Iola Radio NewsRoom

US169 Work to Start Tuesday

2013-03-08T04:56:00.001-06:00

K-DOT will start its pavement patching and surface grinding project on U.S. 169 in Allen County next Tuesday. The project starts ½ mile south of the U.S.54/U.S.169 junction and continues south for 12 miles to the Allen-Neosho county line. A pilot car operation will guide one-lane traffic through the work zone, with traveler delays of 15 minutes or less expected during daylight hours. Weather permitting, the project should be completed by September. They'll spend just over $2-million on the work.

Allen County Fatality Crash

2013-01-21T05:04:00.001-06:00

A Yates Center teen has died in a crash yesterday afternoon in Allen County. Troopers report 16-year old Kody Ratcliff of Piqua was the driver of a 1983 Oldsmobile Regency, north bound on 800 Street just past Delaware Road when he lost control about 4:10 yesterday afternoon. Trooper say Ratcliff's car entered the East ditch and struck a tree, then caught fire. He was taken to Kansas City for treatment. 16-year old Austin Reser of Yates Center, who was a passenger in the car, died at the scene.

USD 257 Superintendent Brian Pekarek to Leave District

2013-01-15T05:55:00.001-06:00

Iola USD 257 Superintendent Brian Pekarek has announced he will leave his position here at the end of this school year. He's taking the Superintendent's position with another Kansas school district, according to an email sent to district staff last night. In it, Pekarek says, "Although I will still be working for USD 257 during the spring semester, my resignation at this time will allow the school district adequate time to find a suitable replacement for this position. I also wanted to say that I have enjoyed serving you and the community, and I look forward to working with you for the remainder of the semester."

US-54 Redo Set for Later This Year

2013-01-10T05:11:00.001-06:00

It'll be inconvenient for a while, but the result will be worth it, as KDOT announces plans to redo U.S. 54 from Iola to the east edge of LaHarpe. The stretch of about five miles will be torn down to bare ground and rebuilt. Work is to start later this year and continue into 2014. The project will be done in three phases. The first will be from east Iola to where curb and gutter begins in Gas; the second through Gas; the third on to the end of the four-lane at the east edge of LaHarpe. Some, but not all, curb and gutter will be replaced in Gas. It will be up to the contractor whether to start in Iola or LaHarpe.

Counterfeit Bills Turn Up in Iola

2013-01-08T05:05:00.001-06:00

Iola Police say someone is spreading funny money locally. In a release yesterday, Police Chief Jared Warner said several fake $20 and $50 bills have turned up in the till at local stores. The counterfeit bills were taken by clerks at three Iola businesses over the weekend. The forgers are using multiple serial numbers, and Warner says local clerks should be vigilant when taking $20 sand $50s, taking the time to double-check the bill is real with one of the color-changing pens.

Winter Weather Advisiory Posted

2012-12-31T04:06:00.001-06:00

A STRONG WEATHER SYSTEM IS APPROACHING FROM THE SOUTHWEST, WHICH WILL RESULT IN WIDESPREAD WINTERY PRECIPITATION.

THE NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE IN WICHITA HAS ISSUED A WINTER WEATHER ADVISORY WHICH IS IN
EFFECT FROM NOW TO 6 AM CST TUESDAY.

SNOW WILL BEGIN TO SPREAD ACROSS SOUTHERN AND SOUTHEAST KANSAS EARLY THIS MORNING...POSSIBLY MIXING WITH RAIN OR FREEZING DRIZZLE BY AFTERNOON. SNOW ACCUMULATIONS...UP TO 2 INCHES WILL BE POSSIBLE OVER SOUTHERN AND SOUTHEAST KANSAS...WITH LESS THAN 1 INCH OVER FAR SOUTHERN AND SOUTHEAST KANSAS.

ICE ACCUMULATIONS...WILL BE LIGHT...AND CONFINED PRIMARILY TO ELEVATED SURFACES AND GRASSY.

DUE TO MARGINAL SURFACE TEMPERATURES...MOST ROADS WILL REMAIN WET OVER SOUTHERN AND SOUTHEAST KANSAS...WITH SNOW AND ICE ACCUMULATIONS PRIMARILY CONFINED TO ELEVATED AND GRASSY SURFACES.

