The wild fire that started in northeast Ellis County Tuesday mid-afternoon and was finally 100 percent contained late Wednesday afternoon, also did damage in western Russell County, near Fairport.
(Drone video/photos courtesy Mike Schoech)
According to Russell/Ellsworth County Emergency Manager Keith Haberer, the fire started about 3 p.m. Tuesday near Codell Road in Ellis County between Catharine and the Saline River, just five miles from the Russell County line. High gusty winds pushed the fire east through rough terrain. Haberer says the fire was one mile into Russell County after 7 p.m. as the wind began to subside.
Residents in Fairport, near the Saline River in far western Russell County, were advised to evacuate their homes.
Firefighters from Ellis County, Russell and Osborne County responded to the blaze.
No inhabited structures in Russell or Ellis counties were burned and there were no report of injuries. Haberer estimated about 1,200 acres of grassland was burned in Russell County. No estimate report was immediately available from Ellis County.
The fire was accidental according to Ellis Co. Director of Fire and Emergency Management Darin Myers. “This appears to be an accidental fire. A disconnect failed on a lightning arrester at an oil lease site. The disconnect shorted out, started to spark and started nearby grass on fire,” Myers said.
WAKEENEY–Trego County firefighters are helping out in two areas of Kansas still fighting wildfires today.
According to information from Trego Co. Emergency Manager Kathleen Fabrizius, the “Trego Co. Rural Fire department sent two trucks and WaKeeney city fire department sent one truck with crews to Reno County to help with fires.
“The Trego Co. trucks received a call last night to assist in Clark County and headed there last night. Please keep these crews in your prayers.”
Reno County officials said as of Wednesday night, the Highlands fire in Reno county was 85 percent contained. Firefighters from across the state were on the scene.
The massive fire in Comanche and Clark counties has burned at least 1,000 square miles of land according to Kansas Division of Emergency Management spokeswoman Katie Horner. The 625 square miles charred in Clark County is about 85 percent of that county’s land.
The blaze has set a new record. Horner says the previous record came last year, with the Anderson Creek fire consuming 488 square miles of land in Barber and Comanche counties.
Since Saturday, large grassfires have been reported in 23 Kansas counties, consuming more than 1,000 square miles.
ELLIS COUNTY–The wildfire in northeast Ellis County is finally extinguished.
According to a news release from Ellis County, the fire was “100 percent contained as of 4:30 p.m. Wednesday with no spot fires at this time. Three brush trucks and one water tanker are remaining on scene for the next few hours to ensure no additional re-ignition.”
According to Ellis Co. Director of Fire and Emergency Management Darin Myers the cause of the fire appears to be accidental.
“This appears to be an accidental fire. A disconnect failed on a lightning arrester at an oil lease site. The disconnect shorted out, started to spark and started nearby grass on fire,” Myers said in the release.
The mile-wide fire started started in the 2500 block of Codell Ave. about mid-afternoon Tuesday and moved east eight miles through Ellis County and into Russell County. Myers said it was 80 to 90 percent contained as of 8 a.m. this morning.
No damage to buildings or injuries were reported.
Ellis County EMS and Public Works were also on the scene assisted by units from Russell County.
Wednesday was the third consecutive day of wildfires in Ellis County with emergency personnel battling shifting winds with gusts of more than 45 mph and extremely low humidity.
Wednesday’s less windy weather forecast is one bright spot for Ellis County rural firefighters and other emergency responders now in their third day of battling wildfires.
By 8 a.m. this morning, Darin Myers, Dir. of Fire and Emergency Management, estimated the wildfire in northeast Ellis County was 80 to 90 percent contained. The mile-wide fire started in the 2500 block of Codell Ave. about mid-afternoon Tuesday and moved east about eight miles through Ellis County and into Russell County.
Firefighters at the scene Tuesday night were also having to battle unofficial motorist traffic. They are asking the public to stay out of the area for their safety and the safety of emergency crews.
No structures have been lost and no injuries have been reported, according to information from the county.
