meat products to prevent foodborne illness. Follow these 4 steps for safety:
Jennie-O Turekey Store Sales, LLC recalled products:
The Boone County Friends of NRA is holding a dinner and auction on Sunday, November 3.
The social will start at 5:30 p.m., with the prime rib dinner starting at 7 p.m at the Event Center on the Boone County Fairgrounds in Albion, NE. The event is $30.00 per ticket. Kids under 15 are eligible to win a Lifetime Hunting Permit donated by Boone County Friends of NRA, but they must be present to win. Those who already have a lifetime hunting permit are not eligible, and the permit is non-transferable. The Boone County Friends of NRA are also doing a loaded gun safe raffle. The first ticket winner will receive a Sentinel 28 gun safe, StagArms AR 15, Benelli Nova RealTree Camo 12 gauge shotgun, Remington 783 30-06 package scope and a Ruger Mark 4 22 takedown. The second ticket winner will receive a Kimber Ultra Carry 45 and a Chiappa Lever action 22 takedown. Tickets for the raffle are one ticket for $20 or six tickets for $100. For more information, contact one of the following: Chad Martinsen: 402-843-0218, Dane Nielsen: 402-750-3747, Dr. Jeremy Young: 402-843-2227, Chad Shabram: 402-929-0016, Roy Ketteler: 402-843-6487, Marv Haas: 402-678-3448, Shawn Olnes: 402-608-0225, Travis Landauer: 402-741-9433, Nick Krohn: 402-841-8889, Tammy Starman: 402-843-8833, Chris Levander: 402-741-1075, Larry Starman: 402-843-8394 or Jennifer Blackburn-Nielsen: 402-750-9931. |
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