Barton County Fire District 2 determined a grass fire had somewhat of a squirrelly cause. A Facebook post from the fire district said firefighters were dispatched to a small grass fire near the intersection of U.S. Highway 281 and NE 50 Road. They arrived and found a small grass fire that appeared to have started near the base of a power pole. The fire was extinguished, and after some investigation, it was determined that it started when a squirrel climbed on the wires of the power pole. The squirrel made contact with two power lines, which caused a spark that set the grass on fire. The squirrel did not survive.
Source: KSN-TV

The City of Wichita is on the fourth day of water restrictions and is already issuing violation notices. Public Works Director Gary Janzen was not specific about the number of violations reported, but he said some of the people who received notices plan to appeal. “We’re not proactively going out looking for people who are running irrigation systems when they’re not supposed to,” he said. “It’s not meant to be punitive, so we’re not actively trying to go after people. Our goal here is education of the community and the value we have with conservation community-wide.” After people get a violation notice, the next violation is a $50 penalty. So far, the city has not levied any penalties. “I’ve heard and seen a lot of positive feedback of people wanting to do the right thing, but there is a little bit of both,” Janzen said. “We are getting complaints also.” He said the city monitors daily pumping volumes at the water treatment plant. “I don’t know what those look like yet because we wanted to get a full week in. Probably early next week, we’ll start evaluating the data.”
Source: KSN-TV

The City of Hutchinson is getting creative to solve the housing crisis. The Hutchinson City Council approved the purchasing of land on the west side of town, and will partner with a developer to build somewhere between 24 and 33 new homes. Hutchinson City Manager Enrico Villegas told KSN it’s a unique approach, but it’s what they decided. “So this is gonna be unique for the city, and it’s probably a little unorthodox in general,” Villegas said. “But that is going to be the approach that we’re taking to at least help get us out of the housing crisis that we’re in.” Villegas said the plan is to have the homes built in 2025. If it goes well, the city may end up buying more land.
Source: KSN-TV

As students are preparing to return to campus in the coming weeks, college enrollment across the country is rising, recovering from the drop it took in 2020. In the 2024 spring semester, undergraduate enrollment grew 2.5%. That means over 300,000 more students enrolled compared to 2023. More than half of the increase is at community colleges. Community colleges across Kansas are also seeing a spike in students this fall. The official count will come later this fall, but according to the Kansas Community College Association, schools with increases have seen enrollment increases of 2-3% to as much as 20%. “What we are seeing is students want to earn higher education credentials that are the least expensive and have the most return on investment,” said Heather Morgan, the executive director of the Kansas Community College Association.
Source: KSN-TV