Railyard explosion in Nebraska isn't expected to create any lingering problems, authorities say
Nebraska authorities don't expect any lingering problems related to Thursday's explosion of a railroad shipping container carrying an acid used to make explosives because the chemical largely burned off and any residue was contained.
Explosion at world's largest railyard in Nebraska prompts evacuations because of heavy toxic smoke
An explosion inside a shipping container at the world's largest railyard prompted evacuations in western Nebraska Thursday because of the toxic smoke generated when one of the chemicals aboard caught fire.
Federal railroad inspectors find alarming number of defects on Union Pacific this summer
Federal inspectors found an alarming number of defects in the locomotives and railcars Union Pacific was using at the world's largest railyard in western Nebraska this summer, and the railroad was reluctant to fix the problems.
Warren Buffett's firm invests in the biggest homebuilders while reducing GM stake in portfolio moves
Warren Buffettโs company appears to be betting on the housing market picking up because Berkshire Hathaway bought more than $700 million worth of homebuilder DR Hortonโs stock this spring along with smaller stakes in fellow builders Lennar Corp. and NVR Corp. Berkshire revealed those new investments Monday in a quarterly filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission that shows the conglomerateโs holdings as of the end of June.
Automaker Stellantis signs deal company seeking to mine in Nebraska for rare earths needed in EVs
The company that wants to mine for critical minerals in southeast Nebraska has signed a deal with Stellantis, giving the automaker access to the rare earth elements used to produce high-powered magnets needed for its electric vehicles.
After expulsion and reinstatement, Tennessee Reps. Pearson, Jones advance past Democratic primaries
Tennessee Reps. Justin Pearson and Justin Jones have advanced past an election hurdle after the two young Black lawmakers were expelled earlier this year for their gun control protest on the House floor, then reinstated by local officials days afterward.
Nebraska GOP state Sen. Flood wins ex-congressmanโs seat
Nebraska state Sen. Mike Flood has won a special election to replace former U.S. Rep. Jeff Fortenberry, a fellow Republican who was sentenced to two years of probation earlier in the day for a conviction on charges that he lied to federal agents.
Profit plummets at Buffett's company on investment gains
Warren Buffettโs company reported a third-quarter profit that was roughly one-third the amount of last yearโs profit because of much smaller paper gains on the value of its investments, but most of its businesses were continuing to recover from the effects of the pandemic.
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Ted Turner to give land to nonprofit but keep paying taxes
Media mogul and billionaire bison rancher Ted Turner is donating an 80,000-acre ranch he owns in western Nebraska to a nonprofit agriculture ecosystem research institute and says he might do the same with four other ranches in Nebraskaโs Sand Hills.
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Nebraska death sentences continue despite no execution drugs
Nebraska prosecutors have been successful in getting death sentences for convicted murderers, but as the state adds to its death row population, many who oversee the state's capital punishment largely ignore the fact that Nebraska has no lethal injection drugs and very likely wonโt get any for years, if ever.
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States sue Biden in bid to revive Keystone XL pipeline
Committee Ranking Member Sen. Joe Manchin, D-WVa., speaks during a hearing to examine the nomination of former Gov. โ Attorneys general from 21 states on Wednesday sued to to overturn President Joe Bidenโs cancellation of the contentious Keystone XL oil pipeline from Canada. Led by Ken Paxton of Texas and Austin Knudsen of Montana, the states said Biden had overstepped his authority when he revoked the permit for the Keystone pipeline on his first day in office. Construction on the 1,200-mile (1,930-kilometer) pipeline began last year when former President Donald Trump revived the long-delayed project after it had stalled under the Obama administration. Joe Manchin of West Virginia and Jon Tester of Montana.
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Family of boy killed at Disney World urges organ donation
This Oct. 2, 2015 photo provided by the Lane Thomas Foundation shows Lane Thomas Graves, in Omaha, Neb. (Lane Thomas Foundation via AP)OMAHA, Neb. Matt and Melissa Graves created the Lane Thomas Foundation after their son was killed by an alligator in 2016. Gillock said organ donation helped ease the pain of losing her 3-year-old daughter to brain cancer in 2015 because she knew her daughter's organs helped five people. โThe Lane Thomas Foundation is amazing to help these families that are going through organ donation to not worry about financials.
