According to the National Weather Service of Topeka, scattered showers and thunderstorms will gradually lift northward into the area this afternoon and continue to overspread the area overnight into Friday. Severe weather is not expected with this activity. Conditions should be mostly dry this weekend into early next week, however cannot rule out a few isolated showers and storms. Temperatures will be on the rise with highs reaching into the 90s this weekend and heat indices soaring into the 100-105 degree range.

Hazardous Weather Outlook 

Today: Mostly cloudy with a 50 percent chance of rain showers and thunderstorms. Highs in the upper 70s. Southeast winds up to 10 mph.

Tonight: Showers and thunderstorms likely. Lows in the upper 60s. Southeast winds 5 to 10 mph. Chance of precipitation 60 percent.

Friday: Mostly cloudy with a 40 percent chance of showers and thunderstorms. Highs in the upper 80s. South winds 5 to 15 mph.

Friday Night: Mostly cloudy with a 40 percent chance of showers and thunderstorms. Lows in the lower 70s. South winds 10 to 15 mph.

Saturday: Mostly sunny with slight chance of showers and thunderstorms. Highs in the lower 90s. South winds 10 to 20 mph.

Saturday Night: Partly cloudy. Lows in the lower 70s.

Sunday: Sunny. Highs in the mid 90s.

Sunday Night: Mostly clear. Lows in the lower 70s.

Monday: Mostly sunny. Highs in the mid 90s.

Monday Night: Mostly clear. Lows in the lower 70s.

Tuesday: Sunny. Highs in the lower 90s.

Tuesday Night: Partly cloudy. Lows around 70.

Wednesday: Mostly sunny with slight chance of showers and thunderstorms. Highs in the lower 90s.

WASHINGTON – Today Congressman Tim Huelskamp (KS-01) announced the introduction of his legislation to reward, not punish whistleblowers employed at the Department of Veteran Affairs (VA). His bill, the Whistleblowing Testimony Travel Act, would protect brave VA employees who decide to testify to Congress about the truth of the VA’s culture of corruption and unaccountability.

Huelskamp has worked closely with VA whistleblowers, including meeting with them in his office, to learn about the culture of corruption and unaccountability. This cooperation with VA employees to expose the mistreatment of our Veterans is critical to making the VA a place where Veterans’ needs come first. Whistleblowers were front and center in exposing the deadly waiting lists at the Phoenix VA and elsewhere and have been a critical source of behind-the-scenes information in the VA.

“One of the primary ways I have helped uncover and expose failures at the VA is through the testimony of these brave employees who risk much to tell the truth. And right now, the VA considers whistleblowing to be a vacation.

“I was outraged to find out that the VA would require a whistleblower – who might be testifying about his or her boss – to get permission from the boss to testify before Congress – and then must use their own personal vacation time to do so. This is outrageous! And this is why I’m sponsoring the Whistleblowing Testimony Travel Act.

“It’s an insult to our honest, hardworking VA employees who just want to help our Veterans to force them to use up personal benefits like vacation time. It’s even worse that they have to get permission from their boss to do so. If VA leaders are as committed to helping Veterans as they say, it’s time to reward and promote whistleblowing – instead of penalizing these brave employees and their families.”

MANHATTAN – A Kansas man is facing aggravated battery charges after an altercation involving a leaf blower.

Riley County Police reported they arrested Jake Fechner, 37, Alta Vista, on Tuesday in the 5300 Block of Tuttle Creek Boulevard just after 3:30 p.m.

He reportedly struck a 35-year-old female victim who was known to him in the face with a leaf blower.

Fechner’s bond was set at $8,000.00.

After reaching as high as nine feet above normal over the past month Milford Lake’s water level is right at where they would normally like to see it, two and a half feet high.

RJ Harms, Corps of Engineers Project Manager at Milford Lake explained that the Corps of Engineers reduced the outflow at Milford Lake to 800 cfs just before the 4th of July Holiday weekend.

“We’re really just kind of matching whats coming in now. We’ll hold this and see how things go. We’re about two and a half feet above normal and that’s where we would normally be through the summer anyway, we like to keep it maybe a foot or two high through the summer,” said Harms. “That seems to make the boat ramps work better, the marinas like that, and we’ll have more water over some shallow areas so it’s better for the recreation boaters.”

Harms added that because of the high water there’s still a lot of clean up to do around the lake, picking up drift wood and adding more gravel to some roadways. The only damage he knew of was focused on the north half of the lake.

