Author: Troy Coverdale

The former Manhattan Parks and Recreation employee charged with sexual exploitation of a child counts in Pottawatomie County made a brief court appearance Tuesday morning. Zach Bayless made an appearance via Zoom for a status hearing tied to his late May arrest. His next court appearance will be a status update hearing on August 31st. Bayless is accused of feloniously promoting a performance that included sexually explicit conduct of a child under the age of 14 and being in possession of sexually explicit content involving a child. Investigators say the incidents that prompted the charges occurred between December of last…

Signups are underway for volunteers to pick up furniture ahead of Manhattan’s Furniture Amnesty Day on Friday. People looking to donate furniture for the day can sign up before the end of Wednesday to be placed on the list of stops volunteers will be making for pick ups. The event returns after a hiatus last year, according to Manhattan Fire’s Assistant Chief of Risk Reduction, Ryan Courtright. He says the 2019 amnesty day was a record setter. Courtright, tells KMAN that the amnesty day is a good was to help people at both ends of the process. Hands On K-State…

Technology continues to change the face of emergency response for first responders, including in Riley County. RCPD Director Dennis Buttler on KMAN’s In Focus Friday noted one new app that can help alert dispatchers to someone in trouble. Called “What 3 Words”, the app’s developers have assigned three unique words to every 10-foot square on maps worldwide. He says the app gives dispatchers info even if the caller can’t speak. Another program the police department is utilizing is called “SafeCam”, where homeowners can register their security cameras. Police would be able to view that information in a database and determine…

A stabbing in Pottawatomie County Thursday afternoon landed one person in the hospital with non-life threatening injuries and a second in jail. According to the Sheriff’s Office, 24-year old Nigel Breaux was arrested after deputies arrived on scene to find him walking near where the stabbing occurred. He is in jail awaiting bond on aggravated battery and domestic battery charges. The victim called 9-1-1 saying they were driving towards Westmoreland and was intercepted by first responders on Westmoreland Road near Rock Creek Road.

After new information from the Centers for Disease Control labeled Riley County an emerging hotspot for COVID-19 cases, officials with the Health Department addressed their concerns while making the pitch for those unvaccinated to change that. In the past week, more than 60 new cases have been identified, bringing the total number of active cases to 108. Nine patients are being treated for the virus at Ascension Via Christi, one of whom is in the ICU. Riley County Health Department Director Julie Gibbs says the top issue being identified in surveys of those who are unvaccinated is that there is…

Construction delays mean scheduled tours for the new Junction City High School are on hold. Geary County Schools USD 475 officials say the cancelation of the tours doesn’t affect the scheduled first day of classes in the new facility, slated for August 25th. The school district was hoping to show off the new school August 6th and 7th, but will, instead, host a ribbon cutting later in the fall.

The rehabilitation project for the stilling basin below Tuttle Creek Dam is nearing completion, with it being given back to control of the Army Corps of Engineers Operations team at the lake. Operations Project Manager Brian McNulty tells KMAN the project included closure of an old drain that helped cause a sinkhole. Public access remains closed and there won’t be a full-reopening for a while. The east side of Outlet Park will remain shut down. Also at the lake, testing will likely confirm a blue-green algae bloom in the River Pond area.  McNulty tells KMAN a warning has been posted…

With a September 7th public hearing on a nearly 55 mill levy increase and the city budget now set, the Manhattan City Commission has a lot of work to do in trying to determine what the final numbers will be. Tuesday night, commissioners gave indications that they don’t want to see the mill levy increase reach that maximum mark. One item putting the squeeze on the city budget is its commitments to the Riley County Police Department, which makes up the largest portion of the increase. That number, in fact, is larger than the increase for the city’s general fund.…

The Riley County Health Department has confirmed an unvaccinated 86-year old woman has become the latest victim of COVID-19 in the county. Her death is the 45th in Riley County since the start of the pandemic last year. She passed away July 10, just over a month after first testing positive for the virus. Ascension Via Christi is caring for seven patients sick with COVID-19 symptoms, including one ICU patient. None of the seven had been vaccinated. 102 new coronavirus cases have been confirmed in the past week, with 31 additional recoveries being reported. Since December, 40 positive cases from…

The Manhattan City Commission passed a resolution that would set a potential mill levy increase of 54.914 for the 2022 budget, a move made in preparation for a September 7th public hearing on the budget and potential increase. The resolution passed on a 4-1 vote, with Mayor Wynn Butler casting the “no” vote. Commissioner Mark Hatesohl wasn’t in favor of the number, either. Deputy City Manager Jason Hilgers noted the possible increase already reflected changes in what the city would spend on personnel. Commissioner Usha Reddi noted that the debate over what the final increase could be is just beginning.…