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Kansas Oil Production The Lowest In Ten Years

screen-shot-2014-04-19-at-8-16-07-am-200x173The State of Kansas produced just 37.9 million barrels of crude oil last year, according to the latest numbers from the Kansas Geological Survey.  If borne out by tax figures from the Revenue Department, that would be the state’s lowest annual production total since 2007.  KGS says Ellis County produced 2.67 million barrels of crude last year. Harper County was next at 2.01 million.  Barton County weighed in with 2016 production of 1.73 million barrels.  Haskell (1.72M) and Finney County (1.67M) were next, followed by Russell County with 1.62 million barrels, and Stafford County at 1.1 million barrels.
In 2015, Kansas ranked 10th in crude oil production among the 50 states, excluding the federal offshore areas.

Man arrested after 2 teens found dead in Colorado

Jail-Bars-and-Cuffs_mediumCOLORADO SPRINGS, Colo. (AP) — Police have arrested a man in connection with the deaths of two teenagers whose bodies were found on the shoulder of a rural Colorado road.

19-year-old Gustavo Marquez is being held on charges of first-degree murder, kidnapping, aggravated robbery and child abuse resulting in death.

The bodies of 15-year-old Derek Benjamin Greer and 16-year-old Natalie Partida, both students at Coronado High School, were found March 12 by a passing driver on Old Pueblo Road just northeast of Pikes Peak International Raceway.

Authorities have not said how the teens were killed or what led investigators to Marquez.

Booking documents do not indicate if Marquez has hired an attorney.

2 women killed in northeast Nebraska highway crash

fatal-accidentWALTHILL, Neb. (AP) — Two women have been killed in a northeast Nebraska car crash.

The crash occurred Saturday morning, just east of Walthill on Nebraska Highway 64 in Thurston County. The Nebraska State Patrol says the car ran off the roadway, and when the driver overcorrected the car ran off the other side of the highway and rolled.

The two women were pronounced dead at the scene. The patrol identified them as Hayla Morris and Donnette Blackbird. Their ages and hometowns weren’t immediately available. A third person in the car was not injured.

Company: Dakota Access pipeline on track to start this week

Oil pipeline workersBISMARCK, N.D. (AP) — The company building the Dakota Access pipeline says the project remains on track to start moving oil this week despite recent “coordinated physical attacks” along the line.

The brief court filing late Monday from Texas-based Energy Transfer Partners didn’t detail the attacks, but said they “pose threats to life, physical safety and the environment.”

The filing cited those threats for redacting most of the 2½-page report. A spokeswoman and an attorney for the company didn’t immediately respond to emailed questions from The Associated Press.

Two American Indian tribes have battled the $3.8 billion pipeline in court for months, arguing it’s a threat to water. The company has said the pipeline will be safe.

When complete, the pipeline will move oil from North Dakota to a shipping point in Illinois.

Omaha plans for upgrades to parking garages

omahaOMAHA, Neb. (AP) — Omaha’s parking division is working on upgrades that will let drivers use smartphones to pay for parking in garages and even stake out spots for major events.

The city’s parking manager, Ken Smith, says the division is planning for $3.5 million in projects and technology upgrades for next year. The upgrades will include restoration and maintenance of parking facilities.

New technology will allow drivers to find and pay for parking on their phones. The division is also working to add the option of reserving parking for events on the Park Omaha app.

Private parking providers will also have the opportunity to use the new parking features.

Smith says division staff will begin the process of replacing controlling parking garage payments this month.

Man dies after being found unresponsive at work in Lincoln

ambulance-lightsLINCOLN, Neb. (AP) — A man died after being found unresponsive at the base of a flight of stairs at his workplace in Lincoln.

Lincoln police say officers were called to Nebraska Machinery around 9 a.m. Monday after co-workers found the unresponsive man.

CPR was performed on the man until paramedics arrived, but he died later at a Lincoln hospital.

The cause of the man’s death wasn’t immediately clear on Monday.

No opioids, please: Clearing the way to refuse prescriptions

pain-pillsHARTFORD, Conn. (AP) — A growing number of states are working to help patients make it clear to medical professionals they don’t want to be prescribed powerful opioids.

Connecticut and Alaska are two of the latest considering legislation this year that would create a non-opioid directive that patients can put in their medical files. It formally notifies health care professionals the person does not want be prescribed or administered the medications.

Massachusetts and Pennsylvania passed similar legislation last year.

While patients typically have the right to make decisions about their medical care, proponents of the directives contend such documents make a patient’s wishes clear, especially in advance of medical care. Proponents say such directives also empower those patients who might fear relapsing into addiction or becoming addicted to the drugs in the first place.

Rough year brings Lincoln neighborhood, police together

lincoln-policeLINCOLN, Neb. (AP) — Some Lincoln residents and police say a spike in crime ultimately bonded residents to the officers who protect them.

Over the past three years, four homicides have occurred in the Belmont area — all in 2016. Of the 12 arsons reported in three years, eight happened last year in the north-central Lincoln neighborhood.

Police started to re-evaluate their patrol tactics in Belmont after the eight arsons and four homicides in one year. Capt. Anthony Butler says officers assigned to the northwest team took the year hard.

Officers have worked on forming better relationships with residents. They started by going door-to-door introducing themselves. Then midway through last year the department hosted what organizers called community conversations.

The goal: Make people comfortable in calling police.

Both finalists for Omaha superintendent job withdraw

omaha-psOMAHA, Neb. (AP) — The two remaining finalists for the Omaha superintendent job have withdrawn, forcing the school board to reopen the search it began last fall.

The school board was expected to pick either Sioux City, Iowa, Superintendent Paul Gausman or Reading, Pennsylvania, Superintendent Khalid Mumin at its meeting Monday night.

Instead, the board will have to come up with a new plan to replace retiring Mark Evans at the end of the school year.

Gausman and Mumin issued a joint statement Saturday saying they decided to withdraw because they believe neither had broad support from the board.

School board member Ben Perlman says the board felt that neither Gausman nor Mumin were a perfect fit for the district. So the board will have to keep looking.

Omaha zoo announced name of gorilla born in January

henry-doorly-zooOMAHA, Neb. (AP) — Omaha’s Henry Doorly Zoo and Aquarium has announced the name of gorilla born in January.

The zoo says “Kgosi” (GO-zee) was the name picked by Henry Doorly keeper for the male western lowland gorilla born Jan. 18. The name, an African word meaning “king,” was submitted by 13-year-old Aven Cramer, of Omaha.

The name was selected from a total of 825 names submitted.

The parents of Kgosi are 21-year-old Timu and 22-year-old Tambo. The mother, Timu, came to the zoo from the Cincinnati Zoo in 1996. This is her fourth baby. The father, Tambo, arrived in 2001 from the Bronx Zoo. Kgosi is his first offspring.

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