Author: Brandon Peoples

U.S. Senator Jerry Moran has announced that more than $15 million has been secured for construction of new barracks at Fort Riley. Moran, who is a member of the Senate Appropriations Committee, says the investment was included in the Fiscal Year 2023 Appropriations Package. In a statement, Moran noted that by building new barracks, the base will have greater capacity for additional soldiers to be housed at Fort Riley and says it puts the base in a more competitive position to compete for future opportunities. Moran hosted Chief of Staff of the Army General James McConville at Fort Riley in…

Authorities say one person was killed in a wreck on Interstate 70 Wednesday evening in Geary County, caused by slick roads. The Kansas Highway Patrol says a Toyota Tacoma, driven by 33-year-old Zachary Bealer, of Kansas City, Missouri, lost control in the westbound lanes of I-70 near McDowell Creek Road, just after 7 p.m. Wednesday. As a result, Bealer’s truck spun across the median and was rear-ended by a Chevy Silverado. A third truck, then struck both of the other vehicles. After the impact, Bealer’s vehicle came to rest about 80 feet down the embankment. Bealer was pronounced dead on…

Two fires were noted overnight in Manhattan. The Manhattan Fire Department says firefighters were dispatched just before 4:30 a.m. to Stickels Cleaners, at 714 North 12th Street. Arriving crews found a small fire in a shed behind the business with an occupant working to extinguish it. Firefighters contained the fire within 10 minutes. No injuries were reported. The building is an approximately 400-square foot accessory structure to the main building, used for dry cleaning operations. Loss is estimated at $10,000 for the building and equipment. The cause was accidental due to thawing operations being conducted. The fire department also says…

Authorities in Geary County rescued a hunter who became stranded in the icy waters of Milford Lake Thursday morning as he attempted to gather his geese decoys. The Geary County Sheriff’s Office says just after 9:40 a.m. officers were called out to the area of Auld Road for reports of a man stranded on the water in a disabled jon boat. Officials say Justin Howe, of Fort Riley, called dispatch when the motor on his boat suddenly died. The boat drifted further from where Howe had been hunting and he became stranded against the ice before the boat became frozen…

State Sen. Tom Hawk, of Manhattan, has announced he is retiring from public office, effective Jan. 10. Hawk, who’s 22nd district encompasses Riley, Geary and Clay counties, including Manhattan and part of Junction City, says it’s something he’d been considering for a while, and became clear to him upon involvement with the Next Generation Under 30 program. “It felt like it was a good time and a time to let somebody else have a chance at leadership and serving our district. It has been the second greatest honor of my life – the greatest being when I was selected to be…

A Manhattan man was sentenced Tuesday for an aggravated battery conviction involving an infant child under his care. 20-year-old Gerald Hartman III was given a 36-month probation sentence at a Tuesday hearing in front of Judge Grant Bannister, with an underlying prison sentence of 32 months, if he violates terms of his probation. The sentencing follows a February conviction by a Riley County jury, which found Hartman guilty on a charge of aggravated battery against a then 5-month old child in July 2021. The jury was unable to render a verdict on a second count, charging him with child abuse.…

A significant winter weather event will move through Kansas Wednesday evening through Thursday, bringing a potential triple threat of accumulating snowfall, strong winds and arctic air intrusion. The National Weather Service says a Winter Storm Warning goes into effect at 6 p.m. this evening through Thursday. A Wind Chill Warning is also in effect from midnight Thursday through noon Friday. Snowfall accumulations are expected to be 1 to 3 inches, but the primary concern is the wind, which forecasters say could gust as high as 45 mph. That will likely lead to blowing snow and could reduce visibility to a…

Officials with the Manhattan Fire Department Risk Reduction Division were made aware of several videos on social media over the weekend showing a possible code violation at Royal Towers at 1700 North Manhattan Ave. The department says code inspectors visited the location Monday along with The Prime Company, the property management company for the complex. An inspection was performed and areas of the building were identified that need repair, but officials say no immediate danger of imminent collapse was identified. Several violations related to the condition of the exterior balconies and stairs were identified and a notice of violation is…

Winter officially arrives Wednesday and it appears Mother Nature is all but ready to celebrate the occasion. Accumulating snowfall is expected to arrive Wednesday night through Thursday across Kansas, creating potentially treacherous travel conditions ahead of the holiday weekend. The National Weather Service has already issued a Winter Storm Watch effective at midnight Thursday for the Manhattan area through midnight Friday. In addition, a wind chill watch will be in place from 6 a.m. Thursday through noon on Friday. Between 2 to 5 inches of snow can be expected with strong northwesterly winds, which forecasters say will cause potential blizzard…

A Manhattan woman was sentenced this week for her role in a February crash in southern Kansas that killed a 19-year-old man from Belle Plaine. 25-year-old Alexis Geisler pleaded guilty to one count of vehicular homicide, a Class A misdemeanor, earlier this month in Sumner County. She was subsequently sentenced Dec. 12 to one year of probation, with an underlying 12 month jail sentence and a $400 fine. According to court documents, Geisler was driving Feb. 22 from Texas back to Manhattan when she was involved in a crash, while traveling northbound on U.S. Highway 81. She was reportedly passing…