The Manhattan Fire Department responded to fewer fireworks related calls during the legal discharge dates in 2013 than in 2012. There were nine fireworks related calls in 2013, all occurring on July 4th or in the early morning hours of July 5th, with no fire loss being reported. For comparison, there were 15 fireworks related calls in 2012, including two structure fires, with fire loss of all fireworks incidents totaling $381,000. The drier conditions in 2012 contributed to the number of grass and structure fires, but it did not affect the number of trash and dumpster fires between the two…
Author: KMAN Staff
[mp3-jplayer]
Police are investigating the cause of a fireworks explosion that left 28 people injured at a July 4th show in Simi Valley, Calif. Authorities say a platform collapse likely contributed to the accident.
The mother of Trayvon Martin testifies that screams for help captured on audio of a 911 call came from her 17-year-old son.
OSAWATOMIE, Kan. (AP) A drive-in theater in eastern Kansas is facing a threat from the movies’ switch to digital, but the community is pitching in to help. Owners of the Midway Drive-In Theater in Osawatomie say now that film distributors’ move to digital is drawing closer, the Midway is struggling to make the transition. The Midway is only equipped to use 35 mm film. Going digital requires theaters to buy new projectors at up to $100,000 per screen. Paul Dimoush, who run the Midway, told The Kansas City Star he hopes to raise about $30,000. Community leaders are offering their…
WICHITA, Kan. (AP) A Wichita school district official says an elementary teacher charged with carrying a concealed handgun on school premises doesn’t work for the district anymore. Wichita school district spokeswoman Susan Arensman told The Wichita Eagle in a text message Thursday that Daniel C. Nagel, 31, “is no longer an employee” of the district. She would not say if Nagel was fired or when his employment ended. Nagel was arrested May 20 at an elementary school on suspicion of carrying a concealed gun on school property. He’s scheduled for his first appearance in Municipal Court on Monday. Nagel’s lawyer,…
VALLEY FALLS, Kan. (AP) Two workers were reported injured after a malfunction at a public fireworks display in northeast Kansas. Jefferson County Sheriff Jeff Herrig told The Topeka Capital-Journal that at least two people associated with the company putting on the annual fireworks show in Valley Falls were injured Thursday night. Herrig says officials believe fireworks stored in an uncovered tote apparently detonated, touching off a large volume of fireworks. He says one male worker from Valley Falls sustained severe burns to his arm, and a woman from Ozawkie sustained a broken arm. Both were transported by ambulance to a…
WICHITA, Kan. (AP) A federal judge has given a former employee of the Garden City prosecutor’s office a few extra weeks of freedom before he goes to prison for theft. U.S. District Judge Monti Belot granted an unopposed defense request this week to stay the 16-month sentence of Pedro A. Castro until July 26. His attorney made the request so Castro could sign documents at the closing for the sale of his home. Castro had been scheduled to report Tuesday to a federal prison in Mississippi. His sentence also includes an order to pay nearly $52,000 in restitution. Castro worked…
TOPEKA, Kan. (AP) Kansas State Board of Education members will open discussions next week about pushing for more state funding for public schools. The agenda for Tuesday’s meeting includes a review of proposals for increased state aid and more money for professional development and school lunch programs in the fiscal year that starts in July 2014. One proposal would raise the state’s base aid to school districts by $640 per student, or by almost 17 percent. The current figure for the next fiscal year is $3,852 per student. The board will make budget recommendations to Republican Gov. Sam Brownback later…
EMPORIA, Kan. (AP) Twinkies are not just snack cakes in Emporia. They’re something to celebrate, which the city will do with a Twinkies Festival on July 15, the day Hostess Brands plans to return them to store shelves. The Emporia Gazette reports the event will also honor the company that’s reopening the city’s Hostess bakery after buying the snack cake lines out of bankruptcy. More than 500 people lost their jobs when Hostess closed the Emporia plant last November following a strike by union bakers. The new owners, doing business as Hostess Brands LLC, decided to reopen it as their…