Evergy: Power Restoration After Wednesday Night Storms Still Incomplete
LAWRENCE, Kan. (KPR) - About 2,000 customers in Kansas remained without power Friday afternoon. Evergy, the state's largest utility company, says power has been restored to 98% of those who lost electricity in Wednesday night's storms. As of 3:30 pm Friday, Evergy says some outages in Topeka and Salina could stretch into Saturday afternoon.
The Topeka and Salina area were hit hardest by Wednesday night's severe weather, where storms knocked down more than 50 power poles. With high temperatures expected for the next several days, customers without power may want to consider going to a cooling center or other air-conditioned space. Local cooling centers can be found by calling 2-1-1.
Check out Evergy's outage map for the latest information.
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Brownback and Colyer Split on U.S. House District 2 GOP Endorsements
TOPEKA, Kan. (KNS) – Former Kansas governors Sam Brownback and Jeff Colyer are endorsing different candidates in the GOP primary for U.S. House District 2. The Kansas News Service reports that Brownback and Colyer differ in what’s arguably the most contested congressional race in Kansas this year. Brownback supports Jeff Kahrs, who served under him in the Kansas Department of Children and Families. Both were later appointees of former President Donald Trump. Colyer is endorsing former Kansas Attorney General Derek Schmidt, who ran for governor in 2022. Colyer heads Trump’s campaign in Kansas, and the former president is supporting Schmidt as well. Three other Republicans and two Democrats are also running for the open seat.
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Trust Women Clinic Re-opens in Wichita
WICHITA, Kan. (KNS) – A Wichita abortion clinic says it’s reopened after closing more than two months ago amid leadership turmoil. The Kansas News Service reports that the closure limited abortion access in the state. Kansas allows abortions until 22 weeks, but Trust Women’s closure meant access in Wichita effectively ended at 15 weeks. The clinic stopped seeing patients in May after its board fired its executive directors and other key leaders. A majority of its doctors then quit in protest. Trust Women’s board did not explain the changes but hired a national consulting firm to help the clinic reopen. The organization’s Oklahoma City clinic remains closed. The announcement came on the two-year anniversary of Kansans rejecting a ballot measure that could’ve led to an abortion ban. (Read more.)
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Increasing Heat Could Cost Area Workers Wages in Future
OVERLAND PARK, Kan. (KNS) – Outdoor workers in Kansas may lose labor hours and wages in the future because of excessive heat. The Kansas News Service reports that climate change is expected to increase the number of days with dangerous temperatures. A study by Climate Central, a nonprofit group that compiles weather data, shows much of the U.S. is expected to see a rise in the number of days with extreme heat. And added humidity makes the heat worse. That means outdoor laborers like farmers and construction workers will need to take more breaks to stay cool. Matthew Neidell is a public health professor for Columbia University. He says more breaks for outdoors laborers means work will slow down. “You're going to get less done at the end of the day. And somebody is going to have to bear the cost of that,” he explained. Neidell says federal regulators are adapting rules to protect workers from heat-related illnesses.
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More Kansas Communities Impose Water Restrictions
WICHITA, Kan. (KNS/KPR) - Several places in Kansas, like Hays, already have water restrictions in place - and have for years. Other cities are now following suit. The city of Wichita is enacting restrictions next week as water levels at Cheney Reservoir continue to fall. The city gets its water from the reservoir and the Equus beds. Levels at Cheney are the lowest since 2013.
Wichita water customers will be limited to one day a week for outdoor watering. That day depends on where residents live.
Residents are also only allowed to water in the late evening to early morning. The restrictions will last for at least two months. Residents who use well water are exempt.
More information is available at savewichitawater.com. (Read more.)
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Another Guilty Plea Entered in Connection with Kansas City Super Bowl Parade Shooting
KANSAS CITY, Mo. (KCUR) – A second Kansas City man pleaded guilty Friday to a federal firearms charge involving a weapon used at the Chiefs Super Bowl celebration parade shooting. Peggy KCUR reports that twenty-year-old Chaelyn Hendrick Groves pleaded guilty to making a false statement in the acquisition of a firearm. It’s called a “straw purchase” – and 22-year-old Ronnel Dewayne Williams pleaded guilty to the same charge on Wednesday. Groves and Williams admitted that Williams was not the true buyer of a firearm he bought last November, but was purchasing it for Groves, who was not yet old enough to buy it himself. The weapon was later found outside Union Station after the February 14th shooting that killed one woman and injured another 24. When sentenced they could both receive up to five years in federal prison.
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Firefighter Dies in the Line of Duty While Battling Kansas House Fire
WICHITA, Kan. (ABC News) - A Kansas firefighter has died in the line of duty. The Wichita Fire Department says the firefighter was injured while battling a house fire in Haysville Thursday afternoon. The currently unnamed firefighter later succumbed to the injury. ABC News reports that officials are still working to notify family members before identifying the fallen firefighter.
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14-Month-Old Boy Rescued After Falling Down Narrow Pipe in Kansas Yard
MOUNDRIDGE, Kan. (AP/KPR) - A Kansas toddler has been rescued after falling into a narrow pipe and getting stuck a dozen feet below ground. Emergency crews in Moundridge say the 14-month-old boy was playing in his yard Sunday when he stepped on a lid covering a hole. The lid came off and the boy tumbled down as his mother watched. The Associated Press reports that the boy was safely rescued about 20 minutes later by local police. Moundridge is a town of 2,000 people, about 40 miles north of Wichita.
