Rose Hill

Update: The Rose Hill School District holds off on voting on a plan to require random drug testing for students who want to participate in extracurricular activities.  The committee decided to investigate the matter further because drug policies are different at all of the schools. They will discuss the idea more at the next board meeting. ---- The Rose Hill School District is considering a mandatory drug testing for students. If passed, students who want to participate in extra curricular activities, like track and field or debate, would have to agree to random drug tests throughout the year.

After Tuesday's propane fire near Rose Hill, many people wondered if the record breaking 111 degree heat was a factor in the explosion, but propane experts say the gas doesn't become flammable until it reaches close to 1000 degrees Fahrenheit. “The flammability level for propane is right around 920 degrees,” said Mike Tanner, the General Manager at Wayman Oil Company. “ For propane to ignite or for there to be a fire, it's like anything else. You've got to have an ignition source and you've got to have oxygen.” Tanner says people should avoid smoking close to propane tanks and if they smell a leak, turn off the gas supply vauve and call a professional or 911 fro help.

It was the site of a deadly explosion, Now a Rose Hill propane company has moved. A spokesperson for Propane Central, formerly Global Propane, says the company moved out of good will and good faith to the surrounding community. The company was originally located on southwest Butler Road. It relocated to the Rose Hill Business Development Park. Last year, an explosion at Global Propane killed a worker and destroyed four homes. Officials say the fire started when a propane refueling hose broke free from a tank and started spewing propane.

Storm Team 12 tracked a severe thunderstorm around 7:00 p.m. Wednesday evening that was packing strong winds. Storm Team 12 Chaser Brandon Ivey clocked 60 mph winds near 103rd St. South and Ridge Road in Southern Sedgwick County.  The storm is moving to the northeast at 15 miles an hour.  The town of Rose Hill saw the most damage. The roof on the town's Rec Center was damaged. There are also reports of trees and power lines down. You can look at pictures from the storm using the link below.

by Cliff Judy If there was ever a love-hate relationship worth noting, Bob Sage and his pager would be on the list.  He's not just the Rose Hill Police Chief, he's a volunteer firefighter.  When his pager goes off, he immediately goes from dad or husband to firefighter.  It's just part of the job doing what he and his fellow volunteers can to help others. Volunteer firefighters are now bracing for their busiest time of the year.  This year's dry conditions are as severe as 2006 and as temperatures warm and more people burn, the chance for grassfires the next several weeks is strong.

Firefighters from Douglass, Rose Hill and Augusta battling a house fire Thursday afternoon. The fire started around 12:30 at a home about a mile east of Douglass, on SW 210th Street.  Douglass Fire Chief John Ford said smoke and flames were coming from the home when crews arrived. Firefighters had to fight the fire from the outside.   A grass fire spread north from the home and into a neighboring property. Ford said the flames burned a utility shed and an abandoned vehicle.

A Butler County Sheriff's deputy is alright, but his patrol car is totaled. Sheriff Craig Murphy tells Eyewitness News the deputy was headed north to a call on Meadowlark near Rose Hill when four deer started crossing the road. He swerved to miss them, taking out a guardrail and crashing into a creek. There was not enough water to submerge the vehicle and the deputy was not hurt. This is the fourth deer accident involving a Butler County patrol car since Thanksgiving.

Wichita police are investigating a bank robbery at 21st and Webb.  Police say a robber walked into the Rose Hill Bank on Webb Road just before ten Thursday morning. They say he was wearing a surgical mask and a knit hat.  Police say he asked the teller to make change for a $20 bill. As the teller moved to the cash drawer, police say the man announced it was a robbery. Police say he did not show or indicate he had a weapon.  He was last seen leaving the bank with cash.

The finalists in many categories have been named with the winners being announced on Thursday, June 30 at the 14 th Annual Wichita Sports Commission Banquet at the Hyatt Regency.  The finalists are listed below…   Lynette Woodard High School Female Athlete of the Year   Jhasmin Bowen (Wichita Heights) Sarah Balderas (Bishop Carroll) Mackenzie Maki (Kapaun Mt. Carmel)   Barry Sanders Male Athlete of the Year   Evan Wessel (Wichita Heights)

by Cliff Judy (ROSE HILL, Kan.) You have to understand there are times when teenage boys just don't care, especially when there's a TV on the wall and a video game system turned on. About a dozen Rose Hill teenagers are participating in a 72-hour video game marathon in hopes of raising money for a good cause.  Michael Mays says he and his friends had already planned a marathon as a final way to celebrate summer break, but everyone really got on board when he suggested turning the marathon into a charity.