Custer County Chief

04/14/2025

Drive with caution, folks. Watch for additional closings and directions as construction on Hwy 2 through Broken Bow continues. Monday morning, north turns onto 11th Avenue (behind courthouse) and 12th Avenue were blocked. It can be mighty inconvenient right now but think of how nice it will be when it's all done.

04/12/2025

04/11/2025

APRIL 11, 2025 - BROKEN BOW, NEB. - A ribbon cutting was held this afternoon to celebrate Kahnk Lawncare's new membership with the Broken Bow Chamber of Commerce. Jared Kahnk, a 2019 graduate of Broken Bow High School, started his business one year ago, April, 1, 2024. "I always wanted to start my own business in Broken Bow," Kahnk said. "When I'd work for my parents doing lawncare, I never saw it as unenjoyable." Joining Kahnk for the ribbon cutting were his parents Bob and Janeen Kahnk, grandmother Linda Kahnk, wife Emily Kahnk and her parent's Cindy and Stuart Fox as well as extended family, cousins, friends and members of the Broken Bow Chamber of Commerce. Kahnk Lawncare offers spring cleaning, fall cleaning, mowing, trimming and gutter cleaning. Kahnk can be reached by phone or text at 308-870-3108. Read more about how Kahnk came to start his business in Broken Bow in the April 17, 2025, Custer County Chief.

04/11/2025

APRIL 11, 2025 - ANSELMO, NEB. - Work started Thursday, April 10, on the upgrade of the Anselmo Rd 429 RR Crossing. The Custer County Highway Department is tearing up the concrete just north of the track and will regrade that section of road. Photo by Butch McGinn.

04/09/2025

Ralph McIntosh, a resident at Off Broadway in Broken Bow, Neb., was recognized for 60 years of continuous membership in the American Legion today. Macintosh, 93, is a member of Woodlake American Legion Post 202 in Cherry County. Presenting the certificate were Joe Kreycik, commander, Woodlake American Legion Post 202, and Roger Wenquist, commander, Broken Bow American Legion Post 126. “Folks, you are looking at a Korean War veteran,” Kreycick said. “He served ’52 to ’54 in the combat zone big time.” Pictured are Don Scofield, McIntosh's nephew; Kim Scofield; Connie Lentz, McIntosh's daughter; Joe Kreycik, Commander Post 202; Ralph McIntosh, Korean War Veteran; Roger Wenquist, Commander Post 126; and Sue Simpson, McIntosh's niece. See next week's issue of the Chief for the memories McInstosh shared.

03/28/2025

MARCH 28, 2025 - BROKEN BOW, NEB. - A ribbon cutting this afternoon celebrating one of Broken Bow's newest businesses, Thomsen Chiropractic. Dr. Riley Thomsen has opened his business at 715 S. E Street/Hwy 2. "Broken Bow is a good place to raise a family and a good place to do business," Dr. Thomsen said. He does traditional chiropractic and DOT physicals. Hours are Mon, Tue, Thur, and Fri 8 a.m. to 6 p.m. Wed is 10 a.m. to 6 p.m. The business will also be open on some Saturdays. Dr. Thomsen graduated in December and opened the doors March 10. His interest in chiropractic started when he was young. "I was inspired as a little kid by a chiropractor in Kearney. He made me feel good and I decided I'd like to do that." He also wanted his own clinic so that he can take personal care of patients. He had help from his fiancee, parents, an aunt and grandparents in getting his business ready. "It's me in front for now," he said, "And a lot of help behind the scenes." Dr. Thomsen can be reached at 308-293-6340 or via Facebook. Read more about the new business in the April 3, 2025 issue of the Chief

