RENO COUNTY-(AP) — The Latest on wildfires burning across the country’s midsection (all times local):

Gov. Sam Brownback says Kansas has asked Wyoming and South Dakota for equipment to help fight wildfires that have burned hundreds of square miles of land in Kansas.

Brownback told reporters Tuesday that 10 communities in the state saw residents evacuated at least temporarily Monday and Tuesday as fires burned about 625 square miles.

Most the area burned was in Clark County, in southern Kansas. But between 10,000 and 12,000 people left their homes in Reno County because of a fire north of Hutchinson, which is about 40 miles northwest of Wichita.

Brownback says Kansas is asking Wyoming to send helicopters for dropping water and South Dakota to send communications equipment.

He’s says he’s concerned that the dry, windy conditions will continue for another day or two and could return later in the spring.

3 p.m.

— The Kansas Livestock Association is launching a relief effort for ranchers affected by wildfires that have scorched hundreds of square miles of land in the state.

The group said Tuesday it is accepting donations of feed, fencing supplies and cash for the ranchers who’ve lost fencing, forage resources, harvested feed and an undetermined number of cattle in the blazes.

The association says ranch homes and outbuildings also were among the losses.

Donations may be made by contacting the association, with cash contributions payout through the Kansas Livestock Foundation, the association’s charitable arm.

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8:35 a.m.

Authorities say wildfires have burned about 625 square miles in Kansas, damaging dozens of structures and forcing thousands to evacuate.

Kansas Department of Emergency Management Katie Horner says 10,000 to 12,000 people voluntarily evacuated their homes Monday night in Reno County. She says 66 people were in shelters Tuesday in Hutchinson as crews continued fighting fires that started over the weekend.

The largest of the blazes was burning in rural southwest Kansas’ Clark County, where about 545 square miles has burned. Horner says 30 structures have been damaged, and bridges have been compromised. That fire is now 61 percent contained.

Evacuations also have been ordered in Russell, and Comanche counties.

Horner says all but four of the state’s 105 counties are under red-flag warnings of critical wildfire conditions.

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As wildfires burn in multiple counties across the state, the State Emergency Operations Center continues to monitor and coordinate assistance for the affected counties.

The Kansas Adjutant General reported there were active fires reported in Clark, Cheyenne, Comanche, Ellsworth, Finney, Ford, Hodgeman, Lane, Meade, Ness, Pratt, Pottawatomie, Rawlins, Reno, Rice, Rooks, Russell, Seward, Shawnee, Smith and Stevens Counties. Although some fires have been mostly contained, fire crews continue to monitor the burned areas for flare-ups.

Approximately 10-12,000 residents of Hutchinson, Kansas, were voluntarily evacuated due to fire risk.  The cities of Wilson and Dorrance also did voluntary evacuations of their citizens.  Wilson evacuated approximately 300 individuals and Dorrance approximately 100 individuals.

Severe thunderstorms and tornadoes affected portions of the state during the evening hours of Tuesday, March 6.  Crawford County reported wind damage to one residence and minor damage to local businesses. Two tornadoes reportedly touched down in Wabaunsee County and one in Shawnee County.

FEMA has approved Federal Fire Management Assistance Grants for Clark, Comanche, Ellsworth, Ford, Lincoln, Ness, Rooks, and Russell Counties. Additional requests may be made as the current emergencies continue.

KDEM is seeking additional firefighting resources from other states through the Emergency Management Assistance Compact and from the National Forestry Service.  A Type II Incident Management Team has also been requested.

On Monday, March 6 the Kansas Army National Guard deployed four Black Hawk helicopters from Company B, 1^st Battalion, 108^th Aviation Regiment out of Salina equipped with 660-gallon Bambi buckets. The helicopters dropped more than 33,600 gallons of water on the fire in Reno County.

Four helicopters equipped with Bambi buckets will launch at daylight on Tuesday, March 7, to continue to assist affected counties with fire suppression. Two helicopters and crews are based out of Topeka and two are out of Salina.