Ellis Co. Commission Chairwoman Barbara Wasinger proclaimed a state of local emergency at 9 p.m. Tuesday night due to concerns about local resources.
“We’d like to thank our firefighters, both volunteers and professionals, as well as our other staff and area residents who assisted in minimizing the damage caused by the fire,” Wasinger said in a statement. “Ellis County is very fortunate to have dedicated individuals who respond when needed. However, I am issuing this proclamation due to the severity of this fire and the fact that is has taxed our resources.”
Myers expected crews to remain on the site throughout today. Personnel from Ellis Co. Public Works, Ellis County EMS and several Russell County agencies are assisting.
The cause of the fire has not been determined. The public is encouraged to remain vigilant for the possibility of additional wildfires and report any suspected fires to 911 immediately. Relative humidity levels are expected to remain at dangerously low levels Wednesday.
According to American Red Cross volunteer Pete Peterson of Hays, the local ARC was at the fire until “about midnight last night after feeding about 100 firefighters. We’re going back with lunch today to feed 40 people at noon.”
According to the Kansas Division of Emergency Management (KDME), 650,000 acres of Kansas land has been burned in the last few days. At 10 a.m. this morning, KDME reported active fires in Ellis, Russell and Rooks counties as well as several others across the state.
A wild fire still blazes at northeast of Catherine at sunset Tuesday. (Photos courtesy Lisa Chrisler-VanHorn)
By BECKY KISER Hays Post
Thanks to Hays resident Lisa Chrisler-VanHorn who shared her pictures of the wild fire two miles north of Severin Road on 370th Ave. in northeast Ellis County.
The fire started about 4:30 p.m. near land and a farm owned by VanHorn’s family.
VanHorn reported seeing fire units at the scene from Paradise, Waldo, Natoma, Ellis County, Lucas, Russell, Victoria and Gorham.
The blaze was still burning at sunset.
Firefighters from several towns in Ellis and Russell counties are working at 370th and Severin Rd. in northeast Ellis Co.
Burned pasture land around Lake Wilson Tuesday morning (Photos courtesy Virgil Lawson)
By BECKY KISER Hays Post
RUSSELL COUNTY–A Russell County man started his day in the air, viewing Monday’s fire damage to his land near Lake Wilson. Just after he landed his Cessna 183 airplane, Virgil Lawson went right back to the area, this time in a ground vehicle.
Lawson is a volunteer for the Sylvan Grove Fire Department in Lincoln County to the east, and lives near the dam at Lake Wilson.
“I have pasture on the south side of the lake by Minooka Park. I was piloting a Cessna 182 about 9:30 a.m. this morning and took several photos while surveying the burn damage to my pastures.
“I am also on the Sylvan Grove Fire Department, and right after landing, I was dispatched to the lake fire again today. I’ve been manning a water tanker filling fire trucks at the command post at Exit 206 (on Interstate 70 at Wilson),” Lawson told Hays Post early Tuesday afternoon.
Firefighters from Russell, Ellis and Osborne counties were on the scene at 6:45 p.m. Tuesday of another fire in Russell County south of Fairport. This one started about 3:20 p.m. in northeast Ellis County. Fairport residents and area rural residents were advised to vacate their homes.
“There are a lot of guys on these volunteer departments have been on these fires for a couple of days now with very little sleep,” Lawson added.
Lawson is one of those many volunteers.
Burned pasture and grass land around Lake Wilson Tuesday morning
Three play features in the Hays Aquatic Park need some refurbishing after 17 years.
By BECKY KISER Hays Post
Three popular play features in the zero-depth entry area of the Hays Aquatic Park (HAP) are in need of some repair.
Following discussions with the Hays Recreation Commission which operates HAP, Hays Director of Parks Jeff Boyle is recommending refurbishing the concrete green frog slide and snake and alligator floatables. All three items have been at the HAP since it opened in 2000, 17 years ago.
Concrete chip on frog back leg
The frog has had some minor repairs made to the tongue (the slide), which is removed and stored in the off-season, and it was repainted a few years ago. “There’s a difference in the yellow paint colors in the mouth,” Boyle pointed out to Hays city commissioners last week. “Quite honestly, it’s not purty,” he laughed.
