The State of Kansas through the efforts of the Kansas Division of Emergency Management and key partners in emergency preparedness and response, has received full accreditation through the Emergency Management Accreditation Program. “This accreditation is a significant ‘stamp of approval’ that validates the commitment this state has to emergency management and protecting the health and safety of Kansans,” said Gov. Sam Brownback. “I congratulate the director of KDEM, Maj. Gen. Lee Tafanelli, and his staff on a job well done.” KDEM worked jointly with its state partners including Kansas Highway Patrol, Health and Environment, Agriculture and the Kansas National Guard,…
Author: KMAN Staff
The Manhattan city commission wrestled with two high impact items during Tuesday night’s work session…. The budget, and city streets. The commission will publish a flat mill levy tax, and city staff are now working towards coming up with a list of menu items to reduce spending to bring taxes in line with that mandate. The deadline for the discussion is August 6th at the public hearing on the budget. Several items were suggested by commissioner Wynn Butler for possible reduction, and included not hiring a training director for the fire department. Mayor John Matta agreed with Commissioner Wynn Butler’s…
WICHITA, Kan. (AP) A Wichita man says he’s doing all he can to save his nephew from execution in Iraq. Musadik Mahdi, a Wichita aerospace engineer, says he fears his efforts will be in vain because his nephew is being held at a prison where executions happen on a whim. His nephew, Osama Jamal `Abdallah Mahdi, was sentenced to death after an Iraqi army officer was killed in an explosion. Musadik Mahdi says his nephew confessed to a crime he didn’t commit after being tortured. The Wichita Eagle reports Amnesty International has taken up the Mahdi case after verifying that…
WICHITA, Kan. (AP) The Wichita school board has approved $3 million more to repair buildings damaged by storms that hit the city May 19. The money approved Monday comes on top of $2 million in funding for repairs the board already approved at its June 10 meeting. School officials say all but about $250,000 should be reimbursed by the district’s insurance. District officials say rain, hail and wind damaged more than a dozen school sites, including major damage at Brooks Middle School. The school board also approved $225,000 in funding for repairs at Wilbur Middle School, which was damaged by…
OTTAWA, Kan. (AP) Pretrial hearings in the case of a man accused of killing four people on an Ottawa farm are expected to stretch into 2014. A Franklin County judge on Monday set a schedule of pretrial hearings for Kyle Flack, 27, of Ottawa that will take more than seven months. Flack is charged with capital murder and several other charges in the deaths of two men, a woman and her 18-month-old daughter in May. During a hearing Monday, Franklin County District Judge Thomas H. Sachse said some documents filed in the case could be open to the public. The…
LAWRENCE, Kan. (AP) The University of Kansas says its research funding set a record in 2011-12, reaching $275.2 million. It’s the fifth straight year the funding increased but university officials say federal budget cuts might halt that trend. University official Steve Warren says the school is likely to set another record for 2012-13. But Warren says mandatory federal budget cuts of about 5 percent that took effect in March is already affecting funding for the university’s research. Federal funding accounted for $223.4 million in research money at Kansas in the 2011-12 year. The Lawrence Journal-World reports the university’s School of…
CLAFLIN, Kan. (AP) Barton County officials say a man and his son-in-law died in an oilfield-related accident. Sheriff Brian Bellendir says the men died Monday about one mile northeast of Claflin. The victims, Curtis Hoffman, 50, and Kebby Myers, 30, apparently died after being overcome by hydrogen sulfide gas. KWCH reports preliminary reports indicate Hoffman was working on a valve and called Myers to bring some parts. Hoffman apparently was overcome by the gas and Myers was also overcome when he arrived with the parts. Family members went to check on the men when they didn’t arrive home. Hydrogen sulfide…
WICHITA, Kan. (AP) A court document is offering a glimpse into the government’s case against a former Kansas doctor accused of unlawfully possessing drugs and a firearm. The attorney for Lawrence Simons asked a judge on Monday to delay until September a trial scheduled for later this month. A defense filing cites the “overwhelming” contents of storage lockers where authorities found prescription drugs. Video and photos depict nine tables covered with drugs and medical paraphernalia. Prosecutors have also turned over multiple CDs. Simons’ attorney seeks more times to prepare a defense. Simons is a convicted felon who allegedly gave a…
TOPEKA, Kan. (AP) A Wamego home and a former high school in Belleville are among the newest Kansas sites added to the National Register of Historic Places. The Kansas Historical Society said in a release that the listings were entered into the National Register on June 25, bringing the total number of Kansas listings in the National Register to 1,317. The several new listings include the Cassius and Adelia Baker House in Wamego. The Craftsman-style home was built in 1910 for Baker, who was a prominent member of the local business community. Belleville High School in Belleville, which dates back…
TOPEKA, Kan. (AP) A biography of President Dwight Eisenhower, a history of the Kansas Bureau of Investigation and novels set in the state and elsewhere are among this year’s 15 notable Kansas books. State Librarian Jo Budler announced the list Monday. It honors books published last year by a Kansas author or on a Kansas topic. Annual lists began in 2006. This year’s list includes “Beyond Cold Blood,” a history of the KBI by former Director Larry Welch. Also honored is “Eisenhower in War and Peace,” by Jean Edward Smith. The novels include “The Yard,” by Alex Grecian, about London’s…