MEDICINE LODGE — Winds that have hindered firefighters trying to contain the biggest wildfire in Kansas history are forecast to increase. The National Weather Service says a strong southeast wind of 20 to 30 mph is expected to blow over the sparsely populated fire zone Monday and Tuesday. Gusts of around 40 mph are forecast both days. The blaze has consumed at least 620 square miles since it started last week in Oklahoma and spread into Kansas. While the winds could spread embers, an increase in humidity Tuesday could help firefighters. Up to 4 inches of snow that fell over the area…
Author: KMAN Staff
In this edition of In Focus, KMAN’s Dave Lewis takes the reigns from Cathy Dawes and works the phone lines for an hour worth of community call-in and commentary.
WICHITA — The Federal Aviation Administration is preparing to begin its airworthiness certification inspection of a World War II bomber. The Wichita Eagle reports that volunteers have been putting the finishing touches on the B-29 Superfortress known as “Doc.” The nonprofit group working to restore the plane says on its website that the next step is for the FAA to perform a physical inspection. The aircraft then will be inspected during engine runs. The group will need an FAA airworthiness certificate before they can attempt a first flight of the B-29. The Wichita-built plane was finished too late to fly bombing missions…
A Fort Riley man faces a little more than five years in prison following his sentencing this Monday morning in Riley County court for involuntary manslaughter. Tierre Wall was sentenced to 61 months by Judge David Stutzman for the charge. He was also sentenced to seven months for aggravated assault, to be served concurrently. Wall’s charge involves the March 2015 shooting death of Casey Lindley, 27, in the forehead during a confrontation at the intersection of Skyway Drive and Kansas Highway 114 near Ogden. Wall maintained he acted in self defense after Lindley, his fiance and his two friends got out of…
As previously reported by KMAN, Riley County Police made a high bond aggravated kidnapping arrest over the weekend. Police in Riley County issued a public warning on March 25, 2016 regarding a potentially dangerous suspect at-large following an incident on March 24 at approximately 11:30 p.m. This incident involved a woman who sustained significant non-life threatening injuries after being dragged by her vehicle for approximately 800 feet while attempting to flee an attacker who was not known to her. Officers found that this female victim was approached by an unknown hispanic male while she attempted to start her car in…
Officers with the Riley County Police Department arrested Derrick Bishop, 46, of Manhattan while in the 2500 block of Farm Bureau Road on March 25, 2016 at approximately 5:40 PM. Bishop was arrested on a warrant for the offenses of rape, indecent liberties with a child (X2), and aggravated sexual battery. He was given a bond of $100,000.00 and at the time of this report was no longer confined at the Riley County Jail. This warrant stems from crimes occurring from as early as November 2014. Christian Garroutte, 28, of Ponca City, Oklahoma was arrested on March 25, 2016…
TOPEKA — The Kansas Board of Regents met Monday morning by phone to select Regent Dennis Mullin of Manhattan as chair of the Kansas State University Presidential Search Committee. Over the coming weeks, steps will be taken to finalize the committee’s membership and charge for this closed search. “It will be important for all parts of the K-State community to be represented, including students, faculty, staff, alumni, athletics, endowment, and the wider Manhattan community,” stated Regent Mullin. “I am looking forward to working on behalf of the entire Wildcat family to find the next president of this great university.” The…
Today’s guests on In Focus were: St. Rep. Tom Phillips of Manhattan Riley County Police Director Brad Schoen Senator Jerry Moran of Manhattan
WICHITA — A western Kansas woman is suing the state and some of the agencies involved in questioning and removing her 11-year-old son from her home after he spoke up at school about her marijuana use. The Wichita Eagle reports that Shona Banda’s federal lawsuit alleges the state and the agencies are depriving her of her civil rights to treat a debilitating condition. The Garden City woman also claims officials have infringed on her parenting, and that local police and school employees improperly questioned her son without her permission in March of last year. Spokespeople for Garden City public schools…
MEDICINE LODGE — Firefighters making headway in trying to snuff the biggest wildfire in Kansas history may not get much help from the weather in coming days. Forestry officials in Kansas and Oklahoma say the fires that have scorched 620 square miles in the two states are 45 percent contained. That includes the roughly one-third of the fire in hardest-hit Barber County in south-central Kansas. But the National Weather Service says shifting, stiffer winds are looming, potentially reigniting hot spots or extending flames beyond the fire line. Around Barber County, winds on Monday could gust to 15 to 25 mph, then increase…