Flight Originating in Wichita Collides with U.S. Military Helicopter Near Reagan National Airport
WASHINGTON, D.C. (KMUW/NPR/CNN/AP) – An American Airlines flight from Wichita crashed into the Potomac River Wednesday night after a possible mid-air collision. Multiple sources indicate that the passenger plane, American Eagle Flight 5342, collided with a helicopter while on approach to a runway at Reagan National Airport. KMUW reports that the flight left Eisenhower National Airport in Wichita at about 5:30 p.m. Central time.
Republican U.S. Senator Roger Marshall wrote on the social media platform X that his staff was "in contact with authorities working to get answers.” U.S. Senator Jerry Moran also issued a statement on X confirming that the plane had been coming to Washington from Kansas. The Federal Aviation Administration identified the plane as a Bombardier CRJ-700 regional aircraft, and said the helicopter was an Army Sikorsky H-60 Black Hawk, a military aircraft. American Airlines issued a statement saying 60 passengers were aboard the passenger plane, along with four crew members. The incident took place over the Potomac River.
CNN reports that American Airlines has set up a toll-free hotline for family members and loved ones of those aboard Flight 5342: it is 800-679-8215. Additional numbers are available for those calling outside the United States, and are listed at news.aa.com.
This is a developing story; you can visit KMUW or NPR's coverage for the latest information.
==========
Residents Celebrate Kansas Day as State Turns 164 Years Old
LAWRENCE, Kan. (KPR) - It's Kansas Day, the state's 164th birthday. It was on this date in 1861 that Kansas joined the Union as the 34th state and became the 34th star on the American flag. Less than three months later, the American Civil War began. Many historians say the war officially broke out when Confederate forces fired on Fort Sumter in Charleston, South Carolina, on April 12, 1861. But people in Kansas had already been waging a civil war over the issue of slavery in the years preceding that attack.
Learn more about the Sunflower State in the feature from the Kansas Public Radio news archives called "Kansas from A to Z."
(-Related-)
New Statehouse Mural Honors Kansas Suffragists
TOPEKA, Kan. (KPR) - A new mural goes on display Wednesday at the Kansas Statehouse, depicting the Kansas women who fought for the right to vote. Manhattan artist Phyllis Garibay Coon Pease is the creator of "Rebel Women," a mural of 13 Kansas suffragists. Kansas Day was selected as the day her mural would be unveiled to the public. Her work will join many other murals at the Statehouse depicting historical Kansas events and people. (Learn more.)
==========
Kansas Health Officials on Alert for More Tuberculosis Cases in KCK Area
KANSAS CITY, Kan. (KPR/KNS/NBC) - Kansas health officials continue to monitor an outbreak of tuberculosis in Kansas City, Kansas. They also confirmed that TB killed two people in Kansas last year.
State health officials have called this “the largest documented TB outbreak in U.S. history.” But the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention has pushed back on that description, noting a worse outbreak at homeless shelters in Georgia several years ago. Either way, the TB outbreak in Kansas is alarming.
As of January 24th, there were 67 people being treated for active cases of tuberculosis in Wyandotte and Johnson counties. Ashley Goss with the state health department recently told lawmakers case numbers are declining, but they’re working with two large employers to monitor for more. “Currently Kansas has the largest outbreak that they’ve ever had in history.” Officials say the risk to the public remains low. Tuberculosis is a bacterial infection that requires close and repeated contact to spread.
(–Additional reporting–)
CDC, State and Local Officials Respond to Kansas TB Outbreak
UNDATED (KNS) – The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention says there have been at least two other tuberculosis outbreaks in the country in the past decade that were bigger than the one that’s currently active in Kansas. But state and local health officials say the Kansas outbreak is still significant. Dr. Dana Hawkinson, medical director of infection and prevention at the University of Kansas Health System, told the Kansas News Service that health officials are making good headway on identifying and treating cases. “In general, I really want to calm the public. We are not as concerned about this for the general public,” he said. A CDC spokesperson said four federal workers are on the ground in Kansas assisting local health officials with the outbreak response.