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Denver's airport reopens after powerful winter storm
The storm system, fueled by moisture from the Gulf of Mexico, had moved out of the region and into northeastern Nebraska by Monday, said Evan Direnzo, a meteorologist for the weather service in Boulder. Denver's airport runways were closed just before noon on Sunday due to blowing snow and poor visibilities and some stranded passengers spent the night at the airport. AdIn Wyoming, the National Weather Service warned that driving would remain dangerous for the next several days there because of slick and snow covered roads. Classes were also called off at Colorado State University in Fort Collins and the University of Coloradoโs main campus in Boulder. In the Denver metro area, all bus routes were suspended but limited train service was operating, including from downtownโs Union Station to the airport.
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Warren Buffett's fortune tops $100B as his stock soars
FILE - In this May 5, 2019, file photo Warren Buffett, Chairman and CEO of Berkshire Hathaway, speaks during a game of bridge following the annual Berkshire Hathaway shareholders meeting in Omaha, Neb. Investor Buffett's fortune surged above $100 billion Wednesday, March 10, 2021, when shares of his company hit a record high at over $400,000 apiece. โ Investor Warren Buffett's fortune surged above $100 billion Wednesday when shares of his company hit a record high at over $400,000 apiece. Buffett's fortune, which is mostly tied to his ownership of 248,734 Class A shares, topped $101 billion at the stock's peak Wednesday. Amazon's Jeff Bezos is listed as the world's richest man with a $179.6 billion fortune.
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Judge says railroad talks should be included in lawsuits
FILE- In this July 31, 2018, file photo a Union Pacific train travels through Union, Neb. โ A federal judge has ruled that the details of conversations between the nation's four largest railroads should be included in lawsuits challenging billions of dollars of charges the railroads imposed in the past. The lawsuits say the railroads conspired to boost prices starting in 2003 by imposing coordinated fuel surcharges and pocketing billions of dollars in profits. In the lawsuits, the railroads have argued that their fuel surcharges were legal and were simply designed to recover the skyrocketing cost of fuel at the time. Union Pacific, which is based in Omaha, Nebraska, plans to continue โvigorously defending itself against the allegations in these lawsuits,โ spokeswoman Elizabeth Graham said.
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The Latest: Young S. Koreans taking crucial university exam
The Education Ministry says about 493,430 students began taking the one-day test at about 1,380 test sites across South Korea on Thursday. The university from which a South Korean graduates significantly affects job prospects, social standings and even marriage partners. Health care workers, citizens above 65 and people living in care homes will be the first groups to be vaccinated. Redfield says earlier surges in COVID-19 illnesses were concentrated in one area of the country or another, and health care workers and equipment could be shifted from one place to another to deal with it. ___TORONTO โ Canadaโs health minister says health officials will soon complete a review of the coronavirus vaccine made by Pfizer and BioNTech.
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More charges filed in deadly attack at Nebraska restaurant
โ Authorities filed additional charges Monday against a 23-year-old man in a shooting at a Nebraska fast food restaurant in which two employees were killed and two others were wounded. Roberto Carlos Silva Jr. faces two counts of first-degree murder, two counts of attempted first-degree murder, arson and four gun charges in Saturday's attack at a Sonic Drive-in restaurant in the Omaha suburb of Bellevue. The Omaha man was being held without bond ahead of his first scheduled court appearance Tuesday. Silva was unarmed when he was arrested nearby shortly after the shooting, but police found four guns at the restaurant. Authorities have identified the two employees who were killed in the shooting as Nathan Pastrana, 22, and Ryan Helbert, 28.
