HOLCOMB, Kan. (AP) — Fire officials are trying to determine the cause of a fire that has temporarily shut down the Tyson Fresh Meats plant in Holcomb.

Investigators say the fire Friday night started in the box shop near the area where animals are killed, causing part of the roof to collapse. It took firefighters more than 12 hours to get the fire under control.

Garden City Fire Chief Rick Collins said no one was injured.

The Topeka Capital-Journal reports Secretary of Commerce David Toland and Secretary of Agriculture Mike Beam met Saturday with representatives from Tyson, local government and economic development officials to coordinate state aid if it is needed.

The plant will be closed indefinitely. The company said in a statement Saturday that it will pay employees until production resumes.

RAWLINS COUNTY — Sunday evening’s summer storm brought damaging winds, flooding rain, hail, funnel clouds and one unconfirmed report of a tornado in Rawlins County.

Authorities are still working to determine the amount of damage in Rawlins County. Trees and power poles are down south and west of Atwood and water was also reported out of portions of Beaver Creek, according to the Rawlins County Sheriff’s Department.

In addition to street flooding in Atwood, streets are also flooded in St. Francis, Goodland and other communities in northwest Kansas.

Power is out in portions of Rawlins County. The sheriff’s office indicated they may not have electricity until noon as crews from Midwest Energy and Prairie Land work to restore service.

SHAWNEE COUNTY — Law enforcement authorities are investigating a stolen car suspect after a chase and arrest.

On Saturday, Kansas Highway Patrol Troopers from Troop B and Troop G were involved in a pursuit with a stolen vehicle on the Kansas Turnpike westbound from Douglas County. The pursuit continued into Shawnee County.

Shawnee County Sheriff’s deputies  were ready with tire deflation devices. They were successful with their deployment, hitting 3 of the 4 tires as the pursuit passed westbound on I-70 near the Croco Road overpass. The suspect exited the interstate at Deer Creek and surrendered without further incident.  Troopers have not named the suspect and possible charges.

NORTH PLATTE, Neb. (AP) — The Nebraska trial of a Kansas man charged with the 2017 traffic deaths of four Iowa motorcyclists has been delayed again until October.

A judge recently agreed to delay the trial for 24-year-old Jeser Cisneros-Hernandez, of Liberal, Kansas. He’s pleaded not guilty to four counts of vehicular homicide, one of reckless driving and one of failing to drive in his lane.

The new trial date is Oct. 15. Cisneros-Hernandez remains free on bail.

Prosecutors say Cisneros-Hernandez’s vehicle hit two motorcycles carrying two people each on July 1, 2017, near Ogallala.

Authorities say 54-year-old Sheila Matheny and 61-year-old James Matheny, from Bedford, Iowa, were on one motorcycle. The other motorcyclists were 58-year-old Michal Weese and 59-year-old Jerolyn Weese, who lived in Council Bluffs, Iowa.

TOPEKA, Kan. (AP) — A Kansas anti-vaccination group says its membership is growing dramatically since the state added two new vaccination requirements for children returning to school this fall.

As of Aug. 2, Kansas is requiring a meningitis vaccine for students beginning seventh grade and students entering 11th grade who weren’t vaccinated before their 16th birthdays. And students entering kindergarten or first grade need two doses of the hepatitis A vaccine. The vaccines are required for children in public and private schools and are in addition to five other mandated vaccines.

Exceptions are allowed for religious or medical reasons.

Connie Newcome, president of Kansans for Health Freedom, said the nonprofit has grown larger since the Kansas Department of Health and Environment held a hearing on the two new vaccination requirements in June.

“I think most people in Kansas are independent enough that they prefer to make their own family decisions without the government telling them what to do,” said Newcome, a grandmother living outside Hutchinson who says she stopped vaccinating her children decades ago.

The new requirements follow recommendations of the Advisory Committee for Immunization Practices.

“Both of these illnesses are severe and preventable, and the safety profile of the vaccines is well-recognized, in keeping with the CDC (Centers for Disease Control) and other scientific authority,” said Kristi Pankratz, a spokeswoman with the state health department.

Members of the anti-vaccination group told The Star they worry about the pharmaceutical industry’s influence on scientific studies. Many also discussed their children’s illnesses and disorders, which they claim occurred or grew worse after vaccinations — despite research largely showing the contrary.

