Presiding Commissioner Wheatley provides update regarding ARPA concerns

Presiding Commissioner Jim Wheatley has provided Mid America Live with the following documents indicating all ARPA funds allocated have been accounted for. 

During our phone conversation late yesterday when asked if he believed there was danger that Bates county would have to repay any portion of the $3.14 million he stated "I'm confident we will not".

As concerns mount that the county will indeed be 'on the hook' to repay a large portion of the funds, a public meeting has been scheduled for this morning, 10 am in the basement of the county offices on the southwest corner of the Butler square.

Scattered power outages; high winds continue

Winds rip roof off in Rich Hill

High winds continue to rip through the area with multiple reports of limbs down however around 6 am it was reported that a roof was torn from a home inside the city limits of Rich Hill, no injuries reported.

Otherwise road conditions around Bates county "aren't too bad" according to one traveler however, anyone headed north will encounter slightly more snow but crews are working quickly to remedy the situation. From Butler to Harrisonville I-49 is reported to be clear.

Winds continue to be a factor, take your time while driving.

Winter Weather Advisory issued

This WINTER WEATHER ADVISORY was just issued to include the counties in lavendar. If you watched my morning forecast, this isn't much surprise - I expect the snow on the back side of this system to reach ALL of our counties.

* WHAT...Snow expected. Total snow accumulations up to one and a
half inch. Winds gusting as high as 45 to 60 mph will result in
reduced visibilities of a half mile or less at times.

* WHERE...Portions of southeast Kansas and central, southwest, and
west central Missouri.

* WHEN...From 3 AM to 9 AM CST Wednesday.

* IMPACTS...Plan on slippery road conditions, especially on elevated roadways. The hazardous conditions could impact the Wednesday morning commute. Strong winds could cause tree damage and a few power outages.

Urgent from the City of Butler

URGENT NOTICE: All residents south of the Butler Waste Water Treatment Plant. There is a possible contamination of water in the mound branch. This does NOT affect the drinking water. Crews are actively working on the situation. Once again, this does not affect the drinking water.

Several Butler students will advance to State Musical Festival

BHS music students traveled to Stockton HS for District Solo and Small Ensemble Music Festival on Monday, March 3. Those receiving exemplary scores have earned the right to move on to the State Musical festival and include:

SAB Trio: Madison Kennedy, Bethany Swarnes, and Zion Plotner
SSA Sextet: Lola Blaser, Kelsey Jackson, Morgan Stump, Olivia Blaser, Lilly Teaney, Kensley Schowengerdt
Windsday Grissom, vocal solo
Zion Plotner, flute solo
Zion Plotner, vocal solo
Madison Kennedy, vocal solo
Other participants are as follows:
Abby Catron, piano solo - Outstanding
Addison Hawks, vocal solo - Outstanding
Bethany Swarnes, vocal solo - Outstanding
SATB Double Quartet vocal ensemble: Lola Blaser, Bethany Swarnes, Madison Kennedy, Kensley Schowengerdt, Jesse Carter, Zion Plotner, Dylan Triebel, and Ayden Broege - Outstanding
Kensley Schowengerdt, vocal solo - Outstanding
Kerstin Webb, flute solo - Outstanding
Lola Blaser, vocal solo - Outstanding
Misc. Vocal Ensemble: Jesse Carter, Carter Kelso, Kelsey Jackson, Morgan Stump, and Jordan Porter - Outstanding
Morgan Stump, vocal solo - Satisfactory
Olivia Blaser, vocal solo - Outstanding
Peyton Hudson, baritone saxophone solo - Outstanding

Congrats to all of our musicians on a successful day!

-Courtesy Butler High School

Names released in tragic fire that claimed the lives of two Butler children

 

An explosion around 11:30 pm Saturday night resulted in a raging fire at 917 E. Pine street in Butler leaving the parents of two small children desperately trying to save them- but their efforts were in vain as the fire quickly spread throughout the structure.

Parents Jamie and Rachel Huff and 15 month old daughter Arya were able to escape shortly after the fire began, leaving Jamie to make desperate efforts to reach his 2 year old son Aiden and a friends son, 2 year old Hunter, who were trapped in the opposite end of the mobile home.

Huff, along with a neighbor attempted to break a window and use a garden hose to gain access, but the fire had gained too much momentum leaving him with extensive burns and other injuries.

While the fire was quickly brought under control as multiple agencies arrived on scene, as the smoke cleared, reality set in regarding what lied ahead in recovering the bodies.

Huff said he had just purchased a small heater and it was in the room where the boys slept. While the heater is as the center of the investigation, the state fire marshal is still looking at exactly what caused the fire and accompanying explosion.

A neighbor was quoted as saying she remembered the children playing outside and "it's incomprehensible that this kind of tragedy can happen", a sentiment shared by most everyone throughout the community.

As our community mourns the loss, a GoFundMe account has been set up to help defray expenses; also the Carpenter's Cup in Butler is accepting donations as well.

From the Bates County Museum:

The museum will be collecting donations for the Huff family tonight at the Fat Tuesday event. We will have a donation station set up just for donations to the family. We will be matching every dollar that is donated tonight. The event starts at 6:30, admission is $25/adult $10/kid (admission is to cover cost of event and separate from donations.)

More information will be posted as it becomes available from the state fire marshal.

Agenda for Bates County Commission meeting tomorrow