Snow sets October record

Ice and snow can be beautiful, but on Thursday morning it was sloppy, slick and — in at least two cases — fatal.

Thursday's snow set a record for total October snowfall in parts of central and southwestern Nebraska, according to the National Weather Service.

Meteorologist Chauncy Schultz said North Platte has received 18 inches so far this month, based on readings at Lee Bird Field. The previous record was 15.7 inches, set in 1969.

The snow came from two storms. On Oct. 9 and 10, a total of 13.8 inches fell. Thursday's storm added at least 4.2 inches.

At least two people were killed Thursday in separate Nebraska crashes brought on by the wintry conditions. The first crash took the life of a teenage boy on the way to school near Broken Bow. The second killed an elderly man near Brunswick.

In the first fatal accident, Travis Slingsby, 15, was eastbound about 7:40 a.m. on Nebraska Highway 2 when his car crossed the center line and hit an oncoming pickup truck, according to the Nebraska State Patrol.

Trooper Eric Janssen said Slingsby, driving on a school permit, was on his way to school in Ansley when the car began to hydroplane on the slushy road.

Slingsby's car, a Dodge Stratus, spun into the westbound lane and was hit on the rear passenger side, then thrown into a ditch, Janssen said.

Although the teen was wearing a seat belt and his airbag deployed, he died at the scene, according to the patrol.

The pickup's driver, Kevin Hetrick, 27, of Grand Island, was taken to Jennie Melham Memorial Hospital in Broken Bow and then to Good Samaritan Hospital in Kearney, authorities said. His condition was not available.

The second fatal crash took place roughly 120 miles away and 2½ hours later in Antelope County in northeast Nebraska, where temperatures dipped close to freezing as the precipitation fell.

Jack Classen, 85, of Orchard was driving a 2000 Mercury Marquis east on U.S. Highway 20 when he lost control on the icy highway and crossed the center line. A westbound 2004 Jeep Grand Cherokee driven by Clinton Bowland of Norfolk collided with the passenger side of the Mercury, the patrol said.

The crash occurred about 10:05 a.m. Both men were wearing seat belts. Bowland, 40, was treated and released.

Across central and southwest Nebraska, snowfall totals varied depending upon where temperatures dipped below freezing, Schultz said. Totals would have been much higher had temperatures been higher when the storm began and rain fell. The Brady area received about 12 inches of snow, Stapleton about 10 inches and areas outside North Platte about 7 inches.

Some communities reported short, limited power outages. A number of trees lost branches. The damage was neither widespread nor serious, according to local authorities.

The snow stopped short of the Omaha area because temperatures didn't drop low enough. The metro area got about an inch of rain between 7 p.m. Wednesday and 7 p.m. Thursday, according to the National Weather Service.

Andrew Ulrich, a meteorologist with AccuWeather Inc., The World-Herald's weather consultant, said the weather picture should improve briefly this weekend.

Saturday's high is expected to be in the mid-50s in eastern Nebraska, with skies forecast to be partly sunny.

There's another chance of light showers sweeping across the state, beginning Saturday night in western Nebraska and ending Sunday morning in eastern Nebraska, he said.

Ulrich said another rain system could move through from Monday night into Tuesday.

This report includes material from the World-Herald News Service.

Contact the writer:

444-1102, nancy.gaarder@owh.com

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