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Hundreds of state workers shuffled into new positions

TOPEKA, Kan. (AP) — Hundreds of state workers have been shuffled into news positions at the Kansas Department of Health and Environment and other agencies.

The Topeka Capital-Journal reports that documents show Gov. Sam Brownback ordered the moves based on a study the effected workers haven’t seen. Kansas Organization of State Employees director Rebecca Proctor says that without seeing the study, workers are left in the dark.

An executive directive signed last week by Brownback abolishes 18 job classifications and replaces them with 16 new classifications. The positions affected range from environmental technicians to geologists and program services managers.

KDHE spokeswoman Sara Belfry says the changes were made in response to a study by the Department of Administration over the past two years to determine whether changes to job classifications were necessary.

Housekeeper, nephew arrested for Kan. motel theft UPDATED

Thayer and LaFleur
Thayer and LaFleur

NOTICE OF CORRECTION: An earlier version of this story contained information from the Salina Police Department that incorrectly identified Scotty LaFleur as the son of Barbara Thayer. LaFleur is actually the nephew of Thayer. The information in this story has been corrected.

 

SALINA – Law enforcement authorities in Saline County are investigating a reported theft at a local motel.

Police say a North Carolina woman reported she left her purse in her room when she checked out of the Econo Lodge Inn and Suites at 1846 N. 9th Street on Monday morning. The purse contained at least $368 in cash.

A check of security video determined the purse had been taken by a housekeeper at the motel Barbra Thayer, 67, and her nephew Scotty LaFleur, 44, both of Salina.

They were arrested and booked into the Saline County Jail Tuesday morning on requested charges of burglary and theft.

The purse and contents were not recovered.

11 quakes recorded within 2 Kansas counties in past week

USGS earthquake map over the past 7 days-click to enlarge
USGS earthquake map over the past 7 days-click to enlarge

HUTCHINSON, Kan. (AP) — Geologists are reporting a spate of earthquakes in south-central Kansas.

The Hutchinson News reports that in the past week, there have been 11 quakes within the neighboring Kansas counties of Sumner and Harper. U.S. Geological Survey data shows the most activity was in Sumner County, which experienced six quakes. That included four within one tight cluster near Caldwell – though on multiple dates – and two others nearly on top of each other.

The majority of quakes were below magnitude 2. None had a magnitude stronger than 2.5.

Power restored after widespread outage on KU campus

LAWRENCE, Kan. (AP) — The lights are back on at the University of Kansas after an electrical circuit failure caused widespread outages at the Lawrence campus.

The Lawrence Journal World reports that the outage happened Thursday morning. Westar representative Jaycee Breese says the university began restoring power slowly, so equipment wouldn’t be overloaded. The university says power was restored to all buildings by 12:17 p.m.

Officials work to identify body found at Fort Riley

Fort RileyFORT RILEY, Kan. (AP) — Efforts to identify a body found at the Fort Riley military base are taking more than a week.

The Manhattan Mercury reports that the body was found Sept. 22 in a non-military vehicle. Army’s Criminal Investigation Command spokesman Chris Grey wrote in an email that agents are working with the Armed Forces Medical Examiner to identify the remains.

He says no information will be released until identification is made.

Symphony in the Flint Hills will perform in central Kan. pasture

COTTONWOOD FALLS, Kan. (AP) — An annual event that brings the Kansas City Symphony to the Flint Hills will use a remote central Kansas pasture for next year’s performance.

The Kansas City Star reports that the spot near Clements in Chase County is the same location used in 2010 for the popular sunset performance. The theme of the June 11, 2016, concert is “The Future of the Flint Hills.”

Tickets for the show will cost $94 for adults and $50 for children under 12. They will go on sale in early spring.

WSU to host anniversary of 1970 football team plane crash

Section of the wing with landing gear still visible at crash site-photo Hutch Post
Section of the wing with landing gear at the crash site-photo Hutch Post

WICHITA, Kan. (AP) — Wichita State University is commemorating the 45th anniversary of a crash that killed 31 people aboard a plane carrying the school’s football team.

