The Kansas Department of Transportation (KDOT) has begun a resurfacing project on U.S. 69 in Linn County. Work starts north of the U.S. 69/K-52 north junction and continues for six miles, ending south of the Linn-Miami county line.

Project activity includes milling at various locations; a 1-inch reflective crack interlayer (RCI) mix overlay on the driving lanes; and an overlay on exit and entrance ramps. Both north- and southbound traffic is reduced to one lane on the project. The speed limit is reduced to 60 miles an hour, with a driving lane width restriction of 12 feet. Weather permitting, the road work should be finished by late summer 2018.

KDOT awarded the $5.4 million construction contract to APAC Kansas Inc., Shears Division of Hutchinson. Troy Howard, a construction engineer at the KDOT Garnett office, reminds drivers to watch for the signs, slow down and “Give ‘Em a Brake!” at the work zone. Persons with questions may contact Howard at (785) 448-5446, or Priscilla Petersen, KDOT Southeast District public affairs manager, at (620) 902-6433.

Make a difference in your community and help the environment at the same time – join the Adopt-A-Highway program in Kansas.

The goal of the program is to clean along the roadways throughout the state to increase safety for motorists and pedestrians as well as improve the beauty of Kansas. This helps to raise awareness of the negative effects of pollution and the positive aspects of a clean community.

“We’ve been a long time with Adopt-A-Highway,” said Humboldt Lions Club member Larry Barnett, who estimated that club members have been cleaning up a two-mile stretch of U.S. 169 right-of-way east of Humboldt for over 20 years. “We try to do the best we can to keep the highways clean,” he said.

Any non-profit group that does not discriminate on the basis of race, religion or gender can join and there is no cost to the group. Members must be at least 11 years old and have adequate adult supervision. Groups have clean-ups two to three times a year and are recognized for their efforts with signs marking their sections of highway. Since spring 1990, thousands of groups have participated and a number of the original groups are still active today.

Adopt-A-Highway groups are gearing up for the annual Clean Up Kansas Campaign which takes place during the month of April. This event, as well as the program, is sponsored by the Kansas Department of Transportation. All Adopt-A-Highway groups are encouraged but not required to participate in the statewide event.

Groups clean their sections of roadway several times a year at their convenience. Most choose to schedule a clean-up time in the spring, summer, and fall.

For more information contact the KDOT office in your area (listed below). 

KDOT – Iola

(620) 365-2161

KDOT – Garnett
(785) 448-5446

KDOT – Independence
(620) 331-3760

KDOT – Pittsburg

(620) 308-7611

Secretary Gina Meier-Hummel now serves DCF in an official capacity

TOPEKA – The Kansas Senate voted unanimously today, March 14, to confirm the appointment of Gina Meier-Hummel to serve as the Secretary for the Kansas Department for Children and Families (DCF).

“I am humbled and grateful for the opportunity to lead this great agency,” Secretary Meier-Hummel said. “With the support of the Kansas Legislature and Governor Jeff Colyer, we will keep moving forward and we will strengthen the agency to improve the lives of Kansas children and families.”

“Congratulations to Secretary Meier-Hummel,” Governor Colyer said. “It is clear that she is driven by her passion to serve others, and I have every confidence in her to lead DCF. It will be no easy task, but if anyone is up for this challenge, she is.”

Secretary Meier-Hummel’s experience includes 25 years as a Kansas social worker, prior roles within The Children’s Shelter, Social and Rehabilitation Services (now DCF), the Kansas Department for Aging and Disability Services. The Lawrence resident is a Topeka native, married with three children.

 Every day, the Red Cross must collect nearly 13,000 blood donations to serve patients in need. Are you willing to help?

In conjunction with Red Cross Month, Mercy Hospital Fort Scott will host a blood drive on Thursday, March 15, from 9:15 a.m. – 3:15 p.m. in the McAuley Conference Center.

By using online tools, you can reduce the amount of time you wait to donate.

Schedule an appointment online at redcross.org. Simply enter the zip code for Fort Scott (66701) and click the “Find a Drive” tab. You may then choose an appointment time.

Try using the Red Cross RapidPass app to complete your pre-donation reading and health history online before you come to your appointment. Learn more at redcrossblood.org/RapidPass. The rapid pass can now be completed on your mobile device and through your Blood Donor app.

Remember, your blood donation can bring help and hope during patient emergencies and save up to 3 lives!

