HARTINGTON ? Cedar County was hit with its second straight blizzard in less than a week when ice, snow and high winds hit the area Wednesday night.
Wednesday?s storm was the start of a three-day deluge, which dumped 6-8 more inches of snow on the ground here, closing roads, schools and businesses and forcing numerous cancellations and postponements. The week before storms dumped 8-10 inches of snow here. County crews put in long hours over the weekend to get the roads open.It was difficult because the wind kept blowing the roads shut, said Cedar County Commissioner Marlen Kraemer. ?The wind was a big problem,? said Kramer. ?We haven?t had this much snow with that much endurance for a long time. We worked 12 hours per day for two or three days.? Kramer said everything was open Monday in southern Cedar County. ?All of our roads were open in the south by Monday morning, school buses were able to go,? said Kramer. The storms caused problems for motorists, and area farmers, said Commissioner Frederick Pinkelman. ?The guys worked Saturday even though the wind was blowing. A few people were getting desperate,? said Pinkelman. ?The milkers had their bulk tanks full. We re-opened the roads on Sunday. Area folks were beginning to cabin fever, Pinkelman said. ?With that many days of blowing snow, everyone wanted out,? said Pinkelman. ?I am thankful we did not get four to five inches of snow with it.? The storm also gave area students an extra long weekend as school was called off Thursday. Friday has already been set up as a day for Spring Break. There have not been enough snow days this year to cause any scheduling problems, area administrators said. ?We have had a few late starts but we have not used any snow days until now,? said Hartington Public School Supt. Scott Swisher. Cedar Catholic Principal Rob Bengston said his school has only used two snow days so far this year, so they should be fine. ?We?re fine unless something drastic happens,? he said. Northeast Nebraska was actually lucky because the brunt of this latest storm hit the Omaha area, dumping 12 inches on Nebraska?s largest city. The storm moved from southeastern Colorado and the Oklahoma Panhandle through Kansas Wednesday night into Thursday, according to the National Weather Service. Tornadoes along the storm?s leading edge damaged homes and businesses in eastern Kansas and Missouri. Meteorologist Philip Schumacher, in the weather service?s Sioux Falls, S.D., office, said the storm moved slowly across the region. 
Blowing in the wind
These icicles were blown ino an odd formation by three days of winds holing out tof the northwest. The blowing snow made travel treacherous from South Dakota to Omaha, with whit-out condintons and roads buffed to icy perfection. Activities were canceled throughout the region but the Nebraska Girls' State Basketball Tournament went off without a delay leaving many fans in the area to watch the phenomenal final shot of tournament by Crofton's Amber Hegge on television. - News Photos by Rose Rolfes and Kaylee Dump
Loading ...