KAKE-TV reports that the ceremony gets started Friday morning. The crash of the plane carrying the team’s starters happened on Oct. 2, 1970, in the Rocky Mountains in Colorado. Among the dead were 14 players, coach Ben Wilson and his wife, boosters, administrators and three crew members. Nine survived, eight of them players.

Another charter plane, carrying reserve players and other coaches took a different route and landed safely in Logan, Utah, where the Shockers were scheduled to play Utah State the next day.

The survivors resumed the season two weeks later in Arkansas, receiving permission to use freshman to field a team. They finished 0-9.

Police: Kan. deputy’s window shot out

WICHITA, Kan. (AP) — Authorities say a Sedgwick County sheriff’s deputy was driving near downtown Wichita when the passenger-side window of his patrol car was shot out.

Sheriff’s Capt. Greg Pollock said the deputy was driving around 4:35 p.m. Thursday when the window shattered. The deputy was not injured.

Pollock said authorities believe someone fired a pellet gun at the vehicle.

The investigation is ongoing.

Man arrested in Kan. fire that left 1 injured

TOPEKA, Kan. (AP) — A man has been arrested in connection with a fire that left one person injured in Topeka.

The Topeka Capital-Journal reports the 49-year-old man was arrested Thursday morning and faces one count of aggravated arson and one count of aggravated battery.

Authorities say a fire was reported around 2:40 a.m. Thursday at an apartment complex. Fire Marshal Michael Martin said one person was able to escape and call 911 and fire crews rescued another person.

A man believed to be in his 50s was taken to the hospital with injuries that are considered to be possibly life-threatening.

Report: Equus Beds aquifer recovering due to Wichita efforts

WICHITA, Kan. (AP) — The U.S. Geological Survey says the Equus Beds aquifer is recovering thanks to Wichita’s water conservation efforts.

The agency said Thursday that groundwater levels in the central part of the aquifer where the city operates its water supply wells increased by three feet from 2014 to 2015.

It says the increase is likely due to the city reducing withdrawals from the aquifer in 2014 by more than 50 percent, the smallest amount since 1940.

Wichita developed strategies in 1993 to reduce the amount of water it pumped from the aquifer from about 60 to 40 percent of its total usage. The move came amid concerns about the future water supply for Wichita amid declines in groundwater levels of more than 10 feet.

The aquifer is now 96 percent full.

2 hospitalized after semis collide

SEVERY- Two people were injured in an accident just after 4 p.m. on Thursday in Greenwood County.

The Kansas Highway Patrol reported a 2010 Freightliner semi driven by Arnulfo Garcia Ayala, 65, San Antonio, TX., was traveling eastbound on U.S. 400 two miles north of Severy.

The semi turned left off U.S.400 onto Road R in front of a 2005 International semi driven by David Edward Taylor, 41, Topeka that was westbound on U.S. 400. The International struck the Freightliner.

Ayala was transported to Greenwood County Hospital. Taylor was flown from the scene to a hospital for treatment.

Both drivers were properly restrained at the time of the accident, according to the KHP.

Numerous casualties in Oregon community college shooting UPDATE

ROSEBURG, Ore. (AP) — The latest on the deadly shooting Thursday at a community college in Oregon (all times local):

11 p.m.

The father of a man who officials have identified as the shooter who opened fire at an Oregon community college says he’s as shocked as anybody at the deaths of 10 people including his son.

Ian Mercer spoke to KABC-TV and several other media outlets gathered outside his house in Tarzana, California late Thursday night.

He said it’s been a “devastating day” for him and his family and said he has been talking to police and the FBI about the shooting.

He refused to answer questions and asked that his family’s privacy be respected.

Authorities say the gunman opened fire at Umpqua (UHMP’-kwah) Community College, killing nine before dying during an exchange of gunfire with officers.