New Chanute Anmial Shelter Closer to Reality

2012-12-14T05:11:00.001-06:00

A new animal shelter in Chanute is a step closer to reality. An MBA business team from K-State has accepted the challenge to help the community develop a comprehensive business plan for the shelter. Between now and next May, the team will develop a capital plan, generate a feasible operational plan, and grow partnerships with regional organizations to develop a spay/neuter program and expand the pet foster home program. City officials say $140-thousand is already available for the shelter, generated by pet license fees the past three years. Donations are also being accepted.

Crash Injures Kincaid Teen

2012-12-13T05:08:00.001-06:00

A crash yesterday morning in Anderson County injured a Kincaid teen. Kansas Highway Patrol troopers report Kyle Scott Riblett was westbound on US 59 near Norton Road about 7:30 yesterday morning when he left the roadway for an unknown reason. Troopers say he over corrected, rolling the car in the north ditch. The 2000 Pontiac Grand Am he was driving had extensive damage. Riblett was taken by ambulance to Anderson County Hospital for relatively minor injuries. Troopers say he was wearing a seat belt.

Firey Collision Closes US169 for Hours

2012-11-30T05:02:00.001-06:00

A head-on collision between two semis ended with one of them on fire and US 169 closed in Neosho county for several hours yesterday. Troopers report the crash happened about 1:45am Thursday just north of the K-47 junction. A southbound semi driven by David Thompson of Princeton, Minnesota drifted into the north bound lanes and hit a semi driven by a man from Waterloo, Iowa. The south bound truck continued across the entire lane and into the ditch, where it caught fire after coming to a stop. Both men were taken by ambulance to Neosho Memorial Regional Hospital for treatment of their injuries. Troopers do not indicate whether it was a medical problem or simply falling asleep that led to Thompson drifting into the oncoming lane. Highway 169 was opened to single-lane traffic about mid-morning.

Election Resuts

2012-11-07T05:17:00.001-06:00

Allen County voters have selected the next sheriff, with current Undersheriff Bryan Murphy winning the seat being opened by Tom Williams' retirement. Final tally was Murphy 3,283 votes, or 64%, to Skyler Clark's 1,834 votes, or 36%.

In races of regional interest:
Lynn Jenkins will go to Washington for two more years, beating Democrat challenger Tobias Schlingensiepen 57% to 39%
In Allen county: Jenkins . . . . . . . . . 69% Schlingensiepen . . . . . . 27%

Democrat Bob Grant wins the Kansas House District 2 seat, which includes the eastern part of Allen County. He beat Jeff Locke in district-wide voting 54% to 44%. Allen county results were the opposite. Locke. . . . . . 55% Grant . . . . . . . 40%

In State Sen Dist 12, Caryn Tyson goes to Topeka, beating Democrat Denise Cassells 65% to 35%. Allen county results mirrored the district: Caryn Tyson. . . . . . . . . . 64% Denise Cassells . . . . . . . . 36%

Did You Remember Smoke Detector Batteries?

2012-11-04T16:09:00.001-06:00

Don't forget... this is the weekend where you change clocks... you officially turn your clocks back one hour at 2 a-m Sunday. It's also typically the time where you check the battery in your smoke detectors... It is also time to maintenance your smoke detector by removing dust and dirt that could cause your smoke detector to malfunction. Statistics show working smoke detectors reduce the chance of dying in a fire by 50%.

Squirrel Blamed for Mid-Day Power Outage

2012-09-25T05:07:00.001-05:00

City officials blame the community-wide power outage that happened in Iola yesterday at noontime on a pesky squirrel. Corey Schinstock with the City reports the squirrel got into one of the circuit breakers at the Oak Street substation. That caused the breaker to trip off, but with the squirrel now dead in the breaker, it didn't fail over all the way. The continued short caused the breaker that connects Iola's power grid to the incoming Westar Energy lines to tip, isolating the community from incoming electricity. City crews were able to clear up the mess and get the system re-sync'd so power could be restored by Westar resetting the tie-in breaker.

Sunday Crash Kills Toronto Man

2012-09-24T05:17:00.001-05:00

A Toronto, Kansas man is dead following a crash yesterday west of Yates Center. Highway Patrol troopers report 83-year old Roscoe Rash was westbound on US 54 about 11 wiles West of Yates Center when he drifted off the north side of the road. Troopers say Rash over corrected back onto the highway, causing his 1994 GMC Sonoma to slide across both lanes of traffic on 54. The pickup rolled over at least twice into the south ditch and ejecting Rash. He was pronounced dead at the scene.

