UPDATED: 3 p.m., March 22
The flooding across our region has had a devastating effect on several of our communities. Even still, our divisions have been working as best they can to help wherever they can, including helicopter-transported sand bags that were used to protect Lincoln, Neb.’s wellfields and the beginnings of road repairs, etc.

Below are some images from our divisions. We will update these galleries are more images come in.

Check out the National Safety Council’s flood resources if you or someone you know is recovering from these floods.

LYMAN-RICHEY SAND & GRAVEL CO.
Gretna, Neb.

Photos by Eric Nielson/Lyman-Richey Sand & Gravel Co.

By ERIC NIELSON
Operations Manager, Lyman-Richey Sand & Gravel Company

Around 11 a.m. on Friday, March 15, Lancaster County Emergency Services called Lyman-Richey to see if we could fill 3,000 lb. sand bags to help protect a water supply line at the city of Lincoln’s wellfield near Linoma. The plan was to fill bags as quickly as possible and airlift them that evening two at a time by helicopter for placement at the flooded wellfield. As luck would have it the closest plant to the wellfield, Plant 51, and its access road had escaped flooding, so we set up a bagging operation there.

Four hundred and fifty bags were dropped off at Plant 51 around 5:30 p.m. that afternoon, and Jason Gruhn, John Urbanec, and David Zacharias began filling them. Bags were held open using forks on a skid steer while a loader dumped sand into the bags. Once the bags were filled, the skid loader carried them over to a large open area where the helicopters could come in and pick them up.

Unfortunately, large numbers of snow geese migrating through the valley that evening postponed the helicopters until the next morning. Jason, John and David worked through the night filling bags before being relieved the next morning by Frank DeSpain, Darren Barry, and Dustin Jurgensen. The bagging operation continued day and night until 5 a.m. on Monday morning.

On Sunday the receding floodwaters allowed access to Plant 52 so a second skid steer could be added to the operation. At that point Ryan Buckingham and Grant Killian joined the crews to fill the remaining bags Sunday afternoon and Sunday night.

Our employees should be commended for working safely through the weekend - day and night - on short notice to help their fellow Nebraskans. They all did a fantastic job and nobody ever complained once.