Six Riley County EMS employees test positive for COVID-19; nine firefighters in quarantine

Riley County health officials have confirmed an outbreak of at least six positive cases of coronavirus at Riley County Emergency Medical Services. Three additional tests were pending as of Sunday. According to the health department, positive cases have been confirmed at two out of four EMS stations in the county, with a third likely. All emergency medical and fire services are said to be fully supported and operational. There have been no changes in response posture for the community. The initial infections have been tracked to community spread, and not from exposure to patients served by EMS. The health department says the close living quarters for emergency personnel caused the transfer between staff members. “Thankfully, none of the cases have been severe,” said Riley County EMS Director David Adams.
(Read more: 1350 KMAN)

2020-06-29T08:03:36-05:00June 29, 2020|News|

About half the nation’s State Fairs called off due to COVID-19 so far

Oklahoma and New Mexico on Friday joined 23 other states that have canceled state fairs for this year. Research by The News found 16 states, including Colorado, Arkansas and Missouri, that according to press reports or postings on the fair websites, were still planning to have their events in some form, though many of those are later in the year. Another half-dozen states — including Kansas and Nebraska — are pending decisions. The Kansas State Fair Board will discuss on Tuesday whether to go forward with this year’s fair, scheduled for Sept. 11 to 20, and if so, how.
(Read more: News – The Hutchinson News)

2020-06-29T08:03:49-05:00June 29, 2020|News|

ACPD officer shortage leads to critical operations

The annual DARE Camp and National Night Out in Arkansas City are being canceled due to a shortage of police officers, Chief Dan Ward told city commissioner on Friday, and school resource officers are needed on patrol. Ward said he doesn’t have the staff resources to support those programs this year. … “We are facing a staffing shortage, and that is increasing daily,” Ward said. Ward said he has 16 patrol officers but six are currently unavailable, or 37.5 percent of the local force. Three officers are in training at the academy and will not return to patrol until late October.
(Read more: Cowley CourierTraveler)

2020-06-29T08:06:29-05:00June 28, 2020|News|

Univ. of Kansas Hospital Authority vs. Franklin County: Whether a government agency has an obligation to pay a person’s medical expenses

SYLLABUS BY THE COURT
1. K.S.A. 2019 Supp. 22-4612 requires certain government agencies to pay the medical expenses incurred by persons in their custody.
2. K.S.A. 2019 Supp. 22-4612 conveys the legislature’s intent to hold government agencies liable for medical costs incurred for the treatment people receive while in their custody. This statute, in conjunction with K.S.A. 22-4613, is rooted in the principle that government agencies have a duty to treat people in their care humanely.
3. The test for determining whether a government agency has an obligation to pay a person’s medical expenses is whether a person is in the agency’s custody when the decision was made to obtain medical treatment.
4. A formal arrest is not always necessary to show a person is in custody. Instead, whether a person is in custody turns on the facts of each case.
5. A party seeking summary judgment must show that there are no disputed issues of material fact and that judgment may therefore be entered as a matter of law—essentially, that there is nothing the fact-finder could decide that would change the outcome. The district court’s task does not change simply because all parties have filed summaryjudgment motions on stipulated facts. Each motion must be separately and independently reviewed under these summary-judgment standards.
6. Under K.S.A. 8-2104(d), when a person is stopped by law enforcement for felonious traffic offenses, law enforcement has a legal duty to arrest the offender—to take the offender into custody and bring him or her before a judge. The officer conducting the stop has no discretion whether to take the offender into custody.
Read the full opinion.

2020-06-26T09:49:28-05:00June 26, 2020|News|

Columbus celebrates addition of new bicycle park

After months of planning and generous donations from the community, the city of Columbus is celebrating a brand new addition to Reeves Park. Dozens gathered today for the unveiling of Ian’s Place, a state-of-the-art bike park. The addition features an elevated tunnel, obstacle cones, a custom-made sunflower sculpture, and even musical equipment. The project was a collaborative effort between city and community leaders to bring a safe and fun place for kids to ride their bikes in town. Daniela Rivas, Columbus City Administrator, said, “I really hope it bring community. Columbus is an amazing, an amazing community um and we find that we lack uh places where our kids can just let loose and have fun and this is exactly what Columbus needed.”
(Read more: KSNF/KODE)

2020-06-26T09:11:04-05:00June 26, 2020|News|

As local cases rise, Johnson County looks to stockpile 3 months of personal protective equipment

As COVID-19 cases spiked this week, the Johnson County Commission gave its blessing to an effort to stockpile a three-month reserve of personal protective gear. The commission unanimously agreed to set aside up to $14.9 million of its $116 million in federal Coronavirus Aid, Relief and Economic Security (CARES) Act funds to build up its supply of masks, gowns, face shields and other protective gear. At the same meeting, Public Health Director Sanmi Areola, PhD, reported an increase in cases that he said cannot be attributed to a higher testing rate.
(Read more: Shawnee Mission Post)

2020-06-26T09:10:20-05:00June 26, 2020|News|

The Big Well reopens

The Big Well Museum in Greensburg reopened June 1, after being closed down since March 18 due to COVID-19. The museum is now open for regular business hours but safety precautions are in place in the form of signs to encourage social distancing. Many visitors wear masks as well. “All the visitors have been respectful of the signs we have up,” said Caitlin Matile, Manager of the Big Well Museum. During the shutdown, Matile was able to do some maintenance around the museum. She painted the stairs and deep cleaned the entire building. Although Matile was able to tackle some projects during the shut down, she was excited to be able to see her staff as well as museum visitors.
(Read more: News – The Hutchinson News)

2020-06-26T07:49:51-05:00June 26, 2020|News|

Idea for pocket park in downtown Parsons is blossoming

A group dedicated to the beautification of Parsons hopes that the city commission will look favorably on a proposed downtown pocket park. Rod Landrum, representing SEK Point of Pride, has been working with city staff to develop the empty lot where the Parsons Theatre stood before it was destroyed by a fire. The city-owned property is on the south side of the 1800 block of Main Street, just east of a Commercial Bank building.
(Read more: Parsons Sun)

2020-06-26T07:49:32-05:00June 26, 2020|News|

After demands for reform, Wichita police chief addresses policy changes 

Organizations with demands for Wichita police reform had mixed feelings about Thursday’s announcement of changes at the Police Department. The Wichita Racial Profiling Advisory Board and Project Justice ICT were two of the groups that submitted demands to the Wichita Police Department in the wake of George Floyd’s death in Minneapolis. Floyd died after a police officer knelt on his neck for nearly nine minutes last month. Floyd’s death has led to widespread protests and demands for police reform. On Thursday, Police Chief Gordon Ramsay announced the department’s response to demands by the groups. The 16-page document, available at wichita.gov/wpd, addressed 16 demands.
(Read more: Local News | Wichita Eagle)

2020-06-26T07:33:57-05:00June 26, 2020|News|
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