Conservation Plea Achieves Goal

2012-08-28T05:12:00.001-05:00

Water use and conservation...the topic on all our minds for the past few weeks. Mayor Bill Shirly said yesterday the Stage 2 water restrictions, whcih have us watering lawns on an odd-even schedule and doing other things to conserve, are meeting thier goal of water use reduction:

Monthly Jobless Numbers Posted

2012-08-17T05:09:00.001-05:00

In our area, here's how the numbers break out:

Allen County is up from 6.9-percent in June to 7-point-3 percent in July. That's half a percentage point below last July's 8.7-percent.

Anderson county also was up from June to July. posting a 7.3-percent rate in July compared to 6.5-percent in June. Last July's unemployment rate in Anderson county Anderson County was a full percentage point higher than this year.

In Bourbon county, employment remained the most stable in the region, moving from 7.2-percent in June to 7.6-percent in July. A year ago, Bourbon county has 7.5-percent unemployment.

Employment was also relatively stable in Neosho County -- 7.6-percent last month, compared to 7.3-percent in June and 7.8-percent a year ago.

Wilson county continued to have the worst unemployment in the region, going back above 10-percent. Last month 10.4-percent of Wilson county residents were unemployed, compared with 9.5-percent in June and 10.6-percent in July 2011.

Woodson County posted a rate slightly worse than last year, but following the area's month-to month trend. July unemployment was 7.3-percent, while June's was 6.8-percent. A year ago it was 7.2-percent

Garnet Ethanol Plant to Stop Production Oct. 1

2012-08-10T04:49:00.001-05:00

More details today on something we told you about yesterday morning. East Kansas Agri-Energy in Garnett yesterday confirmed a report they planned to temporarily suspend production operations beginning October 1st. In a prepared statement, company officials said the prolonged drought conditions are having a negative impact on availability of corn and rising feedstock prices. Additionally, the demand for gasoline is down resulting in surplus ethanol stocks. The plant has been running at a 20-percent reduction in capacity since April, due to the same factors.

Board Chair Bill Pracht said, "We have studied the situation extensively and with the challenging economic conditions the Board of Directors has determined that it is in the best interest of the company and its shareholders to halt production at this time. We will monitor the situation with the hope to resume production of the facility as soon as market conditions allow".

In the release, the company does not indicate how many of the 35 employees will be impacted, saying only that a portion of the staff will experience the impact.

Primary Election Results

2012-08-08T05:02:00.001-05:00

Voters in Iola have cast Kendall Callahan and Ken Rowe out of office. Sheriff Tom Williams is on the way to a new job, while his Undersheriff takes a step closer to filling his boss' seat. Here are the races by the numbers:

Kendall Callahan was ousted by a vote of 170 to 139 (55 to 45 percent), while Ken Rowe was voted out by a vote of 175 to 98 (64 to 36 percent). Undersheriff Bryan Murphy defeated Jared Froggatte (62 percent to 38 percent) for Allen County Sheriff. Murphy will face Skyler Clark (independent) in November. Outgoing Sheriff Tom Williams defeated Rob Frances 66 percent to 34 percent for County Commission District 2. That makes Williams the de-facto winner of the seat, as he does not face a challenger in November.

Jim Talkington defeated Don Bauer 55 percent to 45 percent for County Commission District 3. He also moves directly to the Commission, as he lacks an opponent in November.

Looking at district-wide results for State House and Senate: Caryn Tyson had a slightly higher margin of victory in the district than she did in Allen county. Locally, Tyson beat John Coen 54-to-46 percent, while her margin of victory in the 12th Senate District as a whole was 56-to-44 percent. For House District 8, Ed Bideau handily defeated Judy Brigham and Bud Sifers in the district, while the margin was narrower locally. District wide, the tally was 56-percent for Bideau, 26-percent for Sifers and 19-percent for Brigham. In Allen County, the gap between Bideau and Sifers was eight votes, Bideau still winning, while Judy Brigham received 29-percent of the votes.

Crop Report: Conditions Worsening

2012-08-07T04:59:00.001-05:00

A new crop report says overall conditions continue to get worse despite some rain in Kansas and the cooler temperatures of the past few days. Topsoil moisture levels improved slightly to 69% very short, percent short, 6 percent adequate. The condition of the corn crop declined to 37 percent very poor, 32 percent poor, 22 percent fair, 8 percent good, and 1 percent excellent. This continues to be the worst corn condition since the current data series began in 1985. The condition of the soybean crop declined to 31 percent very poor, 36 percent poor, 27 percent fair, 5 percent good, and 1 percent rated as excellent. This is now the worst soybean condition since the current data series began in 1985.

