2019 Midwest Flooding

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Three years later, Valley almost rebuilt from 2019 flood damage



Three years later, Valley almost rebuilt from 2019 flood damage

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$1.9 million set to build homes, help Bellevue recover from 2019 flood



BELLEVUE, Neb. — An almost $2 million grant is set to help build 13 homes near Bellevue. It's part of the city's ongoing effort to recover from the 2019 floods. "We still haven't recovered," said Bellevue Mayor Rusty Hike. He said it'll "go a long way to help replace what we lost." Officials expect the homes will cost in the low $200,000s.

Hike, Gov. Jim Pillen, the Nebraska Department of Economic Development's K.C. Belitz and Nebraska State Senator Rita Sanders gathered at Bellevue City Hall to announce and celebrate the grant on Friday. Purchasers will need to meet income qualifications. First dibs go to folks who left the community because of the floods.

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Bellevue community receives $1.9 million grant from Nebraska Department of Economic Development



BELLEVUE, Neb. (KMTV) — "It's just devastating. We still haven't recovered from all of it," Bellevue Mayor Rusty Hike said. The 2019 flood wiped out nearly 400 homes in Bellevue forcing people to rebuild from scratch or move elsewhere. "Losing 399 homes in the 2019 flood has proven to be almost impossible to replace without assistance," Carolyn Pospisil, executive director for the Housing Foundation for Sarpy County. "Sarpy County lost most of those households to other communities. And because there was no where for them to go here."

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Bellevue receiving $1.9 million grant to replace housing lost in 2019 flood



BELLEVUE, Neb. (WOWT) - Nebraska Gov. Jim Pillen was in Bellevue on Friday to announce a grant that will help replace housing lost during major flooding in the area almost five years ago. The state is providing $1.9 million to build 13 homes, mostly for those who had to leave Bellevue because of the flooding but now want to return. The homes are expected to run in the $200,000 range. Pillen said, “It’s a big day for the state of Nebraska. It’s a big day for the city of Bellevue and the people of Bellevue.”

The homes will go up near 51st Street and Looking Glass Road, just west of Offutt Air Force Base. The area is near two neighborhoods that were declared uninhabitable after the flood: Green Acres and Paradise Lakes. Those neighborhoods have been cleaned up and mostly rebuilt, though more work needs to be done.

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Flood fears in western Douglas County as spring approaches, rivers rise



OMAHA, Neb. (WOWT) - Sheets of ice covered parts of the Elkhorn River in western Douglas County last week, prompting flood alerts for a few days for potential ice jam flooding. It’s a familiar story in the King Lake community, east of Valley. Onshore, 6 News found reminders of 2019′s disastrous flooding. Rebar, hills of mud and concrete chunks are piled up near the riverbanks. Homes along Riverside Drive and other buildings are still boarded up. A dumpster sits overflowing with debris that appears to have been there a long time.

The destruction is everywhere -- homes left crumpled with “Danger: Closed” signs on them. A row of mobile homes still exists -- appearing to be unlivable, with high water marks staining the sides. More than 100 homes at King Lake sustained damage in the 2019 floods. Inspectors deemed at least 30 destroyed and that they not be rebuilt. Douglas County Commissioner Mike Friend represents King Lake, part of District 7.

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Corps provides update on Missouri River levees 5 years after flood disaster



The levees along the Missouri River are meticulously monitored and maintained five years after the March 2019 flood obliterated more than 50 of them, south of Omaha. “Even today we’re doing minor grading and seeding activities just to finalize all of the recovery activity,” said Ted Streckfuss with the US Army Corps of Engineers, Omaha Division. Streckfuss is the Deputy District Engineer and Chief of Planning, Programs, and Project Management Division. In his nearly 37 years with the district, Streckfuss once thought the 2011 flood would be the worst he’d see. “I thought during my career I’d only have to do one 500-year event, the flood of ‘11. It was traumatic, it was challenging, it was difficult, it was emotional. And then along came flood of ‘19,” told Streckfuss.