Temperatures fell to around 40 degrees overnight, so far the coldest fall temperatures, in Wyandotte County.
Below normal temperatures are expected through the weekend with highs in the upper 50s to mid 60s and lows in the mid 30s to low 40s this morning and in the 40s on Saturday and Sunday morning, the National Weather Service said.
Today’s high will reach 63, according to the weather service. It was 46 degrees at 9 a.m. Friday.
The weather service also predicted patchy frost in low-lying areas, particularly to the north.
On Saturday morning, there is a 30 percent chance of showers, the weather service said.
Today, it will be sunny with a high near 63 and a calm wind, the weather service said.
Tonight, there is a 30 percent chance of showers after 1 a.m., according to the weather service, with a low of 51 and an east southeast wind of 3 to 8 mph. Less than a tenth of an inch of rain is forecast.
Saturday, it will be partly sunny with a high near 67, the weather service said. An east southeast wind of 6 to 8 mph will become west northwest in the afternoon.
Saturday night, it will be mostly clear with a low around 44 and a light north wind, according to the weather service.
Sunday, it will be sunny with a high near 63 and a north wind of 3 to 8 mph, the weather service said.
Sunday night, it will be clear, with a low around 44, according to the weather service.
Monday, it will be sunny with a high near 73, the weather service said.
Monday night, it will be clear, with a low of 55, according to the weather service.
Tuesday, it will be sunny with a high near 77, the weather service said.
Tuesday night, it will be clear, with a low of 54, according to the weather service.
Wednesday, it will be sunny with a high near 80, the weather service said.
Wednesday night, it will be clear with a low of 51, according to the weather service.
Thursday, it will be sunny, with a high near 78, the weather service said.
Wyandotte County reported 6,973 cumulative COVID-19 cases on Thursday, an increase of 91 since Wednesday, according to the Unified Government COVID-19 website. There were 134 cumulative COVID-19 cases reported, the same as Wednesday. There were six more persons hospitalized since Wednesday. (From UG COVID-19 webpage)
An increase has been noted recently in COVID-19 case numbers at the local, state and national levels.
Cases are up across the United States, according to national measurements such as the seven-day rolling average at Johns Hopkins University, according to Dr. Steve Stites, chief medical officer at the University of Kansas Health System. It shouldn’t be any surprise since schools and society and bars have reopened, he added.
Johns Hopkins University’s COVID-19 website reported national cases at 7.2 million on Thursday, with more than 200,000 deaths.
The University of Kansas Health System saw a slight increase on Thursday morning, with 34 patients in the hospital with acute COVID-19, including nine in the intensive care unit and six on ventilators, according to Dr. Dana Hawkinson, medical director of infection prevention and control at KU Health System. He said there are 27 other COVID-19 patients in recovery, with three on the ventilator. HaysMed in Hays, Kansas, reported 14 acute COVID-19 patients and one in recovery on Thursday.
Wyandotte County reported 6,973 cumulative COVID-19 cases on Thursday, an increase of 91 reported since Wednesday, according to the Unified Government COVID-19 website. There were 134 cumulative COVID-19 deaths reported, the same as Wednesday. There were six more persons hospitalized since Wednesday.
According to the UG COVID-19 hub, Wyandotte County had a 14.4 seven-day rolling average of positive test percentages on Sept. 30. The positivity rate of all who tested positive since March is about 17.4 percent in Wyandotte County, according to the website. Ideally, the positivity rate should be below 5 percent, according to national officials.
The KC Region COVID-19 hub reported 43,987 total cases in the nine-county Kansas City area. Hospitalization rates were trending up.
Kansas, which reports its case numbers on Mondays, Wednesdays and Fridays, saw an increase of 1,120 COVID-19 cases on Wednesday, according to the Kansas Department of Health and Environment, for a cumulative total of 59,749, with 678 total deaths.
In response to a question about why so many totals show different numbers or rates, Dr. Hawkinson said there could be delays in test results for some, or a delay in data at the site they’re getting information. He advised people to pick a couple of sites to look at, such as the Johns Hopkins site, Kansas site or the Mid-America Regional Council’s KC Regional COVID-19 site.
Don’t focus on the details, just understand the trends, such as the 7-day or 14-day averages, he advised.
At the Friday, Oct. 2, KU Health System news conference, the topic will be about the hospital’s numbers and what the numbers mean.
Free testing continues Friday
Free tests are at the UG Health Department parking lot, 619 Ann Ave., Kansas City, Kansas. They are open from 9 a.m. to 3 p.m. Monday through Friday. No appointment is needed.
The tests are for those who live or work in Wyandotte County. Participants should bring something that shows their address or their work place, such as a piece of mail or a work badge.
The Health Department tests now are open to asymptomatic people as well as those who have symptoms or have been exposed to COVID-19. Check with the UG Health Department’s Facebook page to see if there have been any changes in the schedule because of the weather or for other reasons.
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 Unified Government Commission on Thursday night unanimously denied a permit to store work trucks and equipment on a property at 3201 Pomeroy Drive.
The issue previously had been before the City Planning Commission, which voted 7-1 for denial of the permit. The property had three previous violations.
The Pomeroy Drive neighborhood is a residential area, and residents submitted a petition against the permit, as well as wrote a letter and spoke at the meeting Thursday.
Commissioner Melissa Bynum, who lives near the area, said she had been working with the neighborhood about six months on this issue. She said the residents had lived with constant disruption from the heavy trucks for a long while.
The property had been zoned agricultural, and one nearby resident stated that there was nothing to allow storage of large, heavy trucks on an agricultural-zoned property. The resident wanted the industrial construction equipment moved somewhere else.
Commissioner Jane Philbrook said she was disappointed that the property’s zoning had been changed to agricultural, and was not used that way.
In another item on Thursday night, renewal of a special use permit for a group home and emergency shelter for children at 1634 S. 29th St. was approved. There are a maximum of six children in the home. The permit was approved 7-1, with Commissioner Tom Burroughs voting no.
A neighbor had submitted a protest petition with eight signatures against the group home, but it was thrown out by the planning staff for not having enough signatures. The petition did not have the 20 percent of signatures required, according to the planning staff. Gunnar Hand, planning director, said Ruby Park is just behind the residence, so that is why it did not have signatures of 20 percent of the surrounding area.
There were no violations on the property since it first received a permit, according to Hand.
Terry Mason, the applicant for the permit, said the children and the community were safe. The children were not out in the community unless they were accompanied by a staff member, she said. She added there were alarms on all the windows and doors. She said she tried to address the concerns of the neighbors.
Commissioner Christian Ramirez thanked Mason for providing resources and services for children, and made the motion to approve the permit. “Not every child is fortunate enough to have a good home,” he said.
Also at Thursday night’s meeting, the plan review of the Reardon Center redevelopment project in downtown Kansas City, Kansas, was approved, without discussion, as part of the consent agenda. The project at 5th and Minnesota includes a new, smaller Reardon Center, a fitness center, a building with 94 apartments, retail space and some nearby athletic fields. Additional apartments had been added to the plan.
Several other items on the agenda also were approved.
