CITY OF HAYS
The Hays city commission will meet in a work session at 6:30 p.m. tonight.
Agenda items include consideration of the following:
The Aug. 15 agenda is available here.
The meeting starts at 6:30 p.m. in Hays City Hall, 1507 Main.
KDOT
TOPEKA — A series of Local Consult meetings hosted by the Kansas Department of Transportation will give citizens a chance to discuss regional transportation priorities and participate in scenario planning for the future.
“These meetings are an important opportunity for stakeholders to help set the vision for transportation in Kansas,” said Secretary of Transportation Julie Lorenz. “This is a transformational time in transportation, and we need you to help chart our success into the future.”
At the meetings, stakeholders will review facts and trends and explore alternative future possibilities through scenario planning. Stakeholders will also have the opportunity to present information about transportation projects not discussed during last fall’s Joint Legislative Transportation Vision Task Force meetings.
“I strongly encourage you to attend KDOT’s upcoming local consult meetings, so we hear your thoughts and create a transportation system that works for all Kansans, regardless of where they live,” said Gov. Laura Kelly.
The Local Consult meetings are scheduled to take place in August in Salina, Hutchinson, Independence, Overland Park, Topeka, Wichita, Dodge City and Hays.
To view an invitation to the meetings from Gov. Kelly and Secretary Lorenz, click https://vimeo.com/351478294/033c1e70dc
If possible, please contact Mike Moriarty, KDOT Chief of Transportation Planning, at 785-296-8864 or [email protected] to let us know which meeting you plan to attend.
Meeting schedule –
1:30 p.m. – 4:30 p.m., Kansas Highway Patrol Academy, 2025 East Iron
9 a.m. – Noon, Atrium Hotel & Conference Center, 1400 North Lorraine St.
9 a.m. – Noon, Independence Civic Center, 410 N. Penn Ave.
9 a.m. – Noon, Matt Ross Community Center, 8101 Marty Street
1:30 p.m. – 4:30 p.m., Capital Plaza, 1717 SW Topeka Blvd
9 a.m. – Noon, Eugene Metroplex, 5015 East 29th Street N
9 a.m. – Noon, Dodge House Convention Center, 2409 W. Wyatt Earp Blvd.
9 a.m. – Noon; Fort Hays State Union, 700 College Drive
The Kansas Farm Bureau has selected four collegiate fellows from across the state for the 2019-20 school year. The KFB Collegiate Fellows program offers emerging leaders an opportunity to engage in intentional leadership and personal development while learning first-hand about Farm Bureau policy.
Fellows will dedicate a few hours each month during the school year to the program and in turn gain skills, insight and connections to prepare them for success in their education, future career and continued Farm Bureau involvement.
Fellows were chosen through a competitive application process that included written answers and interviews with KFB staff. Fellows will attend a two-day orientation in Manhattan Aug. 24-25 where they will meet with KFB staff, receive leadership development and meet their cohort.
The current class of KFB Fellows includes:
— Submitted
KSRE
MANHATTAN. – With every new farm bill come new decisions for farmers to make that can have lasting implications for their businesses. The most recent legislation is no exception.
To help agricultural producers determine the best course of action, Kansas State University’s Department of Agricultural Economics will host 10 Farm Bill meetings around the state, starting in late August.
The meetings will cover commodity programs, including the economics of the Agriculture Risk Coverage/Price Loss Coverage (ARC/PLC) programs, Supplemental Coverage Option and a new decision tool available for producers.
K-State Research and Extension agricultural economists, extension agents, USDA Farm Service Agency and Natural Resources Conservation Service representatives will provide a big picture perspective, as well as a more local view for each area.
Dates and locations include:
– Mon., Aug. 26 – Hill City – 1-4:30 p.m. CDT – Graham County Fairgrounds
– Tues., Aug. 27 – Goodland – 8:30 a.m.-noon MDT – Elks Lodge
– Tues., Aug. 27 – Leoti – 2:30-6 p.m. CDT – Wichita County Fairgrounds
– Wed., Aug. 28 – Plains – 10:00 a.m.-3 p.m. CDT – Plains Community Building
– Thurs., Aug. 29 – Great Bend – 8:30 a.m.–noon CDT – Great Bend Events Center
– Fri., Aug. 30 – Wichita – 8:30 a.m.–noon CDT – Sedgwick County Extension Office
– Tues., Sept. 3 – Parsons – 1–4:30 p.m. CDT – SE Area Research and Extension Center
– Wed., Sept. 4 – Ottawa – 8:30 a.m.–noon CDT – Franklin County Fairgrounds
– Thurs., Sept. 5 – Seneca – 1–4:30 p.m. CDT – Nemaha County Community Center
– Tues., Sept. 10 – Concordia – 1–4:30 p.m. CDT – Cloud County Fairgrounds
More information and registration is available online or by contacting Rich Llewelyn at 785-532-1594 or [email protected].
