Month: March 2020

Police notes

Shooting into occupied home reported
 A shooting into an occupied home was reported at 2:20 p.m. Saturday March 14, in the 600 block of Freeman Avenue, according to a social media post by the Kansas City, Kansas, Police Department.

Officers responded to a shots fired call and located a house that was hit, according to police. The victim was inside the house when it was shot, according to the report.

Shooting reported
Victims reported that a suspect shot at them about 7:36 p.m. Saturday, March 14, according to a social media post by the Kansas City, Kansas, Police Department.

The victims had been upset at the suspect, according to the report, and as they left a house, the suspect fired. There were no injuries to the victims, according to the report.

Governor asks all schools to close this week to face COVID-19 challenge

Gov. Laura Kelly today asked all K-12 schools to close for one week, starting Monday, to face the COVID-19 risk.

The closures will give the public schools time to plan, she said.

Gov. Kelly said this closure was “strongly recommended” in consultation with the State Board of Education and the Kansas Department of Health and Environment.

Some school districts, such as the Kansas City, Kansas, Public Schools, already were scheduled for spring break this week.

Other districts, such as the Piper Public Schools, announced a closure last Friday for this week. Piper had been scheduled to go on spring break the following week.

The Turner Public Schools went on spring break on Friday, and students are out of school until March 24.

The Bonner Springs-Edwardsville Public Schools will be on spring break March 16 through March 23.

Gov. Kelly also said the state must continue to support child care efforts to remain open.

“This was not an easy decision,” Gov. Kelly said. There are challenges including maintaining meals for children in need, addressing child care and other challenges from students not being in school, she said.

The State Board of Education has formed a team of experts, she said, to build a comprehensive plan to address the challenges the schools are facing with COVID-19.

Those challenges include how students can continue their studies online if necessary; how schools can assist students who do not have access to online tools to finish the semester, especially those who will graduate in May; how schools can provide for students who have individual education plans; how schools can continue school-based mental health services; how schools can continue providing meals for students who need them; what role can schools play in assisting in child care; how schools can assist in efforts to keep children from congregating in community spaces and keep them quarantined in their own houses; and how to educate parents on ways to continue the students’ educations.

“We need an approach that achieves educational goals while also providing a safe environment for our students, and acting in the best interests of public health,” Gov. Kelly said.

“Kansas will continue taking proactive steps to ensure that we’re doing our utmost in COVID-19 prevention and response,” she said.

To see the governor’s news conference, visit https://www.facebook.com/GovLauraKelly/

Concern expressed about firefighters dealing with COVID-19

Concern was expressed recently about the safety of firefighters in dealing with COVID-19.

At a March 12 Unified Government Commission, Commissioner Mike Kane asked about the subject of firefighter safety.

He asked if the UG could check into the procedures that Kansas City, Missouri, has approved, and to see if there is something that the UG could learn from.

Commissioner Kane said recently that his questions were not directly about the five firefighters reportedly under self-quarantine or about any specific incident, but his concerns were about safety procedures in general. Each fire department seems to have different procedures, he said, and there is a need for have a professional look at it to say what needs to be done. He added he thought the mayor and governor did the right thing to declare an emergency, to protect the people who live here.

“They are doing things different,” UG Administrator Doug Bach said at the meeting about the Kansas City, Missouri, and Kansas City, Kansas, procedures. “We did some analysis of the things they are doing.”

The UG was looking at best practices and will move forward with what is the most appropriate for the UG, he said at the meeting.

Bach, at the meeting, said he was looking at all operational practices, and added that about 90 percent of the UG employees need to keep working.

“We are taking steps to provide additional disinfectant, advise and provide information to employees about what they should be doing to take precautions,” he said.

“We’re advising people if you’re feeling ill, don’t come to work, but otherwise, this is a time when we have to step up,” he said at the meeting. “This is when our employees work hard and take care of the community.

“I know we’ll be here to serve,” he said, “and we’ll continue to do what we can to provide additional resources that they need.”

The International Association of Firefighters recommended personal protection equipment including certain types of masks, disposable gowns, gloves, eye protection, and placing a surgical mask on patients. The IAFF has developed recommended protocols for firefighters in dealing with COVID-19, including information about the personal protection equipment that is needed, at https://www.iaff.org/coronavirus/?fbclid=IwAR2H9dj37GEUxbxWC4MhItdumnIBX8e1ffF57B2JyaNQz26iqHMirVqhpMQ.