The Columbus Telegram from Columbus, Nebraska • 1

9 A GO tUMBU TE A TV if v- I II II 11 I II VM JUL Wi. JLL JL -LL No. 222 One hundred seventh year A Freedom I Newspaper 35 Single Copy 20 Pages Today Friday, September 19, 1986 i imlofffflOr? gendi item in talks Tornado strikes, village in south central Nebraska I I1 1 1 1 WASHINGTON (AP) The highest level U.S.-Soviet talks in 10 months began today with Secretary of State George P. Shultz expected to open with a demand for the freedom of an American reporter charged in Moscow with espionage. Soviet Foreign Minister Eduard A.

Shevardnadze arrived at the State Department and was ushered to an 8th floor dining room to be used for the talks. The case of Nicholas Daniloff is "agenda item No. 1," a senior U.S. official said Thursday on the eve of Shultz's two-day meeting with Shevardnadze. On the other hand, Shevardnadze intended to press Shultz on the U.S.-ordered expulsion of 25 Soviet United Nations diplomats, a move Moscow has labeled illegal.

Before Daniloff was arrested on Aug. 30, the purpose of the Shultz-Shevardnadze meeting had been to prepare an agenda for the summit President Reagan and Soviet leader Mikhail S. Gorbachev agreed last November to hold here this year. But the official, speaking only on condition of ano-nymnity, said Thursday: 'I honestly do not expect dates to come out of these sessions." Calling the liberation of the 51-year-old journalist "essential," the official said: "They have to find a way to let Nick Daniloff come home." In Moscow, meanwhile, Gorbachev commented publicly on Daniloff for the first time, branding the U.S. News World Report correspondent a spy and suggesting the United States had exploited the case to try to spoil superpower relations.

As tensions rose, the Soviets exchanged barbs with the Reagan administration over a U.S. order that 25 Soviet diplomats assigned to the U.N. leave the country by Oct. 1. Shevardnadze, on his arrival Thursday at Andrews Air Force Base outside Washington, called the expulsion illegal and also "a bad decision." In New York, the chief Soviet U.N.

delegate, Alexander Belonogov, said the Soviets already had cut their mission to 208, which is 10 below the demanded level. He claimed the U.S. order was aimed at torpedoing a U.S.-Soviet But Bernard Kalb, the State Department spokesman, said Soviets holding visas were "over the level of 218." He declined to give a precise count, and he accused the Soviets of disobeying the order, issued initially last condition, three people treated and released, two outpatients and one with unknown injuries." "The initial damage assessment is that two trailer homes and one house were totally destroyed," he said. "About 15 to 20 houses appear to have major damage. Pretty much the whole business district is destroyed.

The co-op, the lumber yard and the gas station, which is across from the co-op, were leveled." Semm said the tornado, which apparently entered the town from the south, cut a swath through the small town and also heavily damaged "a few houses away from the main funnel." Semm said it was not certain where the most seriously injured person was at the time the storm hit. "A couple of people thought he was in one of the trailer houses," Semm said. "There were a couple tore up pretty bad and one was totally disintegrated." Semm said most of the town used propane gas for cooking and heating. He said propane was floating around several areas of town. "We won't turn the utilities back on until we're sure everything is OK." Doris Healey, who lives on a farm on the west edge of town, said she watched the tornado as it hit during a rain and hail storm.

"I was in the kitchen when I heard the rumble. It sounded like a train coming right past you. It was a horrible roar. You could see the funnel when it lightened," she said. The fire whistle was the only warning of the storm, she said.

i i) ml i 1 ARRIVES AT ANDREWS Soviet Foreign Base Thursday. Shevardnadze met with Sec-Minister Eduard A. Shevardnadze, center, retary of State George Shultz today, arrives with Soviet Ambassador Yuri Dubi- (AP Laserphoto) nin, second from right, at Andrews Air Force March, by not providing the names of any departing diplomats. Reagan adminstration officials said Thursday that the 25 diplomats are senior intelligence officers, whose ouster would severely hurt what they said was Moscow's espionage operation in New York, York Times, Washington Times Angeles Times reported today. will have a rippling effect on the the GRU (Soviet military intelligence) New York," one official said.

By The Associated Press Seven people were injured, one seriously, and several homes and businesses were destroyed when a tornado struck the Nuckolls County village of Hardy in extreme southcentral Nebraska, au- thoritiessaid. None of the people hurt had life-threatening injuries, said Mike Oglevie, administrator of the Brodstone Memorial Nuckolls Co. Hospital in Su- perior. A hospital spokeswoman said today seven people were brought to the hospital with injuries. She said one patient was admitted in serious condition but had improved to stable today.

The others were not admitted, she said. The who asked not to be identified, said she could not release in- formation concerning the na- ture of injuries or the Da tient's identity. A tornado IV2 miles south of Trumbull sucked the windows out of a house, downed power lines and trees and damaged irrigation pipe, said Dave Rutt, deputy director of the Hastings-Adams I Co. Civil Defense. No injuries 1 were reported, he said.

The tornado in Hardy struck after 8 p.m., knocking out phone and power lines. "Right now everything is quiet," state Civil Defense spokesman Rick Semm said from a command post set up at Hardy. "TheyVe turned all the utilities off until we can sort through things after daylight." Semm said he talked with local officials, who indicated ail the town's 232 residents had been accounted for. He said the seven people injured i included "a male in serious Vet weather could spell harvest woes By HELEN HARRINGTON Telegra Staff Writer The unseasonably cool weather and soggy conditions in the Columbus area could have a detrimental effect on this year's harvest, said Dick James, director of the Platte County Agricultural Stabilization Service. According to the Loup Weather Station, Columbus has received 2.57 inches of rain since Tuesday, 1.06 during Thursday night's thunderstorm.