Boyle was concerned about a chip in the concrete on the frog’s back right leg. The two companies specializing in commercial pool structures contacted by Boyle told him “that’s actually minimal compared to what we’re used to dealing with.”
The snake has a hole in its head.
Although the alligator is cleaned and waxed every year, it is also showing its age, with a large worn spot on one arm. The snake has a hole in its head. The floatables have had special urethane water-proof paint applied to their undersides the past few years by city employees to protect the play animals.
Both floatables are foam-filled with quarter-inch-thick flexible urethane paint on them. “They’re real squishy. You can sort of pinch them which has caused cracks in the paint,” Boyle explained.
Flexible water-proof paint is cracking on the alligator and snake floatables.
Both companies have made bids on the restoration work. WaterPark Excitement, the original manufacturer of the Hays pool structures, is the low bidder for repairing the heavy frog on-site at HAP and shipping the lighter-weight alligator and snake to Seguin, Texas for refurbishment at their facility. The low bid by WaterPark is $24,170. City staff is recommending it be paid from the Pool Reserve Fund which has a current balance of $345,728.24.
Boyle showed a slide example of “good as new” restoration work by WaterPark. The example happened to be a foam tiger feature, which piqued the interest of commissioners.
“We need one of those,” Commissioner Sandy Jacobs said about the tiger. Fort Hays State University’s mascot is a tiger.
Buying a new play feature is expensive. Boyle said a comparable new snake or alligator is $8,900.
“Can we trade the snake for a tiger?” asked Commissioner Lance Jones. “They’d give us $300 each,” Boyle replied.
Commissioners directed Boyle to check into pricing for the tiger, which would sit flush to the pool bottom.
“The thing that worries me is the anchoring,” Boyle cautioned. “One of the things I don’t want to do is drill new holes into that pool base.”
Boyle also said he and HRC are looking at adding more play features to the pool “from the smallest things to bigger, costly things…just to kind of throw out a whole bunch of options the commission can pick through, saying this is affordable and this is not.”
Commissioners will consider the WaterPark refurbishing bid and new options at their meeting Thu., March 9. Click here to see the complete agenda.
The mobile home housing CC’s convenience store at Wilson Lake was completely burned in Monday’s wildfire. (Photos courtesy Larry Calvery)
By BECKY KISER Hays Post
RUSSELL COUNTY–Monday’s wildfire at Wilson Lake destroyed the former CC’s convenience store and at least one mobile home, the owner of which also lost a dog and horse to the flames.
Dorrance resident Larry Calvery owns the mobile home that housed Calvery Convenience since 2006, although it has not been open for several years because of the low water level at Wilson.
“It’s burned to a crisp,” Calvery said Tuesday morning after inspecting the damage. “I’ve never seen such devastation.”
Silver streaks of metal are all that is left of the pontoons on a boat.
In addition to the mobile home, Calvery’s pontoon boat and an unused camper were also destroyed. “The only thing left on the boat is the motor. The pontoons melted into silver streaks left on the ground,” Calvery said. “It’s going to be an easy cleanup. There’s nothing left to salvage.”
Calvery had hoped to reopen CC’s later this spring in a new facility. “Now, I don’t know if I will. It’s too soon to tell.”
The mobile home just east of CC’s was also destroyed. Calvery said his neighbor “Andy Phelps’ home was completely burned, and he lost one dog and one horse. He has four other horses at the vet today being treated for injuries.”
He had also planned to build a house at Wilson Lake and be living in it by how. Those plans have been delayed. “That’s the one bright spot,” Calvery said. “Otherwise, that would be gone, too.”
Calvery said the fire appeared to miss the campground and docks, although one dock was blown over by the high winds. “Marine Specialty is also OK,” he added.
The wildfire started south of Minooka Park, where Calvery reported the damage, about 2:30 p.m. Monday. It burned southeast into the Wilson State Park area. The north wind caused the fire to jump Interstate 70 and Kansas Highway 232. Residents of Wilson were told to evacuate the town early Monday evening, although no damage or injuries were reported.
