Nebraska Floods: 74 Cities, 65 Counties Declare A State of Emergency
As floodwaters begin to recede, Vice President Pence announced in a tweet that he will visit Nebraska on Tuesday to take stock of the devastation.
His visit comes as 74 cities, 65 counties and four tribal areas have declared states of emergency in Nebraska, according to the Nebraska Emergency Management Agency.
Water submerged large swaths of the state, as well as Iowa, South Dakota and Wisconsin, ravaging farms and swamping homes. At least four people have been killed and hundreds of others have been displaced.
White House Press Secretary Sarah Sanders tweeted that Pence will be joined by Gov. Pete Ricketts of Nebraska and Iowa Gov. Kim Reynolds.
Steve Hespen, the sheriff of Dodge County, Neb., told NPR that several levies were breached in the region he patrols after a "bomb cyclone" poured torrents of rain across the region, compounded with snowmelt filling rivers and streams.
"I've lived in this area of Dodge County and Freemont all my life and this is the worst flood situation that I've ever encountered," Hespen said. [Copyright 2019 NPR]