If the rainy weather continues, farmers will have difficulty getting the crops out of the fields, James said. "It's also hard on machinr ery, plus if it causes a delay in harvesting and the grain stays in the field after maturity, the corn will deteriorate or be knocked down by the weight of the snow. If it hadn't rained, some farmers would already be out in the fields." In neighboring Colfax Coun- ty, the wet conditions also have put a damper on the maturation of corn. Stan Carlow, AFS director there, said harvest will definitely be delayed and that he is concerned about an inf esta tion of cor borers "My worry is that ears will be falling off the corn because of the corn borer. Sunshine would help and an early frost wouldn't hurt anything.

It might be good for the harvest," Carlow said. Carl Schumacher, who farms near Platte Center, said the cool weather has slowed the maturing and drying process and that he also is concerned about corn borers causing the stalks to rot. it Skyrocketing local officials with counter Editor's note: This is the first in a two-part series about the local impact of increasing insurance costs. By HAZEL PETERSON Telegram Staff Writer The directors and management at Loup Power District were concerned recently to see a 422-percent premium increase in their directors and officers liability and a 314-percent increase in premiums on the utility's umbrella liability policy. With only one company offering to insure Loup, they were unable to shop around.

In 1985, the cities, counties and school districts which were able to obtain insurance faced tremendous increases in insurance premiums. Having no choice, taxpayers absorbed the additional costs. The public besieged their legislators to do something to rectify the situation. In Nebraska, LB14 was passed, which limits the amount of awards paid in cases against political subdivisions to $1 million per person and $5 million per occurrence. So far, it appears to have had little effect on insurance rates, particularly for utilities.

"There is a loophole in that law," said Bill Schneider of Becher Curry local insurance agency for Loup. "Attorneys can get around it by not suing the power district, but A elaborate The New and Los "This KGB and in iwn jwymw yyi-- wrr" 'Uriahs. I 11 1113 insurance has digging in measures suing the employee (as the individual who caused the damage)." When that person does not have the money to pay a large claim, the suit reverts back to the utility. To avoid fantastic increases in premiums, some utilities are lowering their coverages or are increasing their deductibles (the amount they would be responsible for paying in the event of a claim). In September, 1985, Loup lowered its coverage on its umbrella liability from $5 million to $1 million, said Vern Beckman, administrative services manager, and still saw a premium increase of over 80 percent.

For the same coverage, the increase could have been about 800 percent. The utility also dropped its directors and officers liability coverage this year from $3 million to $1 million. Nebraska Public Power District, which has generating plants and transmission and distribution facilities throughout most of the state, has also had to reduce coverage in some areas or pay bounding premiums. From 1984 to 1985, the utility saw its umbrella liability premium increase by about 1,000 percent with the same coverage, said Doug Blatchford, NPPD Risk and Insurance manager. The follow-Continued on Page 3 SNYDER HOUSE RECOGNIZED The Snyder room fireplace.

On the right can be seen the elab-House, 2522 16th is now listed in the National orate oak swinging gates that lead into the li-Register of Historic Places. Above, Howard Bur- brary. dick, left, the pieviou owner of the book for 32 (Telegram phcto by JoAnne Eglseder) years, and the Snyders proudly show off the living listing could effect school's plans listed in national register aw of the home. No open houses are required of us." However, he said, eventually they will have an open house. "It's a magnet.

You see the house from the outside, and you feel you have to see the inside. That's how I was. And we have no desire to keep it secluded. Being on the national register could also have some very important impact on the home's future. Columbus City Schools has been considering purchasing the property west of the Junior High School to be used for a playground.

This would affect six property owners, including the Snyders. However, this does not now appear likely, said Snyder. Listing on the national register offers some protection from "adverse effect" arising from federally funded or licensed projects in the near vicinity. In Continued on Page 3 Local home By JOANNE EGLSEDER Telega Staff Writer When visiting the Snyders, one notices a new addition next to the front door a gold plaque which states the building is listed on the National Register of Historic Places. The national register is the nation's inventory of properties considered to be worthy of preservation.

The house at 2522 16th which is owned by Richard and Jamie Snyder, was nominated for placement on the national register after being approved by the Nebraska State Histori-al Society. The house was officially placed on the national register July 10, although the Snyders only recently received the acceptance letter. "We're very excited about it," said Richard. "We think it's a beautiful house, and we're very happy it has been recognized on a national lev el." The two-story brick dwelling was designed in 1928 by an Omaha architect, Edward J. Sessinghaus, and built in 1929 by George Johansen I of Columbus.

According to the historical society, it represents an excellent example of a 20th century period house, displaying design characteristics of the French country house type. The dwelling displays irregular massing, steeply pitched gable rooflines with large overhangs, clay tile roofing, half timbering, casement windows and an attached garage. The house is also somewhat reminiscent of the Tudor Revival Style, especially noted in the "tudor arch" found in major windows and door openings and in the balcony balustrade. Being on the national register does not mean certain things, said Snyder. "We've had people ask us about tours Good afternoon Today's index Local readings Area Page 5 Church Page 14 691 om gSte gg It 72 high Thursday aSe 62 low this morning 84 high year ago L''fstyle Page 13 KSSta fig I Misunr'iseSaturday iveorasKa Page 6 7:31 sunset Saturday OPon 4 i.i5 rain 24 hour.

Sports Page 9 Weather Page 6 "The wind will blow the corn over and the ears will drop off. If it doesn't dry out, we're going to have problems," he said. Boone County ASCS director Rex Kuntzelman reported that the amount of rainfall has varied from 2 to 3 inches throughout the county during the past three days and that marble- size hail fell in St. Edward last night. Continued on Page 3.