A government official identified the killer as Chris Harper Mercer. The official provided the name on condition of anonymity because he was not authorized to speak publicly.

___

7:55 p.m.

Residents have gathered at a Roseburg, Oregon, park for a vigil for the victims of a deadly mass shooting.

The crowd gathered around 8 p.m. at Stewart Park in the city about 180 miles south of Portland. Many people held up candles as the hymn “Amazing Grace” was played.

Twenty-six-year-old Chris Harper Mercer opened fire Thursday at Umpqua (UHMP’-kwah) Community College.

He killed nine people before dying during an exchange of gunfire with officers. It wasn’t clear if Mercer was killed by authorities or took his own life.

___

7:30 p.m.

An Oregon sheriff is praising law enforcement officers for their heroic actions during a deadly mass shooting at a community college.

Douglas County Sheriff John Hanlin says at least two officers responded to the rampage within minutes and exchanged gunfire with the shooter.

Authorities say the 26-year-old gunman killed nine people Thursday at Umpqua (UHMP’-kwah) Community College in Roseburg, about 180 miles south of Portland.

The gunman died after the shootout with officers.

Hanlin says he won’t be speaking the shooter’s name.

“I will not give him the credit he probably sought prior to this horrific and cowardly act,” he said.

___

7:20 p.m.

A neighbor of the man who went on a deadly shooting rampage at an Oregon college says he “seemed really unfriendly.”

Bronte Harte lived below 26-year-old Chris Harper Mercer in an apartment complex in the community of Winchester. She says Mercer would “sit by himself in the dark in the balcony with this little light.”

Hart says a woman she believed to be Mercer’s mother also lived upstairs and was “crying her eyes out” Thursday.

Mercer was identified as the man who opened fire at Umpqua (UHMP’-kwah) Community College, killing nine people.

He died after exchanging gunfire with responding officers.

___

7:10 p.m.

A government official says the man who opened fire at an Oregon community college was 26-year-old Chris Harper Mercer.

The official wasn’t authorized to speak publicly and provided the name on condition of anonymity.

Mercer killed nine people at Umpqua (UHMP’-kwah) Community College before he died during an exchange of gunfire with officers Thursday.

The college is in Roseburg, about 180 miles south of Portland.

 

7 p.m.

Government official: Man who opened fire at Oregon college was Chris Harper Mercer, 26.

6:40 p.m.

Federal authorities say the gunman is among the 10 people killed in a shooting at an Oregon college.

FBI spokeswoman Beth Anne Steele declined to provide other information about the shooter.

Douglas County Sheriff John Hanlin says seven others were injured when the gunman opened fire Thursday at Umpqua (UHMP’-kwah) Community College.

Three of them were transferred to Eugene-area hospitals in critical condition.

Hanlin has said the shooter died after exchanging gunfire with police.

___

5:45 p.m.

Officials at Mercy Medical Center in Roseburg, Oregon, say four people injured in a deadly mass shooting remain hospitalized there but are expected to survive.

Dr. Jason Gray, chief medical officer, says three other patients were transferred to a hospital in Springfield.

Gray says one of the four people still at Mercy Medical Center is in critical condition and the others are stable.

He says some of the victims who were taken to the hospital suffered multiple gunshot wounds.

They were injured when a gunman opened fire at Umpqua (UHMP’-kwah) Community College.

___

5:05 p.m.

A sheriff says 10 people were killed in a shooting at an Oregon community college.

Douglas County Sheriff John Hanlin says 10 dead and another seven injured is the “best, most accurate information we have at this time.”

Earlier, Oregon Attorney General Ellen Rosenblum said 13 people were killed in the rampage at Umpqua (UHMP’-kwah) Community College in Roseburg.

It’s unclear what led to the discrepancy. Hanlin has said the gunman died after a shootout with police. He didn’t clarify whether the shooter was included in the 10 fatalities.

Hanlin says three people who were critically injured in the shooting have been transferred to hospitals in the Eugene area.
4:10 p.m.