One of the many aspects of Fort Hays State University that I really value is how focused we are on making sure our students do not just sit in a classroom but that they actually have an opportunity to apply what they are learning to real-life situations – they “get their hands dirty,” so to speak. We excel at this, and that makes learning rewarding, practical and effective.
As I think about the abundance of opportunities our students have to really engage in their education, I think about the faculty who take the time to design and oversee these amazing experiences, and then I think of the numerous and generous donors who provide funding to support them. Indeed, our university is very blessed.
One of our many generous philanthropists is the Dane G. Hansen Foundation. This past week I spent time with the foundation’s trustees talking about their extraordinary vision and support of entrepreneurship in Northwest Kansas and Hansen Hall on our campus specifically – just one of many ways the Hansen Foundation supports active learning at Fort Hays State.
The Dane G. Hansen Scholarship Hall is a three-story, residential home to 33 students. Each student has a private room, and each floor has a community lounge.
The residents of Hansen Hall are immersed in a living and learning community focused on inspiring creativity, innovation, and opportunities to develop an entrepreneurial mindset that they will carry through their lives – clearly the hallmarks of FHSU! They will spend the year traveling, competing, learning from successful business people and developing skills that will eventually help them become successful, following in the footsteps of the hall’s namesake: Dane G. Hansen.
Soon the students will arrive to begin an incredible year. This year’s residents, representing 16 different majors, will begin building relationships and networks that will support them long after they leave FHSU – emphasizing our belief that entrepreneurs are not confined to business majors.
I loved spending time with the Hansen Foundation trustees. Dr. Melissa Hunsicker Walburn, interim dean of the W.R. and Yvonne Robbins College of Business and Entrepreneurship, talked about the larger vision of business, community connections and how various programming options at FHSU are elements in a vision of an entrepreneurial education program.
She described how our programming includes a variety of inspirational speakers, numerous competitions to challenge students and hone their skills, and opportunities to venture out and connect with thriving businesses that contribute to the regional economy. Most importantly, they are able to connect with business people on a personal level to gain advice and insight.
This year’s activities will also include a Lender’s Rodeo, which involves a partnership with the Robbins Banking Institute and the Small Business Development Center. The event will bring together ideas and financing opportunities.
A highlight from last year’s schedule of events was listening to recent graduate Hayden Hutchinson talk about his experiences as a student fully immersed in the Hansen Hall living and learning community. He was enthusiastic about the friends he made, the environment that turned those friendships toward potential business partnerships, and the thrill of the competitions.
Hayden was on teams that won two Faulkner Challenges, an annual event that provides professional experience in business plan development. One year, Hayden’s team won with a plan for a technology-sensing solution that can rapidly alert law enforcement to live shooter events. Hayden was also the founder of the college’s Collegiate Entrepreneur’s Organization.
I equally enjoyed listening to Dustin Roths describe the highs and lows of his adventures as a budding entrepreneur while he was a student at FHSU. Dustin went on to found Diamond R Jewelry on his 26th birthday.
It is such a gift to have the opportunity to listen to our alumni and former students, their post-graduate stories, and how their lives were influenced by FHSU. I cannot help but smile as they draw me into compelling stories, enthusiasm and wisdom. It does my heart good when I think about how their thriving businesses contribute in so many ways to the prosperity of their communities.
Jason Williby, president and CEO of the FHSU Foundation, shared with the trustees the fact that the Hansen Foundation’s investment in Hansen Hall has been the catalyst for many other programs. The commitment and vision that built the hall enabled FHSU to grow our entrepreneurship activities to their current scale and quality. Their investment also led others to contribute financially to the vision of an entrepreneurial ecosystem with Hansen Hall at its heart.
We are so grateful to the Hansen Foundation for believing in our vision and in our students, and for their ongoing generous support. Together, our eagerness to innovate is pushing students to be their best and cultivating the understanding that their successes become a community success and a university success. We couldn’t be more proud of the partnership we have forged with the Dane G. Hanson Foundation.
By JAMES BELL
Hays Post
The storm that moved through Hays on Tuesday brought hurricane-force winds with it, damaging homes and business throughout Ellis County and the region. But even though the storm did not produce tornados in the area, it demonstrates the destructive power of thunderstorms and associated winds.
“People see severe thunderstorm warning and get almost complacent,” said Bill Turner, lead forecaster at the National Weather Service in Dodge City. “They see the warning and think ‘Big deal, I have been through 84 million of those.’ ”
Strong winds can create significant damage but are often dismissed by the public, he said, due to the frequency of severe thunderstorm warnings across Kansas.
