Winter Weather Leads to Traffic Problems in Western Kansas; Blizzard Hits NW Kansas
SHERMAN COUNTY, Kan. (KPR/KAKE) — Winter weather out west shut down part of I-70 for a time on Christmas Eve. State troopers say a number of vehicles slid off the highway Sunday in Sherman County, forcing traffic in the westbound lanes to be diverted to U.S. Highway 24. KAKE TV reports that the interstate was quickly reopened.
However, much of western Kansas remains under a Winter Weather Advisory.
And portions of northwest Kansas remain under a Blizzard Warning until Wednesday morning.
Cities under the Blizzard Warning include Hill City, Colby, Goodland, Oberlin and St. Francis. Travel to that part of the state is not advised until Wednesday afternoon.
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KC Police Investigate Death of Man in Homeless Camp in KC’s Columbus Park Neighborhood
KANSAS CITY, Mo. (KC Star) — A man was found dead in a Kansas City homeless camp early Sunday morning after suffering gunshot wounds. Officers were dispatched shortly after midnight to a wooded area in Columbus Park near First and Holmes streets. They found a man suffering from a gunshot wound. He was pronounced dead at the scene. The Kansas City Star reports that police have no suspect and no motive. This marked Kansas City's 180th homicide of the year.
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Kansas City Police: Man Found Dead in Car, Another Man Injured in Sunday Shooting
KANSAS CITY, Mo. (KC Star) — One man is dead and another wounded after a Christmas Eve shooting in Kansas City. Just before 10 am Sunday, police officers were dispatched to Eighth and Olive streets in northeast Kansas City on a report of gunshots. Officers found one man suffering from gunshot wounds. He was taken to a hospital with non-life-threatening injuries. Across the street, police found another shooting victim inside a parked car. He was pronounced dead at the scene. Police do not have a suspect and the motive remains unknown. The Kansas City Star reports it was the 181st killing of 2023 — a year that is fast approaching the deadliest in the Kansas City history. The city’s level of violence this year has rivaled its deadliest on record, which occurred in 2020 when 182 people were killed.
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Kansas Counties Report Rising COVID Hospital Admissions
KANSAS CITY, Kan. (KNS) — Counties across northeast Kansas and the Kansas City metro area are reporting medium to high-level hospital admissions due to COVID-19 and that might affect holiday plans for some. Hospitals in both Wyandotte and Leavenworth Counties in Kansas are reporting high levels of COVID-19 admissions. The CDC recommends wearing a mask in those counties. In other counties in the region, masking is recommended if you are at high risk of illness. Dana Hawkinson, an infectious diseases expert at the University of Kansas Health System, says people can always wear a mask if they want to. “We know that masking does help reduce risk of infection,” Hawkinson said. Officials at the KU Health System say more people are coming in for testing at the system's clinics so case numbers are likely to rise.
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Kansas Emergency Rooms Reporting High Rate of Respiratory Illnesses
WICHITA, Kan. (KNS) — Emergency rooms across Kansas are seeing high rates of visits related to respiratory illness. The Kansas News Service reports that about 20% of emergency room visits in Kansas are for acute respiratory illness. That data comes from the state health department’s surveillance program. It’s the highest rate so far this year, but remains below last year’s peak of around 30%. Nearly 1% of all visits and more than 4% of pediatric visits are for RSV. Nearly 3% of visits are for COVID, and more than 1% are for the flu. Public health officials recommend frequent hand-washing, avoiding contact with sick people and other virus prevention precautions.
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K-State Researchers Study 15-Year Decline in Kansas Wild Turkey Population
TOPEKA, Kan. (Kansas Reflector) — Biologists at Kansas State University are trying to find out what's behind a 15-year decline in the state's wild turkey population. K-State has launched a $1.8 million study to find out why wild turkey numbers have been falling for so long. Researchers will examine bird habitat, nesting conditions, reproduction habits and other aspects to learn more.
Kansas wildlife officials called off the fall turkey hunting season due to the shrinking bird population. The Kansas Reflector reports that officials have enacted new limits on out-of-state hunting permits and have reduced the bag limit on turkeys during the spring hunting season.
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USDA Releases Economic Outlook for Agriculture in 2024
UNDATED (HPM) — As farmers look ahead to the new year, many will be consulting the U.S. Department of Agriculture’s annual forecast for the U.S. farm economy. The USDA says the economy will cool off in the next year. Its annual projections include slowing inflation and lower interest rates in 2024. But the reports also say the labor market will be competitive – with increasing wages and relatively low unemployment — over the next decade. Northwest Illinois corn and soybean farmer Ryan Frieders says that’s challenging. “Every year as farmers get older, there's a need for more and more young labor to come into the operations," he said. "So, it'll be harder and harder for farmers to find that, that help that they need.” Still, Frieders says it looks like a good time to be a farmer, especially because the USDA predicts rising yields.