I-70 between Russell and the Sylvan Grove exit was closed for a time due to limited visibility caused by the smoke.
The closed CC’s Convenience Store at Minooka Park in Wilson Lake was destroyed by Monday’s wildfire.
Silver streaks of metal are all that is left of the pontoons on a boat.
CC’s Convenience Store prior to Monday’s grass fire at Lake Wilson
The fire started south of Minooka Park, traveled south, jumped I-70 and continued into Ellsworth Co.
Amid the gusty winds Monday in Hays, there was a near 60° temperature swing.
The official high in Hays on March 6 was 82°, unusually warm for late winter, but not a record high. According to the KSU Agricultural Research Center, the official high in Hays for March 6 is 88° set in 1972.
After reaching 82° Monday, the overnight low fell to 23°, a 59° plunge.
Sustained winds Monday were at 27 mph, with a maximum gust recorded at 45.1 mph. Dirt and smoke were visible most of the day.
Tuesday’s weather forecast calls for a cooler day, with winds picking up again this afternoon.
The National Weather Service office in Dodge City has issued a Red Flat Warning for the second consecutive day: A Red Flag Warning is in effect again this afternoon for gusty winds in excess of 25 mph and low relative humidity at or below 15 percent.
HHS journalism students at the regional competition. (Photo by Bill Gasper)
By JORDYN DAKE HHS Guidon
Hays High School qualified 18 students for state after taking 29 awards in 19 events at the regional journalism competition that took place on Feb. 23 at Fort Hays State University.
The contest sponsored by the Kansas Scholastic Press Association featured several schools from classes 1A to 4A. It was one of the five regional contests held in the state. Hays competed in the 3A/4A division.
In order to qualify for state, students had to place first, second or third in any event or receive an honorable mention. Hays had multiple qualifiers in several different categories and those 18 students that qualified will account for the 29 entries on the state level.
The state competition will take place in Lawrence on May 3.
Yearbook Theme and Graphics – 1st (with senior Sierra Eichman)
Advertising – 2nd
Infographics – 3rd
Many of these contestants were first-timers and had mixed opinions coming into the contest.
“I was really nervous to compete, but afterwards I felt pretty good about what I had done,” Senior Peyton Augustine said. “I didn’t place in the yearbook competition I was in, but I did get 1st in Newspaper Sports Writing.”
Augustine said she would’ve been upset had she not placed in sports writing as she is the sports editor for the Guidon, but is happy with the results.
“When we were waiting for the results, I was pretty positive Jacob Maska was going to beat me,” Augustine said. “He ended up getting third place and I am really, really proud of him for that.”
Even the journalism students that did not participate are proud of their peers.
“We took a clean sweep of 10 first-places,” senior Kristen Nease said. “I did not participate but I am very proud of my peers because I get to see their hard work throughout the school year. It’s really heartwarming to see them succeed in something they love.”
Journalism adviser Bill Gasper is very proud of the results.
“I have a great group of talented students and I am very proud of them,” Gasper said. “I love that they are so dedicated to journalism. I am confident that we will receive similar results at the state competition.”
The Bickle/Schmidt Sports Complex road deteriorated badly over the winter and after heavy construction traffic associated with building the new FHSU Track and Field Facility.
By BECKY KISER Hays Post
The proposed 2017 Street Maintenance program for the city of Hays includes a $108,670 overage to rehabilitate the Bickle-Schmidt Sports Complex road.
Over the winter, the road deteriorated badly, due in large part to construction of the new Fort Hays State University track and field facility, Public Works Director Greg Sund reported to city commissioners Thursday night.
“We’re looking at having to rebuild the road because the base is just gone,” Sund said. “The university has agreed to pay 20 percent of the cost.”
Sund is proposing the city’s share would come out of the Special Highway fund. The commissioners objected to that idea.
“It’s the sports complex,” said Vice-Mayor James Meier. “Is there any reason that other 80 percent can’t be paid out of the CVB (Convention and Visitors Bureau) or the sports complex?” he asked.