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Man arrested in deadly attack at Nebraska Sonic restaurant
Roberto Carlos Silva Jr., of Omaha, was booked into Sarpy County jail early Sunday on suspicion of first-degree murder and first-degree arson in Saturday night's attack at a Sonic Drive-in restaurant in Bellevue, the Omaha World-Herald reported. Officers who arrived found the moving truck burning and four restaurant employees who had been shot. Two were sent to the University of Nebraska Medical Center for treatment, and the other two were declared dead at the scene, Jashinske said. After the shooting, police seized four firearms, though Silva was unarmed and didn't resist when he was arrested outside the restaurant, Jashinske said. Sonic Drive-in, which is based in Oklahoma City, issued a statement Sunday saying the company was โstunned and saddened by what occurred at the Bellevue, Nebraska, Sonic Saturday night.
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Surging virus cases get a shrug in many Midwestern towns
It's not that people in Nebraska, South Dakota, North Dakota, Iowa and elsewhere don't realize their states are leading the nation in new cases per capita. โThey donโt think itโs real," she said. Like most people, Jay Stibbe, 52, of Fargo, North Dakota, said he and his family are respectful of COVID-19 protocols and wear masks where required. However, Stibbe said he doesnโt see enough โconcrete informationโ about the virus to stop him from going about his normal life, even though North Dakota leads the nation in the number of virus cases per capita. ___Associated Press writers David Pitt in Des Moines, Iowa, and Dave Kolpack in Fargo, North Dakota, contributed to this story.
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Mutual of Omaha replaces Indian chief logo with African lion
FILE - In this Friday, July 17, 2020 file photo, the Mutual of Omaha logo is seen at the company's corporate headquarters in Omaha, Neb. The insurance company has announced, Thursday, Nov. 12, a new logo without the depiction of a Native American chief. โ Mutual of Omaha on Thursday unveiled a new corporate logo depicting an African lion, replacing the Indian chief head that had been the symbol of the insurance and financial services company for 70 years. The new logo now appears on the companyโs website. Officials said that over the next year, it will replace the old logo on the companyโs printed materials, signs and on the face of its headquarters building in Omaha.
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Jackpot! Expansion of gambling in the US wins big at polls
The U.S. gambling industry was a big winner at the polls on Nov. 3, 2020, with three states authorizing sports betting and three others either authorizing or expanding casino gambling. (AP Photo/Wayne Parry)ATLANTIC CITY, N.J. โ The U.S. gambling industry won big at the polls Tuesday, with three states authorizing legal sports betting and three others either approving or expanding casino gambling. Virginia approved casino gambling in four locations, Nebraska authorized adding casino games at its horse racing tracks, and Colorado expanded the number and type of casino games it can offer, along with eliminating some wagering limits. Voters in four Virginia cities โ Bristol, Danville, Portsmouth and Norfolk โ approved ballot measures authorizing casinos. Nebraska allowed casino games at racetracks in Omaha, Lincoln, Grand Island, Columbus and South Sioux City.
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Virus hospitalizations surge as pandemic shadows US election
Missouri, Oklahoma, Iowa, Indiana, Nebraska, North Dakota and New Mexico all reported record high hospitalizations this week. Wisconsin health officials reported 5,771 new coronavirus cases Tuesday, a new record. Meanwhile, Iowa hospital officials warned that facilities and staff could be overwhelmed without serious efforts to curtail the virus spread. Suresh Gunasekaran, CEO of University of Iowa Hospitals and Clinics, said the state is entering its third peak, one that is higher than previous ones in May and July. Missouri's health department reported 1,659 hospitalizations statewide Monday, surpassing by 10 the previous record set a day earlier.
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Wisconsin-Purdue game off amid Badgers' coronavirus outbreak
MADISON, Wis. โ Wisconsin has canceled Saturday's home game against Purdue, the second straight game the 10th-ranked Badgers have called off as COVID-19 cases within their team continue to rise. This marks the second consecutive week that Wisconsin has canceled a game due to the virus outbreak. Ten players and 11 staffers have tested positive over the last seven days. The second cancellation gives Wisconsin little room for error in its quest to reach a second straight conference championship game. The Big Ten requires teams to play at least six games to be eligible for the league championship game.