RURAL STANTON COUNTY — Leonard Boryca was in a daze in the aftermath of the June 16, 2014, t…
2014 Pilger and area tornadoes
WAKEFIELD — Rhonda Lorenzen created Wakefield’s Nearly New secondhand store in 2008 with the…
PILGER — Five years after the devastating tornado destroyed part of this community, much of …
When Chad Boyer first heard the tornado warning five years ago, he did what every other Nebr…
PILGER — Angela Denton misses the rustic charm of Pilger’s former downtown; Gene Willers mis…
The only thing left standing was the bell tower.
On June 16, 2014, a tornado rampaged through the village of Pilger, and St. John’s Lutheran Church was in the path of its destruction.
PILGER — Gene Willers often wondered how he would react when faced with a life-or-death situation.
WAYNE — Now and then, Jodi Slonecker gets a whiff of an odor that mentally takes her right b…
WAKEFIELD — The Dorcey family was together five years ago when a tornado ripped across their…
PILGER — If you were to ask the Rev. Terry Makelin what was to become of the congregation of…
WAKEFIELD — The walls of the newest home here could be taken right out of a box of Crayola c…
WISNER — It’s not difficult to raise $100,000 for a worthy cause.
WAKEFIELD — Things are a little crowded in the Jimenez Nuñez home.
PILGER — After a tornado destroyed much of Pilger two years ago this month, many gathered Sa…
NORFOLK - Kandi Murphree was looking at a bulletin board in the Weller Building at Northeast…
PILGER — The progress this community is making in rebuilding from the devastating effects of…
PILGER — A contest is underway in Pilger to name a new mini-mart going up along Highway 15.
Daily News stories starting from June 16, 2014
PILGER --"It was like God dragged two fingernails across the land."
Video of two significant tornadoes at once crossing U.S. Highway 275 east of Norfolk near Pi…
PILGER — Ryan Kruger and five of his co-workers spent two terrifying minutes inside a vault …
WISNER — Right before the tornado hit around 4 p.m. Monday, Teri Biermann was in Wisner at w…
Darin Schneider thought it was a perfect day for fishing on Maskenthine Lake near Stanton.
WAYNE — A house and farmstead about ten miles east of here were devastated by a tornado Mond…
PILGER -- The village of Pilger's website contains the motto "The little town too tough to die."
The Nebraska State Patrol conducted a helicopter flyover of tornado damage at the request of…
Monday started innocently enough — with the Storm Prediction Center in Norman, Okla., placin…
A 30-minute notice was all Faith Regional Health Services in Norfolk received before an infl…
PILGER — Even though there still were several hours of daylight Monday after tornadoes struc…
The Norfolk City Council meeting opened Monday with City Administrator Shane Weidner describ…
PILGER — The randomness of a tornado’s wrath was apparent to residents here as they assessed…
PILGER — Debris lined the streets.
COLERIDGE — In what has quickly become an all-too-familiar sight in Northeast Nebraska, resi…
Despite the damage done to the Pilger branch of Midwest Bank on Monday, a bank official said…
PILGER — Five-year-old Calista Dixon and her 4-year-old sister, Robin, frequently visited th…
PILGER — Twin twisters enveloped much of this community Monday afternoon. On Wednesday morni…
A lifetime of memories is now so much rubble scattered across fields about 13 miles southeas…
Maskenthine Lake Recreation Area near Stanton took a direct hit from a tornado, causing exte…
PILGER — At lunch time Wednesday here, Mary Donner sat on the steps of her front porch eatin…
As difficult as the situation may be, Lee Sherry, a University of Nebraska-Lincoln Extension…
WISNER — Jeff Dinklage answered call after call at Herman Dinklage Inc. on Tuesday, acceptin…
WAYNE — A lifetime of memories is now so much rubble scattered across fields about 13 miles …
PILGER — Tammy Darville is hopeful that a Siamese kitten named Nickles can be found for its …
Musician Bret Michaels this afternoon issued a press release on his website stating that he …
Volunteers are not only lining the streets of Pilger, but they're also behind the scenes hel…
PILGER — U.S. Sen Mike Johanns pledged to work with state and local officials to assure fede…
PILGER — The Pilger Sand & Gravel plant south of Pilger is still standing despite gettin…
PILGER — The Middle School here always had the same old scoreboard. The one with a big analo…
PILGER — If one didn't know better, it looked like a new small town popped up overnight this…
PILGER — The church building itself is gone, but not the faith of members of St. John’s Luth…
Gov. Dave Heineman is scheduled to make two public appearances in Northeast Nebraska next week.
PILGER — The camouflage and Humvees of Sgt. 1st Class Brendan Dorcey and his National Guard …
PILGER, Neb. — Time will tell if Pilger lives up to its slogan, “A town too tuff to die.’’
The Village of Pilger will hold a community meeting Monday, June 23 at 8 a.m. in the park. T…
STANTON — Troy and Amy Kremlacek planned to observe their one-month wedding anniversary Mond…
PILGER — On the verge of St. John Lutheran Church's 100th anniversary, only the bell tower remains.
