HUTCHINSON — The message was clear on Friday as Amtrak CEO Joseph Boardman spoke about the future of the passenger route through Kansas.
Amtrak CEO Joseph Boardman
Boardman was joined by officials from other cities, Kansas Transportation Secretary Mike King and BNSF President Matt Rose on a special train that made a short 10-minute stop in Hutchinson. The train was on its way to Dodge City for a meeting about the Chief’s current route — and the need for upgrades to the railroad’s infrastructure.
The two rail companies have said they will pull the plug on the Chief and move it to the BNSF Transcon route if Kansas, Colorado and New Mexico don’t come up with funding for track repair and maintenance over a 10-year period.
“We need to keep the speed up,” Boardman said. “Freight railroads can reduce their speed to 40 mph. That doesn’t work for us. We need to be at a much higher speed. This needs to be an 80 mph railroad.”
While no Hutchinson city officials took the train to Dodge City for Friday’s meeting, Mayor Cindy Proett, Councilwoman Jade Piron de Carvalho and Chamber President Jason Ball all were there to greet Boardman and Rose. Several officials from Dodge City caught a ride to Hutchinson and then took the train back.
BNSF and Amtrak said they will decide by this fall if they will move the Chief to the southern route or not. If that happens, service would be cut off from Newton all the way to Belin, N.M., eliminating service to Hutchinson, Dodge City and Garden City.
SALINA, Kan. (AP) — A state prison inmate who was in prison for killing a 15-year-old Salina girl in 1984 has died.
Kansas Department of Corrections spokesman Jeremy Barclay says 72-year-old Lonnie McKibben died of natural causes on Saturday at the Lansing Correctional Facility. He was serving 30 years to life in prison for shooting Sheleen McLain in the back and leaving her to die in bitter cold in November 1984.
The Salina Journal reports that McKibben was scheduled for his fifth parole hearing in October.
A former classmate of McLain’s, Kerry Bettes of Abilene, said she was in the process of collecting signatures on petitions to advocate keeping McKibben in prison. She had collected signatures four previous times that McKibben came up for parole.
Weather Underground meteorology director Jeff Masters says the weather pattern is similar to those dreaded words, but the key difference is that the chilly air mass isn’t coming directly from the arctic.
Masters says that Typhoon Neoguri in Japan altered the path of the jet stream and allowed polar air to spill out of Canada. That means next week’s temperatures will be as much as 15 degrees cooler than normal in the Midwest and could reach 90 in the normally temperate Pacific Northwest.
The board of directors of Kansas Next Step Inc. on Friday announced Allison Ochoa is the organization’s new executive director. Ochoa assumed her duties on July 7.
Prior to her role at Kansas Next Step, Ochoa spent seven years as the public relations coordinator for the Hays Area Chamber of Commerce. She has also worked as an adjunct instructor for the Fort Hays State University Department of Leadership Studies, including work with the department’s programs at FHSU’s partner schools in China.
“The KNS Board is excited to bring Allison’s experience and skills to our organization,” said Randy Walker, president of the Kansas Next Step board of directors. “She will aid us in continuing to serve students throughout our area and helping them achieve their best through unique educational opportunities.”
Ochoa is the second executive director in the 10-year history of Kansas Next Step, taking over for founder and former Executive Director Deb Denning.
“We want to extend our sincerest thanks to Deb for her years of leadership and for her vision for KNS,” Walker said. “She has given us an excellent foundation on which to build a bright future for this organization.”
To date, Kansas Next Step has supported over 150 students through financial awards totaling more than $150,000. Funds for Kansas Next Step are developed through individual donations, sponsorships, and an annual oil and gas industry seminar.
WICHITA, Kan. (AP) — Kansas farmers wrapping up this year’s wheat harvest probably don’t need another government report to tell them this isn’t a good year. But the latest forecast released by the Agriculture Department shows the toll from a widespread drought.
The National Agricultural Statistics Service on Friday reduced its estimate of the Kansas wheat crop to 235.2 million bushels.
That is down 26 percent from last year and would be the smallest crop since 1989. Average yields were 28 bushels an acre.
Growers are harvesting 8.4 million acres after abandoning about 900,000 planted acres.
Rains that plagued the state’s harvest came too late to help most of its drought-stricken wheat.
CHERRYVALE — A Kansas man was injured in an accident just before 8 a.m. Friday in Montgomery County.
