SCRIBNER, Neb. (KMTV) — About an hour northwest of Omaha on Highway 275 sits the small community of Scribner where, on the Elkhorn River, an ice jam of about three-quarters of a mile long has been building since Monday.
As vehicles cross over the river, ice piles up in all directions.
“We saw all the ice backing up on the bridge and I got scared,” says Scribner resident Becky Hull.
Since Monday, Ice has been building up on the major waterway north of Hull’s hometown, spanning nearly three-quarter miles in length. Areas of water more than 100 yards away from the Elkhorn River are freezing over...flooding is still prevalent in nearby fields.
“It just brought flashbacks to last year,” she says. We were an island in Scribner and we’re fearing that again.”
Elmer Armstrong is Scribner’s city commissioner. The community of 860 stayed dry last year due to two levee systems and a flood gate. He says while the ice is worrisome, it’s the water underneath people need to pay attention to.
“It lets the water through underneath but everything builds up behind it and starts branching out and flooding and works its way back to the river,” says Armstrong.
Armstrong says while the jams may be concerning, the water levels have dropped since this weekend. The biggest concern to Scribner, like so many communities nearby is the saturated soil and the potential of rain later this winter.
“If the rains start coming with the frosts on the ground and it doesn’t come out right away, then everything will run and you’ll end up with something similar to last year,” says Armstrong.