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Key Down-Ballot Races Often Overlooked in Primary Elections
UNDATED (KNS) – Primary elections are coming up in Kansas and Missouri on August 6th. The Kansas News Service reports that key down-ballot races often go overlooked by voters. Most voters know who the president is, and many can name their representatives in Congress. But county commissioners, sheriffs, board of education members — not so much. Don Haider-Markel, a political science professor at the University of Kansas, says those officials decide property taxes, the quality of roads, and a lot more. “On a day-to-day basis those issues matter and have a greater impact on our lives than anything the president or the Senate or the House might do,” he explained. To learn about state and local officials in Kansas who shape daily life, Haider-Markel recommends talking to family or friends, in addition to doing some research online. For more information on voting in Kansas, including key voter registration deadlines, visit VoteKansas.gov.
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Drone Survey Gathers Data from High Plains Aquifer
LIBERAL, Kan. (KNS) – The aquifer that’s the main water source for western Kansans can still be a mystery even to hydrologists. The Kansas News Service reports that’s why a helicopter recently zigzagged through rural northwest Kansas, gathering data from the High Plains Aquifer for the first phase of an airborne study. The helicopter dragged a large electromagnetic tool above the ground to get more accurate readings of the thickness and sediment composition of the aquifer. Jim Butler with the Kansas Geological Survey says different sediments can change how much water can be pumped out of the ground. “You might have a nice sandy gravel zone that all the wells are pumping from, but then as the water level drops down, it may drop down into less permeable conditions,” he explained. Butler says this new data can help both scientists and farmers more accurately predict the future of the aquifer.
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Kansas Man Guilty of Brandishing Gun, Making Death Threats to Black People
WICHITA, Kan. (KPR) - A Kansas man has pleaded guilty to brandishing a gun and making death threats to Black people in Wichita. Prosecutors say 30-year-old Austin Schoemann, of Wichita, admitted that in July 2022, he flashed a firearm and used racial slurs in order to threaten two Black juveniles while they were entering a QuikTrip gasoline station. He then used his firearm to threaten a Black adult who intervened to support the juveniles. Prosecutors say Schoemann also made threats to a white woman and her family that he would shoot and kill any Black person visiting her home.
When entering his guilty plea Wednesday, Schoemann acknowledged that he interfered with the federally protected housing rights of a white woman by making threats to hurt or kill any Black people who visited her home. Schoemann further admitted that he sent videos and messages to the woman’s family members and others in which he repeatedly threatened to shoot and kill Black people.
A sentencing hearing is scheduled for October 16. He faces up to seven years in prison.
The Kansas City Field Office of the FBI and the Wichita Police Department investigated the case. (Read more.)
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State of Kansas Revenues Come in Slightly Below Estimates for July
TOPEKA, Kan. (KPR) - The state of Kansas collected slightly less tax revenue than expected in July. Total tax revenue last month came in at $660 million. That's about $6 million below estimates.
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Car Clocked Going 136 MPH in Western Kansas
SYRACUSE, Kan. (KSNW) - A driver was caught driving 71 mph OVER the speed limit in western Kansas. It happened Wednesday morning in Hamilton County, when a sheriff's deputy clocked a driver traveling 136 mph on Kansas Highway 27. KSNW TV reports that the total fine - before court costs - is $810.
Law enforcement across Kansas has seen a sharp increase in excessive speeding. As of July 22, the Highway Patrol had issued more than 1,500 citations for motorists speeding over 100 mph.
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Free Cook-out and School Supplies Give-Away Planned in Lawrence
LAWRENCE, Kan. (Lawrence Times) – Community activists in Lawrence will be handing out free school supplies, free food and snow cones for local young people at a Back-To-School Cookout on Saturday. The Lawrence Times reports that the event will be hosted by StopGap Inc., a grassroots nonprofit that aims to empower youth aging out of foster care and who are at risk of homelessness. Attendees will be offered hamburgers, hot dogs, chips and beverages, along with school supplies including backpacks, water bottles, notebooks, binders, craft supplies and more. The cookout is open to all ages, with a focus on providing resources to local youth. It’s set for noon to 5 pm Saturday, August 3 at East Lawrence Recreation Center.
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Kansas City Current Advances to Summer Cup Semifinals
KANSAS CITY, Mo. (KPR) - The Kansas City Current has advanced to the Summer Cup semifinals after a 4-1 win over Tigres UANL Thursday night. Apart from its league schedule, this is a tournament between teams from the National Women's Soccer League and the top women's teams from Mexico. The Current's semifinal match will take place at home next Tuesday.
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Granny Hoops National Tourney Underway in KCK
KANSAS CITY, Kan. (KPR) - This weekend (FRI/SAT), the National Granny Basketball Tournament will be held in Kansas City, Kansas. Teams from nine states and Canada will make it the biggest field yet in the history of the tournament. The tournament has grown steadily since it was held on the campus of the University of Kansas in 2019. There were 16 teams then, and 28 teams this year. Michele Clark of Berryton, Kansas, does the volunteer work as Granny Basketball’s executive director. "Sometimes we get contacted by ladies who are not near a team," she said. "So, we’ll work with them and see if they’re interested to start a new team in their area." Seven of the 28 teams this year are from northeast Kansas. The age range of the senior women is 50 to 92. There is an admission fee for the games at the newly-opened Homefield KCK Showcase Center, but all the money from admissions will be donated to charities.
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