The Ellis County Public Works Department announced Wednesday the closure of a portion of Toulon Avenue for downed power lines from recent severe weather events.
The area affected begins at the intersection of Old U.S. 40 and Toulon Avenue and continues north to the intersection of Victoria Road and Toulon Avenue. The area is closed effective immediately and will remain closed for the remainder of Wednesday to allow utility crews to repair the power line damage. The closure is not expected to extend beyond Wednesday.
Motorists traveling in the affected closure area should use alternate routes of travel until the utility repairs are complete.
rairie View resident Connie K. Graham passed away June 18, 2018 at the Good Samaritan Hospital in Kearney, NE at the age of 71. She was born August 1, 1946 in Wabash, IN, the daughter of Jim & Betty (Knee) Smith.
Survivors include her husband Glen of Prairie View, KS, her mother, Betty Smith of Wabash, IN; her son Doug of Independence, KY; 2 daughters, Laura Jansonius of Prairie View and Susan Smith of Ellis, KS; 2 sisters, Shirley Long of Wabash, IN and Linda Tilley of Treaty, IN; 5 grandchildren, 2 step grandchildren & 1 step great grandchild.
Funeral services will be held Sat. June 23 at 10:30 a.m. in the Sonshine Christian Church, Smith Center, KS with James Swanson officiating. A graveside service will be held at 1:30 p.m. Sat. in the Prairie View Cemetery.
Visitation will be from 9:00 to 9:00 Thursday & Friday at the Olliff-Boeve Memorial Chapel with the family receiving friends from 7:00 to 8:00 Friday evening.
Memorial contributions may be made to the Ozark Christian College.
Online condolences: www.olliffboeve.com.
Olliff-Boeve Memorial Chapel is in charge of arrangements.
WICHITA – Three Wichita men were indicted Tuesday on charges of making counterfeit money and using it to pay for athletic shoes, according to U.S. Attorney Stephen McAllister.
Douglas D. Blocker, 21, Cornelius D. Wilson, 22, and Traevon A. McGairty, 22, all of Wichita are charged with one count of counterfeiting and one count of passing counterfeit currency. In addition, Blocker is charged with another count of passing counterfeit currency.
The indictment alleges the defendants used a photocopy machine to make counterfeit $20 bills.
In one count, Blocker is alleged to have met a victim at the Towne West shopping center and paid him $480 in counterfeit bills for four pairs of Jordan athletic shoes. In another count, the three defendants are alleged to have met another victim at Towne West and paid him $520 in counterfeit bills for three pairs of athletic shoes.
If convicted, they face a penalty of up to 20 years in federal prison and a fine up to $250,000 on each count.
Morrison County will take the Wild West Festival stage at 7:30 p.m. Friday, July 6.
Morrison County is a Wichita-based band playing a diverse range of country music. Their sound goes anywhere from heavy rock guitar to soft ballads to classic country twang.
Artists such as Brad Paisley, Aaron Watson, Ryan Adams, Mike Ryan, Amos Lee, Keith Urban, Stevie Ray Vaughn, and many others have influenced their writing style and sound.
The members that make up the band are Matthew Morrison, lead vocals and acoustic guitar; Cody Corbet, rhythm electric guitar; Josh Melcher, lead electric guitar; Dave Banks, bass guitar; and Ryan Brownlee, drums.
The fire broke out Monday at the Jayhawk Motel. The building that was destroyed also included the motel office and a three-bedroom apartment where the owners lived.
The candle was in a dining area of the owners’ living quarters.
No one was hurt.
Authorities say the motel’s three guest buildings were not damaged.
Bobby Dale Earnhardt is the grandson of Dale Earnhardt, son of Kerry Earnhardt. Despite the name, Bobby Dale has been circling the grassroots side of the sport on his climb up the motorsports ladder.
But, from the beginning, he’s been doing it the hard way, on purpose. “Just doing it on my own and working my way up like my grandpa Dale did,” Bobby Dale explained to RacingNews.co .
Over the weekend, he was found at Ona Speedway. He ran an open wheel asphalt modified at the 7/16-mile track in Ona, WV.