Royals left-hander Jeremy Guthrie says he’s keeping his Oregon hometown in his prayers after a mass shooting at a local community college.

Guthrie was born in Roseburg and lived there until he was 12. But he moved just 100 miles away and visited there often after he left. His father sold cars in the community for about 20 years.

“I used to ride around that entire town on my bicycle,” he said before the Royals faced the White Sox in Chicago. “When we went somewhere, we jumped on our bikes and rode down to the shoe store, the mall, and as such you got to know people.”

Guthrie says he has several cousins, aunts and uncles who still live in the Roseburg area.

“Certainly in those smaller towns everybody knows each other, so I’m sure there are many people that are directly feeling the pain today,” he said.

___

4 p.m.

Vice President Joe Biden is predicting investigators will find that a semi-automatic or automatic weapon was used in the Oregon college shooting.

Biden is speaking at a global summit in New York. He says it’s still too early to know all the details, but he’s basing his guess on the large number of people killed and injured.

The vice president is renewing his call for what describes as “sane gun legislation.” He says the Second Amendment doesn’t allow someone to own a bazooka.

Biden says there’s almost nothing worse than getting a phone call saying, “Your child is gone.” He’s alluding to his own son’s brain cancer death earlier this year.

Biden spoke after 13 people were killed by a 20-year-old gunman at Umpqua (UHMP’-kwah) Community College in Roseburg.

___

3:40 p.m.

President Barack Obama says the U.S. is becoming numb to mass shootings and says their perpetrators have “sickness” in their minds.

He says thoughts and prayers are no longer enough in these situations because they don’t do anything to stop similar acts from happening in the next week or a few months later.

Obama spoke Thursday after 13 people were killed by a 20-year-old gunman at Umpqua (UHMP’-kwah) Community College in southwestern Oregon.

___

3:20 p.m.

Hospitals are reporting they have received at least 13 patients from the shooting at Umpqua (UHMP’-kwah) Community College in southwestern Oregon.

Monique Danziger, a spokeswoman for Sacred Heart Medical Center in Springfield, Oregon, says three women, ages 18-34, were flown to the hospital from Roseburg. She says their conditions were not available.

Mercy Medical Center in Roseburg has at least 10 patients. Their conditions were also not available.

A spokeswoman at Oregon Health and Science University in Portland says they hadn’t heard of any patients transported there, but said that could change.

Authorities say 13 people were killed in Thursday’s shooting. The 20-year-old gunman died during a shootout with police.

___

3:10 p.m.

President Barack Obama will make a statement on the deadly mass shooting at an Oregon community college.

The White House says the statement is scheduled for 6:20 p.m. Eastern time in the press briefing room.

Obama last addressed a deadly mass shooting in June, when nine parishioners were killed at a historic black church in Charleston, South Carolina.

At the time, Obama said the shootings showed the need for a national reckoning on gun violence.

The shooting Thursday by a 20-year-old gunman left 13 people dead and at least 20 injured at Umpqua (UHMP’-kwah) Community College. The school is in Roseburg, about 180 miles south of Portland.

___

3 p.m.

Officials at high schools in an around an Oregon city where a mass shooting took place say they’re preparing to support people affected by the killings.

Sutherlin High School Principal Justin Huntley says his school has counselors available to students after the deadly rampage Thursday at Umpqua (UHMP’-kwah) Community College in Roseburg. Sutherlin is about 13 miles north of that city.

Authorities say a 20-year-old gunman killed 13 people and injured at least 20 at the college campus.

Roseburg Public Schools Superintendent Gerry Washburn says a large number of Roseburg High School students go straight to Umpqua Community College after graduation.

“It’s a small, tight community, and there is no doubt that we will have staff and students that have family and friends impacted by this event,” Washburn said. “We’re just trying to get ready to support them.”

___

2:30 p.m.

Democratic presidential candidate Hillary Rodham Clinton says of the deadly shooting in Roseburg, Oregon, that it’s beyond her comprehension that “we are seeing these mass murders happen again and again and again.”

