The Sidney Police Department is happy to announce that Lieutenant Ruiz and Officer Reeves have now been officially sworn in to duty. You may remember Chief Ruiz was in Kimball Nebraska as the police chief and suddenly resigned for the position in Sidney. With over 20 years of law enforcement experience, Lieutenant Ruiz is a powerhouse of knowledge. Congratulations to both law enforcement officers on their new positions.

Speaking of officers, you may remember the Mitchell Police Officer that was placed on administrative leave during the investigation on a shooting he was involved in. After shooting a suspect in the face, Mitchell Officer Logan Weiss was recently reinstated and is back to work. In fact, the public minutes at the city of Minatare show him being hired as a part-time officer there. He'll be in the cage Saturday night as he seeks revenge in a title match in Mitchell at LCS 36 Out Cold. Will he recapture the title, or will he remain defeated?

The Panhandle Humane Society is asking for your help. They recently took in 11 puppies with ringworm and they are working their hardest to get them back to health. There is a list of items and things that you can help with listed on our Facebook page in that share from Panhandle Humane Society.

William Frederick Cody was born on this day February 26th, 1846. Rodeos have been a big part of Nebraska since 1882 when the man known as Buffalo Bill organized the old glory blowout in North Platte with steer roping, horse racing, and bronc riding. Buffalo Bill may be gone, but rodeos live on.

On Monday at approximately 3:40 in the afternoon the Mitchell Volunteer Fire Department was dispatched to a report of a small grass fire on Highway 26 just east of town. Crews determined the cause was a car driving by that had an entire wheel assembly detached from the vehicle and rolled into the drive vegetation. The assembly was extremely hot and started the road ditch on fire. Fire was quickly contained and extinguished. Mitchell Volunteer Fire Department responded with two trucks and seven personnel.

Lots of events going on at this time of the year including that pancake feed in Oshkosh. That's for the Oshkosh Nebraska Volunteer Fire Department 5-7pm Saturday night at the auditorium.

And don't forget to get out and vote. We support candidates that believe in transparency and accountability and we feel that Ricky Trevino for Morrill County Sheriff is a great candidate for the job. This will be the first Sheriff election in Morrill County in almost 16 years in its right around the corner.

Don't forget about the rare planetary alignment on February 28th. Look up into the sky to see the planets all lined up from Earth's viewpoint.

And a couple of good theater events to catch. The Christian movie "I Can Only Imagine 2" is now showing at the Nile Theatre through March 5th. And the Midwest Theatre in Scottsbluff is going to be a fun place to be on Friday night, if you're a Beatles fan. Performed by Nebraska based brothers Billy, Matthew and Ryan, this dynamic performance lets you decide the entire set list. That's a Beatles interactive experience called Yesterday and Today. Friday at the Midwest.

Our calendar of events is free online and our Look Who's Hiring section as well. Catch that and our daily news at PanhandleScanner.com.

Also, our cover photo comes from a story out of Omaha where a sinkhole swallowed up two vehicles on Pacific Street at 67th in Omaha Tuesday afternoon.

https://www.3newsnow.com/news/local-news/breaking-sinkhole-swallows-vehicles-blocks-traffic-on-pacific-st

Speaking of Gering, several things going on there, first of all, a longtime friend and a gentleman that I actually traded baseball cards with years ago passed away recently. We would like to offer our prayers and condolences for the family and friends of Fred Lockwood, a local businessman and leader for many years his name lives on in the community.

Also in Gering, be aware of some power outages scheduled for today, starting at 10:30 am this morning on Country Club Road. Check our Facebook page for those exact addresses, but be aware of that power outage today.

On Sunday night around 6:30 pm there was a serious motor vehicle accident with an unconscious lady who was extricated and unresponsive lying on the ground on West Overland and Avenue I. We are happy to report there were no fatalities in that accident.

We hear that there is a rare planetary alignment happening on February 28th. Seven worlds, one sky. On this night, Mercury, Venus, Mars, Jupiter, Saturn, Uranus and Neptune will appear aligned across our horizon. They are not perfectly lined up in space, but from Earth's perspective, they will form a breathtaking visual alignment. This is more than an astronomical event. It's a moment. Check it out. February 28th, look up into the night times sky and see if you can spot the seven planets lining up.

So is something big happening because the planets are lining up? Maybe it's that fight night in Mitchell. LCS 36, Out Cold. If you're a fight fan, you don't want to miss it. Find this event and more on our free community calendar and don't forget our free Look Who's Hiring section as well.