===============
Anti-Abortion Leaders Rally at March for Life at Kansas Statehouse
TOPEKA, Kan. (KNS) – Hundreds of anti-abortion protesters rallied at the Kansas Statehouse in Topeka Wednesday for the annual March for Life. The Kansas News Service reports that Republican legislators promised to continue pushing for anti-abortion policies. Lawmakers denounced a sharp rise in abortions in Kansas since 2022, when a Supreme Court decision allowed many nearby states to ban abortion. Protesters included Kansas Senate President Ty Masterson of Andover, who said “...we’re becoming the center of abortion in the Midwest. We did more abortions of Texas citizens than we did total abortions just a few years ago.” Kansas clinics performed nearly 20,000 abortions in 2023, more than ever before in the state’s recorded history. Lobbyists at the rally called for expanding funding for anti-abortion pregnancy centers and making it easier for women to sue abortion pill makers for injuries. Jeanne Gawdun with Kansans for Life said her group wants to "...improve the reporting of abortion complications and empower women to seek justice for abortion injuries, including giving them opportunities to sue the abortion industry and Big Pharma.” Those proposed policies are part of a nationwide effort by anti-abortion groups to target access to abortion pills, which have made it harder for states to enforce bans.
===============
National Assessment Test Scores Show Declines for Kansas Students in Reading and Math
UNDATED (KNS) – New test scores released Wednesday show continued declines for Kansas students in both reading and math. The Kansas News Service reports that the National Assessment of Educational Progress tested a sample of fourth- and eighth-grade students last spring. Average scores were down in most areas nationwide, continuing a slide that started well before the COVID pandemic. Martin West with the National Assessment Governing Board says the results are sobering because most scores are at or below where they were 30 years ago. “We might be in a moment in American education where we need to think, ‘Let’s look backward at what we might have been doing at that time,’ and find out if there are any lessons from the past rather than the next new thing,” he said. Only 29% of Kansas fourth-graders scored at or above proficient in reading last year, down from 34% in 1998.
==========
Attorney General Kris Kobach Joins Multi-State Effort to Change Census Count Policy
KANSAS CITY, Mo. (The Beacon) – Kansas Attorney General Kris Kobach wants to stop counting noncitizens in the U.S. Census. Opponents say that’s a bad idea that will hurt communities. The Beacon reports that Kansas is suing the federal government because the U.S. Census counts noncitizens. That could cost the state an electoral college vote and congressional representation in 2030. But Xan Wedel with the University of Kansas notes the lawsuit could ultimately strip away resources from communities. Census population data is used to allocate federal funds for things like school lunches, water, sewage and highway planning programs. Cities get less money if the population declines. “Those are probably under the radar, and you don't really realize that your community might be receiving funding from these federal programs that are still based on census data,” Wedel clarified. Kansas, Ohio, West Virginia and Louisiana have all signed onto the lawsuit.
==========
KBI Confirms Cause of Death for Former Police Detective Roger Golubski
KANSAS CITY, Kan. (KCUR) – The Kansas Bureau of Investigation confirmed Tuesday that former Kansas City, Kansas, Police Detective Roger Golubski died by suicide the day his federal trial was set to begin. KCUR reports that the KBI’s final report says Golubski died by a single gunshot wound to the temple at his Edwardsville home. He used a stolen handgun, and no foul play is suspected. The disgraced detective died on December 2nd, at the hour his federal trial was to begin on charges of violating several women’s civil rights through rape, kidnapping and sexual assault. Agents couldn’t determine just where Golubski got the weapon, but traced it back to a Kansas City, Missouri, woman who reported the gun was stolen in 2022.
==========
Potential Cut to School Meal Funding Would Affect Hundreds of Thousands of Kids in Midwest and Great Plains
UNDATED (HPM) – A possible cut in funding for school meals would leave more than 900,000 children without free breakfast and lunch in the Midwest and Great Plains. Harvest Public Media reports that a school meal program is on a list of potential cuts for an upcoming budget bill in Washington, D.C. The program is called the Community Eligibility Provision. It allows school districts with a high concentration of students in poverty to give all of their kids free meals. Hancock Place School District in St. Louis uses the program but wouldn’t be eligible under the proposed cut. Superintendent Kevin Carl is calling on lawmakers to find savings elsewhere. “When students are fed and they're healthy and they're well, then they're going to be best positioned to be successful with their academics and really do well at school and thrive,” Carl said. The proposal would cut $3 billion dollars from the program across the country.
==========
Two Children Found Dead in Eastern Kansas Lake, Trapped Under the Ice
LINN COUNTY, Kan. (KMBC) — Family and friends are mourning the loss of two children, found dead, trapped under the ice of a frozen lake. The Linn County Sheriff's Office responded to the Lake Chaparral community in rural Linn County around 8 pm Monday after reports that two children were missing. Local firefighters joined in the search. KMBC TV reports that ultimately, it was an aerial drone that located the children who had become trapped under the ice. They were already deceased. The Overland Park Fire Department's Dive Team helped recover their bodies.
