MANHATTAN, KAN. – U.S. Senator Jerry Moran (R-Kan.), Ranking Member of the Senate Appropriations Health Subcommittee, issued the following statement regarding the isolated patient at The University of Kansas Hospital:
“While it is good news that the preliminary test results are negative, a possible patient with Ebola in Kansas is a serious development and reiterates the need for us to heighten coordination and vigilance. I have spoken with hospital administrators who will continue to treat the isolated patient with an abundance of caution. I have also asked the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) to expedite the confirmatory test to definitively rule out any possibility of Ebola. I will continue to be in touch with The University of Kansas Hospital and the CDC to monitor the situation.”
On Oct. 6, 2014, Sen. Moran called on the CDC to implement Ebola-specific screenings at U.S. airports. On Oct. 1, 2014, Sen. Moran issued a statement on the United States’ response to the nation’s first Ebola case.
TOPEKA, Kan. (AP) — Topeka police are searching for whoever stole a century-old bronze urn from an area cemetery.
Police say the 3-foot tall and 3-foot wide urn was taken Sunday night or Monday morning. It was placed at the cemetery between 1912 and 1917 to mark the grave of Bell Hurley.
The urn stood on top of a hill next to a 40-foot obelisk honoring her husband, James Hurley.
A historian tells the Topeka Capital-Journal the urn and obelisk have been major sights at the cemetery and were meant to memorialize the couple that contributed to the Santa Fe Railroad.
James Hurley was a general manager of the railroad and employees raised money for two years to help purchase the obelisk and urn.
Police are investigating and have asked for the public’s assistance.
WICHITA, Kan. (AP) — Wichita police say they’ve arrested a 54-year-old man in connection to a fatal shooting last week.
The Wichita Eagle reports the man was arrested on suspicion of first-degree murder. He hasn’t been charged.
Police say 36-year-old Nathaniel Jackson was found shot multiple times at a north-central Wichita home on Thursday. He was taken to an area hospital where he was later pronounced dead.
The suspect is being held on $500,000 bond. Police are expected to present their case to prosecutors on Wednesday to determine whether charges will be filed.
TOPEKA, Kan. (AP) — The Kansas State Board of Education has added three school districts to a program that allows them to operate with less regulation in hopes of boosting student performance.
The Topeka Capital-Journal reports the board approved innovative-district applications from the Hugoton, Blue Valley and Kansas City, Kansas, districts.
The board previously approved applications from the McPherson and Concordia districts under a 2013 law aimed at allowing districts to pursue creative strategies for improving student achievement.
For example, the Blue Valley district in Johnson County sought an exemption from some teacher licensing requirements.
But it’s still not clear how free of regulation the five districts will be, because the state board and the districts have adopted bylaws for the innovative schools program.
A 41-year-old man was arrested Friday night in the parking lot of the Wild Rose night club, 109 W. Seventh, after officers responded to the report of man allegedly brandishing a firearm in the parking lot at 1:38 a..m.
Upon further investigation, a .50-caliber Desert Eagle pistol and illicit drugs allegedly were recovered, leading to the arrest of Eric Allen Rychlec, Hutchinson.
Rychlec was arrested on suspicion of aggravated criminal threat, felony obstruction of official duty and felony drug-related charges.
After posting bond, he was released from Ellis County jail Tuesday morning.
Officers were already on the scene when the incident occurred due to an unrelated incident.
WICHITA, Kan. (AP) — Rain across most of Kansas in the past week slowed the harvest of fall crops, but farmers still made progress.
The National Agricultural Statistics Service reported Tuesday that Kansas farmers were still busy harvesting row crops, seeding wheat and marketing livestock.
Winter wheat planting in the state is now 67 percent complete. About 42 percent of the crop has emerged.
Corn harvest in the state is 56 percent finished.
Sorghum harvest is 15 percent done, while the soybean harvest is at the 18 percent mark. About 7 percent of the sunflower crop has also been cut.
Fort Hays State saw its recent woes continue on Tuesday evening at Gross Memorial Coliseum, falling in three games (26-24, 25-15, 25-13) to Emporia State.
The loss was the Tigers’ sixth straight, dropping them to 7-12 overall and 2-9 in conference play.
Kurt Kohler Post Match Interview
FHSU fought back from an early deficit in the first to force set point, but couldn’t complete the comeback and fell behind, 1-0, in the match. At 9-9, ESU pulled away on a six-point run to lead, 15-9, but after a timeout, FHSU recovered to slowly climb back, taking a 20-19 lead after a five-point burst of its own.
