More special events could be coming to downtown Wichita. The City Council unanimously passed a zoning change on Tuesday, which not only removed outdated zoning but also opened up the facility to more events and opportunities in the area around Century II. It came about after an artist began to fight to keep his shop in Old Town, and a group looked into holding a tattooing convention there, but the Central Business District prohibits tattooing. A few months after Afterlife Tattooz opened in Old Town, the owner got a letter from the City telling him tattoo shops were not allowed in his part of town. After gathering support from the Old Town Association, the tattoo shop asked the City to change the zoning to allow tattooing in Old Town, which was approved by a vote 7-0 in September and went on to the second reading. The tattoo and piercing convention is planned for spring. The change now gives the area more flexibility, but the City Council still has to sign off on each special event.
Source: KSN-TV

AGCO said in a news release Friday facility the critical updates to the facility in Hesston went live on Jan. 1, and the company is welcoming back furloughed employees. The news release says the upgrades required all production areas to be shut down and that employee furloughs were not demand-related. “During this time, AGCO has worked to provide impacted eligible employees with supplemental pay and retention bonuses,” AGCO said in the release. The employees’ return will happen in waves The first group returned to work the first week of January, an additional wave returned the following week, and the rest of the employees will return over the course of the first quarter as production ramps up.
Source: KSN-TV

Newton Fire/EMS is practicing ice rescues on Spring Lake Pond, which has frozen over. “We don’t often get weather like this that we can afford as a training and the real-world experience with the ice, so we’re taking advantage of it,” said Newton Fire/EMS Division Chief Zane Hansen. Hansen says they cut a hole in the ice to simulate a rescue and then have a crew go out in ice suits to rescue a “victim.” “They’re gonna have the ice suits, and we’re gonna tether them to rescuers on the shore. So they’re gonna move out to the ice, trying to disperse their body weight, get out to the victim, get into the water and get them out of the water as quickly as possible,” said Hansen.  He says they have to practice ice rescues as people are on the ice pretty often because they don’t understand the dangers of it. “I believe several years ago, I can’t recall, I know we went out on an ice rescue where we rescued four victims out of the ice, three that passed away,” said Hansen. Hansen says people don’t know how thick the ice is. “So what’s out in the middle could be a lot thinner than what’s on the edges. Right at the edge, you think the ice can hold you, but you get 10 feet out, and it doesn’t support your weight. And then you’re in big trouble. Big trouble pretty quickly,” said Hansen. If you fall on the ice, he says you only have minutes to survive.
Source: KSN-TV

Harvey County fire crews battled a large fire in bitterly cold temperatures early Tuesday around 12:20 a.m. at an automotive repair shop. Halstead Fire/EMS said the fire happened on Halstead Road just south of U.S. Highway 50. Upon arrival, crews discovered the building had flames throughout and through the roof. Pictures from Halstead Fire/EMS show flames engulfing a metal-framed building. Several fire crews, including Newton Fire/EMS, were called to help battle the fire. Halstead Fire/EMS said the state fire marshal was on scene. There is no word on what started the blaze. The investigation is ongoing. No injuries were reported.
Source: KSN-TV