Early Morning

Five Wichita schools are starting at 7 a.m. this year, which makes for an early morning as some kids get up by 5:30 a.m. to be ready for the bus. Alison, Brooks, Mayberry and Jardine Middle schools and Northeast Magnet are all starting at 7:00 in the morning this year. Rick Pappas from Wichita State University confirms what many parents already know, that getting kids up that early can have a negative impact on the whole day. “Obviously they didn't get enough sleep if they're getting up that early,” says Pappas.

A home in Hutchinson is a total loss after an early morning fire Tuesday.  It happened in the 200 block of E. 7th Avenue around 5:30 am. Fire officials there tell us investigators are still on the scene this morning looking for a cause. The American Red Cross was called in to help four people who live in the home.  No one was hurt.

An early morning fire damages a home in southeast Wichita. The fire started around 2:30 Monday in the 5900 block of E. Bayley. By the time firefighters arrived, smoke and flames were pouring out of the garage. No one was hurt. Investigators believe a car in the garage started the fire.

A 19-year-old Hoxie man dies in a crash early Tuesday morning in Gove County. The Kansas Highway Patrol says Nathan Elias Barnhart was driving west on old highway 40 about a mile west of Grainfield around 4:20 a.m. The KHP says Barnhart lost control of his truck, which went into a ditch and rolled. Investigators say Barnhart was ejected from the vehicle and died at the scene. He was not wearing a seat belt.

Wichita fire crews spent part of Friday morning battling a house fire in east Wichita. The fire broke out just before 3:20 Friday morning in the 900 block N. Belmont. Firefighters fought a big fire in the attic, but were able to put it out quickly. One person was taken to the hospital for treatment of smoke inhalation. Investigators say a furnace in the garage caught fire causing $30,000 damage to the structure and another $20,000 to the contents of the home. The injury is not considered life-threatening.

A fire causes about $100,000 worth of damage to a home in Wichita's Riverside neighborhood. The blaze started around 6:15am Sunday, in the 800 block of Litchfield. Eyewitnesses say heavy smoke and flames were coming from the front of the house by the time fire crews arrived on the scene. "We determined it was going to be a defensive fire to get it knocked down and protect exposure to the houses on either side of it," said Battalion Chief Sid Newby.

  "I fly out of here every week and never get here more than an hour beforehand," said Scott Casebolt, who just flew back to Wichita from Baton Rouge.  "Usually 45 minutes, you have no problem getting to your gate in time. " Too many people may think that way now.  Eleven flights take off from Mid-Continent every morning.  "There are about 850 to 900 seats available on those eleven departing flights," said Valerie Wise of Mid-Continent Airport, "and those flights have been running pretty full.

A lightning strike is to blame for a morning house fire in Wichita.  It happened on south Seville around 5:30 Thursday. Three people were inside when the fire started. No one was hurt.  Fire investigators think lighting struck the attic.  Three fire trucks and an ambulance got stuck while battling the flames. Damage is estimated around $75,000.

A man is hurt after crashing his motorcycle at 31st South and Broadway overnight.  Passersby found the man in the road at around 2:00 Friday morning. Wichita police say the rider may have been going to fast and lost control when he turned too wide on 31st Street. The rider slide off the bike and was rushed to the hospital for treatment.  He's expected to be okay. 31st S. & Broadway was closed for around two hours while crews cleaned up the crash scene.  Traffic is back to normal now.

Three people are hurt after an early morning stabbing in north Wichita. It happened around 5am this morning in the 3100 block of North Park Place. Police say several people were involved in a fight. Three men in their early 20's were stabbed and taken to a hospital in serious condition. Witnesses tell police that one of the suspects had a gun during the disturbance and fired rounds in the air. No one was shot.

The Ramada Inn in Hays was evacuated for a short time early Friday morning after smoke filled one of the guest room hallways. It happened around 1:55 Friday morning at the hotel in the 3600 block of Vine Street. Fire Chief Gary Brown says an electric motor powering a heater burned up and spewed smoke. Several firefighters were called to the scene to get the situation under control. No one was hurt.

Fire officials in Hays are looking for what caused an early morning fire that gutted a local restaurant.  Crews were called to K's Diner in the 3400 block of Vine Street shortly after 3:00 Monday morning. 20 firefighters and five trucks responded from Hays, and an additional truck and four firefighters were called in from Ellis County's rural fire department. Hays Fire Chief Gary Brown says crews found a large fire burning in the back of the building.  They were able to get the fire under control in about an hour.  The building sustained significant fire, heat and smoke damage throughout.

An early morning stabbing leaves one person in the hospital.  Wichita police tell our news partners at KFDI that it started out as a fight in a home near Harry & Main. One person pulled a knife and stabbed the other in his back and chest.  The victim was taken to the hospital in critical condition.  Police are still interviewing eyewitnesses.  No one has been arrested.

Two people are in critical condition after a car crashes into a utility pole overnight. It happened near 31st Street South and Broadway around 1:20 Thursday morning. Police say the car was headed south when it veered across the center lane and into the utility pole.  The force of the crash moved the utility pole around a foot and threw a back seat passenger through the windshield.  That passenger and another passenger were critically hurt, but police say they've since stabalized.

Wichita police are looking for a 35-year-old suspect after an early morning shooting.   Police were called to the 800 block of S. Drury Lane shortly after 1:00 Thursday morning. They found a 29-year-old man with a gunshot wound to the shoulder.  He was taken the hospital in critical condition, but his injuries turned out to be less serious.  He was treated and released. Police say the man was in a home with a woman around 1:00 when the suspect came in and started striking the with a gun.  The gun went off during the attack, hitting the victim in the shoulder.

Wichita police are trying to figure out what led up to a shooting outside a bar near Harry & Oliver early Tuesday morning. It happened outside "The Place", which is in the 4800 block of E. Harry.  Police say a witness heard a gunshot outside the bar.  When he went outside, he saw a group of people on top of a man trying to wrestle a gun away from him. When police showed up, they found a man with a gunshot wound to the chest.  He was...