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State and local officials are still assessing the damage caused by tornadoes that struck the state last night.
The worst damage was reported in Kearney, but several businesses in Aurora were also damaged. No major injuries or deaths have been reported.
Gov. Dave Heineman said the storms caused widespread damage in Kearney but the extent of the damage wasn’t clear this morning.
In Aurora, Heineman said at least eight businesses and several homes were damaged by the storm.
Heineman plans to visit Kearney this morning, and Lt. Gov. Rick Sheehy was headed to Aurora to assess damage and talk to local officials.
Thursday night, 10/11’s Alicia Myers went to one of the communities hit hard by the storm — Aurora. Several homes and businesses were damaged in the area as well as farm equipment.
The storm that started in the southwest corner of the state moved toward central and eastern Nebraska Thursday night, leaving its mark on communities like Aurora.
“The cornstalks were blowing across the hood and the water was so bad on the windows, you couldn’t see out. It sounded like it was hailing, but it was just the corn stalks,” said Maurice Wiggans, Harbine.
Maurice Wiggans was enroute to Hastings in his semi as the storm hit.
“Everything started rocking pretty hard, so I crawled into the bunk and pulled the mattress down over my head because I figured it was going to go over,” he said.
His truck was one of the lucky ones. Several semis, larger vehicles and power lines blew over on the interstate in the high winds, causing several miles of the interstate to be closed overnight.
One mobile home was stranded .25 miles east of the Hampton exit.
As the storm continued moving east, it left it’s mark on businesses such as the shell gas station just north of the aurora exit. Another mile north of the demolished gas pumps a farmstead was devastated, as grain bins and buildings were ripped from their foundation, the roof of the home blown off and debris scattered everywhere.

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