Mercy Hospital Fort Scott is an acute care hospital with 46 licensed beds, offering comprehensive medical, surgical, OB/GYN, pediatric, home care and hospice services. Inpatient care is provided with 24/7 physician coverage. In 2017, Mercy Hospital Fort Scott received The Leapfrog Group’s prestigious A rating. Mercy Clinic Fort Scott is located on hospital grounds as well as Mercy rural health clinics in Arma and Pleasanton.

Mercy, named one of the top five large U.S. health systems in 2017 and 2016 by Truven, an IBM Watson Health company, serves millions annually. Mercy includes more than 40 acute care and specialty (heart, children’s, orthopedic and rehab) hospitals, 800 physician practices and outpatient facilities, 44,000 co-workers and 2,100 Mercy Clinic physicians in Arkansas, Kansas, Missouri, and Oklahoma. Mercy also has clinics, outpatient services and outreach ministries in Arkansas, Louisiana, Mississippi and Texas. In addition, Mercy’s IT division, Mercy Technology Services, supply chain organization, ROi, and Mercy Virtual commercially serve providers and patients in more than 20 states coast to coast.

The Governor’s Drought Team examines conditions; extreme fire dangers and encourages Kansans to be mindful of the state’s worsening conditions

Topeka – Today Governor Jeff Colyer, MD issued Drought Declarations for Kansas counties with Executive Order 18-11 at a press conference with Secretary of Agriculture Jackie McClaskey and Kansas Water Office Director Tracy Streeter. The declaration includes all 105 counties either in an emergency, warning or watch status.

“The entire State of Kansas has been considered in drought or abnormally dry conditions for the past several weeks,” said Governor Colyer. “This has led to an extremely high risk of fire hazards and many have already occurred.”

The drought declaration placed 28 counties in emergency status, 29 into a warning status and 48 into a watch status. This action was recommended by Tracy Streeter, Director of the Kansas Water Office and Chair of the Governor’s Drought Response Team. Over the past six months, the state-wide average precipitation was only 66 percent of normal and in January and February, the statewide average precipitation was even less, at 43 percent of normal.

“While wildfires are the most urgent concern at this point, water supplies can be dramatically impacted in a very short period of time, especially as we start to enter into spring and summer months,” said Streeter. “The Governor’s Drought Response Team will continue to monitor the situation closely as future outlooks call for drought persisting and make recommendations to the Governor as necessary.”

Secretary of Agriculture McClaskey, who was also present at the press conference, remarked on the potential impact the drought could have on Kansas agriculture, saying “The Kansas Department of Agriculture is committed to serving Kansas farmers and ranchers, especially during challenging times like the current drought. Whether that means making sure regulations and statutes are in place to move hay or working with our federal partners to gain access to additional grazing land, we stand ready to work with farmers and ranchers and all of our partners in agriculture.”

Counties who are in an emergency stage are eligible for emergency use of water from certain state fishing lakes due to the Kansas Water Office (KWO) Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) with the Kansas Department of Wildlife Parks and Tourism (KDWPT).

County Drought Stage Declarations:

 Drought Emergency:

Barber, Barton, Clark, Comanche, Edwards, Finney, Ford, Grant, Gray, Hamilton, Harper, Haskell, Hodgeman, Kearny, Kingman, Kiowa, Meade, Morton, Pawnee, Pratt, Reno, Rice, Sedgwick, Seward, Stafford, Stanton, Stevens, Sumner 

Drought Warning:

Allen, Butler, Chautauqua, Chase, Cowley, Dickinson, Elk, Ellis, Ellsworth, Greeley, Greenwood, Harvey, Lane, Lincoln, Marion, McPherson, Montgomery, Morris, Neosho, Ness, Rush, Russell, Saline, Scott, Trego, Wallace, Wichita, Wilson, Woodson

Drought Watch:

Anderson, Atchison, Bourbon, Brown, Cherokee, Cheyenne, Clay, Cloud, Coffey, Crawford, Decatur, Doniphan, Douglas, Franklin, Geary, Gove, Graham, Jackson, Jefferson, Jewell, Johnson, Labette, Leavenworth, Linn, Logan, Lyon, Marshall, Miami, Mitchell, Nemaha, Norton, Osage, Osborne, Ottawa, Phillips, Pottawatomie, Rawlins, Republic, Riley, Rooks, Shawnee, Sheridan, Sherman, Smith, Thomas, Wabaunsee, Washington, Wyandotte

For more detailed information about current conditions, see the Kansas Climate Summary and Drought Report on the Kansas Water Office website at www.kwo.ks.gov