SEVERE WEATHER UPDATES: At its peak, 220,000 lost power in Omaha-metro; winds hit 90mph (2024)

Eppley Airfield closed for about two hours to assess damage; City of Lincoln asked to limit water use

Published: Jul. 31, 2024 at 6:46 PM CDT|Updated: Jul. 31, 2024 at 11:08 PM CDT

OMAHA, Neb. (WOWT) - Severe weather brought high winds, rain, cloud rotation, tree damage, and power outages to the Omaha metro on Wednesday evening.

Omaha city crews were planning to work through the night to clear fallen trees and other debris from the streets.

6 News crews saw tremendous damage in Saunders County, with trees that have stood for decades littering lawns; branches strewn about; and a number of damaged cars.

One couple in Ashland, William and Bette McCoy, talked with 6 News after the storm, saying it’s the worst they’ve experienced.

“This is the worst that it’s ever been. I mean, we usually, you know, lose a few branches during a storm. ... It looks like, I don’t know, the war zone — it’s more severe than I thought.”

They said power lines were ripped off the back of their house, and their car was smashed.

Similar reports were coming in from all over the city. In the Dundee area, there’s a lot of clean up to do, with heavy damage also reported at nearby 72nd and Cass streets.

THURSDAY UPDATES

9:25 a.m. -- We now have some details of the city’s plan for tree dump sites. Follow this link BUT keep in mind that all sites except Greenbriar open at 11 a.m. Thursday. Staff needs more time to get equipment in place to assist people at the sites. There was no immediate word when Greenbriar will open. After Thursday, all sites will be open 7 a.m. - 7 p.m. daily.

8:30 a.m. -- Omaha Mayor Jean Stothert is expected to announce details of the city’s debris removal plan at 11 a.m. There will be five drop off locations in city parks.

7:45 a.m. -- 6 On Your Side has learned about more dumpsites available for debris drop off. Bellevue’s site is located north of Cedar Island Road near Rose Lane, and is open from 7:00 a.m. to 8:00 p.m. today through Sunday. Ralston residents can drop off down limbs at the city’s Public Works Department, located at 8229 Serum Avenue. Waterloo residents may drop off brush west of the village’s maintenance shop. Residents are asked to not block the gravel drive.

7:20 a.m. -- While the city of Omaha prepares a massive debris cleanup plan, La Vista and Papillion say they will open a dumpsite at 99th Circle and Portal Road to the public Thursday and Friday from 7 a.m. until 4:30 p.m. and Saturday from 8 a.m. until 5 p.m. This is only for tree and brush debris. No trash allowed. Open only to residents of Papillion and La Vista. All MCC campuses and locations will be closed Thursday. All classes and events, including online classes, are canceled. All Douglas County Health Department offices are closed including the WIC location. County offices at 41st and Pacific are also closed.

7:00 a.m. -- OPPD made some progress overnight. It reported about 165,000 customers were without power as of 7 a.m. Many traffic lights were out in Omaha, in particular the stretch of Dodge in front of the UNO campus. Drivers should treat those intersections as a 4-way stop.

3:15 a.m. -- OPPD reports 175,179 customers are without power: 127,539 in Douglas County; 39,622 in Sarpy; 3,711 in Saunders; 3,061 in Cass; and 845 in Pottawattamie. Meanwhile, MidAmerican Energy reports 1,643 customers in the Council Bluffs area are without power.

12:25 a.m. -- OPPD reports 208,641 customers are without power: 154,547 in Douglas County; 45,896 in Sarpy; 3,162 in Saunders; 3,516 in Cass; and 847 in Pottawattamie.

WEDNESDAY UPDATES

10:50 p.m. -- OPPD reports 210,391 customers without power: 153,579 in Douglas County; 49,075 in Sarpy; 2,654 in Saunders; 3,625 in Cass; 836 in Pottawattamie. MidAmerican was reporting 3,991 without power in Council Bluffs. Meanwhile, MidAmerican was reporting outages in Council Bluffs were down to 2,112 customers.

10:30 p.m. -- OPPD reiterated in that crews — 35 of them — were working through the night to restore power, and that additional help was on the way. “Tomorrow we will have help from our mutual aid partners we have requested to assist us,” the update states. Thursday, tree trimming crews will pair up with restoration crews in the field.

9:46 p.m. -- Lincoln residents are being asked to limit water use after storms impacted city wells. Officials said crews were working to make repairs, and an update on the water management system would be provided by 10 a.m. Thursday.

“Our top priority is ensuring that residents have access to safe drinking water and to ensure the overall health and safety of all our residents,” Director Liz Elliott said in a release. “We ask for the community’s help as work to repair the damage.”

9:20 p.m. -- Chief Meteorologist Emily Roehler says wind gust reports were at 90 mph at Eppley Airfield during the storm Wednesday evening. Southwest of Lincoln, the Village of Denton reported wind gusts of 92 mph.

9:40 p.m. -- OPPD outages in the Omaha area slipped back down to around 217,000 customers: 157,930 in Douglas County; 52,011 in Sarpy; 2,782 in Saunders; 3,427 in Cass; 767 in Pottawattamie. MidAmerican was report 4,310 customers without power in Council Bluffs.

8:45 p.m. -- OPPD reports windstorm caused outages for 220,545 customers. With reports reports of heavy tree damage and downed wires across the area, the utility urged caution while clearing away limbs — assume any downed power lines are live and stay away from theme.

“Our crews are assessing the damage and are in the early stages of what is one of our largest restoration efforts as of late,” the update states.

8:40 p.m. -- The OPPD outage map shows 217,760 customers are without power, including 157,446 in Douglas County; 51,798 in Sarpy County; 3,202 in Saunders County; 4,031 in Cass County; and 766 in Pottawattamie County.

8:20 p.m. -- Omaha’s Henry Doorly Zoo posted on social media that only the upper portion of the zoo will be open on Thursday because of the weather damage.

“We are happy to report that all animals and staff are safe and accounted for. We are now currently assessing the extent of fallen limbs.”

8:17 p.m. -- Eppley Airfield has reopened, but flight delays were expected to continue through the night.

8:11 p.m. -- An event planned for Thursday morning at Conagra has been canceled.

7:38 p.m. -- Traffic lights on westbound Cornhusker Road near 25th Street in Bellevue were missing; lights further down at 36th Street were blown sideways. Power out along Cornhusker Road between the JFK and about 42nd Street.

7:07 p.m. -- OPPD outage numbers climb above 200,000.

6:50 p.m. -- OPPD is reporting more than 191,000 customers without power. MAE reports nearly 5,100 without power in Council Bluffs.

6:48 p.m. -- Sarpy County Fair has canceled Wednesday night events.

“I’m hoping that we can get another tent out here and be participating the Sarpy County Fair. We really love doing this event. It’s unfortunate and not a good way to start it; but everybody is helping around here cleaning up everything. As long as no one’s hurt that’s the most important thing.”

6:38 p.m. -- Omaha Public Works says they’ve called in street maintenance employees to start clearing trees and debris from streets “as soon as it’s safe.” A spokeswoman from the mayor’s office said crews expect to work overnight.

6:37 p.m. -- Large trees were reported down near 74th and Burt streets.

6:21 p.m. -- Eppley Airfield closed to assess damage. Travelers were urged to check their flight information as delays were expected.

5:53 p.m. -- Omaha Public Power District was reporting more than 20,000 customers without power; their website was crashing about 30 minutes later. MidAmerican Energy Co. was reporting more than 3,800 without power as of 6:20 p.m.; customers can report an outage by calling 1-888-427-5632.

5:50 p.m. -- Storm chasers reported they had been caught in a rain-wrapped tornado near 156th and Ida streets in Northwest Omaha.

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