Christine White, a Johnson County physician, said research shows the benefits of vaccines far outweigh the risks, especially with life-threatening diseases such as meningitis.

“Parents who refuse meningitis (vaccines) often say their children aren’t at risk because they’re homeschooled or aren’t often in group environments. And we try to discuss it only takes one sneeze or one shared drink with a kid who has it to get it,” White said. “I’ve had a few converts with that one. But meningitis scares people. People know that it can kill you.”

In 2017, 72% of Kansas teenagers had been vaccinated against meningitis, lower than the national average of 85%. Kansas ranks sixth from the bottom in meningitis vaccination rates in the country.

Last year, 90% of Kansas children were vaccinated against hepatitis A, due to a previously approved requirement for children in day cares.

KANSAS CITY(AP) — Kansas City authorities are investigating a weekend shooting that killed a boy and wounded a woman.

Kansas City Police said the shooting happened late Saturday in a Kansas City, Missouri, neighborhood. Both the victims were inside when someone fired from outside the home.

Police said the juvenile boy died at a hospital. The woman remained hospitalized Sunday morning with a gunshot wound to her leg.

The victims’ identities were not immediately released

SEDGWICK COUNTY — Law enforcement authorities are working to prevent inmates from making and hiding dangerous weapons at the Sedgwick County jail.

On Thursday, the Sedgwick County Sheriff’s office conducted a search of all 22 pods in the detention facility, according to Lt. Tim Myers.  One hundred employees of the Sedgwick County Sheriff’s Office searched the entire Detention Facility, which included 1,158 jail beds, and 1,164 jail inmates.  The search was conducted for the safety and security of the employees working in the detention facility and for the inmates housed in the facility. 

During the past 4 months, Sedgwick County Sheriff personnel in the detention facility have seen an increase in the number of dangerous weapons found during routine cell searches.  The safety and security of our employees and the inmates housed in our facility is paramount. 

During Thursday’s search, authorities found 3 dangerous weapons in the facility, according to Myers. They also located one metal outlet cover that is commonly fashioned into a weapon. 

These dangerous weapons are commonly referred to as “shanks.”  The weapons are typically fashioned by inmates out of common materials, such as a door strike plate or an outlet cover. 

Myers said, “We apologize to the citizens of Sedgwick County for the interruption of any of their scheduled visitation time, but the safety and security of our employees and the inmates is our top priority. We are also reviewing preventative ways to combat dangerous weapons being made in the facility.”

WICHITA — Sarah Stephens stands over a brightly lit table in a detached garage-turned-grow shed as she trims away unnecessary leaves from a recently harvested hemp plant.

When she’s finished, only the floral material of the plant will be left. The flowers will eventually be processed into CBD oil.

Their outfit is one of the first growers in Kansas’ fledgling industrial hemp industry to begin harvesting.

While the harvest is a major milestone for the state’s hemp pilot program, the industry still faces many challenges before it’s deemed a profitable alternative to corn, wheat, soybeans and the other crops that dominate Kansas farming.

Most hemp growers who planted outside in fields won’t begin harvesting until early September. Sarah Stephens is harvesting so early because she grew a relatively small number of plants indoors.

Before she could begin her harvest, she had to contact the Kansas Department of Agriculture to schedule a pre-harvest inspection. It’s part of a mountain of red tape required to participate in the program including filing planting and harvest reports.

Industrial hemp plants growing inside of a converted garage.

CREDIT BRIAN GRIMMETT / KANSAS NEWS SERVICE

At the pre-harvest inspection, KDA officials take samples of the hemp plants to send to a state laboratory in Topeka. The lab tests the hemp for its THC levels. THC is a psychoactive chemical that gets you high. If a hemp plant has more than 0.3% THC it is by definition no longer hemp — instead it would be considered marijuana and would have to be destroyed.

Stephens had to wait a week for her results. It was the most nervous she’d been since she’d started growing hemp.

She ultimately got the news she was hoping for. Her sample came back with 0.19% THC.

As part of the industrial hemp research program, each licensee had to come up with some kind of research proposal. Stephens experimented with growing hemp hydroponically — or suspended in water — versus growing it in dirt.

“I did screw them up a little bit,” she said. “I had a whole ’nother container of the hydroponics and I killed them.”

It’s a relatively small operation. She’ll only end up harvesting around 50 plants. But she’s already got plans for growth next year.

