Stories from Wednesday, September 24, 2014

William Lee Burke Aug. 20, 1933 - Sept. 21, 2014 LINCOLN, Neb. -- William Lee Burke died Sept. 21, 2014, in Lincoln, Nebraska, at the age of 81. He was born Aug. 20, 1933, in McCook, Nebraska, to Len and Velma Burke. He graduated from Central High School in Omaha, Nebraska, and received his BA from Stanford University and his MA and Ph.D. from Northwestern University...

James Eugene 'Jim' Austin Aug. 22, 1943 - Sept. 14, 2014 McCOOK, Neb. -- James Eugene "Jim" Austin of McCook died Sunday (Sept. 14, 2014), at Community Hospital in McCook. He was born on Aug. 22, 1943, to Stanley E. and Florence E. (Behnke) Austin at Norfolk, Virginia. He moved to McCook with his parents in 1948. He graduated from McCook High School in 1961...

This information is gathered at the McCook Public Safety Center, the McCook office of the Nebraska State Patrol, the Red Willow County Courthouse, the Red Willow County Sheriff's Office and the McCook Humane Society. Police activity Activity log...

McCook, Neb. -- McCook's reputation for giving has long been recognized throughout the state. Generous giving has been a mark of distinction for our hometown since the community's founding over 130 years ago. McCook Community Foundation Fund is proud to announce another mark of distinction to add to our community's culture of giving -- The Myers Family Challenge...

Washington, D.C. -- Constituents of Third District Congressman Adrian Smith who need assistance dealing with a federal agency are invited to attend a "Caseworker in Your Community" event in McCook on Tuesday. The event will be 10 a.m. to noon at the McCook Heritage Senior Center, 1312 W. Fifth in McCook...

LINCOLN, Neb. -- Having enough water is an increasingly important issue for Nebraska farmers and city dwellers alike, but regulating water use is not something new for state policymakers. Nebraska has a long history of water law, and with the complex interplay of water rights, recent droughts and continued legal pressure from Kansas over the Republican River, state water laws have gone through many changes, with an increased emphasis on local control of water management...

CULBERTSON, Neb. -- The Culbertson Woman's Club will host a candidate forum for candidates running for the Nebraska State Legislature's District 44 seat, Hitchcock County Commissioner District 1, Hitchcock County Assessor and Hitchcock County Schools Board of Education...

Chloe Dixon, a "Cat Pack" volunteer, holds the 2015 "Dogs and Cats of McCook" calendar that she and fellow Cat Pack members will sell during McCook, Nebraska's annual "Heritage Days" celebration this weekend. The Cat Kids will be located in the southwest corner of Norris Park Saturday and Sunday, selling the calendars ($5 each), home-made decorative refrigerator magnets ($.50 each) and 24x36-inch mounted color posters of the dog and cat photographs submitted for inclusion in the calendar ($20 each). ...

Emergency personnel in McCook, Nebraska, respond to a call of "bleacher collapse on the west side of the junior high" Tuesday evening, discovering a drill designed to test and teach emergency response, medical skills and cooperation and communication among agencies. ...

You have to feel for the teachers. Four students were injured, one seriously, when a teacher was pouring methanol onto a table top and igniting it during a chemistry class demonstration Monday at Denver's Science, Math and Arts Academy, a charter high school...

Consider this your official "heads up." Mark your calendars for Wednesday, Oct. 8, and Thursday, Oct. 23, as days you will want to be outside and observing. On Oct. 8, there will be a total lunar eclipse, but you will need to either stay up late or get up early to view it...

Stop me if you've heard some of this before, but the pending gubernatorial race has taken some strange, almost unbelievable turns in the last few days. Aw, come on, really? The short time lieutenant governor -- picked a little more than a year ago to replace a lieutenant governor who resigned after news broke that he was misusing a state phone to call women who weren't his wife -- has himself resigned after it became public that his sister was granted a protection order against him in a lingering family dispute over farm land. ...

McCOOK, Neb. -- The City of McCook will spray for mosquitos this evening, Sept. 24, beginning around sundown and weather permitting. If city crews are unable to spray on Wednesday they will reschedule the activity for Thursday. Although the chemical used is not harmful to people or pets, citizens with concerns are encouraged to stay indoors...

McCOOK, Neb. -- A Clean-up Demolition Derby is set fort 7 p.m. Saturday, Oct. 11 at the Red Willow County Fairgrounds. Pit gates open at 4 p.. and close at 6 p.m. Classes include full-sized weld, no-weld cars, compact cars and trucks. Cars must have been in at least one demolition derby...

CAMBRIDGE, Nebraska -- As you travel through Southwest Nebraska, cast your eyes upon the skies above the vast landscape. When you do, you may glimpse one of the 22 cellular towers which soar high into the sky, providing the newest telecommunications technology to the farmers, ranchers and townspeople who live in and visit the Golden Plains of America...