“Fortunately we didn’t really have much damage, the north end of the lake up at Clay County Parks probably had the most. They had some electric services, utilitiy sites where they have hookups for the campers, some of those went under water so they had damage to the electrical inside some of those units.”

So far the lake has been fortunate and has not had any issues with blue green algae. Cooler temperatures and rain in May and June could be contributing factors to that. Harms said they will continue to keep an eye on it, especially if the weather turns warm again with little to no wind.

Enrollment for the upcoming school year has began at Saint Xavier Catholic School in Junction City.

The school is currently enrolling students in Preschool through 12th grade. Registration packets are available at the school office (Bldg. A) between the hours of 8:00 a.m. – 1:00 p.m. or on the school website at www.saintxrams.org.

Saint Xavier Catholic School is also looking to fill teaching and coaching positions for the upcoming school year. The school is seeking a certified math teacher for grades 7-12, along with substitute teachers who have a current Kansas teaching license or substitute license.

They are also seaking coaches for High School Boys Cross Country, High School Track and Middle School Track.

For more information or to schedule a tour of the school, call 785-238-2841 or email kaner@saintxrams.org.

Carissa Horton, PA-C in the Geary Community Hospital Rural Health Clinic has been named a Safe Sleep Trainer following completion of a Wichita, Ks train-the-trainer session put on by the Kansas Infant Death and SIDS (KIDS) Network.

Horton learned how to best teach healthcare providers, parents, childcare providers, other caregivers and community members about the dangers in traditional sleep environments and how to create a safe sleep environment.

Horton will be available to offer the local sessions on safe sleep that formerly required a representative from Wichita to travel to the area. To schedule Horton for a safe sleep training session contact Jill Nelson, Delivering Change: Healthy Moms, Healthy Babies Program Coordinator at 785-238-3787.

ROBERT BURNS, AP National Security Writer

WASHINGTON (AP) — The Army is moving ahead with big troop reductions that could grow even larger unless Congress and the White House find a way to stop additional across-the-board budget cuts this fall.

This is unfolding in the midst of a war against the Islamic State group that the Obama administration says is likely to require a long-term military commitment.

Army officials were notifying members of Congress on Wednesday of details of how they intend to reduce the active-duty force from 490,000 soldiers to 450,000 within two years.

The size of this reduction was settled months ago, but congressional delegations have been waiting on word of how the cuts would be distributed and timed. The biggest cuts are expected to be made at units based in Georgia and Alaska.

CHICAGO (AP) – A big Army study says war-time suicide attempts are most common in newer enlisted soldiers who have not been deployed.

Officers are less likely to try to end their lives. And at both levels, attempts are more common among women and those without a high school diploma.

The study analyzed records on nearly 10,000 suicide attempts among almost 1 million active-duty Army members during the wars in Afghanistan and Iraq, from 2004 to 2009. Rates increased during that time.

Military suicides have gotten the most attention, but attempts are more prevalent and sometimes have different contributing factors.

The study was published Wednesday in the journal JAMA Psychiatry.

A longtime member of the Junction City – Geary County business community, Honey Grant, has joined the roster of real estate agents at the Sheila M. Burdett Agency.

Grant recently retitred from the manager’s position at City Cycle Sales after 36 years with that business. In 2012 City Cycle Sales was named the number one dealer in the nation.

Grant has also been active in the community as a member of the Grandview Plaza City Council, assisting with Run for the Wall, and she was instrumental in getting the Charter for the Harley Owners Group in 1988, brought the first Kansas State rally to Junction City, as well as the Antique Motorcycle Group.

Grant was named as a Certified Volunteer of America by Epsilon Sigma Alpha International, and she received the 2011 & 2012 Chamber of Commerce Citizen of the Year Award.

Jammin In JC is known for a variety of good blues music.

But barbeque is also a part of the festival, scheduled this year on September 25 and 26 in Junction City.

This year the barbeque contest will become a Kansas City Barbeque Society sanctioned event. A member of the Jammin In JC planning committee, Rick Dykstra, said they’ll probably triple the number of barbeque entries. “The contest is offering $5,000 in prize money. That’s pretty good. We should attract a lot of people for that.”

Cash awards go to the top ten places in each category. The four categories will be chicken, ribs, pork butt, and beef brisket.

The blues music during the festival will feature regional and national brands.  The headliner this year is Castro Coleman a-k-a Mr. Sipp, “The Mississippi Blues Child.”  Coleman has more than 125 credits and has played on over 50 national recordings with several Grammy nominated projects. Mr. Sipp was the 2014 International Blues Challenge Winner from The Vicksburg Blues Society.