Thursday’s shooting at Umpqua (UHMP’-kwah) Community College left 13 dead and 20 injured.

Clinton said after a Dorchester, Massachusetts, campaign event that the nation needs to “get the political will to do everything we can to keep people safe.”

She says there’s a way to have sensible gun control measures that keep firearms out of the wrong hands and save lives. The former secretary of state says she’s committed to doing everything she can to achieve that.

Meanwhile, the Justice Department says U.S. Attorney General Loretta Lynch is receiving regular briefings from the FBI and the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives, which have agents at the scene.

___

2:10 p.m.

A student at the Oregon community college where a mass shooting occurred says the gunman shot her teacher and asked others in her classroom about their religion before spraying more bullets.

Eighteen-year-old Kortney Moore of Rogue River tells the Roseburg News-Review newspaper that she was in a writing class at Umpqua (UHMP’-kwah) Community College in Roseburg on Thursday when a shot came through a window.

The gunman entered her classroom and told people to get on the ground.

Moore says the man started asking people to stand up and state their religion and then opened fire.

The shooting left 13 people dead and at least 20 injured.

Douglas County Sheriff John Hanlin says authorities responded and exchanged gunfire with the man. He says the shooter died at the scene, but he didn’t say whether the man killed himself or was shot by police.

2 p.m.

Oregon Gov. Kate Brown says the gunman in a deadly mass shooting at a community college was a 20-year-old man.

Authorities say the man is dead after killing 13 people and injuring at least 20 others at Umpqua (UHMP’-kwah) Community College in Roseburg, about 180 miles south of Portland.

Douglas County Sheriff John Hanlin says authorities received calls from the college at about 10:30 a.m. reporting an active shooter in one of the classrooms.

Officers responded and found the gunman on campus. Hanlin says they exchanged gunfire with the man, and he died in or near a classroom.

Hanlin didn’t say whether the gunman killed himself or was killed by police.

1:30 p.m.

Oregon Attorney General Ellen Rosenblum says 13 people are dead after a gunman opened fire at a community college in the rural city of Roseburg.

The shooting happened Thursday morning on the campus of Umpqua (UMP’-kwah) Community College, about 180 miles south of Portland.

Authorities said earlier that at least seven people were dead. More than 20 other people were injured.

Andrea Zielinski, spokeswoman for Douglas County sheriff’s office, says the threat to the school has subsided. She declined to say whether the gunman was taken into custody or killed.

Meanwhile, the FBI says it’s sending teams to Roseburg to assist.

————————

ROSEBURG, Ore. (AP) — State police in southwestern Oregon say at least seven people were killed and 20 injured today in a shooting at a community college.


The shooting happened at Umpqua Community College in Roseburg, about 180 miles south of Portland. The local fire district advised people via Twitter to stay away from the school. It later tweeted that there were “multiple casualties,” but didn’t elaborate.

A state police lieutenant told KATU-TV that seven to 10 people were dead and at least 20 others were injured. A photographer for the Roseburg News-Review newspaper said he saw people being loaded into multiple ambulances and taken to the local hospital.

Umpqua Community College has about 3,000 students.

Rail corridor purchase could link Kansas City to St. Louis

KANSAS CITY, Mo. (AP) — Jackson County and the Kansas City Area Transportation Authority have announced the $52 million purchase of a rail corridor from Lee’s Summit to near the Truman Sports Complex.

The Kansas City Star reports that should the deal go through, the new link would connect Kansas City with Missouri’s cross-state Katy Trail, allowing cyclists to ride all the way to St. Louis. Commuter rail service could also access the corridor if financing is found for the project.

Under the agreement, Jackson county will borrow money to buy the rail corridor, but the transport agency will share in making debt payments totaling $2.8 million annually for 30 years.

No tax increases are anticipated, officials said. And they hope the corridor will eventually produce revenue to help pay down the debt.

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