Panhandle Scanner News

Well, if you're not busy today and you are in the Gering area around 11th and P Streets, if you want to make $100, go out and find that missing iguana! That's right, we have a missing iguana right now. Goncho's owners are offering a $100 reward if you can safely return him. Contact us if you know anything or have found a missing iguana in Gering.   Both Scottsbluff and Gering have road closures to...

More Gering City news, not only do we have the big Oregon Trail Day celebration kicking off on Thursday, but the City put out a message asking residents to voluntarily reduce their water usage. Due to excessive water use, the City's water storage reservoirs are not filling to capacity during the evening and nighttime hours. The request is intended to help avoid the need for mandatory water restric...

Panhandle Scanner News is brought to you by R&C Welding in Gering, Nebraska.   Speaking of Gering, the Horizon Music Fest is coming up Labor Day weekend, September 5th and 6th, giant free concert with national artists at Five Rocks Amphitheater. But before that, we've got Oregon Trail Days kicking off here in a couple of days. Thursday night, July 9th is the kickoff barbecue in downtown Gering...

Do you miss the fat Sunday paper with lots of stories and coverage from everything that happened throughout the week? There once was a day when the community had a big fat Sunday newspaper.   We understand that especially with the news cycle being so short and news happening every day, that people need a reminder from week to week on what actually happened. We've put together a new weekly publicat...

It was a busy night over Scanner traffic, but fortunately, not very many calls for fireworks fires. One call involving fireworks was out at the State Recreation Area in Bridgeport, where a juvenile was cited for fireworks and released to his parents.    If you spotted some black smoke yesterday in the area of Scottsbluff Airport, that was a controlled burn, according to airport personnel.    East...

Power has been restored to all services affected by the Tuesday evening storms around Lake McConaughy. Emergency responders were dispatched at around 10:38 pm Tuesday night after reports that multiple campers had been overturned near Beach Area 5. Thankfully, there were no hospitalizations, and all power has been restored.   In Box Butte County, the Sheriff's Office is investigating an infant deat...

Yesterday, shortly before noon, Engine 1 of the Scottsbluff Fire Department had cleared a previous call for service when they observed smoke in the area around South Beltline and 9th Avenue. Crews went to investigate, and upon arrival observed staff members utilizing heavy equipment to remove debris that had accidentally caught on fire after cutting operations. Fire personnel assisted with extingu...

Derived from the Declaration of Independence and legally codified in the U.S. Constitution, American freedom functions as a negative constitution, explicitly dictating what the government cannot do to its citizens. Rather than granting rights, the American system is built on the philosophy that human liberties are inherent, unalienable, and merely protected by the state.   And we do all enjoy our...

Things that go boom Fireworks and thunderstorms. That's what the news has been lately. People still have questions about when and where fireworks can be discharged, therefore we've put together a comprehensive article of every town's decision that we could obtain and put it into one article for you, it's called panhandle fireworks decisions. You can find it on the web or on our Facebook page Panha...

On June 23rd, the Kimball County Sheriff's Office and Kimball County EMS responded to a one-vehicle rollover on Interstate 80. There were no injuries, unfortunately. Please buckle up and drive safe.   A train derailment was captured south of Cheyenne. Intense winds blew over multiple train cars along the tracks, with hail covering the roadside. A semi-truck also reportedly blew over on southbound...

As many towns and counties are still declaring their preference whether or not to ban or allow fireworks for the 2026 season, weather permitting, Gering's Allred Brothers display will be held at the Five Rocks Amphitheater again this year. That's the Allred Brothers display at Five Rocks.   Meanwhile, the Banner County Fire Chief has declared a burn ban in Banner County until further notice. No bu...

Our top story of the day comes from last night's Sidney City Council meeting. The Sidney Nebraska City Council voted to allow fireworks this year, from July 1st at 8am to July 5th at 1am.  However, the conversation got very heated and police were called to the scene, despite the fact that the police chief was on scene at the meeting. We were getting live updates when Mr. Balfour stopped by to spea...

Unfortunately, natural disasters, and especially hailstorms, can make several people in the community a target. Well, the storms certainly cause damage all throughout the Panhandle, and we feel our job at Panhandle Scanner is to help the community. Over the years, we have acquired major sponsors in several different categories that can be trusted and called upon in emergencies like this.    First...