The Kansas Highway Patrol reported a 1995 Ford pickup driven by Robert Thomas Shelton, 35, Burlingame, was eastbound on County Road 6600, approximately 8 miles north of Cherryvale and traveled off the right side of the roadway.
The driver attempted to correct and rolled the vehicle into the ditch.
Shelton was transported to Neodesha hospital. The KHP reported he was not wearing a seat belt.
MEXICALI, Mexico (AP) — A U.S. effort to discourage immigrants’ repeated attempts to enter the country illegally by dropping them back in Mexico hundreds of miles away from where they were caught has been sharply scaled back after producing relatively modest gains.
U.S. authorities insist the Alien Transfer Exit Program has contributed to overall achievements in border security and say the cutbacks reflected a need to shift resources to deal with Central Americans pouring into Texas.
The government has flown or bused hundreds of thousands of Mexican men to faraway border cities since 2008, believing they would give up after being separated from their smugglers.
But government statistics and interviews with migrants in Mexican shelters suggest the dislocation is a relatively ineffective deterrent, especially for immigrants with spouses, children and roots in the U.S.
MANHATTAN – Kansas farmers and ranchers who understand how elections help determine the success of agriculture and rural communities have offered endorsements of like-minded candidates for national and state office.
Kansas Farm Bureau president Steve Baccus
The Voters Organized To Elect Farm Bureau Friends (VOTE FBF), the Political Action Committee of Kansas Farm Bureau, have offered endorsements of candidates for the Aug. 5 primary election. The KFB PAC will follow with a round of endorsements in the general election later this year.
“If elected, these candidates have a job to do – represent the best interests of their constituents,” said Steve Baccus, an Ottawa County grain producer who serves as Kansas Farm Bureau president. “We also have a job to do – make sure they understand the vital importance agriculture plays in the daily lives of their constituents, regardless of the geographic location of their district.”
“Like everything in Farm Bureau, the political endorsement process begins at the grassroots level,” Baccus continued. “Volunteer farmers and ranchers from our county Farm Bureau organizations met, reached consensus and forwarded their views to the VOTE FBF board.”
Volunteer county Farm Bureau organization recommendations are based on a dialogue with candidates in a variety of forms, such as personal appearances, candidate forums and candidate questionnaires.
KFB PAC ENDORSED CANDIDATES – 2014 PRIMARY
Kansas Governor: Sam Brownback
Kansas Attorney General: Derek Schmidt
U.S. Senate: Pat Roberts
United State House of Representatives, District 2: Lynn Jenkins
United State House of Representatives, District 3: Kevin Yoder
United State House of Representatives, District 4: Mike Pompeo
Kansas Senate District 37: Molly Baumgardner
Kansas House seats:
District 1: Michael Houser
District 2: Adam Lusker
District 3: Charles Smith
District 4: Marty Read
District 5: Kevin Jones
District 6: Jene Vickrey
District 7: Richard Proehl
District 9: Kent Thompson
District 10: Nicolas VanWyhe
District 11: Jim Kelly
District 12: Virgil Peck
District 13: Larry Hibbard
District 14: Keith Esau
District 15: Erin Davis
District 16: Amanda Grosserode
District 17: Brett Hildabrand
District 18: John Rubin
District 19: Stephanie Clayton
District 20: Rob Bruchman
District 21: Barbara Bollier
District 22: Nancy Lusk
District 23: Linda Gallagher
District 25: Melissa Rooker
District 26: Larry L. Campbell
District 27: Ray Merrick
District 28: Jerry Lunn
District 29: James Todd
District 31: Louis E. Ruiz
District 32: Pam Curtis
District 36: Kathy Wolfe Moore
District 38: Willie Dove
District 39: Charles Macheers
District 40: John Bradford
District 42: Connie O’Brien
District 43: Bill Sutton
District 45: Tom Sloan
District 47: Ramon C. Gonzalez Jr.
District 48: Marvin Kleeb
District 49: Scott Schwab
District 51: Ron Highland
District 53: Annie Tietze
District 54: Ken Corbet
District 55: James R. Lord
District 59: Blaine Finch
District 60: Don Hill
District 62: Randy Garber
District 63: Jerry Henry
District 66: Sydney Carlin
District 67: Tom Phillips
District 68: Tom Moxley
District 69: JR Claeys
District 70: John E. Barker
District 71: Diana Dierks
District 72: Marc Rhoades
District 74: Don Schroeder
District 75: Will Carpenter
District 76: Peggy L. Mast
District 78: Ron Ryckman, Jr.