Bobby Dale Earnhardt/courtesy photo
“Well guys last night didn’t go as well as we had hoped. We ended the night in a wreck. I had no place to go once everyone started piling up on the front stretch but that’s good ole fashion short track racing for ya. But the main thing is I had a great time out at Ona Speedway,” Bobby said after the race weekend.
Now, he’s ready for a different kind of modified. Earnhardt is heading for the midwest dirt tracks. Back to back days of open wheel dirt track racing.
“I’m excited to announce I’ll be back in an open wheel modified again next weekend June 22-23 @ Salina Speedway in Salina, KS & RPM Speedway in Hays, KS. Except this time I’m going back to grass roots racing where my great grandad ran & my grandpa Dale started, ON DIRT!”
Salina Speedway and Rolling Plains Motor Speedway are on the schedule. On June 22, he’ll be at Salina Speedway in Salina. The following night, he’ll head over to RPM Speedway in Hays. Both of these tracks are 3/8-mile midwest dirt tracks.
How did this come about? “My business partner set this whole weekend up he lives up in Canton, Kansas and knows everyone around there. He has a Gelbvieh Cattle Ranch called Circle S Ranch,” Bobby Dale Earnhardt explained to RacingNews.co .
John & Carla Shearer own a Geldvia Cattle Farm called Circle S Ranch in Canton, Kansas. The Shearer family and Bobby Dale Earnhardt have teamed up multiple times. Previously, Earnhardt and Shearer fielded an ARCA Racing Series machine.
What’s your earlier memory at a dirt track? “My earliest memory is of me and my brother running our go cart on the local dirt track.”
Jeffrey Earnhardt is the younger brother to Bobby Dale.
Previously, Bobby Dale Earnhardt has run dirt late models at Tyler County Speedway in Middlebourne, WV. He’s also turned laps at Muskingum County Speedway and Portsmouth Raceway Park.
Bobby Dale Earnhardt will be driving the #66 for Jerry Phillips Racing at both dirt tracks. JPR is based in Kansas. Main Street Towing and Dacus Auto Body & Collision Repair out of McPherson, Kansas will both be featured on the car.
Last year, he made his debut in the NASCAR Xfinity Series as well as the ARCA Racing Series.
Recently, Earnhardt Shearer Racing partnered with Honor Flight. They help military veterans visit memorial sites that are dedicated to them.
TOPEKA – The Kansas Department of Health and Environment has issued a boil water advisory for the City of Norton public water supply located in Norton County.
Customers should observe the following precautions until further notice:
Boil water for one minute prior to drinking or food preparation or use bottled water.
Dispose of ice cubes and do not use ice from a household automatic icemaker.
Disinfect dishes and other food contact surfaces by immersion for at least one minute in clean tap water that contains one teaspoon of unscented household bleach per gallon of water.
Water used for bathing does not generally need to be boiled. Supervision of children is necessary while bathing so that water is not ingested. Persons with cuts or severe rashes may wish to consult their physicians.
If your tap water appears dirty, flush the water lines by letting the water run until it clears.
The advisory took effect on June 19, 2018 and will remain in effect until the conditions that placed the system at risk of bacterial contamination are resolved. The advisory is being issued following the loss of pressure. Failure to maintain adequate pressure may result in a loss of chlorine residuals and bacterial contamination.
Regardless of whether the public water supplier or KDHE announced the boil water advisory, only KDHE can issue a cancellation of this advisory following testing at a certified laboratory.
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Restaurants and other food establishments that have questions about the impact of the boil water advisory on their business can contact the Kansas Department of Agriculture’s food safety & lodging program at [email protected] or call 785-564-6767.
Water Restrictions have also been issued by the City of Norton. Due to the blue-green algae warning issued for Sebelius Lake, the City of Norton has directed by executive order per City Ordinance 1479, Section 4, the restriction of water usage for all of its water customers, effective immediately.
KDHE has advised the City to not utilize lake water as a water supply source, which restricts the City to using well water only. The City’s well capacity cannot handle the watering of lawns and other vegetation during this time and asks all water customers to comply with the water conservation measures.