PILGER — A week after many were evacuated from their homes following a tornado, Pilger resid…
PILGER — The home Charles and Marianne Psotta shared here for 55 years is now just a memory.
PILGER — Exactly one week since an EF-4 tornado ravaged an estimated 75 percent of this town…
PILGER — Bret Michaels, his band and his crew rolled into town and rolled up their sleeves h…
Many individuals, organizations and businesses have made contributions to the various relief…
STANTON — Boe Searight is proud of ol’ Betsy, even though she looks as if she’s been through…
Checks were being distributed Wednesday to seven families who lost homes in the Stanton area…
Tornado-damaged Maskenthine Lake Recreation Area near Stanton could be reopened next week by…
JOPLIN, Mo. (AP) — Residents of Joplin who survived the devastation of a 2011 tornado are re…
LINCOLN — Amid the shingles, lumber and tin swirling in the Pilger tornado, it appears for a…
LINCOLN, Neb. (AP) — Nebraska officials are still tallying the cost of the tornadoes that d…
STANTON — The young victim of the tornadoes that tore through Pilger earlier this month was …
WISNER — Not even a tornado can keep school from starting on time in the Wisner-Pilger Schoo…
PILGER — A long, narrow wooden cross is one of the few items that remain of St. John’s Luth…
PILGER — After two weeks of tearing down, the focus here now is on rebuilding.
Cleanup and damage assessment would be easier with Mother Nature’s cooperation.
PILGER — Thousands of hands pitch in to help in the days after a disaster like the tornadoes…
LINCOLN, Neb. (AP) — Authorities estimate that about 1,000 large animals were killed by the …
STANTON — Even as family members continue to work through the aftermath of a tragedy that to…
PILGER — It’s a question Aaron Becker has heard a lot lately.
Since the tornado last month that devastated Pilger, donations have flowed in to help reside…
STANTON — A hearing scheduled for Friday afternoon here in the custody case of Robin Dixon h…
PILGER — Midwest Bank’s deep roots here made the decision an easy one.
MADISON — As the school year ended, I did what anyone with the summer bug would do — bought …
Footage from inside the Farmers Co-op Store in Pilger shows security camera footage of the e…
STANTON — A Stanton County Court official has confirmed that a young survivor of the June 16…
PILGER — “The Little Town Too Tough to Die” has been spoken by citizens, quoted by reporters…
PILGER — Normally this much activity taking place in a small town would be cause for excitement.
Bret Michaels is a man of his word.
Here’s a roundup of the latest information on various tornado relief and cleanup efforts in …
PILGER — Thirty-two days after a tornado destroyed the town, residents here were ready to reunite.
Victims of Northeast Nebraska’s tornadoes earlier this summer continue to be supported with …
LINCOLN — Gov. Dave Heineman’s request for a federal disaster declaration for public assista…
STANTON COUNTY — Considerable reconstruction efforts following the June 16 tornadoes are und…
Tessa Kruger’s county fair projects took an unexpected twist when tornadoes struck two farms…
WISNER — Five Biermann family members who farm north of here shudder to think what else migh…
SIOUX CITY, Iowa (AP) — Extra desks, tables and other supplies from the Sioux City school di…
LINCOLN, Neb. (AP) — Nebraska is requesting disaster aid from the U.S. Small Business Admin…
PILGER — If a person were to stand on the northeast corner of Pilger and look to the southwe…
PILGER — A combination of 90 new appliances, box springs and mattresses recently were delive…
MADISON — After the tornadoes hit Pilger and surrounding communities, the Elkhorn Logan Vall…
Replacing a building that was destroyed by the June tornado at Maskenthine Recreation Area n…
The job of replacing a building destroyed by the June tornado at Maskenthine Recreation Area…
STANTON — A guardianship case involving a young girl who survived the June 16 tornadoes in P…
PILGER — The congregation of St. John’s Lutheran Church will conduct a dedication ceremony f…
PILGER, Neb. — For a town too tough to die, the future remains too close to call.
WISNER — Community visions for rebuilding Pilger were sketched out at a town hall meeting he…
WAYNE — John Dunning’s survival is nothing short of a miracle.
Even though the more immediate focus may be off the Pilger disaster, the effort to rebuild t…
LINDSAY — Halle Beller wanted to help.
PILGER, Neb. (AP) — A utility is offering free trees to Pilger residents to help the northe…
WISNER — Whatever decision is finally made by members of the Wisner-Pilger school board, it’…
WISNER — Plenty of ideas for the reinvention of Pilger were on the table at Thursday evening…
PILGER — Thanksgiving will be an overwhelming occasion for the Marvin and Melody Seier family.
OMAHA — A bank president from Pilger and a Winterset, Iowa, teenager will be recognized Frid…
By DELORES MEISTER
Editor’s note: The author of the following is a member of the task force working on the futu…
COLUMBUS, Neb. (AP) — A Nebraska high school football coach is receiving recognition for hi…
