Cooler today, with chance of rain; minor flood warning for Missouri RIver

Cooler weather is in the forecast for Wyandotte County. (National Weather Service graphic)

Today’s weather will be cooler, with a high near 81 and a 30 percent chance of rain, according to the National Weather Service. Also, there is a flood warning in effect for Thursday evening to Sunday afternoon for the Missouri River at Parkville.

Afternoon temperatures through the weekend will be about five to 10 degrees below normal, the weather service said.

A few scattered showers and rumbles of thunder will be possible through the end of the week, but no hazardous weather is expected, according to the weather service.

The flood warning will be in effect from Thursday evening to Sunday afternoon for the Missouri River at Parkville, which includes the Wyandotte County area. The gauge for this location is on I-435 over the Missouri River, between Wyandotte County and Platte County. Northwest Wyandotte County and the Wolcott area could be affected.

Minor flooding is forecast for the Missouri River. It may rise above flood stage by Thursday before midnight and continue to rise to near 26.4 feet by Friday evening, the weather service said. It could fall below flood stage by early Saturday afternoon.

The Kansas River may rise into action stage on Friday. It is not currently projected to go into minor flood stage. The gauge for the Kansas River at 23rd is on Kansas Avenue at the state line.

Today, there is a 30 percent chance of showers and thunderstorms, with a high near 81 and a light east wind, the weather service said. Less than a tenth of an inch of rain is possible.

Tonight, there is a 50 percent chance of showers and thunderstorms, with a low of 66 and a light east wind, according to the weather service. Between a quarter and half-inch of rain is possible.

Friday, there is a 40 percent chance of showers and thunderstorms, mainly before 1 p.m., the weather service said. The high will be near 81 with an east wind of 3 to 7 mph. Between a quarter and half-inch of rain is possible.

Friday night, there is a 20 percent chance of showers and thunderstorms after 1 a.m., with a low of 66, and an east wind of 3 to 6 mph, according to the weather service.

Saturday, there is a 30 percent chance of precipitation with a high near 80 and a southeast wind of 6 mph, the weather service said. Between a quarter and half-inch of rain is possible.

Saturday night, there is a 30 percent chance of showers and thunderstorms, mainly after 1 a.m., with a low of 67, according to the weather service. Less than a tenth of an inch of rain is possible.

Sunday, there is a 40 percent chance of showers and thunderstorms, with a high near 82, the weather service said.

Sunday night, there is a 40 percent chance of showers and thunderstorms, with a low of 69, according to the weather service.

Monday, there is a 40 percent chance of showers and thunderstorms, with a high near 84, the weather service said.

Monday night, there is a 50 percent chance of showers and thunderstorms, with a low of 65, according to the weather service. Some of the storms could produce heavy rain.

Tuesday, there is a 30 percent chance of showers and thunderstorms, with a high near 81, the weather service said.

Tuesday night, there is a 40 percent chance of showers and thunderstorms, with a low of 63, according to the weather service. Some of the storms could produce heavy rain.

Wednesday, there is a 30 percent chance of showers and thunderstorms, with a high near 80, the weather service said.

For more weather information, visit www.weather.gov.

The Missouri River at Parkville, an area that includes Wyandotte County, may rise into minor flood stage on Friday and Saturday. (National Weather Service – USGS graphic)
The Kansas River at 23rd Street, where the gauge is at Kansas Avenue and the state line, could rise into action stage on Friday and Saturday. (National Weather Service – USGS graphic)

Minnesota United FC visits Sporting KC on Thursday

Sporting Kansas City (8-11-8, 31 points) and Minnesota United FC (12-8-6, 42 points) will lock horns in a pivotal Western Conference clash rife with postseason implications on Thursday night at Children’s Mercy Park in Kansas City, Kansas.

The contest will kick off at 8:30 p.m. and air live on ESPN, ESPN Deportes, Sports Radio 810 WHB and ESPN Deportes KC 1480 AM. Fans can also stream the action on the ESPN app or use the Sporting KC app for additional in-game updates.