“When you get winds of 80 mph, we put different wording in the warnings, but it’s hard to get the message across that this wind is 80 mph,” he said. “There is a world of difference between a wind of 80 mph and a wind of 60 mph. It’s exponentially worse.”
Discussions about the destructive winds associated with Tuesday’s storm began early Tuesday morning, and the NWS had issued watches and warnings in advance of the approaching storm.
“The watch was up for damaging winds. Social media was covered with stuff,” Turner said. “I think we proved to a lot of people that you don’t need a tornado to rip some stuff down.”
RELATED: 🎥 ‘Blessed no one was hurt,’ say pastors of storm-damaged Ellis Co. church
The level of damage seen in Hays, he said, was directly related to the length of the wind gusting.
“One of the things that made this worse, that was working against us yesterday, wasn’t just the initial wind guests and then it was over, the initial wind gust hit and it continued to gust in some cases 20 to 30 minutes,” Turner said.
At the Hays airport, he said two wind gusts up to 70 were recorded for 20 to 25 minutes.
“There is a big difference between gusting for a few seconds than gusting for 30 minutes,” Turner said. “That’s a long time to batter stuff so stuff weakens and breaks, and the damage is amplified.”
The power transmission lines coming down near Interstate 70 was particularly telling of the strength of the winds.
“It probably took 10 to 15 minutes of hurricane-force winds to take those down,” Turner said.
RELATED: Hays High football team helping with cleanup efforts
Because the wind associated with the storm was so significant, warnings were issued long before the storm front moved into Ellis County in order to give people time to prepare, he said.
“Sometimes we issue a warning and there is nothing going on,” Turner said. “(But) we had 100 percent confident that the thunderstorm complex was going to happen.”
But forecasters were not sure exactly which path those storms would take as they moved across Kansas. Tuesday’s storm began to pick up strength after two storm cells merged around Colby and traveled down the I-70 corridor.
“We weren’t exactly sure if it was going to go south toward Dodge, down 283 or go toward Hays,” he said. “One of the computer models we use a lot took it toward Hays, but it was off on its own, it wasn’t supported by anything else so we broad-brushed the thunderstorms for everybody.
“The details are what really get us in this industry,” Turner said, even with the current technology. “Exactly where that storm is going to go an hour or two in advance is tricky.”
With the severity of the storm Tuesday, Turner said the Hays weather will be “a lot quieter,” but severe weather could be moving back into the Hays area on Thursday or Friday, Turner said, once the atmosphere has time to reload.
Click HERE for updated weather conditions.
Kansas Highway Patrol Trooper Ben Gardner has some advice as a new school year begins. From the Kansas Highway Patrol Troop C Facebook page:
Ellis County
The Ellis County Commission has elected to waive tree dumping fees from now through August 24, 2019.
All persons transporting tree limbs during this time frame (including licensed tree trimmers) may bypass the scale.
We ask that all drivers use caution while on the landfill property, due to high volume traffic.
Please direct any questions to the Ellis County Landfill, 785-628-9460.
HAYS POST
From Midwest Energy:
FINAL UPDATE 5:30 p.m.: From 7,000 without power this morning, crews made tremendous progress!
There are currently just 10 without power 20 hours later.
All but a handful of residential customers in the Hays area are back online at this time.
Great Bend district crews have restored all of their outages.
In the Hays area, we want to thank our crews from Colby, Oakley and WaKeeney for the extra help!
Thank you to everyone for your patience and understanding today… it’s not been an easy day, but when folks appreciate what you do, you go the extra mile to get them back online. Have a safe and enjoyable evening!
By CRISTINA JANNEY
Hays Post
New Hays USD 489 Superintendent Ron Wilson spent what was supposed to be the first day of a new school year assessing empty schools for storm damage.
The storm that barreled through Hays on Tuesday night, bringing winds of up to 78 mph, blew out windows in a classroom at Hays Middle School. The school’s gymnasium took on water, although Wilson said school officials did not think the floor was damaged. Hallways at HMS also were flooded with water.
Lincoln Elementary School, which is in an older, low-lying area of Hays, also had flooding issues. Water blew in under doors and in through Lincoln’s aging windows. A hallway and several classrooms also took on water. Covers were blown off the school’s roof, which Wilson said also contributed to the school’s water issues.
The Learning Center in the basement of Rockwell Administration Center also flooded.
The rest of the schools took on smaller amounts of water, but Wilson said all schools will be open for business for a second try at the first day of school Thursday.
“At this point, I feel really good we have been able to get everything where it needs to be, so we are ready to roll tomorrow morning,” he said.
Elementary students will go for a half day on Thursday and middle and high school students will go a full day on Thursday.
