Tornado Slams Small Towns in Northeast Kansas
LAWRENCE, Kan. (KPR) - A massive, rain-wrapped tornado churned across the Kansas plains west of Kansas City yesterday (TUE), destroying homes and injuring a dozen people. The tornado was very large, at times, a mile-wide. It touched down south of Lawrence and stayed on the ground for nearly two hours. As it headed east, toward Kansas City, the twister crossed Kansas Highway 10, one of the major highways that connects Lawrence and Kansas City. The tornado rolled past Eudora and plowed through the tiny town of Linwood, leaving dozens of homes damaged or destroyed. It ripped apart farm buildings and tossed around cars and trucks. While a dozen people suffered injuries, there were no reports of fatalities. The worst-hit areas appeared to be in Douglas and Leavenworth counties. The tornado also rolled across the Kansas Turnpike and into the western edges of Kansas City, Kansas, before finally lifting back into the sky. The National Weather Service is predicting more severe storms in Kansas and Missouri again this (WED) afternoon.
The latest details on this story are available from the Kansas News Service.
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Weather Service Says Kansas Twister Hit 170 MPH
KANSAS CITY, Mo. (AP) — The National Weather Service has rated a tornado that caused extensive damage in eastern Kansas an EF-4. Tuesday's twister had peak winds of 170 mph. The tornado was part of a severe system that moved through the area west of Kansas City, causing 18 injuries and damaging homes, trees and power lines in Douglas, Leavenworth and Wyandotte counties. The weather service said the tornado developed southwest of the college town of Lawrence as an EF-3 storm and strengthened as it moved northeast. The tornado was on the ground for almost 32 miles and was 1 mile wide at its largest.
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Twister East of Kansas City Had EF-2 Rating
KANSAS CITY, Mo. (AP) — The National Weather Service has rated a tornado that was on the ground for nearly six miles northeast of Kansas City, Missouri, as an EF-2. Meteorologist Jonathan Kurtz said Wednesday that no injuries were reported with the tornado, which damaged trees and homes Tuesday night and had peak wind speeds of 115 mph. The tornado was part of a severe system that moved through the area Tuesday.
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Kansas Governor Seeks Federal Disaster Declaration
TOPEKA, Kan. (AP) - Kansas Governor Laura Kelly is seeking a federal disaster declaration, citing severe weather and flooding that continue to ravage the state. Kelly announced the request to President Donald Trump. Governor Mike Parson in neighboring Missouri made the same request for his state. Kelly is seeking federal money to help pay for shelter management, water rescues, human services support and other needs. Forty-nine of the 105 counties in Kansas are part of a state of disaster declaration. More rain in recent days is keeping river and lake levels extraordinarily high.
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Man Hid Under Mattress to Survive Tornado
KANSAS CITY, Kan. (AP) - 48-year-old Mark Duffin learned from a television report that the large tornado that hit the Kansas City outskirts Tuesday evening was headed toward his home. The next thing he knew, the walls of his house were coming down. The Kansas City Star reports that Duffin grabbed a mattress, followed his 13-year-old to the basement and protected the two of them with the mattress as the home crashed down around them. The tornado damaged or destroyed dozens of homes and injured a dozen people but there were no reports of fatalities.
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Kansas Lawmakers Override Vetoes of Budget Items
TOPEKA, Kan. (AP) — Republican legislators in Kansas have overridden Democratic Gov. Laura Kelly's vetoes of several spending items in the next state budget, including an extra payment to the state's public pension system. The GOP-controlled House voted 86-30 to override all of Kelly's budget vetoes at once. Republicans leaders had two more votes than they needed and picked up a few Democratic votes. The vote in the Republican-controlled Senate was 27-11. Kelly had argued that her veto would make the state budget more stable by building up the state's cash reserves. The biggest spending item she excised was a $51 million payment to the pension system for teachers and other government workers. She also trimmed funds for mental health services. Republicans argued that the pension payment would help the system's long-term stability.
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Kansas Lawmakers Fail to Override Tax Bill Veto
TOPEKA, Kan. (AP) — The Republican-controlled Kansas Legislature has failed to override Democratic Gov. Laura Kelly's veto of an income tax relief bill pushed by GOP leaders. The vote Wednesday in the House was 78-39, but Republican leaders needed a two-thirds majority of 84 votes in the 125-member chamber. The bill was designed to provide relief to individuals and businesses paying more in state income taxes because of changes in federal tax laws at the end of 2017. It would have provided about $240 million in tax relief over three years. Kelly argued that it would "decimate" the state budget. Republican leaders argued that it's not fair to allow some Kansans to automatically pay more in state taxes because of the federal changes. But some GOP moderates backed Kelly's veto.
