Iowa
Residents begin going through the rubble after tornadoes hammer parts of Nebraska and Iowa
OMAHA, Neb. — Residents began sifting through the rubble Saturday after a tornado plowed through suburban Omaha, Nebraska, demolishing homes and businesses as it moved for miles through farmland and into subdivisions.
People gathered in the streets in the Elkhorn area of Omaha amid the scattered remains of the homes and Nebraska Gov. Jim Pillen planned to tour the area then hold a news conference later Saturday in Omaha.
The Friday night tornadoes wreaked havoc in the Midwest, causing a building to collapse with dozens of people inside and destroying and damaging hundreds of homes.
There have been several reports of injuries but no fatalities reported.
Three people were hurt in Nebraska’s Lancaster County when a tornado hit an industrial building, causing it to collapse with 70 people inside. Several were trapped, but everyone was evacuated and the injuries were not life-threatening, authorities said.
One of the most destructive tornadoes moved for miles Friday through mostly rural farmland before chewing up homes and other structures in the suburbs of Omaha, a city of 485,000 people with a metropolitan area population of about 1 million.
Photos on social media also showed heavy damage in the small town of Minden, Iowa, about 30 miles northeast of Omaha.
Jeff Theulen, chief deputy of the Pottawattamie County Sheriff’s Office, said at a late Friday briefing that 40 to 50 homes had been completely destroyed. Two injuries were reported but none were life-threatening.
School buses have been brought in to give residents a ride out of town if they need one, he said. He asked others to stay away as it’s a very dangerous area with power lines down and piles of debris where homes used to be.
“It’s heartbreaking to see these people who have lost houses, cars, essentially their life until they have to rebuild it,” he said.
The forecast for Saturday was ominous. The National Weather Service issued tornado watches early Saturday for northwestern Texas and across western Oklahoma.
“Tornadoes, perhaps significant tornadoes,” were possible Saturday afternoon and evening, said weather service meteorologist Bruce Thoren in Norman, Okla.
The threat of tornadoes extended into parts of Iowa, Kansas, Missouri, Nebraska and Arkansas. Forecasters warned that large hail and strong wind gusts were also possible.
Hundreds of houses were damaged in Omaha on Friday, mostly in the Elkhorn area in the western part of the city, Omaha police Lt. Neal Bonacci said and police and firefighters went door-to-door to help people.
In one area of Elkhorn, dozens of newly built, large homes were damaged. At least six were wrecked, including one that was leveled, while others had their top halves ripped off. Dozens of emergency vehicles responded to the area.
“We watched it touch down like 200 yards over there and then we took shelter,” said Pat Woods, who lives in Elkhorn. “We could hear it coming through. When we came up, our fence was gone and we looked to the northwest and the whole neighborhood’s gone.”
Kim Woods, his wife, added, “The whole neighborhood just to the north of us is pretty flattened.”
Three people, including a child, were in the basement of the leveled home when the tornado hit but got out safely, according to Dhaval Naik, who said he works with home’s owner.
KETV-TV video showed one woman being removed from a demolished home on a stretcher in Blair, a city just north of Omaha.
Two people were transported for treatment, both with minor injuries, Bonacci said.
“People had warnings of this and that saved lives,” Omaha Police Chief Todd Schmaderer said of the few serious injuries.
The tornado warning was issued in the Omaha area on Friday afternoon just as children were due to be released from school. Many schools had students shelter in place until the storm passed.
“Was it one long track tornado or was it several tornadoes?” Kern of the National Weather Service asked.
The agency planned to send out multiple crews over the next several days to determine the number of tornadoes and their strength, which could take up to two weeks, she said.
Another tornado hit an area on the eastern edge of Omaha, passing directly through parts of Eppley Airfield, the city’s airport. Officials halted aircraft operations to access damage but then reopened the facility, Omaha Airport Authority Chief Strategy Officer Steve McCoy said.
The passenger terminal was not hit by the tornado but people rushed to storm shelters until the twister passed, McCoy said.
After passing through the airport, the tornado crossed the Missouri River and into Iowa, north of Council Bluffs.
In Lancaster County, where three people were injured when an industrial building collapsed, sheriff’s officials also said they had reports of a tipped-over train near Waverly, Nebraska.
The Omaha Public Power District reported nearly 10,000 customers were without power in the Omaha area. The number had dropped to just more than 4,300 Saturday morning.
Pillen, the Nebraska governor, posted on the social platform X that he had ordered state resources to be made available to help with the emergency response and to support first responders as they assess the damage.
Hollingsworth reported from Mission, Kansas. Associated Press writers Ken Miller in Oklahoma City, Hannah Fingerhut in Des Moines, Iowa, Jack Dura in Bismarck, North Dakota, Jeff Martin in Atlanta and Lisa Baumann in Bellingham, Washington, contributed to this report.
With the college football season right around the corner, the Iowa State Cyclones will be hoping to have a strong campaign with a new regime coming in. However, a lot of their success might depend on one key player.
Following the departure of Matt Campbell to the Penn State Nittany Lions, the Cyclones saw their roster get completely gutted. Most of their players entered the transfer portal, leaving new head coach Jimmy Rogers with plenty of work to do.
Fortunately, Rogers and the coaching staff were able to get out there and bring in a lot of new players from all over the country. While Iowa State might be lacking star power and aren’t going to be as talented as they were last year, they do have a good amount of depth.
There should be quite a bit of competition for spots in camp, but there are some players who should clearly be starters that transferred in.
Pete Nakos of On3 recently predicted who would be the starting quarterback for every team in the Big 12. Unsurprisingly for the Cyclones, it was Jaylen Raynor who was the choice.
