Author: KMAN Staff
April is National Safe Digging Month, and the Kansas Gas Service is asking that residents and businesses postpone non-essential digging amid the COVID-19 pandemic. KMAN spoke with Kansas Gas Communications Manager Dawn Tripp, saying this year the usual start of the digging season has coincided with the global pandemic. Tripp says postponing projects helps protect underground infrastructure, including water and sewer lines and internet connections — all the more important as people are staying home for both work and leisure. “If you can put off that digging project, please do so,” says Tripp. Tripp says this is especially important for…
Lonnie Baker, CEO of Meadowlark Hills, joined KMAN in the 7 a.m. hour to provide our daily COVID-19 update.
Local cases of the coronavirus climbed to 27 Friday in Riley County, the latest a 45-year-old male patient currently recovering in isolation at home. The patient can be directly linked to a previous positive Riley County patient. A total of 12 Riley County residents have recovered from the virus, meaning they’re fever free for three days and a week removed from when symptoms first appeared. Pottawatomie County has a total of 6 positive cases. The latest is a female between 20 and 34 years old who lives in Wamego. Geary County has 10 total cases. Kansas climbed over 1,700 positive…
K-State will get a $3.3 million boost to its budget from the Kansas Board of Regents. Of the $3.3 million K-State will receive, about $2 million will go directly to the university while the rest will go K-State’s Polytechnic Campus, extension and agriculture-research programs and Veterinary Medical Center. This funding comes in the form of a block grant and is in addition to the $111.1 million in general funding allocated to K-State from the state government for fiscal year 2021. Public universities in Kansas use block grants when requesting additional funding and receive a percentage of the total amount allocated…
The Pottawatomie County Sheriff’s Office is investigating a series of burglaries that occurred at three separate locations in the City of Westmoreland. The first burglary occurred on April 3 at Rock House Antiques in the 300 block of Main St. when a individual was found in the basement attempting to steal copper water lines by the business owner. The suspect left the property after being ordered to leave. Damages are estimated to be under $20. A second incident occurred on April 4 at a house in the 200 block of Cooper St., resulting in over $1000 in property loss. The…
TOPEKA, Kan. (AP) – Two Kansas churches and their pastors have filed a federal lawsuit against Gov. Laura Kelly over an order banning religious gatherings with more than 10 people to help slow the spread of the new coronavirus. The lawsuit filed in the U.S. District Court for Kansas on Thursday argued that Kelly’s directive violates the churches’ and pastors’ religious, assembly and free-speech rights. The lawsuit comes comes after the Democratic governor thwarted an attempt by Republican legislative leaders to revoke her order. The lawsuit was filed by First Baptist Church in Dodge City and Calvary Baptist Church in…
HIAWATHA, Kan. (AP) — Officials say a woman has died in a rural northeastern Kansas house fire. Wichita station KSNW says the fire was reported around 3 a.m. Thursday in Brown County. A family member told the station that the 74-year-old woman and her husband initially escaped the fire, but that the woman went back inside to try to save a dog and did not survive. The Brown County Sheriff’s Office says it’s investigating the cause of the fire, but noted that no foul play was suspected. Officials said the man who escaped the fire was hospitalized. Authorities have not…
TOPEKA, Kan. (AP) — Kansas will soon have a new medical provider in state prisons. Officials announced Friday that they had signed a new contract for medical services amid mounting frustrations with its current provider. The Kansas Department of Corrections said in a news release that it awarded Centurion of Kansas LLC a contract that begins July 1. The announcement comes a week after Kansas Gov. Laura Kelly criticized the health care provided by Tennessee-based Corizon Health. Kelly said she shared concerns expressed by inmates and staff about the level of care from Corizon.