Tickets for Thursday’s high-stakes encounter are available at SeatGeek.com as 10th-place Sporting aims to close the six-point gap between themselves and the seventh and final playoff spot in the West.

Second-place Minnesota, meanwhile, will hope to continue their excellent run of summer form prior to visiting Atlanta United FC for the 2019 Lamar Hunt U.S. Open Cup Final next Tuesday.

Riding an eight-year playoff streak, Sporting boosted its postseason hopes last Saturday after erasing a 1-0 halftime deficit to sink the San Jose Earthquakes by a 2-1 scoreline at Children’s Mercy Park. Benny Feilhaber bagged a 50th-minute equalizer-becoming the third active MLS player to record 40 goals and 60 assists in his regular season career-and center back Graham Smith opened his professional scoring account in the 76th minute to complete the comeback.

Injuries have plagued manager Peter Vermes’ side throughout the 2019 campaign, but Sporting enters Thursday with a mostly clean bill of health. Influential winger Gerso Fernandes (ankle) is listed as questionable, but Hungarian duo Botond Barath and Krisztian Nemeth are no longer on the club’s injury report. A robust squad will give Vermes multiple personnel options heading into a vitally important matchup against the Loons.

Led by third-year head coach Adrian Heath, Minnesota has reached new heights in 2019 after missing the mark in their first two seasons as an MLS club.

The Loons fell short of the postseason in 2017 and 2018, going 4-26-4 on the road in the process, but currently sit second in the West and boast four league victories on their travels. Perhaps more impressively, Minnesota boasts a 10-1-3 record across all competitions over the last two and a half months-a torrid stretch that began with a 4-1 defeat of Sporting in the U.S. Open Cup Round of 32 on June 12 at Allianz Field.

Colombian attacker Darwin Quintero (eight goals), inventive winger Ethan Finlay (six goals) and striker Angelo Rodriguez (five goals) all scored against Sporting in June and form the heart of Minnesota’s dynamic offense. Further back, defender Ike Opara anchors the Loons backline and is set for an anticipated return to Children’s Mercy Park, having helped Sporting to an MLS Cup and Open Cup title during a highly successful stint from 2013-2018.

Despite their recent surge, Minnesota will approach Thursday’s fixture with an air of caution. After all, Sporting owns a perfect 4-0-0 home record against the Loons in all competitions, scoring 13 goals and conceding just one since Minnesota joined MLS via expansion in 2017.

  • Story from Sporting KC

Slight drop reported in Hollywood Casino gaming revenues

Hollywood Casino at Kansas Speedway reported $12.3 million in gaming revenues for July 2019, a slight drop from July of 2018 when gaming revenues were $12.7 million.

According to Keith Kocher, Kansas Lottery director of program assurance and integrity, the revenues for most of the state’s casinos were flat for July. He announced the figures at Wednesday’s Kansas Lottery Commission meeting.

Casino gaming revenues in July were $15.6 million at Kansas Star Casino in Mulvane, Kansas, as compared to $15.5 million in July 2018; $3.45 million at Boot Hill Casino in Dodge City, Kansas, as compared to $3.56 million in July 2018; and about $3 million at Kansas Crossing Casino near Pittsburg, Kansas, as compared to $2.8 million in July 2018.

The Unified Government receives 3 percent of the Hollywood Casino gaming revenues, which totals about $369,000. The state of Kansas receives 22 percent of the casino gaming revenues.

The June 2019 revenues at Hollywood Casino were $12.3 million, as compared to $12.48 million for June 2018.

In other action, Stephen Durrell, Kansas Lottery executive director, reported that the lottery is still rolling out self-service instant ticket machines at locations throughout Kansas. There may be other lottery ticket machines installed later.

The lottery’s website lists two of the machines in Wyandotte County so far, both at Walmarts. One is at the Walmart at 10824 Parallel Parkway, Kansas City, Kansas; and the other is at the Walmart at 12801 Kansas Ave., Bonner Springs.