Soon after, the Tigers grabbed a 23-21 lead off kills from Taylor Mares and Sara Hewson, before trading points to get to 24-22. ESU called a timeout at set point, however, and regrouped to score four straight points and take the set, 26-24.
ESU started the second frame on an 8-0 run and never looked back. The closest FHSU came in the set was a five-point deficit (19-14) late, but a 6-1 run ended the set for ESU, 25-15.
Tied 6-6 in the third set, a kill from ESU’s Katie Deutschmann set the Hornets on a 6-0 run that provided separation for the final time. ESU closed the match on a 4-0 run for a 25-13 set win.
Taylor Mares led the Tigers with 10 kills for the game (her eighth double-digit kills performance), while Mallory Flagor had nine kills.
Libby Ary (14 assists) and Kristin Conor (12 assists) shared time in a setter rotation, as Ary added eight digs to rank second on the team. Keanu Bradley‘s 19 digs paced the team.
The Tigers showed improvement on the defensive side of the net, tallying eight blocks as team after two straight matches with just three team blocks. Rebekah Spainhour led the team with five block assists, while Flagor added four blocks and Mikalah Hughes and Mares each had two block assists.
FHSU hits the road this weekend for three games, starting with Missouri Southern on Friday (Oct. 17). The Tigers then travel to Central Oklahoma on Saturday (Oct. 18) for a doubleheader with the Bronchos and Bacone College
Brenna Briggs, Dodge City junior, and Jared Helfrich, Dodge City senior, were announced as the Homecoming 2014 queen and king at Fort Hays State University.
The winners were announced at halftime of the FHSU football game Saturday, Oct. 11.
Briggs and Helfrich were sponsored by the Catholic Disciples. Briggs, daughter of Justin and Tracee Briggs, Dodge City, is majoring in elementary education. Helfrich, son of Brian and Kate Helfrich, Dodge City, is majoring in agricultural business.
WICHITA, Kan. (AP) — An Oklahoma man who Wichita police caught with more than a pound of heroin has pleaded guilty to a federal drug charge.
A federal prosecutor says Nestor Duenas-Vazquez of Glenpool, Oklahoma, pleaded guilty Tuesday to possession with intent to distribute.
A Wichita police officer on June 26 found 496 grams of heroin hidden in a detergent bucket in the trunk of a car during a traffic stop. Duenas-Vazquez was a passenger in the car and was traveling to Oklahoma from Denver.
Duenas-Vazquez faces up to 40 years in federal prison when he is sentenced in January.
Another defendant convicted in the case is scheduled for sentencing in December.
Fort Hays State’s Trey Herman was just one stroke shy of a five-way tie for first place at the Holiday Inn Express Classic, hosted by Missouri Western in St. Joseph, Mo. He tied for sixth individually at 5-over par overall with a total of 147. The Tigers finished 19th as a team.
Five players tied for first place with a 4-over total of 146, including Travis Mays and Sam Migdal of Central Missouri, Russ Purser of Central Oklahoma, Ryan Buerk of Missouri Southern, and Ryan Hand of Missouri Western.
Herman shot rounds of 73 and 74 to lead the Tigers. Nick VonLintel tied for 80th with rounds of 83 and 81. Billy Frey was 96th with rounds of 89 and 86. Kade Megaffin was 97th with rounds of 90 and 87. Grant Storey finished 98th with rounds of 93 and 85. FHSU as a team shot 661.
Central Missouri won the tournament with a team score of 597, followed by Arkansas Tech at 601 and Northeastern State at 602.
This tournament closed out the fall portion of the 2014-15 schedule for men’s golf. Action will resume in the spring.
NEW YORK (AP) — Nike’s Converse brand is suing 31 companies, saying they are selling knockoff versions of its Chuck Taylor shoes.
Converse is suing Skechers USA, Wal-Mart Stores Inc., FILA, Ed Hardy, K-Mart Corp. and Ralph Lauren Corp., among many others. It says the companies are infringing on trademarks that cover the look of the shoe and the diamond pattern on the bottom of the sole.
The North Andover, Massachusetts, company filed its lawsuits in the Eastern District of New York and in the International Trade Commission. Converse says look-alike Chuck Taylor shoes have become more common in recent years, and says it has served about 180 cease and desist letters related to the issue since 2008.
MANHATTAN, KAN. – U.S. Senator Jerry Moran (R-Kan.), Ranking Member of the Senate Appropriations Health Subcommittee, issued the following statement regarding the isolated patient at The University of Kansas Hospital:
