SEDGWICK COUNTY – A Kansas teen died on Sunday in a Colorado hospital after an accident while on a ski trip.

According to the family’s GoFundMe page, Tess Smith, 15, Wichita, was unresponsive since the accident and there was nothing more doctors at Children’s Hospital in Aurora could do.

The family chose for her to be an organ donor to assist the lives of up to eight others.

A GoFundMe page has been established to help with medical expenses, transportation and burial.

WASHINGTON – Federal scientists forecast that Oklahoma will continue to have the nation’s biggest man-made earthquake problem but 2017 probably won’t be as shaky as recent years.

In February, the USGS reported six earthquakes in Kansas.

The strongest measured 3.3 on February 22, and was centered four miles northeast of Anthony in Harper County. Another 3.3 quake hit just north of the Oklahoma State line in Sumner County on February 13. A 2.6 quake shook Sumner County on Sunday morning.

In its annual national earthquake outlook, the U.S. Geological Survey reported this week that a large portion of Oklahoma and parts of central California have the highest risk for a damaging quake this year: between 5 and 12 percent.

Seismologists say Oklahoma’s problem is triggered by high volume ground injections of wastewater from oil and gas drilling.

USGS seismic hazard chief Mark Petersen says Oklahoma’s recent regulation wastewater injection is starting to work, so scientists slightly reduced Oklahoma’s risk this year.

– The AP contributed to this report.

HARVEYVILLE, Kan. (AP) — Five years after a tornado killed one person, injured about a dozen more and destroyed up to 40 percent of the small eastern Kansas town of Harveyville, officials are proud of the rebuilding progress but acknowledge more needs to be done.

The EF-2 tornado hit Harveyville, in Wabaunsee County just after 9 p.m. on Feb. 28, 2012. Residents, people from surrounding communities and many organizations quickly came together to get the town back on its feet, current Mayor Dustin Kuntz told The Emporia Gazette,

“We were so blessed by the love and support from other people, communities and agencies,” Kuntz said. “It was almost more than we could accept at one time. If you think about water going into a funnel, there’s only so much it will let through, and we had a funnel going on here. There was so much help. It was just so incredible it became a challenge to administrate it efficiently.”

Kuntz also credited the Harveyville Area Rebuilding Team, which consolidated community organizations and resources to help get residents back on their feet.

The mayor said a family occasionally moves into an empty lot and several residents have rebuilt.

Amy Terrapin, emergency management coordinator for Wabaunsee County, said residents stepped up.

“The community of Harveyville didn’t sit around and pity themselves,” Terrapin said. “They didn’t sit around and wait for the federal, state or local government to come pick things up. They got out their dump trucks and tractors and got to work.”

Today, the city has a new park and playground and a storm shelter. A group of mothers who were tired of taking their children to other communities to play in a nice park put on a bake sale and other events and received some memorial donations. They gave the town between $16,000 and $17,000 to use as matching funds to obtain grants.

When the twister hit, residents weren’t warned because the tornado siren had to be activated manually and it wasn’t. Now, the city has a new siren that can be remotely activated by the Wabaunsee County Sheriff’s Office.

A new United Methodist Church sits in the same location where the former church was destroyed. Some of the church’s original stained glass was created into an art piece by Breanna Strohm, the niece of Richard Slade, who died from injuries he suffered in the tornado. The piece sits in the church’s sanctuary.

“To see what we have today compared to what we had before and what got destroyed, it blows you away,” said longtime resident Larry Montgomery.

But Kuntz said the town still lives with some long-term repercussions from the storm.

“It would be nice if every empty lot had families that attended your churches and your schools, but we still have empty lots — we haven’t fully recovered yet,” he said.

RENO COUNTY — The Kansas man sentenced to just over 12 years in prison in a marijuana distribution case is seeking an appeal of that sentence.

Gerardo Saucedo, 34, Hutchinson, entered pleas in the case as charged and was sentenced to prison by Judge Tim Chambers.

He filed an appeal of that sentence, but the state is now asking that the appeal be dismissed, noting that the defendant has failed to have the appeal docketed in a timely manner.

It was filed in March of last year, but as of Jan. 30, had not been docketed.

The issue was scheduled for hearing Friday in front of Judge Tim Chambers.

The Kansas Court of Appeals reported they did receive the motion to have it placed on their docket and they accepted, so the case is pending a hearing in Topeka.

On Friday, Reno County Deputy District Attorney Tom Stanton says he isn’t even sure of what Saucedo is appealing.

He was not sentenced under the sentencing guidelines because Judge Chambers granted a departure or Saucedo would have been spending more time in prison.

In April of 2014, Saucedo was arrested after a search warrant was served on his home.

Police found around 90 pounds of marijuana in brick form believed to be from Mexico. They also found numerous containers of high-grade marijuana scattered throughout the home, as well as new packaging materials, a digital scale and some weapons.

He was convicted of possession of marijuana with intent to sell, possession of drug paraphernalia with intent to

SUMNER COUNTY – An earthquake shook portions of Kansas early Sunday.

The quake, just after 6 a.m., measured 2.6 and was centered approximately 17-miles northeast of Caldwell in Sumner County, according to the U.S. Geological Survey.

In February, the agency recorded six Kansas earthquakes. They measured from 2.5-3.3. The February 13 quake was also in Sumner County.

It measured 3.3 and was centered in rural area just north of the Kansas-Oklahoma State line, according to the USGS.

There have no reports of damage or injury from Sunday’s quake.

By MEG WINGERTER

All three of the private insurance companies that manage the Kansas Medicaid program made a profit on it in 2016 — the first year that has occurred.

UnitedHealthcare was by far the most financially successful of the three, with $30.2 million in profits. Sunflower State Health Plan, a subsidiary of Centene, had a $5.5 million profit and Amerigroup made about $3.4 million.

The three companies lost millions in 2013 and 2014, the first two years of KanCare.

State officials announced the 2016 results at last week’s meeting of the Robert G. (Bob) Bethell Joint Committee on Home and Community Based Services and KanCare Oversight.

Mike Randol, director of the Division of Health Care Finance at the Kansas Department of Health and Environment, told the committee members that financial losses are typical in the first years of a managed care program.

For Sunflower, 2016 was the first year it made a profit on KanCare operations. It lost about $12 million in 2015.

The company declined to offer specific information about why its fortunes had improved, but Chris Coffey, Sunflower’s president and CEO, said he was pleased with the results, which he said would allow more investments in community health initiatives.

Amerigroup’s profits were down substantially in 2016 from $24.2 million the previous year, a drop of about $21 million. A spokeswoman declined to comment on the results.

UnitedHealthcare showed little change, with profits increasing from $29.4 million in 2015 to $30.2 million in 2016.

Medicaid is a state-federal partnership in which the federal government pays about 60 percent of the costs. The $3 billion KanCare program provides health care coverage for about 425,000 people — most of them low-income children, pregnant women and people with disabilities.

Rep. Jim Ward, a Democrat from Wichita and a longtime KanCare critic, questioned whether the profits resulted from denials of coverage or services. Some members of the public who spoke at the committee meeting said they were denied services or inexplicably lost coverage, though others praised employees of the insurance companies who helped them navigate the health care system.

The government provides KanCare coverage for people with disabilities because insurance companies couldn’t do so and still make a profit, Ward said.

“Medicaid wouldn’t exist if you could provide these services through the private sector,” he said.

Some legislators not ideologically opposed to privatization also wanted more information, however. Rep. Dan Hawkins, a Republican from Wichita, asked KDHE officials to provide more data about the companies’ profit margins but didn’t indicate what he thought was an appropriate amount.

“I would certainly think the MCOs making a profit is healthy,” he said.

The state’s waiver for KanCare ends in December. Federal officials denied a request to extend the program as it is, so Kansas will have to come up with a renewal plan in the next few months. Federal regulators pointed to problems with KanCare, but state officials attributed them to political games by the outgoing administration of former President Barack Obama.

Meg Wingerter is a reporter for kcur.org‘s Kansas News Service, a collaboration of KCUR, Kansas Public Radio and KMUW covering health, education and politics in Kansas. You can reach her on Twitter @MegWingerter. 

RENO COUNTY –Two task forces monitored the fire in the Highlands area near Hutchinson overnight.

Just after 9 p.m., residents in the area were allowed to return to their homes, according to the Reno County Sheriff’s Department.

Residents were advised to use a garden hose to put out any embers that come into yards and not call 911 every time a glow is spotted. If there is an open active flame currently threatening a structure, then call 911.

It is estimated 1200 acres have been burned in the other Reno County fire in Jupiter Hills Fire. It is 80 percent contained.

All roads, except 69th Avenue from Old K-61 to Mayfield and 56th Avenue from Old K-61 to the dead end have been opened.

The county has declared a state of emergency which will help bring in state resources to help.
Critical fire weather conditions will continue the next few days.

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HUTCHINSON, Kan. (AP) — A grass fire is forcing some evacuations north of Hutchinson after burning more than 1,000 acres.

Officials say at least two house fires were reported Sunday in the Highlands area near Hutchinson. No injuries have been reported but residents in the area have been asked to evacuate.

The fire had burned more than 1,200 acres. Officials say the fire was about 80 percent contained Sunday afternoon.

Interim Hutchinson Fire Department Chief Doug Hanen says fire crews are working to control numerous hot spots in the fire.

Twenty firefighting units responded to the blaze.

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HUTCHINSON, Kan. (AP) — A grass fire north of Hutchinson is mostly under control after burning more than 1,000 acres.

The fire was about 80 percent contained as of Sunday afternoon.

Kathleen Fabrizuis with the Kansas State Incident Management Team says the fire was reported earlier on Sunday. Twenty firefighting units responded to the blaze.

The fire burned at least 1,200 acres but no injuries or evacuations were required. Two sheds were damaged by the fire.

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RENO COUNTY – Fire crews were busy fighting grass fires in several areas of Kansas on Saturday as a result of the dry, windy conditions

Fire crews battled a large grass fire on Kansas 18 highway in the area of T Road in Rooks County late Saturday afternoon. Officials temporarily closed Kansas 18 from Damar to Palco.

Just before 2:30 p.m. in Reno County fire crews were called to a fire along 43rd east of old Kansas 61. By the time crews arrived the fire had spread as far north as 69th, according to Deputy Fire Chief Doug Hanen.

Over 40 units and 100 firefighters were helping fight the blaze. They had it 75 percent contained late Saturday. Two sheds were damaged, according to Hanen. There were no injuries reported. Reno County Commissioners signed a disaster declaration in order to seek assistance from the state.

Cause of the fires is still under investigation.

LAWRENCE, Kan. (AP) — A former para-educator for the Lawrence school district has been convicted of sexually abusing one of her students.

A Douglas County jury on Friday found 34-year-old Teri Lynn Johnson, of Baldwin City, guilty of unlawful sexual relations, sexual exploitation of a child and promoting obscenity to minors.

The Lawrence Journal-World reports her victim, who is now an adult, testified during the trial that he met Johnson while he was a student at the Douglas County Juvenile Detention Center’s Day School.

The victim said his father eventually discovered sexual images and messages from Johnson on his phone.

Johnson will be sentenced April 14.

JOHN HANNA, AP Political Writer

TOPEKA, Kan. (AP) — A big tax increase for Kansas appears inevitable as the state wrestles with budget problems.

Even many Republicans are focused on rolling back past income tax cuts that are GOP Gov. Sam Brownback’s biggest political legacy. GOP moderates were working with Democrats in both chambers.

A state Supreme Court ruling this week that the state isn’t spending enough money on its public schools only bolstered many lawmakers’ support for raising income taxes.

The court directed legislators to enact a new school funding law by June 30 without setting a spending target. Figures lawmakers are circulating involve hundreds of millions of new dollars.

Democrats and moderate Republicans already were looking at boosting income taxes to close projected budget shortfalls totaling more than $1 billion through June 2019.

OVERLAND PARK, Kan. (AP) — A suburban Kansas City man hasn’t given up hope that the 40-year-old disappearance of his missing wife will be solved.

The Kansas City Star reports that Donald Evitts’ wife, legal secretary Loy Gillespie Evitts, went missing after leaving work to run some errands on Feb. 28, 1977.

Police believe Loy Evitts was abducted. It’s the Kansas City Police Department’s longest unsolved missing persons case.

The supervisor of the department’s missing-persons section, police Sgt. Ben Caldwell, says there are no new leads. He says the case is suspended.

Donald Evitts of Overland Park, Kansas, says he’s cautiously optimistic someone will come forward with information that would solve the mystery. He says he’s learned to never get his hopes up because “they all failed in the end.”

LARNED – Staff of Larned Juvenile Correctional Facility (LJCF) said goodbye as the doors of the facility were permanently closed Friday. The facility capable of housing 128 male youth is now empty.

The remainder of the declining number of juveniles housed by the Kansas Department of Corrections (KDOC) at Larned were recently transferred to the State’s sole correctional facility for youth, the Kansas Juvenile Correctional Complex in Topeka. The state has seen a decline in the number of incarcerated juveniles by about 35 percent since 2010.

The facility employed about 140 full-time workers. The decision to close the facility was announced in July of 2016.

Staff of the facility gathered to express their feelings about the closing and to say goodbye to their co-workers. KDOC Secretary Joe Norwood and Deputy Secretary of Juvenile Services Terri Williams attended the ceremony and reception. They expressed their appreciation to the Larned community, as well as surrounding towns, for their support of the facility over the years. Williams thanked the staff for their service and stated she understood how difficult the process of closing had been on them.

“I couldn’t be more proud of the staff and leadership at LJCF,” Williams said. “Closing a facility is a challenge logistically, and the work is compounded by the fact people are feeling emotions about it, as well as the need for most to find a new place of employment. They handled it admirably.”

Williams specifically praised LJCF Superintendent Wendy Leiker for her leadership throughout the process.

“I have been to many leadership classes and have had several mentors, but one of the things that no one can teach you is how to close a facility,” Leiker told the staff. “They cannot teach you how to say goodbye. This experience has changed me and has helped me to become a more compassionate leader. Thank you for letting me be your leader. You are still a part of my family and I will always be there for you.”

KDOC staff both at LJCF and at the Central Office in Topeka worked diligently to assist employees to find other employment, with the state if they so desired.

“The LJCF staff pulled together as a family to help each other out with job leads, resume building, mock interviews, advocating for each other and supporting each other,” Williams said. “We continue to work to place as many staff as possible, and to ensure that all the staff is treated with the dignity and respect they deserve for their outstanding service.”