Until further notice, the City prohibits the watering of lawns, washing down of sidewalks, parking lots and driveways. Unnecessary use of water is strongly discouraged during this time. Any violation of this executive order could result in a violation assessment of $25 per day. The City will notify the media and the public when the water restrictions are rescinded.
Preceded by a dust storm in areas of town and high-winds, a fast-moving storm dumped more than 2.5 inches of rain in area of Hays starting Tuesday evening.
Most of Ellis County reported rain total in excess of 2 inches, with the most significant report from Hays at 2.57 inches.
Trego County has a report near WaKeeney of 3.07 inches, with most of the county reporting in excess of 2 inches of rain in the gauge.
Russell County also had significant precipitation from the storm, which came in two waves as the evening progressed, with a report of 2.52 inches in the northwest part of the county.
Smith County reported the highest rain totals in the area, with more than 4 inches in the gauge Wednesday morning.
Skies are expected to clear Wednesday and temperatures are predicted to dip significantly after an extended hot spell. The high Wednesday through Friday will be in the low- to mid-80s, according to the National Weather Service.
ANDERSON COUNTY — Tuesday was a deadly day on Kansas highways. Six people died in four accidents.
Just after 3p.m. in Stevens County, The Kansas Highway Patrol reported a 2014 Buick Enclave driven by Brandon Salas, 17, Satanta, was eastbound on County Road Y eight miles north of U.S. 56.
The driver failed to yield at the stop sign. A southbound semi driven by Kenneth L. Luebbe, 72, Seward, NE., struck the Buick. Salas was pronounced dead at the scene. Luebbe was transported to Stevens County Hospital.
At 5p.m. in Anderson County, the Kansas Highway Patrol reported a 2010 Mustang convertible driven by Richard Lynn Money, 56, Richmond, was northbound on U.S. 59 a mile north of Kansas 31. The vehicle crossed the center line into the southbound lane and struck a 1999 Olds 88 driven by Shawn L. Gill, 57, Garnet, head-on.
A southbound 1999 Chevy S-10 driven by Darla L. Thacker, 68, Garnet, struck both vehicles.
Gill, and a passenger in the Olds Maxarthur Scott Jackson, 27, Garnet, were pronounced dead at the scene. Money and Thacker were transported to Anderson County hospital where he died.
Money was not wearing a seat belt, according to the KHP.
At 5:17p.m. in Sedgwick County, a Yamaha motorcycle driven by David Allen Cook, 41, Eldorado, was northbound on Interstate 235 at MacArthur.
The motorcycle failed to handle the curve and traveled straight through the median, striking a ditch. Cook was ejected from the vehicle and pronounced dead at the scene. He was not wearing a helmet, according to the KHP.
Just before 7:30p.m. in Ness County, a 2017 Ford F150 driven by Shirley K. Weeks, 64, Brownell, was eastbound on 210 Road at Z Road six mile east of Ness City.
A northbound 2014 Dodge 3500 driven by Timothy Turner, 38, Ness City struck the Ford in the intersection. Both vehicles continued northeast into the ditch and then into the field going through a barbed wire fence.
Weeks was transported to Ness County Hospital where she died.
The Ellis County Commission approved the creation the position of Medical Billing Specialist within the Health Services Department at Monday’s commission meeting.
Currently, Health Services has a person responsible for handling billing for EMS and an outside entity handles the billing for the Health Department.
Health Services Administrator Kerry McCue said the move will put one person in charge of all medical billing done for Health Services.
“This would do what I would call accounts payable through accounts receivable,” said McCue.
The position will be created by changing the current Public Health Billing Coordinator position to the Medical Billing Specialist and there is no addition financial impact, according to McCue.
The commission also approved the purchase of a new pickup from Long McArthur for the Noxious Weed Department for a new spray truck.
The pickup cost was $39,995 through Long McArthur in Salina. No local company submitted a bid.
The Road and Bridge Department will build the spray system for approximately $47,600.
The truck will replace a 1995 roadside spray truck.
In other business, the commission heard a budget request from the Western Kansas Children Advocacy Center and a presentation from the Northwest Kansas Planning and Development Commission.
