Author: Brandon Peoples

A Manhattan man was among two killed early Saturday morning in a head-on crash on Interstate 70 in Geary County. According to the Kansas Highway Patrol, a Ford F-150 driven by 34-year-old John Wagnaar III was traveling west in the eastbound passing lane of I-70 at around 3 a.m. and collided with a Honda Civic head on. Wagnaar’s vehicle then rolled into the median and caught fire. The other vehicle came to rest partially on the north shoulder of the eastbound lanes. The crash occurred near mile marker 315, about two miles east of the Manhattan interchange. Wagnaar was pronounced…

Firefighters responded Saturday night to a fire at a mobile home in Manhattan’s Redbud Estates neighborhood, shortly before 9:30 p.m. According to Deputy Manhattan Fire Chief Ryan Almes, two occupants and one dog were able to escape prior to crews arrival. Initial reports stated people were possibly in the home at the time of the fire, but a thorough search was done and found no one inside. No injuries were reported. A total of 15 firefighters responded and had the blaze extinguished within 10 minutes. Damage was estimated at $35,000 to contents and an additional $15,000 in structural damage. The…

Local health officials are encouraging vaccinations as flu season begins, reminding folks also to consider getting vaccinated against COVID-19 as cases begin to tick up once again. The Kansas Department of Health and Environment (KDHE) recorded 48 new COVID-19 cases for Riley County between Oct. 29 and Nov. 4. It was enough to move Riley County into the substantial incidence category, after several weeks of being placed in the moderate category. One COVID-19 patient was hospitalized on a ventilator in the ICU unit as of Wednesday’s weekly report. In addition to high numbers of flu, Riley County Health Department Director…

Voters in Pottawatomie County have rejected a quarter-percent sales tax to fund road and bridge improvements in the county by a 53 to 47 percent margin. County officials had projected that the tax, which was proposed in addition to the existing 1 percent retail sales tax, could have generated roughly $1.6 million annually for about a dozen projects primarily between Blue Township and Wamego. Commissioner Dee McKee, in an interview Wednesday with KMAN noted she was disappointed the sales tax question failed. McKee admits a lack of publicity over the sales tax question likely hurt its chances of passage, citing…

Kansas Gov. Laura Kelly has won another four year-term, narrowly defeating Republican Attorney General Derek Schmidt by a 49 to 48 percent margin. “Kansans voted for strong schools, for economic growth, for balanced budgets. And yes, they voted for a woman’s right to make her own healthcare decisions,” Kelly said to supporters late Tuesday night, when the election at the time was too close to call. Kelly edged Schmidt by over 14,000 votes, in one of the more competitive governor races in the country. Schmidt had sought to tie Kelly to President Joe Biden and blamed both  for high inflation.…

USD 475 board members will wait until next week to decide on a site for a proposed new early childhood center. The board met Monday and removed from its agenda a staff recommendation for the board to approve the retention of the former Junction City High School site, at 900 Eisenhower Drive, for the proposed facility. It was removed at the request of board member Dr. Anwar Khoury, who could not attend Monday’s meeting. It will instead be considered at the Nov. 17 meeting. Former school board president Rina Neal spoke during public comment, supporting the recommendation on behalf of the…

Advance voting ended Monday, with more than 8,600 voters in Riley and Pottawatomie counties casting the ballots ahead of Election Day. Riley County Clerk Rich Vargo reported 6,354 Riley County residents voted in-person and by mail. That number was down from the last mid-term election, in 2018. Vargo noted Monday there were still 800 paper ballots that had yet to be returned. Advance voting was up in Pottawatomie County, with Clerk Dawn Henry reporting 2,263 advance ballots were cast both in-person and by mail. That exceeds the 1,972 early ballots cast in the 2018 mid-terms. Polls are open until 7 p.m.…

A Manhattan man was struck and killed Monday evening while riding an electric motorbike in the Northview area of town. According to the Kansas Highway Patrol, the bike collided with an SUV shortly before 6:30 p.m. near the intersection of Tuttle Creek Boulevard and Griffith Drive. The SUV had made a left turn onto Griffith and as the bike traveled northbound, it struck the side of the SUV. The driver of the motorbike, 31-year-old Erik Dedrickson, of Manhattan, was transported to Ascension Via Christi, where he was pronounced dead. Authorities say Dedrickson was not wearing a helmet, but rather only…

Riley County Police are investigating after a truck was found on fire early Saturday, hours after an altercation was reported between two men, including the owner of the truck. Officers filed a report for aggravated battery Friday evening in the 12000 block of Blue River Hills Road, listing a 43-year-old male victim when a 54-year-old male suspect used his 2020 Dodge Ram to hit the victim’s 2014 Toyota FJ Cruiser parked on the side of the road following an argument between the two. Police later filed an arson report around 1 a.m. Saturday in the 3800 block of West 69th…

Authorities are looking for information following a recent theft of tools from a Habitat for Humanity build site in Ogden. The Riley County Police Department says a report for theft was filed Thursday morning after thieves on Wednesday took Dewalt and Milwaukee brand saws, chargers, air nailers and other miscellaneous tools from a trailer in the 200 block of South Elm Street. The total estimated loss is about $5,000. Anyone with information can contact RCPD or Manhattan Riley County Crime Stoppers. Manhattan Area Habitat for Humanity Executive Director Josh Brewer tells KMAN that the organization is trying to recoup as…