The Public Works Department announced that water service had been restored.
Junction City Public Works personnel hare responded to water main breaks on Wednesday.
At 10:09 a.m. they reported that customers living in the 100 block of Parkview Drive, 200-400 blocks of North Garfield Street and the 700-900 blocks of West 4th street will experience periods of low water pressure and / or no water due to the water main repairs that will last for about 4-6 hours.
NOTE – Rainfall and temperature information is based on data kept at
Milford Lake by the Corps of Engineers. For more information contact
Chuck Otte, 238-4161.
December 2017 Weather Summary (2017 Annual Weather Summary follows below)
If you ask the average person on the street what the weather was like in
December, they´ll remember the last 10 days and tell you that it was
bitterly cold. When in reality, the December mean temperature was slightly
above normal. Unfortunately, a couple of small snowfall events brought
very little actual moisture and the dry conditions became more deeply
entrenched.
The average daily high for December was 41.7 which is seven tenths of a
degree above normal. The average overnight low was 21.6, four tenths of a degree above normal. This gave us a monthly mean temperature of 31.6 which is one half degree above the long term average. The highest temperature for the month was 69 on the 3rd. The lowest temperature was -8 on both the 30th and 31st as we rolled out the old year. The low of -8 on the 31st tied the record low for that date. The record was first set in 1968 and then reached again in 1976. The high of 8 on the 31st set a new record low high for that date. The old record low high was 11 set in 1978. The low of 61 on the 3rd broke the record high low temperature for that date. The old record was 54 set in 1998. Likewise, the low of 44 on the 20th broke the record high low for that date. The old record was 41 set in 1953. The coldest December on record was in 1983 with a numbing monthly mean temperature of 13.6. That year we had pre-Christmas lows in the minus teens and daytime highs only managing to get to -2 or -3 during that cold snap. The warmest December on record was in 1957 with a monthly mean temperature of 40.2 degrees, a record we might have met or broken had the late month cold spell not arrived. On the last day of autumn we had a month to date mean temperature of 41.9. The bitter cold of the last ten days of the year dropped that mean temperature by 10 degrees!
December is our second driest month of the year with a long term average rainfall of 1.02 inches of liquid precipitation, and 3.7 inches of snow. We received 1.4 inches of very dry snow during December and only 0.13 inches of precipitation at Milford Lake and 0.11 inches in Junction City. Since mid-October we have received less than a quarter inch of rainfall which is very concerning. The wettest December on record was 2007 when an ice storm deposited 3.77 inches of precipitation on the area. The driest year on record was 1976 when no measurable precipitation was recorded. December 2017 tied for the 7th driest December in records dating back to 1931.
January is our coldest month of the year, our driest month of the year, but is tied with February for being our snowiest month of the year. Average daily highs in January start the months at 37 and rise only slightly by the end of the month reaching 40 by the 31st. Average overnight lows during January don´t really change much running 17 to 18 degrees through the entire month. Long term average liquid precipitation for January is only 0.65 inches and long term average snowfall is 4.7 inches.
2017 Year End Weather Summary
In site of the bitter cold the last ten days of the year, 2017 was a hot year. The average daily high during the year was 67.2, 1.6 degrees above normal. The average overnight low was 48.2, 5.2 degrees above normal. This gave us an annual mean temperature of 57.7, 3.4 degrees above normal. This is the third consecutive year with an annual mean temperature above the long term average. 2017 was the seventh hottest year on record and only two degrees cooler than the record hot year of 1954. The hottest year on record (reliable Junction City records date back to 1948) was 1954 with an annual mean temperature of 59.7. The coldest year was in 1979 with an annual mean temperature of 50.5 degrees. The temperature extremes for the year ranged from a high of 102 on July 21st and 22nd down to a -8 on
December 30th and 31st. This 110 degree temperature range matches the 70 year average of 110 degrees.
Average annual precipitation is 33.15 inches. Milford Lake received 34.31 inches of rain and Junction City received 30.68 inches. While it would appear that we were near or slightly above average rainfall it should be noted that there were significant periods without rain which impacted crop production in 2017. More concerning has been the roughly 2½ months at the end of the year when very little rainfall was received. This raises serious concerns for at least the wheat crop already in the ground and the
start of the coming crop and pasture season. The wettest year on record (reliable Junction City area rainfall records dating back to 1931) was 1951 when 56.3 inches of rain flooded the area. The driest year on record was 1966 when 15.61 inches of rain was all that could be found in the rain gauges. Long term average snowfall (October through May) is 18 inches. Due to warm and dry conditions, the 2016-2017 snowfall season only saw 3 inches of snow and the 2017-18 season hasn´t started off with a bang. The
one bright spot in this was the one inch of snow that arrived on December 23rd that was kept around by cold conditions so that we could have a hint of a White Christmas.
