Downtown Omaha loses power for hours after a garbage truck gets stuck in a sinkhole

OMAHA, Neb. — A large portion of downtown Omaha lost power for several hours Thursday after a garbage truck got stuck in a sinkhole where utility lines had become exposed.

The truck became stuck around 8 a.m. with its nose tilted down into the sinkhole and its rear wheels lifting several inches off the ground. The sinkhole is more than 10 feet (3 meters) deep and a number of utility lines were exposed when the hole formed at an alley entrance, firefighters said.

City Engineer Austin Rowser told the KETV television station that officials had been concerned about the alley and put up a barricade to keep vehicles from driving down it. Rowser said the driver of the Waste Management trash truck moved the barricade to drive through the alley.

Waste Management of Nebraska disputed that the driver moved a barrier. The company said in a statement that the driver saw caution signs on the sidewalk as he crossed 16th Street but no barriers blocked his route into the alley, so he drove into it.

Waste Management said its internal investigation supports the driver's observations, and that it is cooperating with the city's investigation.

The Omaha Public Power District and Metropolitan Utilities District utilities shut off electricity and gas service to the surrounding area while the situation was investigated.

The Omaha Fire Department said the garbage truck was removed by early afternoon and power was restored. Natural gas service was restored to the area Thursday evening.