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Higher Levels of Education Lifting Wages for Health Care Workers
WICHITA, Kan. (KNS) — New data suggests higher education levels are driving up health care wages. The new research comes from the Federal Reserve Bank of Kansas City. The number of workers getting a bachelor’s degree is up, and the number of workers with only some college education is down, compared with 2019. But it comes at the same time that demand for workers with an associate’s degree or non-degree certificates is up - particularly in health care fields. KC Fed assistant economist Emily Pollard says that means employers are hiring more people with bachelor’s degrees, and paying them more and that is likely to continue. “We don't think there's going to be a surge in the number of 'some-college' workers. And we also don't see a decline in demand for these workers," she said. Pollard says data suggests demand for health care workers will continue to grow faster than nearly any other field in the near future.
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Kansas Legislature Examining Statewide Child Care Shortage
UNDATED (Wichita Beacon) — Kansas lawmakers are looking at possible solutions to the state’s child care shortage. The Wichita Beacon reports that John Wilson with Kansas Action for Children says the state needs to spend more on child care. A patchwork of grants support programs for families and providers, but Wilson says that makes it hard to make more child care available. “The state of Kansas is essentially spending no state general fund dollars on our early care and education system in Kansas,” Wilson explained. But that could change. Wilson says lawmakers now seem more open to spending taxpayer dollars than they have in recent years.
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New Clinic to Provide More VA access for Rural Vets
UNDATED (HPM) — A new clinic in Hays is helping veterans in rural Kansas get health care. The U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs outpatient clinic offers health care, education opportunities and financial literacy. The clinic is north of Interstate 70, allowing northwest Kansas vets easier access to services. The new larger facility includes three additional exam rooms and a room dedicated to group therapy and mental health needs. Kansas Senator Jerry Moran says the state's veterans should have better access to care and the new facility will help achieve that.
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Topeka Police Make Arrest in City’s 34th Murder of 2023
TOPEKA, Kan. (WIBW) — Police have arrested a suspect in connection with a shooting death that took place Friday night in central Topeka. Police say 46-year-old Steven Hunter Jr., of Topeka, has been booked into the Shawnee County Jail on charges of first degree murder, criminal possession of a weapon by a felon, interference with law enforcement and attempting to flee. WIBW TV reports that Hunter is suspected in the shooting death of a 45-year-old Jennifer Eisele, of Topeka, near SW 6th and Fillmore Street. This fatal shooting marks Topeka's 34th homicide of 2023.
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Police Arrest Man Suspected in Lawrence Bar Fire
LAWRENCE, Kan. (KPR) — A Lawrence man has been taken into custody in connection with a suspected arson fire at a popular Lawrence bar. Forefighters were called to The Wagon Wheel near the KU campus Friday morning. Police say 39-year-old Robert Shane Johnson was taken into custody and charged with arson. The Wheel was unoccupied at the time of the fire and no injuries were reported.
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Kansas School Districts Making Fight Against Absenteeism a Priority
UNDATED (KNS) — Some large Kansas school districts are lowering the rate of chronic absenteeism and finding ways to get students back to class. Education Commissioner Randy Watson says schools in Salina and Haysville made daily attendance a priority, after absentee rates peaked two years ago. “We gave the data to each building principal and assistant principal and said, ‘Can we work on this? Can we call parents? Can we tell them how important it is to come to school? Can we help if they need transportation? Can we formulate a plan'?’”, he explained.
The Kansas News Service reports that in Haysville, south of Wichita, more than half of students were chronically absent during the 2021-22 school year. Now the rate is below 20% — about the state average. School officials say they hired more counselors and social workers. They also reach out to families early in the school year if students miss too many days.
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Kansas Attorney General Urges Johnson County to Postpone Legally Required Destruction of Old Ballots
TOPEKA, Kan. (AP) — The Republican attorney general in Kansas has urged the state's most populous county to postpone a legally required destruction of old ballots because the sheriff there says his investigation of possible election crimes remains open even though it's led to no criminal charges in two years.
Attorney General Kris Kobach, an early supporter of former President Donald Trump who has for years described election fraud as a serious issue, sent a letter Wednesday to the election commissioner in Johnson County in the Kansas City area. Kobach said officials should preserve ballots from 2019, 2020 and 2021 even though state law required all of them to be destroyed by the fall of 2022. “Allowing the Sheriff’s Office to complete its investigation is in the interest of justice and provides the public with confidence in the integrity of their electoral system and election outcomes,” Kobach wrote in his letter, which became public Thursday.
The county has yet to destroy the old ballots because Sheriff Calvin Hayden has said he received scores of tips about potential irregularities starting in the fall of 2021 and is still investigating. Hayden, a Republican, has questioned the integrity of the county's 2020 elections and in the summer of 2022 participated in a conference for a group that promotes a dubious theory that sheriffs have virtually unchecked power in their counties.
With no evidence of significant problems in the county's elections, the Johnson County Commission took a step earlier this month toward the destruction of old ballots by allowing its chair to appoint a Democratic and a Republican observer. Hayden then asked for officials to continue preserving them, County Commissioner Charlotte O'Hara said during a meeting. Hayden's office says its investigation is ongoing but declined further comment.
The attorney general's letter did not say whether he would file a lawsuit or pursue some other step should election officials move ahead with destroying the ballots.