District 79: Ed Trimmer
District 80: Kasha Kelley
District 82: Pete DeGraaf
District 83: Carolyn Bridges
District 84: Gail Finney
District 85: Steven Brunk
District 86: Jim Ward
District 87: Mark Kahrs
District 89: Roderick Houston
District 90: Steve Huebert
District 91: Gene Suellentrop
District 94: Mario Goico
District 95: Tom Sawyer
District 97: Leslie G. Osterman
District 98: Steven Anthimides
District 99: Dennis Hedke
District 100: Dan Hawkins
District 101: Joe Seiwert
District 102: Jan Pauls
District 103: Ponka-We Victors
District 104: Steven Becker
District 105: Mark Hutton
District 106: Sharon Schwartz
District 107: Susan Concannon
District 108: Steven Johnson District 109: Troy L. Waymaster District 110: Travis Couture-Lovelady
District 111: Sue Boldra
District 112: John Edmonds
District 114: Jack Thimesch
District 115: Ron Ryckman, Sr.
District 116: Kyle Hoffman District 117: John Ewy District 118: Don Hineman
District 119: Bud Estes District 120: Rick Billinger
District 121: S. Mike Kiegerl
District 122: Russ Jennings
District 123: John Doll
District 124: J. Stephen Alford
District 125: Shannon G. Francis
GREAT BEND — Darrin D. Hirsh, the Kansas Highway Patrol Trooper based in Great Bend who was arrested two weeks ago, is back in jail.
The 37-year-old Hirsh was arrested Thursday, for violating a protection from abuse order connected to the previous arrest.
Two weeks ago, Hirsh was arrested on numerous felony charges, including aggravated assault with a deadly weapon and criminal threat stemming from a domestic dispute with his wife in 2013.
He was charged at the time with aggravated assault with a deadly weapon, two counts of criminal threat, domestic battery, two counts of witness intimidation and two counts of violation of a restraining order.
He was released on a $50,000 bond but, according to the Barton County Sheriff’s Office, is back in custody.
NEW YORK (AP) — Citing a recurring problem with safety, U.S. officials have suspended the shipment of potentially dangerous germs from government laboratories in Atlanta to other labs.
The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention also shut down two of its laboratories where the recent safety lapses took place.
One of the closed labs was involved an incident last month that could have accidentally exposed workers in three labs to anthrax. No one was reported ill.
In an incident earlier this year, the CDC said another of its labs accidentally contaminated a sample of conventional flu virus with a deadly bird flu germ. That sample was then sent to another government lab.
CDC Director Dr. Tom Frieden announced the actions Friday.
JUNCTION CITY — The algae has slowly progressed as the northern half of the lake was placedmilford lake two under a warning three weeks ago. Last week KDHE kept the northern half of the lake under warning, and placed the southern half under an advisory. Now the warning is lake wide.
Milford Lake
R.J. Harms, Corps of Engineers Project Manager at Milford Lake, explained toxin levels came back higher in both the northern and southern parts of the lake this week.
“We had folks out yesterday on the lake taking some water samples and they came across numerous areas on the lake where the green algae and the cell counts were really high. You could see green scum on the surface of the lake, and that wasn’t restricted to the north half of the lake, that was in areas of the southern half of the lake to,” Harms said.
Under a warning any contact with the water (swimming, skiing, tubing, jet skiing) is prohibited. Boating and fishing is still allowed despite the warning.
Harms did mention that so far this summer he has not heard of anyone becoming ill from contact with the toxic algae,”from any pet impacts or children and humans. Fortunately for us that’s a good thing but you know the potential is there.”
KDHE will be back out to test again Monday with results expected later in the week.
NORTH PLATTE, Neb. (AP) — Calls have gone out to glass and siding companies and insurance agents after a barrage of hail left a trail of broken windows, damaged houses and ravaged farm fields in parts of western and central Nebraska.
Hailstones as big as baseballs were reported in North Platte on Wednesday evening. The hail turned the ground around Lake Maloney into a sea of white.
Amy Sellers lives two miles northwest of Wellfleet, and she says her vehicles were damaged, a house window was broken and her siding took a beating.
But she told The North Platte Telegraph that she was “thankful it wasn’t any worse than it was.”
Heavy crop damage was reported in the Gibbon, Heartwell, North Loup and Ravenna areas.