Wilson said he took in several factors when deciding to close school Wednesday.
Not only were several buildings dealing with damage and power outages, he was concerned about the ability of parents, children and staff to get to school safely considering the street flooding, downed power lines and tree damage of Tuesday night.
“I wanted to give our students a better start than having to paddle their way to the first day of school,” he said.
He also hoped to give the students and staff the opportunity to help their families with cleanup at their homes.
The Hays High School football team volunteered Wednesday to help with cleanup, which Wilson said he thought was an important lesson for the students in civic duty.
Wilson also praised the custodial and maintenance staff who where at the schools past midnight and back at the schools early Wednesday morning working on cleanup.
“They left their homes and families in the middle of the night to attack the issues in the buildings,” Wilson said. “I can’t understate these are great people doing great things for our schools. I can’t give enough credit for what they do at our schools. I want everyone to know that the custodial and maintenance crew were amazing last night.”
Wilson said he did not have an estimate at this time of the total cost of the damage in the district.
By CRISTINA JANNEY
Hays Post
At about 3:30 p.m. Wednesday afternoon, Hays fire crews were called to a structure fire at 429-1/2 E. Eighth St.
Crews were still on scene at 4 p.m. Wednesday. Eighth Street was closed to all traffic between Allen and Walnut Streets while crews worked the fire.
As of 4 p.m., the fire was out and crews were working to ventilate the building, according to scanner reports.
Check Hays Post for more as details become available.
By JAMES BELL
Hays Post
The storm that moved through Hays on Tuesday brought hurricane-force winds with it, damaging homes and business throughout Ellis County and the region. But even though the storm did not produce tornados in the area, it demonstrates the destructive power of thunderstorms and associated winds.
“People see severe thunderstorm warning and get almost complacent,” said Bill Turner, lead forecaster at the National Weather Service in Dodge City. “They see the warning and think ‘Big deal, I have been through 84 million of those.’ ”
Strong winds can create significant damage but are often dismissed by the public, he said, due to the frequency of severe thunderstorm warnings across Kansas.
“When you get winds of 80 mph, we put different wording in the warnings, but it’s hard to get the message across that this wind is 80 mph,” he said. “There is a world of difference between a wind of 80 mph and a wind of 60 mph. It’s exponentially worse.”
Discussions about the destructive winds associated with Tuesday’s storm began early Tuesday morning, and the NWS had issued watches and warnings in advance of the approaching storm.
“The watch was up for damaging winds. Social media was covered with stuff,” Turner said. “I think we proved to a lot of people that you don’t need a tornado to rip some stuff down.”
RELATED: 🎥 ‘Blessed no one was hurt,’ say pastors of storm-damaged Ellis Co. church
The level of damage seen in Hays, he said, was directly related to the length of the wind gusting.
“One of the things that made this worse, that was working against us yesterday, wasn’t just the initial wind guests and then it was over, the initial wind gust hit and it continued to gust in some cases 20 to 30 minutes,” Turner said.
At the Hays airport, he said two wind gusts up to 70 were recorded for 20 to 25 minutes.
“There is a big difference between gusting for a few seconds than gusting for 30 minutes,” Turner said. “That’s a long time to batter stuff so stuff weakens and breaks, and the damage is amplified.”
The power transmission lines coming down near Interstate 70 was particularly telling of the strength of the winds.
“It probably took 10 to 15 minutes of hurricane-force winds to take those down,” Turner said.
RELATED: Hays High football team helping with cleanup efforts
Because the wind associated with the storm was so significant, warnings were issued long before the storm front moved into Ellis County in order to give people time to prepare, he said.
“Sometimes we issue a warning and there is nothing going on,” Turner said. “(But) we had 100 percent confident that the thunderstorm complex was going to happen.”
But forecasters were not sure exactly which path those storms would take as they moved across Kansas. Tuesday’s storm began to pick up strength after two storm cells merged around Colby and traveled down the I-70 corridor.
“We weren’t exactly sure if it was going to go south toward Dodge, down 283 or go toward Hays,” he said. “One of the computer models we use a lot took it toward Hays, but it was off on its own, it wasn’t supported by anything else so we broad-brushed the thunderstorms for everybody.
“The details are what really get us in this industry,” Turner said, even with the current technology. “Exactly where that storm is going to go an hour or two in advance is tricky.”
With the severity of the storm Tuesday, Turner said Wednesday night in Hays will be “a lot quieter.”
“After these big events, it takes the atmosphere so time to recover,” he said but added a few small storms could pop up around the Colorado border.
Severe weather could be moving back into the Hays area on Thursday or Friday, Turner said, once the atmosphere has time to reload.
Click HERE for updated weather conditions.