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National Democratic Party Plans to Spend Big to Help Defeat Kansas Republicans
TOPEKA, Kan. (KNS) — The national Democratic Party is gearing up to spend a large amount of money in Kansas ahead of the 2024 election. The Democratic Legislative Campaign Committee says it wants to help break the Republican super-majority in the Kansas Statehouse. The G.O.P. currently holds a super-majority in both the Kansas House and Senate which allows Republicans to override vetoes from Democratic Governor Laura Kelly. The DLCC plans to spend $60 million on local and state races nationwide, but has not revealed a specific amount set aside for Kansas. Every seat in the Kansas Legislature will be up for election in 2024. Democrats need to flip at least two seats in the House to break the super-majority.
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KU Football Team Ready for Tuesday's Bowl Game Against UNLV
PHOENIX, Ariz. (KPR) — The Kansas Jayhawks football team spent Christmas Day in Arizona in preparation for Tuesday night's Guaranteed Rate bowl game against UNLV in Phoenix. It’s only the second time in school history that the Jayhawks are going to bowl games in back-to-back seasons. But last year’s Liberty Bowl ended in a triple-overtime defeat and KU coach Lance Leipold says the returning players remember that. "We left that field and that locker room with an emptiness that we didn’t quite get it done," he said. "I know for the guys who were part of that game last year it’s going to be important to play well and finish the job this year." The only other back-to-back bowl games in Jayhawk history followed the 2007 and 2008 seasons and KU won both of those bowl games. Kickoff for Tuesday night's bowl game is 8 o'clock.
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UPDATE: Chiefs Fall to Raiders at Arrowhead
KANSAS CITY, Mo. (KPR) — The Las Vegas Raiders defeated the Kansas City Chiefs 20-to-14 on this Christmas Day. The Chiefs fall to 9-and-6 on the season.
(Earlier reporting...)
Chiefs Missing Toney, McKinnon While Raiders Could Have Jacobs for Christmas Matchup
KANSAS CITY, Mo. (AP) — The Kansas City Chiefs will be missing three major contributors on offense because of injuries when they play the Las Vegas Raiders on Monday. The Chiefs ruled out embattled wide receiver Kadarius Toney with a hip injury, third-down running back Jerick McKinnon because of a groin injury and left tackle Donovan Smith with a neck injury. Running back Isiah Pacheco returns from a shoulder injury for Kansas City. The Raiders hope to have their own running back, Josh Jacobs, back from a quad injury in a must-win game for Las Vegas' slim playoff hopes.
The Chiefs will be missing three major contributors on offense because of injuries, and the Las Vegas Raiders expect to have Josh Jacobs back on the field, when the longtime AFC West rivals meet at Arrowhead Stadium on Monday.
The Chiefs on Saturday ruled out embattled wide receiver Kadarius Toney with a hip injury, along with third-down back Jerick McKinnon because of a groin injury and left tackle Donovan Smith, who will miss his third consecutive game with a neck injury. The Chiefs put Skyy Moore on injured reserve earlier this week with a knee injury, so the loss of Toney further depletes a receiver corps that has struggled all season. Toney in particular has had a rough year — among his many drops have been two that were picked off, and his offsides penalty negated a go-ahead touchdown in the closing minutes of a loss to the Bills.
Kansas City coach Andy Reid said this week that he expects Richie James, who has played primarily on special teams, to be more involved in the offense. Justin Watson should also see an uptick in snaps without Moore or Toney available.
"(James) is good in the slot," offensive coordinator Matt Nagy said this week. "When you're in the slot, you want to be able to have a feel for defenses and zones, you've got to beat man inside and outside leverage. He's done a good job. He went through some injuries and got back. I think he's handled his situation as a true professional."
One wide receiver the Chiefs hope to get back soon is Mecole Hardman, who has been on injured reserve with a thumb issue. He began practicing this week, opening a 21-day window in which Kansas City can activate him or end his season, but he was ruled out for the game against the Raiders on Christmas Day.
The Chiefs did get some positive injury news in that Isiah Pacheco practiced fully this week and will return from a shoulder injury that caused him to miss the past two games. He ran for 118 yards and a score against Green Bay his last time out. "Yeah, I think it'll be a full workload," Reid said Saturday, "but with that, we've got backup relief if he needs to come out. Clyde (Edwards-Helaire), I mean, we've got all kinds of confidence in Clyde stepping in."
On the opposite sideline, Jacobs is listed as questionable because of a quad injury that caused the star running back to miss the Raiders' previous game against the Chargers. But the Raiders face a must-win game against Kansas City to keep their slim playoff hopes alive, and interim coach Antonio Pierce indicated he expects "all the guys to play."
The only player that Las Vegas has ruled out is tight end Michael Mayer, who did not practice all week because of a toe injury. "Yeah, I expect all the guys to play unless otherwise," Pierce said Saturday. "I mean, it's that kind of game, right? Suit up. What you waiting for? Suit up. Let's go play some football." Asked whether Jacobs is healthy and ready to go, Pierce replied: "Nobody's healthy. Ready to go? We'll be ready to go."
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