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North Bend cleanup efforts underway, volunteers needed

Posted at 6:58 PM, Mar 19, 2019
and last updated 2019-03-19 19:58:09-04

OMAHA, Neb. (KMTV) — It's been several days since the flood waters have gone down here in North Bend but the work for families and business owners in this community is just beginning.

Shawn Juhl's home wasn't affected by the floods…but that wasn't the case at his business.

"Right away you could tell the door was caving in on the end and we had about 18 inches of water … so we knew that was bad."

His small business was ruined.

"All of the lower end of the drywall got ruined there, some stuff had floated around and pulled monitors off the desk…it was two and a half foot deep on the computer towers and of course, they were under water."

And to make matters worse…Shawn had just begun construction to add more office space.

"It's rough yeah…you know the emotions are up and down."

Schools are closed … and a once-busy business district now sits…empty.

There are even more issues, sewer and water systems are still offline.

"You cannot flush your toilets, you cannot put anything down the drain in the house … anything you put down a drain is gonna come back up in your neighbor's house."

Public information officer Nathan Arneal says it could be another 24 hours until they know if the water is safe to drink.

With the possibility of more rain later in the week … the city isn't in the clear just yet.

"We're asking people and businesses to hang on to their things-don't start throwing away your sandbags yet … keep them in place because you don't know what the next couple days are gonna bring."

The city is now asking for volunteers to come here and help any way they can. If you want to bring a donation you can drop them off right here at the school.