City Manager Toby Dougherty said the funds could also come from the sports complex budget or the special parks fund.
“It’s horrendous what happened out there,” said Commissioner Sandy Jacobs, who looked at the road with Hays Parks Director Jeff Boyle. “I don’t think 20 percent from Fort Hays is enough.”
The FHSU Soccer Stadium was built in 2011.
FHSU paid 20 percent of the original cost to construct the sports complex road. The FHSU soccer stadium, built in 2011, is on the southeast side of the facility.
According to Dougherty, the blame doesn’t lie entirely with the university. The road problems existed prior to construction of the FHSU track and field facility.
“When we built the sports complex (it opened in the fall of 2011), the group promoting it to the voters oversold what we could build for $8 million,” Dougherty said. “The commission decided they wanted the complex that looked like what was sold to the voters — meaning eight ball diamonds, eight softball/football fields — and so we had to cut corners in a lot of places. The parking lots and road were one of those areas. They were all paved in the initial concept.”
By happenstance, when the facility was under construction, a portion of Vine Street was also being replaced. Dougherty explained how millings off Vine Street were used to build the sports complex road.
“We hired a company to rejuvenate those millings and then J-Corp of Hays agreed to lay down the millings on the complex road if we would name the road ‘S P Drive’ after Steve Pfannenstiel. We agreed to that. The millings were put down and the city put a couple chip seals over the top. The road problems started creeping up a little bit before construction of the Fort Hays State Track and Field Facility. The heavy construction truck traffic really just drove home the issue.
City officials say the sports complex road, built in 2011, will have to be replaced.
“When we investigated, we found it wasn’t so much a problem with the base as the fact the the millings had kind of turned to sand. They weren’t rejuvenated properly by the company, and we had no way of knowing that until they were on the sports complex road and kind of turned back to sand. So you have the movable base under the chip seal top now. We have to go back and grind everything in and re-compact it.”
Dougherty said the city has talked to FHSU, and in addition to paying 20 percent of the road repair costs, “they’ve agreed that every year when we do our maintenance out there, they’ll pay 20 percent of whatever we do. They’ve acknowledged partial ownership of this thing going forward.”
South end of the road
“And even though the north area of the road isn’t showing quite as much damage as the south end, it’s in the same kind of shape, so it makes no sense not to do the same thing to it,” added Sund. “The north end was not heavily trafficked by construction vehicles.”
The chip seal work must be done in warm weather to adhere correctly. Sund expected it would probably be done in July. Commissioners directed Sund to coordinate the work schedule with the Hays Recreation Commission to avoid summer tournament traffic at the complex as much as possible.
Sund also mentioned he’s received some complaints about trucks using the sports complex as a shortcut.
“We’re going to be putting up signs saying ‘No Through Truck Traffic.'”
Commissioners will consider approving the $1.054 million 2017 Street Maintenance program at their March 9 meeting.
Rep. Eber Phelps (D-Hays) updates the Hays city commission about work by the state legislature.
By BECKY KISER Hays Post
Rep. Eber Phelps (D-Hays) was back in the Hays City Commission chambers Thursday night with an update from the state legislature for his former commission colleagues.
Phelps prefaced his report with a general observation about the first half of the 2017 session.
“It was a little bit of a pleasant surprise, the collaborative effort that seems to be present in the building, a positive attitude,” Phelps said, calling it a “huge changeover” from when he last served as the 111th Dist. state representative in 2008 to 2012.
There are about 55 new members of the Kansas House.
“Subsequently, you have a lot of new ideas,” he said, noting many of the members are much younger than he. “A lot of the young folks are really fired up. They feel they’re part of the solution and some of us old guys feel we are too.
“You could tell by the vote on the tax bill which was really a tough vote for a lot of us. It had a lot of things in it that compelled me to vote for it including the rollback of the LLC (Limited Liability Corp.) loophole. It would bring some money in and that’s what we were looking at–every possible place to find some additional money.”
Phelps believes there are no good choices left when it comes to balancing the state’s budget.