03/19/2025

MARCH 19, 2025 - BROKEN BOW, NEB. - The Blizzard Warning for Custer County ended around 10 a.m. this morning. • A BLIZZARD WARNING continues for counties to the east and south until 2 p.m. North winds of 30 to 40 mph with gusts up to 60 mph are expected. For areas that received substantial snow, blowing and drifting could impact travel. • As of 1 p.m., conditions are fair and windy in Broken Bow. Wind speed has been measured at 31 mph with a 47 mph gust. Windchill is 19. A high of 40 is expected today with a high of 56 tomorrow. • A HIGH WIND WIND WARNING remains in effect for much of central Nebraska until 7 p.m. this evening. • Around 12:30 p.m. today, Hwy 21 south of Broken Bow was in good condition. Northbound Hwy 21 was mostly clear and wet with the southbound lane wet and sometimes slushy as snow is blown across. Photos are of Hwy 21 northbound at MM 63 (ten miles south of Broken Bow) and Hwy 21 northbound MM 70 (Adams hill, three miles south of Broken Bow). • As of 1:30 p.m., 511 Nebraska was still reporting I-80 closed from North Platte to Lincoln. Also closed are several highways south of Gothenburg, Cozad and Kearney, roads south of York and Lincoln as well as roadways in the Columbus and Omaha area and north of Omaha.

03/19/2025

Attend the annual Pancake and Sausage Supper this Saturday!

03/18/2025

https://www.custercountychief.com/news/high-winds-for-sure-maybe-changes-in-snow-accumulations/article_2d7c60e8-0417-11f0-bc04-fb6cd1c08774.html

MARCH 18, 2025 - NORTH PLATTE, NEB. - A strong low pressure system will bring high winds to central Nebraska with gusts in the 45 to 50 mph range, according

03/13/2025

https://www.custercountychief.com/news/80-degrees-windy-and-then-winter/article_ffcf13f0-0017-11f0-83c9-aba99b496859.html

MARCH 13, 2025 - NORTH PLATTE, NEB. - It’s March in Nebraska and that means a variety of weather.

03/12/2025

MARCH 11, 2025 - BROKEN BOW, NEB. - Electrical Superintendent Blake Waldow announced the following outages, dates and times, at the Broken Bow City Council meeting Tuesday evening, March 11.

Wed., March 12, 2025
• First outage - between North 9th Ave, and North 10th Ave., starting at 8 a.m.
• Next outage - between North 10th Ave and North 11th Ave.
Outages will be between 8:30 a.m. and 4:40 p.m.

Thurs., March 13, 2025
• Outage between North 11th Ave. and North 12 Ave. starting at 8:30 a.m. and ending at noon

The image shows the sections of town that will be affected as the city over the next two to four months.

Waldow called this Phase One, which focuses on the north side of the railroad tracks. Outages may vary in length, from one hour to four hours.

There will be four phases as city moves forward to transfer a section of the town from temporary power to permanent power. The city already had plans in place to upgrade this same section of town, however, the explosion and subsequent fire at the power plant in February has shifted the plan into high gear. City Administrator said that because of the speed at which the transfer must take place, there is not the time for the normal notification. "We don't have the luxury of knocking on every door," Schmidt said. "The time frames could change quickly." He noted that large areas of the city will be affected. "We will do our best," he added. Mayor Sonnichsen added, "The portion (of town) that went out is now on temporary power. The race is on." In addition to media sources, citizens can also check the city's page for updates. See more details in the March 20, 2023 Custer County Chief.

03/09/2025

Doing something to help - Lions Club holds fundraiser for Broken Bow Ambulance Service - SUNDAY, MARCH 9, 2025 - BROKEN BOW, NEB. - The Lion Club held a pulled pork meal fund raiser and silent auction to raise money for the Broken Bow Ambulance Service. A new ambulance is scheduled to arrive in May or June. Funds will be used toward training and equipment. "We're pleased with the turnout," Lion Club member Julie Toline said. "We wanted to do something to help the ambulance service get additional funds." Read more about it in the March 13 issue of the Custer County Chief!

03/07/2025

FRIDAY, MARCH 7, 2025 - HWY 21, CUSTER COUNTY, NEB. The stop sign at Hwy 21 and Pressey West, 8 a.m.; Partially covered and slushy roads around MM 63, northbound; More snow and ice further north around MM 67, northbound, 8:15 a.m.; Winds blowing snow from the west across Hwy21 at Adams south lot, northbound 8:30 a.m.