A lot of excitement over the weekend for possible inclement weather, but thankfully, no tornadoes in Nebraska, at least not in our immediate panhandle. A tornado did touch down, however, in Wyoming, with a video captured by a local sheriff that made it onto national news. It was in a rural area, and there was no damage reported.    The panhandle is certainly in a drought. A drought like this, acco...

The Pony Express rode through yesterday through Gering, Nebraska, and through several parts of the Panhandle. In fact, one of the riders called us from Bridgeport to confirm the transfer location. Michelle Hunter LaTowski was a rider from Scottsbluff, who did several different legs of the re-ride. Find pictures and video from the Pony Express on our page at Panhandle Scanner, and some interesting...

Scanner traffic indicated a grass fire just around midnight, County Road 26, County Road S, Minatare. Several pages went out including a request for mutual aid from Scotts Bluff Rural Fire Protection District.   Speaking of fires, a lot of cities have made decisions on the fireworks ban for this year, although some cities and counties have not yet posted their decisions. Those we do know about tha...

Well, the talk of the town is definitely the fireworks decisions. Those are really heating up the conversations. A lot of confusion has come between jurisdictions. Rural versus city limits. Statewide rules versus local rules. A fire ban versus a fireworks ban. So much confusion. Red flag warnings, fire bans, and fireworks bans.   What are the differences and how do they relate? Due to the recent c...

(CRAWFORD, Neb.) -- There is some good news up north. Northwest Nebraska is thrilled to announce that Fort Robinson State Park is back open on a limited basis. All fort lodging and camping, the fort restaurant, the trailside museum, the history center and historical buildings, the post playhouse theater, historical tours and fishing at the ponds are all open. There is still active firefighting goi...

I-80 travelers, please be advised that both eastbound and westbound lanes of Interstate 80 at Potter will be closed Tuesday, June 16th, for bridge work. Traffic in both directions will be diverted onto the on and off ramps at the Potter Interchange throughout the day. Motorists should expect delays. Please reduce speeds in the work zone and use caution while traveling through the area. That's the...

At 10 o'clock yesterday morning, Keith County was paged for two children in a raft that had gotten blown into Lake McConaughey between beach axis 13 and 14. Keystone-Lemoyne Fire, Ogallala Fire, Keith County Sheriff's Office, and Keith County EMS all responded. Keystone-Lemoyne Fire Department launched two marine craft and picked up both young men in the raft just southwest of Arthur Bay about the...

We do have a few decisions that have been finalized for the fireworks this year. Many people are concerned about that due to the wildfires that are currently raging across Nebraska. But in City Council news, we do know four decisions have been made so far for local towns. Scottsbluff, Gearing, and Morrill have said yes to fireworks, and Potter has said no.   Please see our Facebook page or our new...

A very busy day yesterday for Panhandle Scanner admins. So much activity that we've hired two new admins.   This is a big announcement for Morrill County. Starting today, you will see a new page on Facebook for Morrill County Scanner. And for more improved local weather and news coverage in the Scottsbluff and Gearing area, we've hired another local reporter.   Welcome to both Bridget and Cody and...

Well, our big story overnight was the flooding that occurred north of Bayard on L62A. That's the link that goes from the North Bayard Junction to the Angora Hill Junction, a very vital roadway that is now closed due to major flooding last night.   We issued a flash flood warning at 8.09 p.m., but by just after 10 p.m., a major water rescue was underway on L-62A. According to the Bayard Fire Depart...

Let's take a look at today's scanner news brought to you by R&C Welding in Gering, Nebraska. I'm your host Brian Hale and here's a look at the last 24 hours.   We want to start off by issuing a fire weather warning again for the next two days at least. Please be aware of the fire dangers.   Finally a solution is in the works. We've known about this for a while and it still isn't a complete rea...

Last night was another weather watch evening with thunderstorms popping up in the northern panhandle of Nebraska. Western Dawes County, Northern Sioux County, and Northwestern Cherry County all received severe thunderstorm warnings and even a tornado warning in Cherry County.   Special thanks in recognition to our weather admin Timothy Mendez for that content. Be sure to stay tuned to Panhandle Sc...