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Kansas Governor to See Whether Tax, Budget Vetoes Will Stand
TOPEKA, Kan. (AP) — Top Republican legislators in Kansas were preparing to test Democratic Gov. Laura Kelly's power to shape the state budget and hold off a GOP push for income tax relief. The Republican-dominated Legislature was convening Wednesday for its final day in session this year with Republicans looking to override Kelly's veto of a GOP tax relief bill and vetoes of several spending items included in the next state budget. Those items included an extra $51 million payment to the state's public pension system. Kelly argued that her vetoes promoted budget stability. Republicans had the two-thirds majorities in both chambers needed to override vetoes. But GOP leaders worried that a few moderate Republicans might back Kelly or that a few lawmakers might not show for what is often a brief adjournment ceremony.
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Medicaid Expansion Protest Delays Kansas Senate
TOPEKA, Kan. (AP) — A protest by supporters of Medicaid expansion in a Kansas Senate gallery has temporarily shut down its work on other issues and led to the arrest of nine protesters. The Republican-controlled Legislature did not plan to consider Medicaid expansion Wednesday, its last scheduled day in session this year. But about 40 protesters arrived at the Statehouse to protest in favor of it. The Kansas House passed a plan favored by Democratic Gov. Laura Kelly in March, but the state Senate never debated it. The protest started when the Senate began considering overriding Kelly's vetoes of several items in the next state budget. The protesters refused to stop singing and chanting. The Senate suspended its work and closed the gallery. Harrison Hems, the Senate president's chief of staff, says nine protesters were arrested.
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Kansas Senate Confirms Kelly Nominee to Court of Appeals
TOPEKA, Kan. (AP) — The Kansas Senate has confirmed Gov. Laura Kelly's nomination of a Kansas City-area attorney to the state's second-highest court. The vote Wednesday was 37-1 for Sarah Warner of Lenexa to be Court of Appeals judge. The Democratic governor submitted Warner's name to the Republican-controlled Senate after it rejected Labette County District Judge Jeffry Jack's nomination over his political tweets in 2017. Kelly tried to withdraw Jack's nomination in March and touched off a legal battle. The Kansas Supreme Court ruled Kelly could not legally withdraw the nomination. Warner is a partner in a Lawrence law firm that has defended state abortion restrictions. Kelly supports abortion rights. The only no vote came from independent Sen. John Doll of Garden City. He has been protesting a lack of appointees from western Kansas.
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Man in Custody in Weekend Topeka Killing
TOPEKA, Kan. (AP) _ A 29-year-old man is jailed and accused of first-degree murder and robbery in connection with a weekend shooting in Topeka. The Topeka Capital-Journal reports that Kristoffer Lee Klesath of Topeka was arrested last (TUE) night in connection with the Saturday shooting death of 34-year-old Darton A. Fields II of Topeka. Fields was killed near a liquor store. Bystanders tried unsuccessfully to save him. He was pronounced dead at a hospital. Topeka has now recorded four homicides this year.
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Wichita Advisory Board Recommends Police Officers Involved in Shootings Not Be Named
WICHITA, Kan. (AP) _ A public advisory board in Wichita, Kansas, is now recommending that officers involved in shootings should not be named, citing worries about possible death threats to the families of the officers. The Wichita Eagle reports that the Citizen Review Board has changed its position after previously suggesting that police create a new policy where names would generally be released. The new recommendation came after Police Chief Gordon Ramsay raised concerns about officer safety. Ramsay's proposal, approved by the board calls for releasing some information about the officer, such as age, gender, race and years of service, along with discipline history in use-of-force cases and previous involvement in shootings.
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Northeast Kansas Woman Killed When Huge Tree Falls on House
LEAVENWORTH, Kan. (AP) - A northeast Kansas woman has been killed by a massive tree falling on her home while she was in the living room. The death occurred Tuesday morning in Leavenworth. Authorities have not yet released the victim's name. Leavenworth Fire Chief Gary Birch said authorities believe the tree might have fallen over because the ground was so saturated from recent rains that its roots became loose. He said there was no strong wind in the area Tuesday morning. Birch said a crew was working Tuesday to remove the tree so that the woman's body can be recovered. He said the trunk of the tree appeared to be about 4 feet in diameter. Much of Kansas has seen heavy rain and flooding over the past week.
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Newest Downpours Ramp up Midwest Flood Worries
KANSAS CITY, Mo. (AP) — Concerns are high that flooding in the central U.S. will get even worse because of the most recent torrential downpours. Strong storms that spawned dangerous tornadoes in Kansas and northwestern Missouri also brought heavy rain. Flash floods were reported in several places, closing roads and forcing water rescues. Mark Fuchs of the National Weather Service, says Holt County in northwestern Missouri received 6 inches (15.2 centimeters) of rain, and a widespread area along the Iowa-Missouri border received at least 3 inches (7.6 centimeters) of rain. Fuchs says most of the water will eventually drain into the already-flooded Missouri River, but it's too early to know the exact impact. Some of the water also will end up in the Mississippi River, which is approaching record highs in several Missouri and Illinois communities. More rain is forecast for Wednesday.
