Lincoln, Nebraska’s Water System Flooding Response

The City of Lincoln, Nebraska has posted a webpage providing an overview of the impacts and threats to the Lincoln Water System as a result of the historic flooding that occurred in mid-March across much of the eastern part of the state. Heavy rain, snowmelt, and ice jams brought flood conditions that resulted in power outages in and around wellfields and a temporary loss of water production capacity. This triggered water use restrictions to be enacted to preserve the water supply. All water use restrictions have since been lifted. Lincoln estimates its water system experienced $15 to $17 million in damage to its infrastructure from the flooding. An article from the Lincoln Journal Star provides additional information on the Lincoln’s Water Systems experiences during the recent flooding, including a timeline of the events. As noted in the article, the situation for one of Lincoln Water System’s wellfields became very tenuous when a nearby levee suffered a breach.