Month: September 2021

Sixteen Kansas troopers to assist in Hurricane Ida aid effort

Sixteen Kansas Highway Patrol troopers will be deployed to Louisiana on Saturday, Sept. 25, to provide support around areas affected by Hurricane Ida, according to an announcement Thursday by Gov. Laura Kelly.

The KHP troopers are deploying as part of an Emergency Management Compact, an agreement that allows states to send government aid to other states in emergencies.

“In times of crisis, Kansans have always stepped up to help out our fellow Americans – and today is no different,” Gov. Laura Kelly said. “Today, I deployed Kansas State Troopers to Louisiana to help those struggling in the areas affected by Hurricane Ida. We stand ready to provide relief for the impacted families.”

The mobile field force troopers will be sent out with equipment on a 16-day deployment to areas affected by the Hurricane Ida disaster. Their mission will be to augment the Louisiana State Police with additional personnel for law enforcement functions.

“The KHP recognizes the need to provide support and assistance to our partnering agencies, especially when nature strikes, and our services are requested,” Kansas Highway Patrol Superintendent Col. Herman Jones said. “As a result of the devastation that came with Hurricane Ida, the Louisiana State Police has formally requested our assistance, along with the assistance of other state police and emergency management agencies – and we stand ready to help.”

Today’s forecast: Sunny and high near 78

At Wyandotte County Lake. (Photo by Mary Rupert)

No rain is in the Wyandotte County forecast for the next seven days, according to the National Weather Service.

The high today will be near 78 with sunny skies.

Cool, fall-like weather and dry conditions will continue through Saturday, and summer temperatures will return early next week, the weather service said.

The surface high pressure will move east tonight, with winds shifting to the south, according to the weather service. Temperatures will slightly warm into the upper 70s and lower 80s on Friday afternoon.

A cold front then will move through Friday evening, with the possibility of a few sprinkles, the weather service said. High pressure will settle over the area on Saturday, with slightly cooler temperatures in the 70s and mostly sunny skies.

Sunday will see a return to warm temperatures, with highs in the middle 80s to 90s, according to the weather service.

Today, it will be sunny, with a high near 78 and a calm wind becoming south southwest around 6 mph in the morning, the weather service said.

Tonight, it will be clear, with a low of 58 and a south wind of 5 to 7 mph, according to the weather service.

Friday, it will be mostly sunny, with a high near 82 and a south southwest wind of 10 to 14 mph, gusting to 25 mph, the weather service said.

Friday night, it will be partly cloudy, with a low of 52 and a north northwest wind of 6 mph becoming calm after midnight, according to the weather service.

Saturday, it will be sunny, with a high near 78 and a calm wind becoming southwest around 5 mph in the afternoon, the weather service said.

Saturday night, it will be clear, with a low of 60, according to the weather service.

Sunday, it will be sunny, with a high near 89, the weather service said.

Sunday night, it will be clear, with a low around 67, according to the weather service.

Monday, it will be sunny, with a high near 89, the weather service said.

Monday night, it will be clear, with a low of 65, according to the weather service.

Tuesday, it will be sunny, with a high near 88, the weather service said.

Tuesday night, it will be mostly clear, with a low of 63, according to the weather service.

Wednesday, it will be mostly sunny, with a high near 84, the weather service said.

Doctors find that Native Americans, other countries take COVID pandemic seriously

After helping Native American tribes and also traveling internationally to help others, Dr. Gary Morsch of the COVID Care Force has seen many different attitudes about vaccines and COVID prevention.

In a recent trip to Eastern Europe, he saw strict COVID procedures there, with surgical masks mandated. In Czechoslovakia and Croatia, N95 masks were required.

Before leaving the United States, he had to be fully vaccinated and have a COVID test, and proof of these were required in Europe, he said. He took a COVID test every day in Europe.

In countries that rely on tourism, the people were grateful he and his group took the COVID precautions seriously, he added. He made his remarks during the morning medical update Wednesday at the University of Kansas Health System.

Visiting the Navajo Nation in North America with the COVID Care Force, Dr. Morsch, the founder and executive director of the COVID Care Force, said the vaccination rate there reached 75 percent months ago, and it is considered at herd immunity. The COVID Care Force is a group of volunteer doctors, nurses and nonmedical persons who help with vaccinations and health care. The rest of the U.S. is 47th in the world for vaccinations.

Dr. Morsch said there is a difference in the way the Native American culture approaches the concept of community good.

“It’s not about me and my rights and what I can get by with, but it’s about what can we do to get through this together,” he said.

There was a lot of trust in their leaders, and they followed their advice to get the vaccine.

According to Dr. Morsch, the best way to convince the vaccine resistant is educating through kindness, gentleness and empathy.

Retired Rear Admiral Kevin Meeks, deputy secretary of health for the Chickasaw Nation currently, and retired deputy director of operations for the Indian Health Service, said the tribes had made extensive preparations when COVID began spreading in the United States. They limited travel, restricted reservation access, and in the case of one tribe, locked down the reservation.

They did daily employee health screenings of 16,000 Chickasaw employees, drive-through testing and vaccinations.

They implemented a command system in April 2020 to run the operations, and when CARES Act funding arrived, the Chickasaw Nation constructed health facilities and expanded its capabilities, he said. A lab and alternate care site were built. An old Kmart store was converted and at full capacity, was vaccinating 4,500 people a day, he said.

Across the country, when bad things happen people come together, setting aside their differences, Meeks said. Tribes came together much more than normal, he said.

