RILEY COUNTY – Law enforcement authorities in Riley County continue to investigate a hit and run accident that sent a Manhattan woman to the hospital April 17, in critical condition.

Following Thursday’s  release of a video of the truck believed involved, a suspect has been identified, according to a media release.

A man identified himself to police as the driver of the vehicle that struck Amber Wilhelm.

Police did not arrest the suspect and his name was not released.

Amber’s family has been notified of the development.

Police and the Wilhelm family want to thank the thousands of people that shared this story from the beginning.

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Just before 2a.m. April 13, police responded to a report of a hit and run injury accident that at the intersection of 12^th Street and Bluemont Avenue in Manhattan, according to a media release.

First responders found a pedestrian identified as Amber Wilhelm, 21, Manhattan, suffering from severe injuries after being struck by a vehicle.

Witnesses on scene described a light in color 2011 to 2016 Chevrolet or GMC extended cab pickup truck that hit her and then fled the scene headed westbound on Anderson Avenue.

Wilhelm was transported to Via Christi and then flown to Stormont Vail where she remains in critical condition.

 

RILEY COUNTY – Law enforcement authorities in Riley County continue to investigate a hit and run accident and asking the public to help find a vehicle.

Just before 2a.m. April 13, police responded to a report of a hit and run injury accident that at the intersection of 12th Street and Bluemont Avenue in Manhattan, according to a media release.
First responders found a pedestrian identified as Amber Wilhelm, 21, Manhattan, suffering from severe injuries after being struck by a vehicle.

On Thursday Riley County Police released security camera video of the truck believed to be responsible for the accident.

Witnesses on scene described a light in color 2011 to 2016 Chevrolet or GMC extended cab pickup truck that hit her and then fled the scene headed westbound on Anderson Avenue.

Interviews with witnesses lead officers to believe there is a chance that the suspect vehicle will only have slight damage to its front end.

Wilhelm was transported to Via Christi and then flown to Stormont Vail where she remains in critical condition.

Anyone with information on a vehicle matching the description is encouraged to call police at 785-537-2112.

Wednesday, April 19, the GCH Medical Explorers class learned about decontamination procedures and proper ways to don and doff personal protective equipment. This class was in preparation to the upcoming community wide disaster drill taking place Friday, April 28.

The Medical Explorer students will either be playing the “victims” or shadowing one of the partners in the drill. The partners include the Junction City Fire Department, Junction City Police Department, USD 475 and Geary Community Hospital.

MANHATTAN — Kansas State University Air Force ROTC Detachment 270 cadets will work with the Kansas State University Police Department to conduct a large-scale active shooter training from 4-6 p.m. Thursday, April 20, in Gen. Richard B. Myers Hall. The training will include sounds of gunfire and realistic-looking victims and perpetrators.

The live training is an addition to the national Air Force ROTC requirement of 60-120 minutes of ALICE training, which stands for Alert, Lockdown, Inform, Counter and Evacuate. Through a partnership with local emergency professionals, the training will give ROTC cadets hands-on experience so they can put to use what they have learned from an ALICE course.

“We could just do the ALICE training course and then we would be done with the requirement, but we are stepping things up,” Master Sgt. Ronald Cervera said. “We want to give our cadets a more realistic view and help them develop situational awareness while also assisting K-State Police and the Manhattan Fire Department with training.”

The police and fire departments have trained for active shooter situations at smaller levels, but never directly on campus, according to K-State Police Lt. Bradli Millington. Conducting the training in Myers Hall will give K-State Police a chance to practice in a multi-level campus building with real students.

“Our previous training at Fort Riley’s mock city and the fire department’s burn house at Kimball and Denison have all been great practice but this training will give K-State police officers and Manhattan Fire Department training with the students as role players in a campus environment, which is a great opportunity,” Millington said.

The police department will conduct three scenarios; each scenario will last about 30 minutes and the cadets will act like victims, shooters or bystanders in three separate classrooms. For safety, all cadets will have personal protective equipment, weapons will be checked to make sure they contain dummy rounds and the building will be completely searched before each scenario. The cadets will be able to act out the steps of ALICE, which helps civilians plan and proactively respond to violence instead of a traditional lockdown-only approach.

“You never know when this could happen,” Cevera said. “With the threats we face these days, it’s vital to make sure that emergency professionals and our cadets know exactly what to do in the case something happens.”

There have been some discussions about forming some type of recreation commission in Junction City.

The Director of the Sports Complex Project Eddie Reeder informed JC Post that Junction City is the only Kansas City with a population of more than 5,000 whose residents do not have access to recreation through either the city or county government. He confirmed that can be changed. “We need to get all the recreation players together. That’s something we’re looking at doing to, is forming some kind of recreation commission. We need to pull in the junior baseball association, and the YMCA, and all the other recreation players and make sure we’re on the same page.”

Earlier in the week Chamber of Commerce CEO Dennis Beson noted there have been discussions with city, county and Junction City High School to talk about a collective agreement on recreation. During a JC Now segment on 1420 KJCK, The Talk of JC, he noted a casualty of city debt years ago was the Recreation Department. “We don’t really have a centralized recreation program. The YMCA does a good job. What we really want to do is want to try and bring all these entities together so that we actually have a county-wide or city-wide program.”

Beson noted there have been discussions with the city manager, county commissioners and the athletic director at JCHS to trying to pull it together and working on an overall plan. There has not been any final action.

ABILENE, Kansas, April 19, 2017 – The public is invited to join Let’s Promote Hope™ for “A Day at the VA” in raising awareness of veteran suicide on Saturday, April 22, from 1 to 4 p.m. The program will be held at the Veterans Administration Medical Center, 2200 SW Gage Blvd, Topeka.

This outdoor event will include a car and bike show, brief remarks, and pushups. Bring your car or motorcycle to display. There is no cost to attend. In case of rain, remarks will be given inside Building 24.

“This is a great opportunity to show support for this important mission, pay respect to two fallen warriors, but also share some laughs and spread the message of hope,” says Patrick Lynch, Let’s Promote Hope™ member.

This event is dedicated in loving memory of Travis “Phenex” Patterson, Combat Veterans Motorcycle Assn. Kansas 21-1 Member. The program will include remarks from Patterson’s widow Rachel along with Megan Jackson, widow of veteran and law enforcement officer Greg Jackson.

Cars may set up at the VA beginning at noon. Motorcycle staging is at 11:30 a.m. at Topeka Historic Harley Davidson. In support of the event, the Topeka Police Dept. will provide an escort to the VA.

Event allies include the Eisenhower Presidential Library, Eagle Communications, Ike’s Place Bar & Grill of Abilene, and Historic Harley-Davidson of Topeka. The Let’s Promote Hope community is grateful for the support received from the Topeka VA Medical Center.

For more information, visit www.letspromotehope.org or connect on Facebook @23pushups.