03/05/2025

WEDNESDAY, MARCH 5, 2025 - NORTH PLATTE, NEB. - According to the National Weather Service, winds reached 52 mph yesterday with the highest gust recorded at 69 mph for Broken Bow. Depending upon where you were located in central Nebraska, blizzard conditions arrived at different times. Today, the forecast for Custer County is a high of 45 with sunny skies, both which will go a long way to melting the ice and snow on roads and highways. Another system is moving in, bringing the potential for 2 or more inches of snow on Thursday into Friday. The higher amounts are forecast for the Sandhills with Cherry County have about a 50 percent chance of 6 inches or more. Broken Bow is forecast to have a 84 percent change of 2 inches of snow or more. A Winter Storm Watch is in effect north of Highway 2 and west of Highway 83. PHOTO (Mona Weatherly): Hwy 21 from Oconto to Broken Bow was mostly ice and snow packed this morning around 8 a.m. (northbound photo). As the temps and sun work on melting the ice, stay cautious and on the look out for icy spots in sheltered and shaded areas.

03/03/2025

FROM THE NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE OFFICE OUT OF NORTH PLATTE, NEB. - More of central Nebraska, including Custer County, is now in a Blizzard Warning effect from 3 a.m. Tuesday to noon Wednesday. Strong winds with gusts up to 65 mph from the north will lead to very difficult and perhaps impossible travel. Impacts will continue into Wednesday. Some locations, especially across south-central Nebraska may see little snow fall. The greatest potential for locally high snowfall amounts is from McCook and Curtis to North Platte and Broken Bow then to Burwell and Ainsworth, and reaching as far north as Butte and O’Neill. This area will have the greatest potential of higher amounts if the storm shifts to the east. Temperatures (before windchill) should remain in the 40s and 30s Tuesday, falling into the 20s and teens over night into Wednesday. The storm will begin as rain and then shift to snow. In the Broken Bow area, that shift should occur around 9 a.m. Tuesday with the heaviest snow expected from noon to 6 p.m., though it could continue to as late as 9 p.m. With the high winds, there is possibility of white-out conditions and very hazardous travel as well as tree damage and power outages. Winds could peak in Custer County at 60 mph with the highest winds expected mid-Tuesday afternoon. Strong winds could continue into Wednesday, prolonging blowing and drifting snow.

03/03/2025

A Blizzard Warning is in effect from 3 a.m. CST Tuesday to noon CST Wednesday for the counties of Eastern Cherry-Keya Paha-Brown-Rock-Thomas-Blaine-Logan-Lincoln-Hayes including the cities of Springview, Stapleton, Valentine, Dunning, Purdum, Rose, Thedford, North Platte, Hayes Center, Bassett, Ainsworth, Halsey, and Brewster. Blizzard conditions expected with total snow accumulations between 2 and 5 inches. Winds will gust as high as 65 mph. Whiteout conditions are expected and will make travel treacherous and potentially life-threatening. Plan on slippery road conditions. The hazardous conditions could impact the Tuesday morning and evening commutes. Very strong winds could cause tree damage. Travel should be restricted to emergencies only. If you must travel, have a winter survival kit with you. If you get stranded, stay with your vehicle. Call Nebraska 5 1 1 for the latest road information.

A Winter Storm Watch is in effect for the following counties Boyd-Holt-Loup-Garfield-Wheeler-Custer-Frontier-including the cities of Lynch, Taylor, Atkinson, Ericson, Butte, Bartlett, Curtis, Maywood, O`Neill, Spencer, Broken Bow, Eustis and Burwell Blizzard conditions possible, with total snow accumulations of one to two inches. Winds could gust as high as 65 mph. Whiteout conditions are possible and may make travel treacherous and potentially life-threatening. Plan on slippery road conditions. The hazardous conditions could impact the Tuesday evening and Wednesday morning commutes. Very strong winds could cause tree damage.

02/28/2025

FEB. 28, 2025 - BROKEN BOW, NEB. - The Broken Bow Fire Department has announced that the Wildfire Safety class originally scheduled for Monday, March 3, 2025, has been postponed to a later date.

02/28/2025

The Broken Bow Fire Department is again asking the public to refrain from using drones as multiple aircraft will be operating in the area to support ongoing fire response efforts. It is critical that these aircraft can operate without interference. Any drones in the airspace can delay operations, endanger pilots, and jeopardize firefighting efforts. If you fly, they can’t. Please help us keep the skies safe. We appreciate the public’s ongoing cooperation in allowing these aircraft to perform their critical work without obstruction.