Author: Brandon Peoples

The Geary County Health Department is closed to the public after two employees there tested positive recently for COVID-19. Both employees are isolating at home and the department says no services will be provided at the offices until Aug. 26. The staff will notify any close contacts of the individuals who may have potentially been exposed. The department will continue to answer questions via telephone and provide services that do not require direct contact. Geary County totaled 36 active cases as of Friday with 127 recoveries and two total deaths out of 165 confirmed cases. One person is currently hospitalized…

Riley County Police have issued the first citation for violating the Manhattan mask ordinance. In a letter to the community Friday (shared below), RCPD Director Dennis Butler announced the violation was issued Thursday for failure to comply with the July 7 ordinance after education and voluntary compliance requests were ignored. Butler says nearly a dozen businesses were visited in Manhattan Thursday, with only the one citation issued to an individual. The violation was issued to 30-year-old Katherine Bragg while at O’Malley’s, for employees in common areas without proper face masks/coverings. Butler says the police department’s goal throughout the pandemic has…

Junction City Police are searching for two people from Manhattan wanted in connection for several storage unit burglaries. Police say Patrick Arrow and Jamie Berges are also wanted in connection to a burglary at the new high school construction site in Junction City. A large amount of construction tools were taken in the past month along with some car stereo equipment. According to a release, police say some of the stolen items have been recovered. A picture of the two suspects is shared on the JCPD Facebook page. Anyone with knowledge of the whereabouts of either suspect should call Crime…

Police are searching for a suspect involved in a shooting early Thursday in Wamego. The Wamego Police Department says nobody was injured in the incident that happened just after 1 a.m. in the 600 block of Maple Street. According to Police Chief Michael Baker, several bullet casings were located in the street. No damage was reported to any nearby homes. Police are attempting to locate a white car leaving the area at a high rate of speed. Anyone with information should call the police department at 785-456-9553.

E-scooters officially launch this weekend in Manhattan. Kansas State University and the city have partnered with e-scooter company LINK to pilot the micro-mobility program this fall. Initially the plan had been to launch the e-scooters in April, but plans were shifted by the coronavirus pandemic. “Many students, faculty and staff  have been asking for an e-scooter share program as an easy and energy-efficient way to move about campus and the community. After extensive research of similar programs in other university communities and in collaboration with the City of Manhattan, we’re excited to partner with LINK because we believe that they…

Sunset Zoo is celebrating the recent births of a white-handed gibbon and a Caribbean flamingo. The zoo announced the births in a release Thursday. The gibbon, named Neta, was born at the end of April and is doing well. The sex of baby Neta won’t be determined until a full physical occurs, which typically happens at the end of the first year of life. The baby was named by the primate zookeeper team, to honor a 2019-2020 intern with the same name. Neta also means potted plant in Hebrew. This family of gibbons was recommended to breed by the Association…

Health officials in Geary County have linked nearly two dozen COVID-19 cases to the Faith Tabernacle Church in Junction City. The health department says anyone who attended church between Saturday, Aug. 1 and Saturday, Aug. 8 is at risk for potential exposure and should self-monitor for symptoms for 14 days from the date of attendance. Transmission is said to have occurred at regularly scheduled services. At least 22 cases have been linked to the church which has been designated as a COVID-19 outbreak. As of Thursday, Geary County was monitoring 28 active cases, including one currently in the hospital. Eight…

Kansas State University will receive over $17.8 million in Federal SPARK grants from the CARES Act.

Six new cases of COVID-19 were confirmed in Riley County Wednesday and one new case was added in Pottawatomie County. Additionally, 17 people were added to the recovered list in Riley County. Pottawatomie County recoveries were unchanged. That brings the active case count to 115 in Riley County and just four in Pottawatomie County. Currently, Ascension Via Christi is monitoring two positive patients, one of whom is on a ventilator. Both are said to be Riley County patients. All told, the two counties have combined for just north of 600 cases since March. A majority of those tested during the…

The Manhattan/Ogden School board plans to hold a special meeting Friday to consider ratification of the NEA teacher contract agreement for the 2020-2021 school year. Included in the agreement is a 3.52 percent compensation package increase. The base salary proposal shows no increase with starting teacher salaries remaining at $41,000. The proposal also calls for vertical and horizontal steps for experience and education and continued coverage of individual health insurance premiums. A number of letters of understanding are also outlined in the proposal, including one that will add three additional sick days if needed due to COVID-19 and language to…