The Stanton County Sheriff’s Department has been pulling extra duty since tornadoes ripped across the county in northeast Nebraska last Monday, wiping out much of the town of Pilger. Sheriff Mike Unger says his staff is continuing to do well, despite the lack of sleep.
“We’re holding up, we’re going to get through this,” Sheriff Unger says. “We’re going to continue our extended shifts. We are providing 24-hour visible coverage in Pilger for the foreseeable future. It’s just something that you don’t expect but when you take the oath, you sign up for it all, no matter what comes at you.”
Unger says volunteers continue to be needed in all of the tornado-damaged areas of Stanton, Cuming, Wayne, Dixon and Cedar counties. Volunteers have been starting work in Pilger at 7 AM daily and the sheriff says they’ll continue to need volunteers there for a long time.
Unger says, “We’re going to have a lot of walk-in help need after we get some of these additional building down as well as some of the utter devastation and debris cleared away.”
Volunteers can now report directly to Pilger instead of going to Wisner first. They’re all asked to sign in as Unger says keeping track of volunteer numbers and hours will help in obtaining assistance from the Federal Emergency Management Agency.
By Susan Risinger, WJAG, Norfolk