Hail pounds Nebraska; Seward business has $50,000 in damage

Rumery Lawn & Landscape, a Seward staple, will be closed for the rest of the week

SEWARD, Neb. (KLKN) – On Tuesday night, 18-year-old Justin Rumery had to make one of the toughest phone calls of his life.

“I called my dad on while I was running back to my house in Utica, and just watching the golf ball-sized hail, I knew that his business would be at risk,” he said.

The younger Rumery called his father, Jerry, to warn him that the family business, Rumery Lawn & Landscape, could be in trouble due to a hailstorm.

“He called me, and he says, ‘Dad, you better, it’s hailing here pretty bad,'” Jerry said. “I knew that there was something major that had happened, and when I drove out here, this is what we what we encountered.”

Rumery estimates more than $50,000 of damage to the business after a hailstorm hit Seward, including extensive damage to siding, greenhouse covers and company vehicles.

“Out of our fleet of 12 trucks, I have two trucks that are drivable right now,” he said.

Rumery Lawn & Landscape has been Jerry’s life’s work. He started the company in Seward back in 1999.

It’s been at its current location off of Interstate 80 since 2011.

“I’ve seen it grow from just a plot of land by the interstate to a business that’s really taken off, so seeing the damage to it, it hurts,” Justin said.

Jerry said doors will be closed for the rest of the week as his team assesses the damage, but he’s hopeful to open back up in some capacity next week.

He adds that the well wishes, texts and Facebook posts have been very touching to him and his family, as they try to build back to some semblance of normalcy.

“Seward welcomed us in this community,” he said. “It’s a wonderful community and welcomed us here, so we’re thankful for that.”