My Friend Tim is the disaster/weather coordinator for Central Nebraska Columbus area. He sent me this email today...
This message went out on a international news list that I monitor and
sums
up the situation in Central Nebraska pretty well.
Tim Hofbauer
IAEM Discussion Group:
Some residents in Kansas and Nebraska may not have power back for
another
month because of the New Year's weekend ice storm.
The storm rolled through the states from Dec. 28 through Dec. 31,
knocking
out thousands of miles of power lines. In Nebraska alone, more than
2,300
miles of power lines were brought down by the storm, not to mention the
number of transformers and power stations badly damaged as well. More
than
28 counties are affected. A federal disaster declaration came down this
week
for 44 Nebraska counties and last week for 44 Kansas counties. More than
7,000 residents in both states remain without power.
Farmers in both states are also scrambling to feed and care for
livestock
stranded when the blizzard conditions overtook the region. For several
days
members of the National Guard airlifted hay to stranded livestock. Many
farmers are also in need of generators to power their farms in order to
feed
and water the animals, said representatives from the Nebraska Department
of
Agriculture (NDA) and the Kansas Livestock Association (KLA).
In Nebraska, the NDA started up a generator hotline last week to field
calls
from farmers in need of a power supply. "Officially the calls started
rolling in last Wednesday, and for the rest of the week the phone rang
consistently all day," said Christin Kamm, public information officer
for
the NDA. "It's been a pretty tremendous response the whole time."
Kamm said the impact on farmers in Nebraska is huge considering it is
almost
calving season. "A lot of producers are running generators to get well
water
for their cattle, many of which are pregnant. Calving season starts in
January and February, so they're real close to having the calves. The
animals can't go long without water, it is very critical. If they abort
them
because they can't get water, that's a huge profit loss. This would be a
huge economic blow to them."
The KLA's Todd Domer said that the total livestock death loss thus far
since
the storm has been lower than expected considering how bad the storm
was.
"To get a feel for what these cattle went through, they had 48 hours of
rain
that amounted to about four inches total," explained Domer, the vice
president of communications for the KLA.
"That's a huge rain for that area because it's fairly arid in western
Kansas. So the animals were soaked clean through. Then the wind came out
of
the north and it continued to rain, and then two inches of ice built up
right on the animals' hair coat. And then it snowed anywhere from three
to
33 inches on top of them, depending on their location. The stress level
was
extremely high on those animals."
The worry now is the weight loss of the livestock. Domer said some
cattle
came out of the storm weighing 50 to 75lbs less. "If cattle lost that
kind
of weight or more, and you overlay the entire cattle population of those
44
counties with that kind of weight loss - that's a huge economic loss to
the
owners of those animals."
With another winter storm in the forecasts for this weekend, Domer
worries
the problems will just continue to pile up for the farmers. "Not all of
the
rural areas have their power back up yet," he said. "The rest of the
winter
(may be hard). We're probably saddled with wet pen conditions (for the
livestock) for at least the foreseeable future. That has an impact on
the
comfort level of animals and productivity."
For residents coping with no power, the time ticks by slowly. Agencies
in
Nebraska are helping the affected families by assessing needs and
securing
resources. The NDA's Kamm said while they've fielded many calls from
residents in need over the generator hotline, they have also taken many
calls from people who have generators and supplies to loan, rent, sell
or
give. "Some really want to buy, too - especially those who are being
told
the power may not be on for another few weeks," she said.
"The generosity is a true showing of what Nebraskans are made of. There
are
a lot of Nebraskans trying to help each other out. Small town residents
are
really looking out for each other, I've even heard stories of fire
departments driving their trucks into the fields to get water to the
animals."
Families are also packing in with each other in homes that do have the
power
back on. The Rev. Kathy Bryan said she knows many of her parishioners
are
sheltering with each other. "They're pulling together well," said Bryan,
pastor of First Christian Church in Minden, Neb. "I've had members who
have
had to turn off the water in their pipes and move into town here with
family."
Bryant's also had church and community members coming in and out of her
house to take showers, and said local community centers are allowing the
same thing. Food is also being given out since so many have lost
refrigerators and freezers to the power outages.
The power situation near Minden, Kearney (where Bryant's husband
pastors),
and a few other towns is better than some areas, she said, but still
pretty
bleak. "The ice was so heavy it just started snapping everything. There
are
hundreds of miles of poles down. I drove out to some of the rural areas
and
the poles looked like dominoes."
As the power outages continue, the needs are growing. Nebraska's
Interchurch
Ministries runs a Rural Response Hotline year-round, which has become
even
busier since the New Year's storm. "The hotline is swamped and we've
brought
in extra staff to help out," said Marilyn Mecham, Interchurch
Ministries'
executive. "When people call in, we do a needs assessment. We have a lot
of
resources available and so we try to find the best way to meet their
needs."
Mecham said the biggest needs are fuel and generators, but that many are
also saying their freezers and refrigerators are failing when the power
comes back on. Water damage from frozen pipes is also becoming a
problem,
she added. In any case, the hotline and Interchurch Ministries is
prepared
to help in any way it can.
"We work with many ecumenical partners and with (the Nebraska chapter of
Voluntary Organizations Active in Disaster). Everybody's bringing to the
table what they have - their expertise, gifts and graces. We're figuring
out
how to best utilize them to meet all the needs."
Posted January 10, 2007 4:42 PM
Ed Kostiuk
Emergency Management Coordinator
ESF8 State & Region VI Liaison Officer
Terrorism Preparedness & Response Service
Oklahoma State Dept. of Health
(405) 271-0900
(405) 271-0903 (Fax)