Raynor an Easy Pick
After bringing in the three-year starter from the Arkansas State Red Wolves, Raynor instantly became the favorite to be the starter for the Cyclones in Week 1. Him being predicted as that guy should come as no surprise, and his ability to play against elevated competition on a weekly basis will be key.
There is a lot to like about Raynor’s game, and he could certainly help Iowa State exceed expectations next year.
Last season with the Red Wolves, he totaled 3,361 passing yards, 19 passing touchdowns, and a 66.5 completion percentage. It was career-highs for him in all three of those categories, showing some nice improvement in his junior season.
As a dual-threat player, he also totaled a career-high in rushing yards and rushing touchdowns. The junior recorded 423 yards on the ground to go along with seven rushing scores.
Overall, the numbers for Raynor were really solid, and there is reason to believe he might be even better in his senior season. For the Cyclones, with all of the new players on the roster, there will undoubtedly be some competition for starting spots around the field. However, it should certainly be Raynor who is under center to start.
Add us as a preferred source on GoogleFollow
CEDAR RAPIDS, Iowa (KCRG) – Syringes from injectable weight loss medications are turning up in drug drop-off boxes across eastern Iowa, creating a safety hazard for law enforcement officers who handle the containers.
Sgt. Erich Lear of the Linn County Sheriff’s Office said emptying the drug drop-off box is part of his daily routine — and the box fills fast.
“It’s probably a 30-gallon tote, and I’d say 3 out of the five days of the week it’s completely full,” Lear said.
Needles found mixed in with other medications
Lear said he has noticed over the past five years that people are placing medicine, nasal sprays and syringes in the bin. He said many of the syringes come from people discarding GLP-1 medications such as Ozempic and Wegovy.
“That tote that I pull out — there’s nothing that protects me from needles other than my observation and using gloves when I sort through things,” Lear said.
The Hiawatha Police Department said it is also seeing an increase in improperly discarded syringes.
Where syringes should go
The Cedar Rapids Linn County Solid Waste Agency is the proper disposal site for sharps. The agency said it has seen syringe intake increase by more than a ton in recent years.
“We’re talking about two thousand pounds of sharps and syringes coming in,” said Joe Horaney of the solid waste agency. “Before 2021 we were around 1.9, maybe 2 tons a year — now we are over 3 tons a year.”
Horaney said any Linn County resident can bring syringes to the facility, provided they are contained properly.
“We just ask that you have it in a heavy plastic container — so one of those medically certified red biohazard containers,” Horaney said. “If you don’t have that, it can be a heavy plastic container like an old laundry detergent [bottle].”
A third-party company picks up the sharps from the facility and incinerates them.
Some drop-off programs discontinued
Lear said another reason sharps are appearing at drop-off locations is that some agencies have ended their disposal programs. The Marion Police Department said it stopped offering the service after people continued to place broken glass, liquids and other garbage inside the box.
Copyright 2026 KCRG. All rights reserved.
While most of the focus for the Iowa State Cyclones will be on the football program for the next couple of months, the basketball program will also be getting set soon for a new campaign. Coming off a strong season, expectations for them will be high.
The 2025-26 season will go down as a memorable one for the Cyclones. This was a team that exceeded most expectations and ended up being one of the best teams in the country.
Iowa State started out the campaign with a 16-0 record, and the group looked like a real contender. While there were some hiccups during a challenging conference schedule, the Cyclones were one of the best teams in the country.
In March Madness, Iowa State was a number two seed, proving to be one of the top eight teams in the country. As they get set for next season, their goal will undoubtedly be to be ranked highly again. However, they may have to prove themselves a bit.
Joe Lunardi of ESPN recently updated his very early bracketology report for the upcoming 2026-27 campaign for the Cyclones. After being a number two seed last year in the NCAA Tournament, he currently has them on the five line.
Iowa State Has Work To Do
While being a five seed in the NCAA Tournament would indicate a Top 25 season for the Cyclones, expectations for the program are higher than that at this point.
Iowa State has become one of the more consistent programs in the country over the last several years, and they will undoubtedly want to take a step forward this coming season.
Due to a lot of production leaving, it is understandable that how they are viewed now could be very different from how they are perceived come March. Due to all of the new players that are coming in, it is going to take time for them to gel.
The Cyclones have a few key returning players led by Killyan Toure, Jamarion Batemon, and Blake Buchanan. Both Toure and Buchanan were starters for the team last season, and that should remain the same this year. However, Batemon also played a significant role coming off the bench, and his scoring ability might put him next to Toure in the starting lineup this coming year.
Overall, while the team did lose a lot of production, they have a good amount of depth with the new players coming in and some key freshmen returning. If things go right and the team gels quickly, they should be better than a five seed.
Add us as a preferred source on GoogleFollow
-
Utah3 minutes agoBeaver County residents set up thousands of sandbags ahead of flashfloods
-
Vermont9 minutes ago
VT Lottery Gimme 5, Pick 3 results for July 16, 2026
-
Virginia15 minutes agoDid you know West Virginia has an official state gun?
-
Washington21 minutes ago
Israel must confront the collapse of its support in Washington | The Jerusalem Post
-
Wisconsin27 minutes agoWisconsin Lottery Pick 3, Pick 4 results for July 16, 2026
-
West Virginia33 minutes agoWest Virginia to conduct comprehensive review of all bridges as state targets repairs
-
Wyoming39 minutes agoNWSR issues Flood Watch advisory for portions of Central, Northwest Wyoming
-
Crypto45 minutes agoDeFi’s Newest Threat: How Malicious Liquidity Pools Are Trick-Quoting Ethereum and Polygon Users
