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Hail causes roughly $5M damage at nuke plant

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July 1st, 2014 by Ric Hanson

BLAIR, Neb. (AP) – The hail storm that hit Blair last month caused roughly $5 million damage to the Fort Calhoun nuclear power plant in eastern Nebraska, just across the Missouri River from Iowa. The Omaha Public Power District says that damage estimate could still change because repair bids haven’t been received for some work. The June 3rd storm damaged homes and vehicles with baseball-sized hail and winds stronger than 90 mph.

OPPD spokesman Jeff Hanson says the storm didn’t disrupt the nuclear power plant’s operations. But Hanson says the hail damaged the roof of the administration building, broke some windows and also damaged rooftop air conditioners and other equipment.

The storm also caused significant damage to utility vehicles that were parked at the complex. OPPD has a $2.5 million deductible on its insurance policy the utility will have to pay.