“It seems like all the one-time money has been used up and I don’t think we can sweep any more money from KPERS (Kansas Public Employees Retirement System) or KDOT (Kansas Dept. of Transportation).” According to Phelps, there is just $42 million for state road maintenance in 2018.
Republican Gov. Sam Brownback vetoed the tax plan. The House was able to override his veto by 85 votes; the Senate was three votes short of an override.
A new tax bill will have to be created after the Legislature reconvenes next week.
“I suspect it’s going to be very similar to the one passed by both the House and the Senate. The hope is the Governor will probably, even if he doesn’t want to sign it, leave it lay on his desk and it will become law after 10 days,” Phelps predicted.
The House also voted to expand Medicaid. The Senate has not yet voted on the bill.
“A lot of people are looking at that, not only for the healthcare coverage portion of it, but also for just what it would do to the budget,” said Phelps. “All you have to do is look at how much (federal) money has been missed out on had we implemented that at the very beginning, when it was possible with the Affordable Healthcare Act. Right now the count is somewhere around $1.9 billion. We probably wouldn’t have a lot of the tough budget decisions we have now had that been in place and that money come forward.”
Phelps also told the commissioners he plans to visit with freshman Congressman Roger Marshall (R-Great Bend) about the R-9 ranch, the long-term water resource plan for Hays and the region.
Kansans with years of experience watching the weather know that when March rolls around, it’s time to turn our attention to the skies — and to the weather reports.
March is the month when many state residents begin preparing for potential severe weather problems. That includes checking your insurance policies on personal property to make sure you have the coverage and information you need.
Recent weather data from the National Weather Service (NWS) supports the continuing need for preparation. The NWS, in its Severe Weather Awareness Week packet, says there were 102 tornadoes in the state in 2016, one above the 10-year average. The month of May last year had the most tornadoes, 63, with 34 occurring on one day, May 24.
But twisters are only part of our potential weather problems. Kansas Insurance Department (KID) statistics, through the years, indicate that during the spring and summer there is hardly a day when hail damage is not reported somewhere in the state. Factor in the ever-present wind, and our citizens contend with weather issues almost daily from March through August — and sometimes beyond.
According to company estimates compiled for KID, Kansans submitted a total of 51,708 property insurance claims in 2016 because of severe weather activity. Although the total estimated storm loss was at a 10-year low–$107.26 million—that is still a significant number of damaged homes, farms and outbuildings. Thank goodness only 12 injuries were reported, and, more importantly, no deaths occurred.
For video presentations of storm preparation and recovery topics, watch these KID Presentations:
Before and after a storm
Personal home inventory
Our KID staff has also compiled the following checklist of questions and statements that consumers and their insurance agents can review. These can help determine whether your insurance is ready for the Kansas spring and summer.
Ask yourself these questions
Do you have the right homeowners or renters insurance? Do you know what your policy covers? Is the amount of coverage adequate? Does it cover new additions or recent remodeling?
Check all limits, including coverage for contents. Keep your agent’s name and number available and easy to find, and periodically discuss coverage options with him or her.
Know your policy coverage exclusions
Not all policies cover the following: Water damage, including flood and surface damage, whether driven by wind or not; backup of sewer or drains; and sump pump failure. These are the most common exclusions. Riders for these problems may be available to add to your existing policy. Also, check your auto policy. Comprehensive coverage (other than collision) usually pays if damage is caused by wind, hail and/or flood.
Inventory your personal property
KID can provide you with a “Personal Home Inventory” booklet to help you list the contents of your home. Go online at www.ksinsurance.org, under “Finding a Publication,” to print a personal copy. Keep a hard copy of your inventory, sales receipts and video or photographs of your personal property in a secure place outside your home.
You can also download the MyHomeScr.APP.book application for your smartphone from the National Association of Insurance Commissioners.
Get help if you need it
KID has formed a department Catastrophe Team to visit affected locations following very severe weather events. But for assistance at any time, call the KID Consumer Assistance Hotline (in Kansas), 800-432-2484.
By BECKY KISER
