1944: Two lives are lost in bomber crash near Wayne

On the east side of the highway just north of Laurel stands a monument to the 17 airmen who were killed when two B-17 bombers collided and crashed to the earth in August 1944. This was not the only crash in Nebraska. All told there were 56 crashes in Nebraska during World War II. The most deadly crash occurred in August, 1944 in Boyd County when 28 men were killed.