==========
Kansas Senate Okays Bill to Eliminate a Portion of the Property Tax
TOPEKA, Kan. (KNS) – The Kansas Senate on Tuesday approved a Republican-led bill aimed at cutting taxes for property owners. The Kansas News Service reports that most property taxes in Kansas go to schools, but a small portion helps the state construct and maintain certain buildings. The bill passed by the Senate would eliminate that portion. Costs would instead be covered by other state funds. Democratic Senator Patrick Schmidt supported the bill, but says it’s not enough on its own to help homeowners. “In 2024 in Kansas, our voters sent us here for real property tax relief,” he explained. Democratic Governor Laura Kelly says she doesn’t want to pass tax cuts this session. But lawmakers might not need her signature to pass this bill, as it earned bipartisan support in the Senate.
==========
Kansas Legislature Revisits Bill Banning Gender-Affirming Health Care for Children
WICHITA, Kan. (KNS) – Kansas lawmakers are again considering legislation that would ban gender-affirming care for transgender children under the age of 18. The Kansas News Service reports that Republicans narrowly failed to make a similar bill into law last year. If the bill becomes law, Kansas doctors could no longer prescribe puberty blockers, hormone therapy and other treatments to teens with gender dysphoria. Proponents of the bill say those treatments are experimental and dangerous. Opponents say they’re a lifeline for transgender teens, and reduce the risk of suicide.
D.C. Hiegert is with the American Civil Liberties Union of Kansas. “This bill likely violates constitutional rights of Kansas children, parents, therapists, doctors and teachers, and poses an unprecedented threat to Kansas families by banning the only evidence based health care options available for youth experiencing gender dysphoria,” Hiegert says. The U.S. Supreme Court is considering the constitutionality of a similar law in Tennessee.
Proponents of the ban, like Jay Richards of the Heritage Foundation, say puberty blockers, hormone therapy and sex change surgeries are dangerous, especially for children. “There's no reliable scientific evidence that these treatments improve the long term health of these minors, let alone that the benefits outweigh the many risks. The harms of these interventions are obvious," he said.
==========
Kansas Legislature Considers Bill Allowing Subsidized Rental Housing Inspections
WICHITA, Kan. (KMUW) – A new bill in the Kansas statehouse would permit cities to periodically inspect government-subsidized rental housing, which is currently not allowed. KMUW reports that Kansas passed a law in 2016 precluding cities and counties from requiring regular interior housing inspections. But the city of Topeka, which requested the bill, is seeking to change that for units that receive government funding like Section 8 rental assistance. Spencer Duncan is a Topeka city council member. He says the city's push for change came after a Topeka apartment complex stopped receiving federal rental assistance due to health and safety issues. "This is a pro-resident bill, and it's really targeted at those bad landlords who are taking government money and then not keeping up their promise and their end of the bargain," Duncan said. The bill does not require municipalities to do more inspections of subsidized units. But it allows cities in Kansas to increase enforcement if they wish.
==========
Kansas Man Sentenced for Ramming Vehicle into an ICE Agent
KANSAS CITY, Kan. (KPR) – A Kansas man has been sentenced to six years in prison for deliberately ramming his vehicle into an ICE agent. According to court documents, 19-year-old Diego Almaguer, of Kansas City, Kansas, pleaded guilty to assaulting the deportation officer in February of last year. Prosecutors say a Fugitive Task Force was trying to make an arrest when the assault took place. While trying to escape, the defendant rammed his vehicle into the ICE agent, causing him to bounce over the windshield before hitting the ground. He then led officers on a high-speed chase into Missouri. He and another person were ultimately arrested in Kansas City, Missouri.
==========
Should Kansas Build a Giant Aqueduct to Western Kansas, or Is This Just a Pipe Dream?
LIBERAL, Kan. (KNS) - Water is a big issue in western Kansas. Some places in the southwest part of the state may only have 25 years of water left due to declines in the Ogallala aquifer. Instead of launching major water conservation efforts, some farmers are focused on building a massive aqueduct that would move water from the Missouri River to the parched plains of western Kansas. Some researchers say the giant aqueduct idea is a giant distraction. (Read more)
==========
Kansas Welcomes 30 Newly Minted U.S. Citizens at Statehouse Ceremony
TOPEKA, Kan. (TCJ) - The United States now has 30 new citizens. Governor Laura Kelly officially welcomed them during a naturalization ceremony Monday in Topeka. A judge administered the oath of citizenship to the newly-minted Americans at the Kansas Statehouse. The Topeka Capital-Journal reports that the people taking the oath included immigrants from four continents, with only South America not being represented.
==========
This summary of area news is curated by KPR news staffers. Our headlines are generally published by 10 am weekdays and are updated through 7 pm. This ad-free news summary is made possible by KPR members. Become one today. And follow KPR News on X (formerly Twitter).