Dr. Morsch said there is a lot of commitment to the common good and respect for tribal leaders.

“It’s not about me and my rights and what I can get by with,” he said. “It’s about how do we get through this together.”

Those who are interested in volunteering in the COVID Care Force may find more information at https://covidcareforce.org/.

Vaccines, tests available

The former Kmart building at 7836 State Ave., a Unified Government Health Department vaccination site, will be open for testing from 9 a.m. to 3 p.m. Monday through Friday, and for free COVID-19 vaccinations from 10 a.m. to 6 p.m. Wednesday through Friday. Walk-ins are accepted. There are incentives being offered for Wyandotte County residents, while supplies last. See WycoVaccines.org.

COVID-19 testing from WellHealth will be available from 8 a.m. to 8 p.m. Thursday, Sept. 23, at the Kansas National Guard Armory, 100 S. 20th. Appointments are necessary. The site is open from 8 a.m. to 8 p.m. Monday through Friday, and on Saturdays and Sundays from 9 a.m. to 3 p.m. To make an appointment, including a same-day appointment, visit https://www.gogettested.com/kansas.

COVID-19 vaccines and testing are available from 8:30 a.m. to 5 p.m. Thursday, Sept. 23, at the Vibrant Health Argentine 1428 S. 32nd St., Kansas City, Kansas. Testing and vaccinations are available. No appointment is necessary.

Mobile vaccines can be requested online at WycoVaccines.org or by calling 3-1-1 (913-573-5311). For more information on the Unified Government Health Department’s vaccine schedule, see WycoVaccines.org.

COVID-19 vaccines and tests are available at other locations in Wyandotte County, including some pharmacies. For locations and availability, visit www.vaccines.gov.


Free vaccinations at KU Health System are open to the public, and appointments are required. Current patients may use MyChart to make an appointment. Others may call 913-588-1227 or visit kansashealthsystem.com/vaccine to make an appointment to get vaccinated. KU Health System currently is vaccinating residents of Kansas and Missouri who are 12 or older, by appointment only. Those under 18 must be accompanied by a parent or guardian throughout the appointment.

Case numbers reported

The University of Kansas Health System reported 72 total COVID-19 patients on Wednesday, Sept. 22, an increase of one since Sept. 21, according to Dr. Dana Hawkinson, medical director of infection prevention and control. Thirty-seven patients with the active virus were inpatients on Wednesday. a decrease of three from Tuesday. Nine of the 37 were vaccinated. Fourteen patients were in the intensive care unit, a decrease of three since Tuesday. Nine patients were on ventilators, no change from Tuesday. Thirty-five other patients were still hospitalized from COVID, but were out of the acute infection phase, an increase of four from Tuesday.

Wyandotte County reported a cumulative 23,690 cases on Wednesday, Sept. 22, an increase of 64 cases since Tuesday, Sept. 21, according to the Unified Government Health Department’s COVID-19 webpage. There were a cumulative total of 360 deaths on Wednesday, no change since Tuesday.

On Wednesday, Sept. 22, the Unified Government Health Department reported that 48.34 percent of Wyandotte County residents had received at least one dose of vaccine. Those completing their vaccinations totaled about 41.46 percent.
The percentage of Wyandotte County residents who were age 12 and older who had received at least one dose was 59.5 percent.

The Kansas City, Kansas, Public Schools’ COVID dashboard on Sept. 22, covering the period from Sept. 11 to Sept. 17, stated that 191 students and 22 staff were quarantined. There were 46 confirmed student cases and 10 confirmed staff cases, according to the dashboard.

The Mid-America Regional Council reported 212,564 cases on Wednesday in Greater Kansas City, a nine-county area. There were a total of 2,870 deaths. The daily average of new hospitalizations was 122.

The Kansas Department of Health and Environment reported 401,931 cumulative COVID-19 cases in Kansas on Wednesday, Sept. 22, an increase of 2,562 since Monday, Sept. 20. There was a total of 5,919 cumulative deaths reported statewide, an increase of three since Sept. 20.

The KDHE reported 73,869 cumulative COVID-19 cases in Johnson County on Sept. 22, an increase of 298 since Sept. 20. Leavenworth County had 9,805 cases on Sept. 22, an increase of 34 since Sept. 20. Sedgwick County (the Wichita area) reported 74,513 cases on Sept. 22, an increase of 601 since Sept. 20.

On Wednesday, the KHDE reported 11,320 cumulative cases in Douglas County (the Lawrence area), an increase of 52 since Sept. 20. Riley County (the Manhattan area) had 7,490 cumulative cases, an increase of 33 since Sept. 20. Shawnee County (the Topeka area) had 24,082 cumulative cases, an increase of 123 cases since Sept. 20.

On Wednesday night, there were a cumulative 42,539,373 COVID-19 cases in the United States, with a cumulative 681,111 deaths, according to the Johns Hopkins Coronavirus Resource Center.

Links

Visit gogettested.com/Kansas and https://wyandotte-county-covid-19-hub-unifiedgov.hub.arcgis.com/pages/what-to-do-if-you-think-you-have-covid-19 for more testing sites.

Wyandotte County residents may contact the Health Department at wycohelp.org to sign up for a test to be delivered to their home.

For more details about free COVID-19 testing offered by the UG Health Department, visit https://www.facebook.com/UGHealthDept or call 3-1-1.

To view details about the extension of the mask order in KCK until Nov. 18, visit https://www.wycokck.org/files/assets/public/health/documents/covid/ug_extendsmaskmandate_nr_09102021.pdf.