Rains leave parts of Platte County under water

COLUMBUS -- Platte County road crews were scrambling this morning to keep up with flooding problems after an overnight storm system sent area creeks spilling out of their banks in the Platte Center, Columbus and Humphrey areas.

Flooding along Shell Creek this morning closed U.S. Highway 81 from 83rd Street to the Platte Center Spur. Mason Road north of Columbus also was closed because of water running over the roadway.

“We’re going to be spending the day out chasing flood problems,’’ said Fred Liss, Platte County highway superintendent. “We’re making sure we’ve got barricades up.”

Liss said area flooding was concentrated in the northwest part of the county along Elm Creek from Lindsay to Platte Center, along Tracey Creek in the Humphrey area and along Shell Creek north of Columbus.

Platte Center emergency personnel were calling for volunteers to help with sandbagging this morning. A swollen Elm Creek runs right through the downtown area of the community.

“We’ve got flooding all over the place,” Liss said.

Platte County Emergency Management Director Tim Hofbauer said the state emergency management agency is expected to arrive today to assess the damage to the area.

The areas of Monroe and Platte Center reported damage due to flooding and wind. Hofbauer said nine pivots were overturned by Monroe and a funnel cloud also was reported Thursday night near Monroe. In Platte Center, businesses in the downtown district and some homes were flooded.

“We are trying to evaluate the extent of the damage,” Hofbauer said.

The water level of Shell Creek also is rising in Newman Grove and it is expecting to rise also in Lindsay. Hofbauer said people need to be aware of the rising water levels and is advising that people may need to evacuate the area.

The Platte County Sheriff’s Department reported no weather-related accidents.

Columbus received an official rainfall measurement of 2.26 inches of rainfall overnight, according to a report from the Loup Powerhouse. Of that rainfall total, 1.85 inches came after midnight.

Columbus blew its tornado warning sirens shortly after 7 p.m. Thursday. The warning was lifted shortly before 8 p.m. Tornado warnings also were issued in Butler and Polk counties.

Meanwhile, the National Weather Service has issued flood warnings this morning for a couple of area creeks.

A warning for Shell Creek near Columbus continues through Saturday morning. Only light flooding was expected starting this afternoon.

The Big Blue River near Surprise, south of Columbus, is expected to rise a foot and a half above flood stage by this evening.

The storm hit the Columbus area after pummeling Kearney and Aurora. Tornadoes were reported in both communities, with 40 rail cars derailed outside Kearney and several businesses severely damaged on the outskirts of Aurora.

State officials closed down Interstate 80 from Aurora to York just before 8 p.m. because of downed power lines.

Gov. Dave Heineman declared a state of emergency Thursday night, which allows access to state and federal resources for storm cleanup. He readied the Nebraska National Guard in case its help was needed.

Nebraska Public Power District spokesman Mark Becker said transmission lines were down from Kearney to the towns of Elm Creek, Tower and Riverdale.

Loup Power District, according to its president and CEO Neal Suess, received minor damage due to lightning and damaged trees.

“We had some temporary outages, nothing serious, (but) everybody is now back up with power,” Suess said today.

Although some minor damage remains in the Platte Center area, he said crews will work to make repairs once Highway 81 reopens. Highway 81 was closed because of high water levels in the Shell Creek area.

Jerry Chlopek, operations director for Cornhusker Public Power District, reported numerous outages as a result of the storm.

“There were about 50-60 customers who were affected” by short-term outages, Chlopek said, but currently, “as far as I know everyone is back on.”

He said they lost about 10 poles due to tornadic conditions.

Skies are expected to clear today.

The weather service has forecast mostly sunny skies today with highs in the mid-80s and northwest winds 5 to 10 mph. Tonight, partly cloudy. Lows in the mid-50s. West winds 5 to 10 mph.

Blue skies are expected to prevail again Saturday with highs in the lower 80s and northwest winds up to 5 mph. On Saturday night, mostly cloudy skies with lows in the mid-50s are forecast. Northwest winds up to 5 mph.

On Sunday, the forecast calls for partly sunny with a 20 percent chance of thunderstorms. Highs in the lower 80s. East winds up to 5 mph. Sunday night, mostly cloudy with a 30 percent chance of thunderstorms. Lows around 60.

Julie Blum and Adrian Sanchez contributed to this story.