The American Red Cross opened shelters for displaced residents in Coldwater, Dodge City, Hutchinson and Jetmore.  The shelter in Coldwater is located at the Coldwater High School, 600 Leavenworth Ave., and currently houses 75 residents.  The shelter in Dodge City is located at the Dodge City Community College Student Activity Building, 2501 N 14^th Avenue and currently houses 7 residents. The Hutchinson shelter is located at the state fairgrounds at 2000 N Poplar Street.  The shelter can house 1,700 people but currently holds 210 residents.  The shelter in Jetmore is located at the 4-H Building on the Hodgeman County Fairgrounds.

There are multiple road closures due to the fires.  Information on the latest road closures are available from the Kansas Department of Transportation by calling 5-1-1 or visiting the Kandrive website at kandrive.org.

RENO COUNTY – Two Kansas teen were injured in an accident just before 4p.m. on Monday in Reno County.

A 2001 Ford Explorer driven by Kolton King 17, Pretty Prairie, was southbound on Whitesiide Road at Boundary when he lost control of the vehicle, according to the Reno County Sheriff’s Department.

The SUV left the road and rolled. King and a passenger Bayley Rogers 17, Pretty Prairie, were transported to Hutchinson Regional Medical Center.

They were not wearing seat belts, according to the Sheriff’s Department.

DOUGLAS COUNTY – Law enforcement authorities in Douglas County are investigating a bank robbery and asking for help to identify a suspect.

Just before 4 p.m. on Monday, the suspect in the security camera photos entered the U.S. Bank branch, 1807, West 23rd Street in Lawrence with a gun and demanded money, according to a media release.

The suspect fled the bank southbound on foot with an undisclosed amount of cash. There were no injuries reported.

 

but we only need 1 in 10,000 people to recognize something, an article of clothing, or a unique feature. or remember something they saw

— Lawrence Police (@LawrenceKS_PD) March 7, 2017

 

Anyone with information about the robbery or alleged suspect should contact police 785-832-7501.

By Mac Moore

KU Statehouse Wire Service

TOPEKA— Law enforcement officials cautioned legislators that a bill in the House seeking to protect the legal privacy of cell phone and cloud storage users might inadvertently hamper investigations of child abduction and human trafficking.

House Government, Technology and Security Committee held a hearing Monday for House Bill 2332, a bill prohibiting electronic communications and remote storage providers from disclosing customer data without consent of the customer and any disclosure of this prohibited data would not be inadmissible in court.

Kim Parker, legal counsel for the League of Kansas municipalities, said one section of the bill suggests law enforcement would still have access to electronic communications via search warrant but would limit other investigation tools.

“A number of concerns remain that could seriously affect legally valid criminal investigations,” Parker said.

Parker said the bill does not allow for exemptions for exigent and emergency circumstances. Without these exemptions, the bill could potentially block law enforcement from accessing cell phone information in child abduction cases and human trafficking cases.

“While the cops are busy tapping out a warrant application, the kid has left the state with the bad guy,” she said.

Parker also said most human trafficking is done “in the dark” through use of cell phones. Traffickers often abandon phones to avoid detection. Parker said these devices would normally be available as an exception to the search warrant requirement but not under this law.

“Kansas has long used investigative tools not addressed in this bill,” she said.

Ed Klumpp, Kansas Sheriff’s Association legislative liaison, said parts of the bill had conflicting language. A section which provides for disclosure of electronic communication or remote storage through legal means only identifies use “in a civil action”. Klumpp said this could exclude criminal cases.

“We understand the intent of the bill and are not opposed to what you are trying to do with data security and protection of people’s rights,” he said. “We certainly want to have something to address unlawful breaches and we know that is the intent of the bill. Our concerns are how those could apply adversely to criminal cases.”

Amanda Stanley, legal counsel for The League of Municipalities, endorsed the bill. Stanley said third party servers such as cloud storage are increasing in importance as most organizations move toward a paperless system. Stanley said the League supports making it clear the act of storing a privileged document in cloud storage does not waive attorney-client privilege.

Rep. Steven Becker (R-Buhler) said the bill seemed to favor attorney-client privilege more than other privileges such as doctor-patient.

“It’s all privilege,” Becker said. “So we’re taking that privilege from the statutes and giving it more protections than other privileges?”

Chairman Peter DeGraaf (R-Mulvane) said the committee would have to look at possible changes to resolve objections to the language of the bill. The committee took no action on the bill.

Mac Moore is a University of Kansas senior journalism major from Lawrence.