The Spencer Dam in northeast Nebraska was destroyed by flooding in March 2019. The Niobrara River had been running at 5 or 6 feet of gauge height before it broke through the 90-year-old dam. After that, an 11-foot wave of water rolled through.
The federal government is sending Nebraska $50 million to help remove what’s left of the Spencer Dam after its deadly failure during the flood of spring 2019.
The Federal Emergency Management Agency initially announced Friday the $50 million would help the hydroelectric dam’s owner, Nebraska Public Power District, “restore the facilities back to pre-disaster design, capacity and function.â€
But that was wrong, NPPD spokesman Mark Becker said. And he wanted to be clear: “FEMA knows we were never going to rebuild.â€
Instead, he said, FEMA will send the $50 million to the Nebraska Emergency Management Agency to help the utility pay for decommissioning the northeast Nebraska dam — tearing it out and restoring the river banks. A FEMA spokeswoman confirmed later Friday the funding could be spent on demolition.
Restoring the 90-year-old dam would cost far more than it’s worth, Becker said. Spencer Dam generated just three megawatts of electricity; by comparison, NPPD's coal-fired Gerald Gentleman Station near Sutherland generates nearly 1,400 megawatts.
And the utility was in the process of selling the dam — and its water rights — to a group of Natural Resources Districts when it collapsed in March 2019 under the pressure of the Niobrara River, which had swollen with floodwater and broken ice.
His widow, Linda Angel, sued NPPD and the Department of Natural Resources in October 2019, alleging their negligence led to his death. Specifically, her lawsuit said they failed to properly manage, operate, inspect or test the dam, prevent its collapse or warn Angel about the danger it could fail.
That lawsuit is proceeding, and a pretrial conference is scheduled for January 2022, according to court records.
A 92-year-old dam that collapsed March 14, 2019 amid had been classified by state inspectors last year as having a “significant†risk of causing damage.
A man who lived in a home below the dam, Kenny Angel, was swept away in the collapse and is presumed dead, and a quarter mile section of U.S. Highway 281 was washed out.
A four-member team from the Association of State Dam Safety Officials, a national nonprofit organization, will conduct an independent review of the Spencer dam.
The review will focus on what can be learned about the dam collapse to guide future dam construction, according to Lori Arthur, a spokeswoman for the Natural Resources Department.
Offutt Air Force Base couldn't stop the floodwaters
THE WORLD-HERALD
Even the U.S. Air Force couldn’t stop the Mighty Missouri River from flooding Offutt Air Force Base. Between March 16 and 17 sandbagging efforts were called off as flood waters began to rise.
Offutt Air Force Base flooding repairs close to $1 billion
Z LONG/OMAHA WORLD-HERALD
Six months after what 55th Wing officials describe as “historic and disastrous†flooding swamped one-third of Offutt Air Force Base and destroyed 137 structures, the expected costs of rebuilding continued to mount.
Lt. Col. Chris Conover, who spearheaded the recovery and reconstruction project, said in September that the figure stood at $790 million in September. He warned the cost most likely would rise further — perhaps even hitting $1 billion.
As the Platte River swelled into Fremont, the city became an island
KENT SIEVERS/THE WORLD-HERALD
The Platte River swelled into Fremont, turning the city into an island.
Shelters in Fremont alone counted up to 1,100 people, with more evacuees expected from Snyder, Nebraska. And those numbers don’t capture the swaths of people riding out the flood in hotel rooms or crashing on the couches of family and friends.
Those who decided to evacuate left by plane, train line and automobile. There were departures by boat, by airboat and by massive military vehicles with jacked-up frames capable of cruising through waterlogged roads.
Paradise Lakes community residents deal with mixed messages
REECE RISTAU/THE WORLD-HERALD
Before the water even reached the community, Paradise Lake residents were sent mixed messages.Â
Law enforcement officials went door to door encouraging residents to evacuate, Paradise Lakes residents received a different message from their landlord: Your homes are safe.
The Bellevue City Council voted to condemn the community and told residents that they had until the end of July to take action on removing their homes. The remaining structures were expected to be razed by a city-hired company in early August.