Election Day

2012-08-07T04:56:00.001-05:00

Polls are open 7 to 7 today for the primary elections. For Iola voters in Wards 1 and 4, regardless of party, there is a measure on the ballot that would recall one of your commission members. Local election officials say that by Friday afternoon more than 350 people had voted in the county clerk’s office or had acquired advance ballots. If you got an advanced ballot, don't forget to return it by the time polls close at 7pm. For those voting in person today, remember to take your driver's license or other form of photo ID, as this is the first statewide election since the anti-fraud measure pushed by Chris Kobach was approved.

Standoff in Gas Ends Peacefully

2012-07-24T05:03:00.001-05:00

A 4-hour standoff occupies local law enforcement during the heat of the day yesterday in Gas. According to Allen County 9-1-1. The standoff happened shortly after a clerk at Pump N' Pete's reported a man had pulled a knife when she told him to leave the store. Sheriff's deputies converged on the home of Micheal Peter Troxel just after 11 am, and when he refused to come out, they surrounded the home on Main Street and called for help from Iola Police, The Highway Patrol, and the SRT team. Four hours of negotiation led to Troxel coming out of the home about 3pm and being arrested without further incident. He was taken by deputies to Allen County Hospital for evaluation.

Boil Notice in Effect for RWD #4 in the Bronson Area

2012-07-18T04:50:00.001-05:00

Those who live in Bronson area and are served by Bourbon County Rural Water District #4 are under a boil water advisory. The rural water district has experienced a loss of pressure in the water system. When such a loss of pressure occurs, it is possible for contaminants to enter the system. Chlorine residuals may also drop to levels that are inadequate to protect against bacterial contamination. The state placed the bill advisory in effect until further notice. Residents should boil water for one minute prior to drinking or food preparation, or use bottled water. Also, throw out ice cubes and do not use ice from a household automatic icemaker. Water used for bathing does not generally need to be boiled.

Governor to Visit SEK on Drought Tour

2012-07-17T04:42:00.001-05:00

Kansas Governor Sam Brownback will be in Neosho and Labette counties tomorrow as part of a three-stop tour of drought conditions in Kansas. The governor starts the tour today in Saline County along the Smoky Hill River. Kansas Water Office Director Tracy Streeter, Kansas Department of Agriculture Sec. Dale Rodman as well as local officials and Kansans impacted by the drought will join the governor for the tour. Last week, USDA declared 82 counties in Kansas federal disaster areas, making agricultural producers eligible for disaster assistance programs.Governor Brownback's tour will make stops in the northwestern part of the state next week.

James Yet to Be Charged for Escape

2012-07-17T04:40:00.001-05:00

Three of the four inmates who escaped from the Ottawa County Jail this spring have been charged with new crimes related to their escape. The only one yet to be charged with escape-related counts is Eric James, the 22-year old man convicted of multiple crimes in southeast Kansas. Attorney General Derek Schmidt's office says they are still evaluating what charges to file against James, who was found out of state. There's a possibility he could see federal charges. The other three escapees each face counts of aggravated escape from custody and aggravated battery of a law enforcement officer.

Leroy Man Hurt in Crash Near Waverly

2012-07-16T05:04:00.001-05:00

A crash yesterday morning in Coffey county injured a Leroy man. Highway Patrol troopers say Daniel Enright was westbound on Trefoil Road near Waverly just after 7am. He lost control, going off the road, back onto the gravel, through a ditch and over a fence into a yard, where the pickup came to rest on top of an oak tree. He was wearing a seat belt, according to troopers,w ho say he was taken to Coffey County Memorial Hospital to have his injuries checked out. He was alone in the pickup.

Allen, Neighboring Counties Part of Drought Disaster Declaration

2012-07-12T04:25:00.001-05:00

Allen and surrounding counties are among 82 in Kansas that are part of a drought disaster declaration made by federal and state officials yesterday. The declaration from the USDA makes agricultural producers eligible for disaster assistance programs. The USDA streamlined the federal disaster designation process to assure a faster disaster designation. The designation makes farmers and ranchers eligible for Farm Service Agency low interest emergency loans. A total of 66 Kansas counties will be declared as primary disaster areas and 16 contiguous counties will also receive disaster designations.