license plate format examined
By Erin Schulte
Staff Reporter
After a redesign of the artwork on
Nebraska’s license plates, the numbers
could get a different look, too, if a for
mat-change bill
is passed by the
Nebraska Legis
lature.
L B 1 3 5 8
would make
plate numbers
alpha-numeric,
with three letters
followed by
three numbers.
The letters and
numbers would
not indicate what county the car was
from.
Proponents of the bill, discussed
Monday in the Transportation Com
mittee, included officials from the Ne
braska Department of Motor Vehicles.
In a letter to Sen. Ron Withem of
Papillion, who introduced the bill,
Alvin Abramson, director of the Ne
braska DMV, said the bill would make
license manufacturing easier and more
cost-effective.
County designation—the first one
or two numbers on current plates —
creates plate inventory problems and
forces guesswork in ordering a spe
cific number of plates per county,
Abramson said.
If the bill passes and takes effect in
1999, plates could be ordered in bulk
for the entire state because numbers
would not be county-specific.
One argument against the bill was
that people often felt attached to their
license plate numbers. A provision in
the bill would allow current plate num
bers to be kept for a yearly $20 fee.
Charles Stava of Omaha, who tes
tified in opposition to the bill, said he
was attached to his license plate num
ber and didn’t feel he should have to
pay to keep it.
Sen. George Coordsen of Hebron
said he could relate to Stava’s situa
tion. He’s had his license plate num
ber — 1130 — since he was 16, and
he remembers it as his curfew in high
school.
The committee is scheduled to vote
on the bill today.
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Law & Order
A LOOK AT CRIME ON CAMPUS AND IN THE COMMUNITY
Rape
Police are looking for a man who
burst into an apartment near 16th and
P streets Sunday and raped the woman
living there.
At 2:11 a.m., the victim heard
someone knock on her door,
Heermann said. When she opened it,
a man wearing light-colored pants and
a gray shirt with black and white
stripes pushed the door open, she said.
He forced himself in, raped her and
left, Heermann said.
Police are looking for a white male
with curly blond hair, 25 to 30 years
of age, about 5 feet 7 inches tall, and
150 to 180 pounds.
Attempted robbery
A Lincoln woman was attacked by
two juveniles Sunday night but man
aged to keep them from taking her
purse.
Thoa Nguyen, 43, was walking on
North 26th Street between Vine and
U streets at 8:30 p.m. when two boys
approached her.
One hit her in the face with a one
inch thick tree limb, and the boys tried
to grab her purse.
Nguyen held on tight and
screamed, and the boys fled.
Police are looking for two black
males, 14 to 15 years of age, both
about 5 feet tall and of medium build.
Arson
Lincoln police on Friday arrested,
a man on suspicion of arson for al
legedly starting a fire in a car and an
apartment building.
Jeremiah McFarland, 19, was ar
rested after police found a fire burn
ing at the door of an apartment on the
500 block of North 24th Street, Sgt.
Ann Heermann said.
Gay Culver, who lives in the apart
ment, told police that McFarland had
pounded on her door and windows at
4:45 a.m. Friday and yelled for her,
but she wouldn’t answer the door.
A few minutes later, a neighbor
called police to report a fire near
Culver’s door.
Upon arrival, police found a box
of paper burning on a table near
Culver’s door and clothes on fire in
the passenger side of Culver’s 1979
Chevy Malibu, Heermann said.
Police later apprehended
McFarland at 26th and K streets,
Heermann said. Police believe
McFarland may have been a boyfriend
of Culver’s baby-sitter.
Gas-related fires
can be prevented
By Chad Lorenz
Senior Reporter
Dangerous gas leaks from appli
ances, such as one that caused an ex
plosion in a Lincoln home last week
end, can be prevented with careful
detection, proper maintenance and
durable equipment.
Lincoln Fire Chief Charlie
Beachamp said natural gas connectors
for appliances should be double
walled tubing approved by the Ameri
can Gas Association.
A gas stove connector probably re
sponsible for an explosion Saturday
morning at a Lincoln home was an
older, single-walled tube, Beachamp
said.
The 89-year-old man injured in that
fire, James Walsh, was still in critical
condition Monday night at St.
Elizabeth’s Community Health Cen
ter.
People should be cautious of gas
leaks in homes and businesses because
the loose gas could easily start on fire
if left untreated, he said.
“Any spark, such as the spark from
a light switch or even static electricity
from walking across a carpet, could
be the source of ignition,” Beachamp
said.
Jan Davis, public relations direc
tor for Peoples Natural Gas, said if
people suspected their appliance
might have a leaky connector or any
other malfunction, they should call the
gas company for a free inspection of
the appliance and the gas line.
“When it’s used properly, it (natu
ral gas) is one of the safest energy
forms,” Davis said.
People can detect gas leaks easily
by a distinct odorant, called
Mercaprin, the gas company adds to
odorless natural gas, she said.
“We have a saying that the nose
knows best,” Davis said. “The slight
est amount can be detected.”
If the connector is potentially leaky,
gas service professionals will replace
it on site for only the cost of the new
connector, Davis said.
“Any spark, such as the
spark from a light
switch or even static
electricity from walking
across a carpet, could
be the source of
ignition. ”
CHARLIE BEACHAMP
Lincoln fire chief
Beachamp said lighting pilots on
gas appliances could be dangerous,
too.
The owner should follow the manu
facturers’ instructions for the appli
ances and let gas flow for the right
amount of time, he said. Otherwise, a
dangerous amount of gas may escape
when the pilot is lighted.
“It goes a-whoosh and causes a
flash fire,” Beachamp said.
Gas leaks are responsible for only
a few fires each year. The explosion
Saturday was the first fire caused by
natural gas this winter, he said.
When firefighters battle gas-related
fires, they don’t put the flames out
until the gas flow stops, Beachamp
said.
“It’s best to let it bum until you
know for a fact, 'I know the/source
and it’s shut off,”’ Beachamp said.
“When it’s burning, you know where
it is.”
If the flames are extinguished when
gas is still flowing, they could reig
nite a larger amount and cause an ex
plosion, he said.
The gas company is responsible for
finding the source and shutting it off,
which sometimes involves digging to
access the stop box, Beachamp said.
Davis said Peoples Natural Gas
periodically sent out a scratch and sniff
sample of natural gas odorant attached
to customers’ bills so they were famil
iar with the smell.
“Our concern always is for public
safety.”
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