Jim Ristow, Bellevue’s city administrator, said in August that officials are now taking a cautious approach moving forward because they don’t want taxpayers to be on the hook for the estimated $1.2 million needed for demolition.
Paradise Lakes’ owner, Howard “Howdy†Helm, has told the city that he can’t afford the cost of demolition.
Floods cut off access to Plattsmouth water treatment plant
CHRIS MACHIAN/THE WORLD-HERALD
The U.S. Army Corps of Engineers sought bids to close the breach in the south bank of the Platte River that had stranded the city’s water treatment plant during the March flooding.
For months, the plant was accessible only by boat. Now, the water is gone, but Plattsmouth officials have wondered for how long. Read more
Plattsmouth's water treatment plant back up and running
CHRIS MACHIAN/THE WORLD-HERALD
Plattsmouth notched a major victory in September when its flood-battered water treatment plant got back up and running, ending months of water rationing.
But the city’s ongoing battle with the waters of the Platte River isn’t over.
One in 1996 brought water inside town and into basements, but it was nothing like the surge of water that clobbered Winslow in mid-March, when historic flooding struck parts of central and eastern Nebraska.
So the residents of this little village — where the population that hovered around 100 before disaster struck — are pondering a pivotal question about its future. Go should they stay or should they go?
A group of state and federal officials who met in Winslow in January said plenty of hurdles stand in the village's way.
Those obstacles include state law, the likely millions of dollars needed to put in new streets and utilities in Winslow 2.0 and its dwindling population.
"We all want what's best for Winslow, I want to make that abundantly clear," said Molly Bargmann, a recovery supervisor for the Nebraska Emergency Management Agency. "We want to get to yes, but there's a lot of no's right now."
On St. Patrick’s Day weekend 2019, a violent chute of water raged through a gash in the levee that for decades protected the Nebraska National Guard’s main training site from the Platte River. Floodwaters surged into classrooms, barracks and offices, wrecking furniture and tools and leaving a muddy watermark 5 feet high on inside walls.
Nebraska National Guard receives full funding for repairs to Camp Ashland
BRENDAN SULLIVAN/WORLD-HERALD
The Nebraska National Guard learned in January that it will receive full funding, totaling $62.3 million, to fully rebuild the Camp Ashland training site, according to a statement released Wednesday by the state’s adjutant general, Maj. Gen. Daryl Bohac.
Floods came to Nebraska farmland and left tons of sand behind
WILLOW VALLEY FARMS
Tons of sand, sediment and silt — some in dunes as high as 10 feet — were scattered across the eastern half to two-thirds of the state by the March flooding. In some areas, washed-out cornstalks are 3 to 4 feet deep. Tree limbs are in piles and topsoil was washed away.
A King Lake family returns home in time for Christmas
CHRIS MACHIAN/THE WORLD-HERALD
Trish and Salvador Duran hosted Christmas this year for their extended family, an act of hospitality that once seemed impossible after almost 4 feet of floodwater swept into their house in King Lake in March.
King Lake is an unincorporated area, a secluded neighborhood of 1 square mile that sits next to the Elkhorn River and not far from the Platte River, east of Valley and north of Waterloo. During historic flooding in March, the Elkhorn spilled out of its banks, sending water into almost all of the 111 homes in King Lake.
Pacific Junction in Mills County, Iowa was hit hard when levees failed
CHRIS MACHIAN/THE WORLD-HERALD
Pacific Junction, with a population of less than 500, was hit hard by levee failures in March that sent floodwaters streaming into town, filling every structure with feet of water. It wasn't until mid-April that the last batch of residents could return to their homes and businesses and start clearing out flood-soaked possessions.
Flooding has taken a toll on Mills County, Iowa; even when it comes to caucusing
CHRIS MACHIAN/THE WORLD-HERALD
Mills County Democrats worried all month whether many of the 470 former residents of this flooded town would attend a caucus Monday.
Last March, the Missouri River inundated all 210 homes and businesses here, and a caucus day drive through town showed the extent of damage 10 months later. Most local homes, storefronts and gathering spaces remain boarded up. Only about 20 households have moved back so far, officials say, and the only evidence of the presidential race was a single campaign sign in front of the rebuilt home of Rick and Cherry Parham.
As Nebraska and Iowa brace for the possibility of spring flooding here's a look back at the devastating floods of 2019.Â
Nebraska's losses from 2019 flooding, blizzard exceed $3.4 billion
U.S. ARMY CORPS OF ENGINEERS
Nebraska’s disastrous weather in 2019 caused more than $3.4 billion in losses, according to a recently released federal report.
The Spencer Dam collapse
OFFICE OF GOV. PETE RICKETTS
A 92-year-old dam that collapsed March 14, 2019 amid had been classified by state inspectors last year as having a “significant†risk of causing damage.
A man who lived in a home below the dam, Kenny Angel, was swept away in the collapse and is presumed dead, and a quarter mile section of U.S. Highway 281 was washed out.
Spencer Dam: What went wrong?
WORLD-HERALD NEWS SERVICE
A four-member team from the Association of State Dam Safety Officials, a national nonprofit organization, will conduct an independent review of the Spencer dam.
The review will focus on what can be learned about the dam collapse to guide future dam construction, according to Lori Arthur, a spokeswoman for the Natural Resources Department.
Offutt Air Force Base couldn't stop the floodwaters
THE WORLD-HERALD
Even the U.S. Air Force couldn’t stop the Mighty Missouri River from flooding Offutt Air Force Base. Between March 16 and 17 sandbagging efforts were called off as flood waters began to rise.
Offutt Air Force Base flooding repairs close to $1 billion
Z LONG/OMAHA WORLD-HERALD
Six months after what 55th Wing officials describe as “historic and disastrous†flooding swamped one-third of Offutt Air Force Base and destroyed 137 structures, the expected costs of rebuilding continued to mount.
Lt. Col. Chris Conover, who spearheaded the recovery and reconstruction project, said in September that the figure stood at $790 million in September. He warned the cost most likely would rise further — perhaps even hitting $1 billion.
As the Platte River swelled into Fremont, the city became an island
KENT SIEVERS/THE WORLD-HERALD
The Platte River swelled into Fremont, turning the city into an island.
Shelters in Fremont alone counted up to 1,100 people, with more evacuees expected from Snyder, Nebraska. And those numbers don’t capture the swaths of people riding out the flood in hotel rooms or crashing on the couches of family and friends.
Those who decided to evacuate left by plane, train line and automobile. There were departures by boat, by airboat and by massive military vehicles with jacked-up frames capable of cruising through waterlogged roads.
Hundreds gather in Fremont for flood-risk briefing
NANCY GAARDER/THE WORLD-HERALD
Hundreds of people filled Christensen Field Arena in Fremont to hear a National Weather Service update on this year’s flood risk Feb. 4.
The crowd received a nuanced, but somewhat reassuring, explanation from National Weather Service hydrologist Dave Pearson.
Paradise Lakes community residents deal with mixed messages
REECE RISTAU/THE WORLD-HERALD
Before the water even reached the community, Paradise Lake residents were sent mixed messages.Â
Law enforcement officials went door to door encouraging residents to evacuate, Paradise Lakes residents received a different message from their landlord: Your homes are safe.
Paradise Lakes community's imminent demolition
REECE RISTAU/THE WORLD-HERALD
The Bellevue City Council voted to condemn the community and told residents that they had until the end of July to take action on removing their homes. The remaining structures were expected to be razed by a city-hired company in early August.
Jim Ristow, Bellevue’s city administrator, said in August that officials are now taking a cautious approach moving forward because they don’t want taxpayers to be on the hook for the estimated $1.2 million needed for demolition.
Paradise Lakes’ owner, Howard “Howdy†Helm, has told the city that he can’t afford the cost of demolition.
Floods cut off access to Plattsmouth water treatment plant
CHRIS MACHIAN/THE WORLD-HERALD
The U.S. Army Corps of Engineers sought bids to close the breach in the south bank of the Platte River that had stranded the city’s water treatment plant during the March flooding.