Besides growing floral material, she’s also begun “cloning” her plants. That means trimming off stems to create new, genetically identical sprouts for other people interested in growing hemp.

Another challenge, and one that’s more immediate, will be finding a processor willing to purchase the hemp. She said she’d like to sell her hemp to a Kansas processor.

“We’re all kind of a part of this new little group of people trying to make it,” she said.

There are only 34 licensed processors in the program, many of which have never done it before and are learning as they go.

“It’s not a small undertaking at all,” KDA Industrial Hemp Specialist Braden Hoch said. “It takes quite a bit of planning to actually get one of these facilities up and running.”

Stephens said she thinks she’s got a processor lined up, but that it wasn’t quite ready to purchase her hemp just yet.

Another option would be to sell their hemp to processors in states such as Colorado and Kentucky, which have more mature programs.

Brian Grimmett reports on the environment, energy and natural resources for the Kansas News Service. You can follow him on Twitter @briangrimmett or email him at grimmett (at) kmuw (dot) org. 

SEDGWICK COUNTY— Law enforcement authorities are investigating an armed robbery and have three suspects in custody.

Just after 10:30 p.m. on Wednesday, police responded to an armed robbery call at P&S Liquor, 2010 E. Pawnee in Wichita, according to officer Charley Davidson.

Upon arrival, officers contacted three employees who stated three unknown suspects entered the business, and one was armed with a handgun. The suspects demanded money. The employees refused to give them money, and the suspects grabbed several bottles of liquor and fled on foot.

Through the investigation, investigators determined 18-year-old Bayleigh McMahon, 18-year-old Kaedon Greenin and two  17-year-old boys all of Wichita were involved.

Police located and arrested them.

Bayleigh McMahon and Kaedon Greening are being held on requested charges of aggravated robbery. The two 17-year-old were also sent to juvenile detention on requested charges of aggravated robbery.

FINNEY COUNTY — Tyson Foods spokesman Worth Sparkman said in a written statement Saturday that due to Friday evening’s fire,  the plant west of Garden City will be down indefinitely.

Just after 8:30p.m. Friday, Garden City Communications Center received a 911 call from the operations manager at the Tyson Fresh Meats, Inc. 3105 I B P Road west of Garden City, according to police.

He reported there was a fire in the west side of the building where the process begins.

Fire crews, law enforcement and Finney County Emergency Management were also on scene until most of Saturday.

The approximately 1200 employees on scene at the time the fire started were evacuated. Authorities have reported no injuries.

Garden City Police department  worked with USD 457 to send buses out to transport employees from Tyson Fresh Meats to Wiley Elementary in Holcomb.

Red Cross has been working with Wiley to assist those who have been displaced by the fire.

Cause of the fire and additional details have not been released.

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FINNEY COUNTY —As 6:00 a.m. Saturday firefighters were still fighting the fire inside the Tyson plant west of Garden City, according to the Holcomb Fire Department.

The fire was not under control. Firefighters were being hampered by a collapsed portion of the roof and near zero visibility.

Tyson has their Haz-Mat team deployed on site assisting firefighters.

All available firefighters from Garden City and Holcomb  were on scene and most have been since the first alarm just after 8:00 pm Friday.

There are no injuries reported.

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FINNEY COUNTY —Just after 8:30p.m. Friday, Garden City Communications Center received a 911 call from the operations manager at the Tyson Fresh Meats, Inc. 3105 I B P Road west of Garden City, according to police.

He reported there was a fire in the west side of the building where the process begins.

Fire crews, law enforcement and Finney County Emergency Management is also on scene until early Saturday morning.

The approximately 1200 employees on scene at the time the fire started were evacuated. Authorities have reported no injuries.

Garden City Police department  worked with USD 457 to send buses out to transport employees from Tyson Fresh Meats to Wiley Elementary in Holcomb.

Red Cross has been working with Wiley to assist those who have been displaced by the fire.

 Tyson said there would be no “A” shift production for process and harvest on Saturday

Cause of the fire and additional details have not been released.

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FINNEY COUNTY — Authorities are working a fire on the slaughter side of the Tyson plant, 3105 I B P Road west of Garden City, according to Finney County Sheriff Kevin Bascue.

Officials evacuated the area where the fire is located and everyone is accounted for, according to Bascue. No injuries are being reported.

Check the post for additional details as they become available.