Chuck Otte cotte@ksu.edu
County Extension Agent, Ag & Natural Resources
The Geary County Rural Fire Department responded to 148 calls in 2017, up from 116 in 2016.
Rural Fire Chief Garry Berges reported that the average response time in 2017 was 9 minute, 29 seconds, up slightly from 9 minutes, 26 seconds in 2016.
For the past year there were 263 total truck responses, 798 total firefighter responses, 1,637.82 hours spent at fires. Volunteers and Geary County Sheriff’s Deputies assist in responding to fires.
There were eight building fires, 14 vehicle fires, 50 grass or brush fires, three cultivated grain or crop fires, 43 medical assist, and ten fuel spills, vehicle accident, or down power line calls.
The Junction City Public Works Department has announced that water service has been restored.
—
The Junction City Public Works Department announced just after 9 a.m. Wednesday that there will be no water service in the 900 and 1000 blocks of West 6th Street for approximately 8 to 10 hours. Contractors are fixing a broken fire line.
January 3, 2018 (TOPEKA) – Wade Stewart Parkhurst, 35, of Wamego, was the fatality victim located within the residence of an early morning, Dec. 26, fire in Pottawatomie County. This information is still pending official identification from the medical examiner’s office.
The Kansas Office of the State Fire Marshal’s (OSMF) Investigation Division joined the St. George Fire Department in the investigation of the fire.
The fire occurred in the early morning hours at 3769 Stewart Farm Road, Wamego, KS. Five investigators from OSFM responded to assist with this investigation where one person was initially unaccounted for, after five people in the residence had been able to evacuate. The body of Parkhurst was located within the residence. The cause of death was listed as toxic gases due to the fire at the residence.
The origin of the fire was in the basement of the residence. The cause of the fire is still classified as undetermined, but more likely than not, is accidental associated with a failure or malfunction of several electric components within the area of origin. Foul play is not suspected. It was a total loss to the property at this residence. Investigators estimated over $350,000 in damages.
Jill P. Bronaugh
Public Information Manager
Office of the State Fire Marshal
|
High
|
25° | Sunny. Highs in the mid 20s. North winds 5 to 15 mph. Wind chill readings zero to 10 above zero. |
Mercedes and Benjamin Pope, Herington, announced the birth of their daughter, Audrey Pope, who was born on Monday, January 1, 2018, 6:28 p.m. at the Martha K. Hoover Women’s Health Center at Geary Community Hospital in Junction City.
Audrey weighed 7 pounds .86 ounces and was 19 1/2 inches long.
Audrey joins sibling Luke at home.
The Pope family also received a newborn care package including diapers, wipes, baby bath soaps, a Geary Bear, an infant tub and a $100 Wal-Mart gift card.
In an effort to protect its patients, visitors and employees during the influenza season, Geary Community Hospital has implemented visitor restrictions effective immediately until further notice.
Hospital officials say the following restrictions apply.
–Children under 12 years of age may not visit
–DO NOT visit patients at the hospital if you are ill or have flu-like symptoms such as a runny nose, cough, sore throat, fever muscle aches, fatigue or any other symptoms such as vomiting and diarrhea.
–Visitors are limited to CLOSE FAMILY members only.
Employees and visitors are reminded to wash their hands often, before entering a patient room and prior to leaving the facility. Sinks and waterless hand sanitizer are available throughout the building.
FORT RILEY, Kan. – The “Big Red One” will host a Victory with Honors promotion ceremony for Col. Richard R. Coffman, 1st Infantry Division deputy commanding officer for maneuver, at 4 p.m. Jan. 5 in the division’s headquarters building.
During the ceremony, Coffman will be promoted to the rank of brigadier general.
Coffman arrived at Fort Riley in September 2017 from the National Training Center at Fort Irwin, California, where he served as commander of the operations group. His education includes multiple bachelor’s degrees from Centre College, a Master of Business Administration from Embry Riddle
University and a graduate fellowship at the John F. Kennedy School of Government at Harvard University.
The Victory with Honors ceremony will include remarks by Maj. Gen. Joseph M.
Martin, 1st Inf. Div. and Fort Riley commanding general.
The Junction City Fire Department reports that firefighters responded to a house attic fire at 700 West 7th Street on Monday.
Fire Chief Terry Johnson reported that upon arrival fire and smoke were visible from the attic. Crews put out the fire and began salvage and overhaul operations. No one was injured. All of the occupants of the residence got out of the structure.
On Tuesday morning at 8:45 a.m. fire units returned to the scene to a report of smoke and extinguished the smoldering area.
The cause of the blaze is under investigation. The damage estimate to the structure and contents combined has been calculated at $45,000.
UPDATE:
UPDATE:
