Month: September 2020

Some advice to students as they start school this week

Wyandotte County reported 12 additional positive COVID-19 cases on Tuesday, with a cumulative total of 6,179 cases, according to the Unified Government Health Department’s COVID-19 webpage. There were 118 cumulative deaths reported, the same as Monday. (From UG COVID-19 webpage)

With school starting today in Wyandotte County, doctors had some advice for students returning in person to school.

Dr. Dana Hawkinson, medical director of infection prevention and control at the University of Kansas Health System, recommended that students try to separate themselves from their classmates and keep their masks on. He spoke during a news conference sponsored Tuesday by the KU Health System. Parents should let students know that they should stay within their groups, socially distanced, and everything will be OK, he added.

Dr. Erin Corriveau, deputy medical officer for the Unified Government Health Department, said masks are most important. It’s a simple act of kindness to wear masks, she said, and she hopes students have bene practicing at home.

Pastor Glenn Brady of New Bethel Church at 745 Walker, Kansas City, Kansas, said it’s most important for kids to be courteous, one to another. Part of being courteous is distancing and wearing a mask, he added.

Dr. Steve Stites, chief medical officer for the University of Kansas Health System, said the most important thing is for parents to tell kids, “I love you.” With so many stresses in the world, those words mean more than ever, he said, and they show that parents care about kids and give kids security. Then the kids can show courtesy, kindness and wear masks.

Dr. Corriveau said parents should talk to kids about cohorting, or sticking with the same group of kids they’re with in the classroom. The students should be careful about what they do in their off times and on the weekends, she said. If they’re involved in activities, really encourage mask wearing, she said.

She also said testing keeps people safe by helping to identify the people who have COVID-19, then isolate them so they don’t spread the virus any further.

Recently, according to Dr. Corriveau, the numbers of positive cases have been lower in Wyandotte County. They are still encouraging people to get tested if they have symptoms or have been exposed to a positive case, she said.

Pastor Brady said his church has still not resumed full services at this point. They have online services and also have held some outdoor services, he said.

“From the beginning, we took the attitude of wisdom with faith,” he said.

Wyandotte County reported 12 additional positive COVID-19 cases on Tuesday, with a cumulative total of 6,179 cases, according to the Unified Government Health Department’s COVID-19 webpage. There were 118 cumulative deaths reported, the same as Monday.

Dr. Dana Hawkinson, medical director of infection prevention and control at the University of Kansas Health System, reported 18 acute COVID-19 patients on Tuesday morning at the KU Health System, with four in the intensive care, down from seven on Friday, and two on ventilators, the same as Friday. Numbers of acute patients dropped to 13 on Monday, Labor Day, and there were six admissions since Monday morning, according to Dr. Hawkinson, with some discharges. There also are non-acute COVID-19 patients at the Health System, including two more on ventilators.

Testing offered Wednesday

Testing will be offered from 11 a.m. to 2 p.m. Wednesday, Sept. 9, at Judson Baptist Church, 8300 State Ave., Kansas City, Kansas.

The pop-up testing is through the Wyandotte County Health Equity Task Force and Vibrant Health.

Testing also will take place from 9 a.m. to 3 p.m. Wednesday, Sept. 9, at the Health Department parking lot, 6th and Ann, Kansas City, Kansas, weather permitting.

Check with the UG’s website or call 311 to see if there are any changes in the schedule because of weather. Information about testing is at https://wyandotte-county-covid-19-hub-unifiedgov.hub.arcgis.com/pages/what-to-do-if-you-think-you-have-covid-19.

The KU doctors’ news conference is at https://www.facebook.com/kuhospital/videos/243674583573888.

The UG COVID-19 webpage is at https://alpha.wycokck.org/Coronavirus-COVID-19-Information.


The KC Region COVID-19 Hub dashboard is at https://marc2.org/covidhub/.


The Unified Government Health Department is collecting input on people’s experiences getting tested for COVID-19 in Wyandotte County. The survey is on the UG website at https://us.openforms.com/Form/ea97a450-3d74-4d86-8d1f-6e340d55cf7c.


The UG Health Department new school and sports guidance is online at https://alpha.wycokck.org/files/assets/public/health/documents/covid/09042020fallsportsrecommendations.pdf.

A previous UG sports order is online at https://alpha.wycokck.org/files/assets/public/health/documents/covid/08132020localhealthofficerorderregardingsports.pdf.

The Wyandotte County school start order is online at https://alpha.wycokck.org/Coronavirus-COVID-19-Information.


Wyandotte County is under a mandatory mask order and is in Phase 3 of the state’s reopening plan. For more information, residents may visit the UG COVID-19 website at https://alpha.wycokck.org/Coronavirus-COVID-19-Information or call 311 for more information.

The KDHE’s COVID-19 webpage is at https://www.coronavirus.kdheks.gov/.


The CDC’s COVID-19 webpage is at https://www.cdc.gov/coronavirus/2019-nCoV/index.html.

Two homicide victims identified

Police today released the names of two homicide victims from Sept. 4

The two victims were found at 9:56 p.m. Sept. 4 in the 1800 block of North 31st Street, in the alley east of 31st, according to police. They died from gunshot wounds.

The two were identified as Raymond McElroy, 56, and Jose Flores-Portillo, 28, both residents of Kansas City, Kansas, the police spokesman stated.

Police said early indications showed that only two persons were involved, and it appeared they were shooting at each other for unknown reasons.

The case is under investigation by the Kansas City, Kansas, Police Department’s Major Case Unit, which is asking anyone with information to call the TIPS hotline at 816-474-TIPS, according to police.

Scammers claiming to be with Justice Department preying on elderly, U.S. attorney says

Individuals claiming to represent the Department of Justice are calling members of the public as part of an impostor scam, U.S. Attorney Stephen McAllister said today.

“Do not provide personal information over the telephone – even if the caller claims to be from the Department of Justice,” McAllister said. “These are fraudulent calls.”

The Office of Justice Programs’ Office for Victims of Crime has received multiple reports that individuals claiming to represent the Department of Justice are calling members of the public as part of an impostor scam and appear to target the elderly.

Reports to the National Elder Fraud Hotline indicate these scammers falsely represent themselves as Department of Justice investigators or employees and attempt to obtain personal information from the call recipient, or they leave a voicemail with a return phone number.

The return phone number directs users to a recorded menu that matches the recorded menu for the department’s main phone number. Eventually, the user reaches an “operator” who steers the user to someone claiming to be an investigator. That “investigator” then attempts to gain the user’s personal information.

“Phone scams are an ugly and pervasive act of victimization. The scams being reported to our National Elder Fraud Hotline are especially heinous because they show the perpetrators are preying upon one of the most vulnerable segments of our society – the elderly,” OVC Director Jessica Hart said.

“As if this were not despicable enough, the scammers do so posing as employees of the Justice Department, usurping public trust in the agency that serves as a bastion of fairness and lawfulness while these scams exploit the elderly for financial gain,” she said. “The first step to identifying these criminals is to have their crimes reported.”

Those who receive these calls are encouraged to report these scams to the FTC via their website or by calling 877–FTC–HELP (877-382-4357). Fraud can also be reported to the FBI for law enforcement action at https://www.justice.gov/criminal-fraud/report-fraud.

The National Elder Fraud Hotline is a resource created by OVC for people to report fraud against anyone age 60 or older. Reporting certain financial losses due to fraud as soon as possible, and within the first 2–3 days, can increase the likelihood of recovering losses. The hotline is open seven days a week. For more information about the hotline, visit https://stopelderfraud.ovc.ojp.gov/.