Out-of-control wildfires burn over 3,500 acres in Riley County
Riley County officials shared information Monday on a pair of wildfires that burned over 3,500 acres last week. The first happened Thursday in the area of Halls Ravine Road, north of Randolph where a prescribed burn became out of control, burning private land and igniting flood debris on U.S. Army Corps of Engineers property. Close [...]

A weekend fire at Riverchase Mobile Home Park is under investigation and authorities say it may have resulted from children playing with a cigarette lighter. Crews from Riley County Fire District No. 1 were dispatched to the structure fire around 4 p.m. Saturday at Lot 29. Arriving firefighters found a small garden shed fully engulfed, [...]
Legal questions are swirling as the City of Manhattan continues toward a plan of privatizing its animal shelter and shifting animal control to the Riley County Police Department. Deputy Riley County Counselor Craig Cox clarified Thursday why the City of Manhattan has stopped enforcing animal control services in Riley County, which the county noted earlier [...]
No structures were lost and no injuries have been reported following three wildfires over the weekend in Riley County. Firefighters from Riley County Fire District No. 1 were called out Friday evening to a blaze near Gehrt Road and Hwy 177, in the southeast area of the county. An estimated four acres of cedar timbers [...]
Fire danger will be elevated over the next few days, with a Fire Weather Watch in place Tuesday. Kansas Forest Service Assistant Fire Management Officer Eric Ward says his office advocates for the safe use of prescribed burning and using that cautiously, encouraging delayed burning until conditions are safer. He also notes that burns should [...]
There was a crowd on the lawn of the Family and Child Resource Center in Manhattan Saturday morning. Julie Gibbs, Director of the Riley County Health Department explains. Inside the building, families could explore the services available and receive free goodies, while the Easter Bunny was outside dropping eggs and candy all over their yard. [...]
Riley County Commissioners took their meeting on the road Thursday for its first quarterly evening meeting of the year. The meeting lasted just under two hours and county officials were generally pleased with attendance. Commission Chair Kathryn Focke proposed the idea earlier this year in an effort to “make local government accessible to everyone.” The [...]
An illegal outdoor burn Wednesday led to around 60 acres being scorched north of Manhattan. Riley County Fire District No. 1 was dispatched shortly before 2 p.m. to an area near High Plains Trail, southwest of Tuttle Creek Lake dam for an out of control fire. Officials say an Evergy electrical transformer junction box was [...]
Riley County Commissioners will take their bi-weekly board meeting on the road Thursday evening, meeting with constituents in Riley. The meeting begins at 6 p.m. at Riley City Hall. Commissioners will offer an opportunity for public comment at the beginning and will receive an update from Riley City Mayor Darci Pottroff. An administrative work session [...]
A Manhattan man will spend over 10 years in prison for his role in the murder of his former girlfriend’s infant son. Gage Anderson was sentenced Friday in Riley County District Court on charges of 2nd degree murder and aggravated child endangerment in the December 2020 death of 2-year-old Cyrus Gray. Judge Kendra Lewison sentenced [...]