For months, the plant was accessible only by boat. Now, the water is gone, but Plattsmouth officials have wondered for how long. Read more
Plattsmouth's water treatment plant back up and running
CHRIS MACHIAN/THE WORLD-HERALD
Plattsmouth notched a major victory in September when its flood-battered water treatment plant got back up and running, ending months of water rationing.
But the city’s ongoing battle with the waters of the Platte River isn’t over.
Winslow: a town considers relocating
ELSIE STORMBERG/THE WORLD-HERALD
Winslow floods.
One in 1996 brought water inside town and into basements, but it was nothing like the surge of water that clobbered Winslow in mid-March, when historic flooding struck parts of central and eastern Nebraska.
So the residents of this little village — where the population that hovered around 100 before disaster struck — are pondering a pivotal question about its future. Go should they stay or should they go?
Winslow: A town ready to relocate
ELSIE STORMBERG/THE WORLD-HERALD
A group of state and federal officials who met in Winslow in January said plenty of hurdles stand in the village's way.
Those obstacles include state law, the likely millions of dollars needed to put in new streets and utilities in Winslow 2.0 and its dwindling population.
"We all want what's best for Winslow, I want to make that abundantly clear," said Molly Bargmann, a recovery supervisor for the Nebraska Emergency Management Agency. "We want to get to yes, but there's a lot of no's right now."
Camp Ashland hit hard by flooding
BRENDAN SULLIVAN/WORLD-HERALD
On St. Patrick’s Day weekend 2019, a violent chute of water raged through a gash in the levee that for decades protected the Nebraska National Guard’s main training site from the Platte River. Floodwaters surged into classrooms, barracks and offices, wrecking furniture and tools and leaving a muddy watermark 5 feet high on inside walls.
Nebraska National Guard receives full funding for repairs to Camp Ashland
BRENDAN SULLIVAN/WORLD-HERALD
The Nebraska National Guard learned in January that it will receive full funding, totaling $62.3 million, to fully rebuild the Camp Ashland training site, according to a statement released Wednesday by the state’s adjutant general, Maj. Gen. Daryl Bohac.
Floods came to Nebraska farmland and left tons of sand behind
WILLOW VALLEY FARMS
Tons of sand, sediment and silt — some in dunes as high as 10 feet — were scattered across the eastern half to two-thirds of the state by the March flooding. In some areas, washed-out cornstalks are 3 to 4 feet deep. Tree limbs are in piles and topsoil was washed away.
A King Lake family returns home in time for Christmas
CHRIS MACHIAN/THE WORLD-HERALD
Trish and Salvador Duran hosted Christmas this year for their extended family, an act of hospitality that once seemed impossible after almost 4 feet of floodwater swept into their house in King Lake in March.
King Lake is an unincorporated area, a secluded neighborhood of 1 square mile that sits next to the Elkhorn River and not far from the Platte River, east of Valley and north of Waterloo. During historic flooding in March, the Elkhorn spilled out of its banks, sending water into almost all of the 111 homes in King Lake.
Pacific Junction in Mills County, Iowa was hit hard when levees failed
CHRIS MACHIAN/THE WORLD-HERALD
Pacific Junction, with a population of less than 500, was hit hard by levee failures in March that sent floodwaters streaming into town, filling every structure with feet of water. It wasn't until mid-April that the last batch of residents could return to their homes and businesses and start clearing out flood-soaked possessions.
Flooding has taken a toll on Mills County, Iowa; even when it comes to caucusing
CHRIS MACHIAN/THE WORLD-HERALD
Mills County Democrats worried all month whether many of the 470 former residents of this flooded town would attend a caucus Monday.
Last March, the Missouri River inundated all 210 homes and businesses here, and a caucus day drive through town showed the extent of damage 10 months later. Most local homes, storefronts and gathering spaces remain boarded up. Only about 20 households have moved back so far, officials say, and the only evidence of the presidential race was a single campaign sign in front of the rebuilt home of Rick and Cherry Parham.
The Spencer Dam in northeast Nebraska was destroyed by flooding in March 2019. The Niobrara River had been running at 5 or 6 feet of gauge height before it broke through the 90-year-old dam. After that, an 11-foot wave of water rolled through.