Sedgwick County

Voting in the 2010 primary election is underway in Sedgwick County. Polls across the state will be open through the day and into the evening. As of around 9:00 this morning, the wait at the polling place at 29th and Rock Road in Wichita had very little wait time for voters. Sedgwick County Election Commissioner Bill Gale says he hasn't heard of any problems, and he's anxious to see if the heat has an impact on voter turnout. Stay with Eyewitness News for the latest Campaign 10 coverage.

Temperatures are cooler in parts of the county as summer thunderstorms bring high winds and even rain. The National Weather Service issued a Severe Thunderstorm Warning for Sedgwick County a little after 2:00 p.m. Friday.  Click here to check out interactive radar. Storm Team 12 has received a report of 63 mph winds near Watson Park in Wichita. The storm threat has forced athletes and spectators at the USA Track and Field Junior Olympics to moved from Cessna Stadium to Koch Arena.

If you thought you couldn't log onto the Sedgwick County website Thursday morning - you were right. The county tells us, its domain expired. Miscommunication between the company that provides the domain and the county led to the site being down for two hours. We're told it may have seemed longer, depending on what network or server people used to access the site. The site is now back up, and the new domain is now locked in for nine years.

Fewer voters than expected cast ballots in Tuesday's general election. In Sedgwick County only 12.7% of voters, or just under 33,000 people, cast a ballot in the election. Election officials had expected a 14% voter turnout. Tuesday's election included races for Wichita Mayor, Wichita City Council and Wichita School Board. See all the results for races where you live in the Campaign 2011 section of KWCH.com .

The Sedgwick County Sheriff's Office conducted a saturation patrol Saturday night.  Officers focused on finding drunk drivers from 11 p.m. Saturday night until 3 a.m. Sunday morning. Seven people were arrested for DUI, Three were arrested for driving while suspended. Two were arrested for outstanding warrants and one was arrested for drugs. 29 tickets were written for traffic violations.

Information from Sedgwick County regarding the sale and use of fireworks.  This information applies to residents of Sedgwick County.  Please check laws where you live. ------ Summer is well underway and Fourth of July celebrations are right around the corner.  While fireworks are used as part of the holiday celebration - and legal in Sedgwick County - it is important to remember that fireworks can be dangerous if not handled properly.  Small children should not handle fireworks and older children should be supervised while doing so; always have a hose or bucket of water nearby; and follow the directions printed on the labels.  These and other tips are available on the attachment or by visiting www.sedgwickcounty.org . The sale of fireworks: Any person, firm or corporation shall not sell fireworks to individuals at temporary retail stands or other locations, or deliver retail fireworks purchased by mail order, before June 27 and after July 5. (K.A.R 22-6-5)

The Sedgwick County Household Hazardous Waste program will host a remote collection from 8 a.m. to noon June 9 at the Hawker Beechcraft parking lot, 10059 E. Central in Wichita. Sedgwick County residents may bring items such as paint, aerosols, batteries, used motor fluids, lawn and garden chemicals, household cleaners, fluorescent light bulbs, and more to the collection free of charge for recycling or proper disposal.  The collection is intended for individual households; no business waste please.  Tires, electronics, ammunition, explosives, empty containers and controlled substances will not be accepted.

The Sedgwick County Sheriff's Office urges parents to think safety first on Halloween. Thousands of kids will line the streets to get their fair share of candy. But Sedgwick County officials say it can also be a dangerous holiday. They recommend always staying with your children, wearing reflective gear or lights, and planning a route ahead of time. Officials also recommend examining candy to make sure it hasn't been tampered with and not eating home-made treats.

After a wetter than normal spring, things are starting to dry out. And with heat and humidity comes bug season. Mosquitoes have been hidden away for longer than usual. But just in the last week, that's changed, and quickly. Sedgwick County says the area has seen mosquito populations more than double. These mosquitoes can potentially spread West Nile virus. Last year, 51 cases of West Nile Virus were investigated by the Sedgwick County Health Department. There were 57 statewide.

Sedgwick County residents continue to clean up what torndao damage from Sunday afternoon.  Near Clearwater where an EF1 tornado blew through, silos were wrapped around trees, roofs ripped off homes and farm equipment damaged. Click here for Storm Shots Ginny Walton and Chuck Walton, siblings who own a house in the county, had full grown trees pulled out of the grown. “We've got 13 or 14 large trees probably 2-foot in diameter or larger that are down,” said Chuck Walton who spent Monday with his chainsaw cutting the trees into pieces.

The main road leading into Clearwater has a sinking problem and Sedgwick County wondered if it's dangerous.  Scientists studied the issue and found answers that surprised them. The problem area is along 135th Street just north of 87th Street South.  "We kind of wonder about it every now and then, especially when you see all them sinkholes.  Like up in Hutchinson, other places, people driving along and your car just falls through," said resident Darrel Snyder. Snyder isn't alone, Sedgwick County has also been wondering about the sinking because it's responsible for maintaining 135th Street.  "They just keep repairing it, but it doesn't get any better," said Snyder.

Sedgwick County deputies issue more than 100 tickets during a four-hour seat belt enforcement patrol last night. Deputies conducted the patrol Tuesday between 6:00 and 10:00 pm. In that time, 83 adults were cited for seat belt violations, one of them for improper child restraint, one person was arrested for DUI and three were arrested on warrants. In addition to the seat belt violations, an additional 27 citations were issued for other traffic infractions. The Sedgwick County Sheriff's Office says the patrol consisted of one sergeant, five deputies and four reserve deputies.

Sedgwick County officials call it a significant bust.  Deputies found three pounds of methamphetamine in a car that was stopped for a routine traffic violation. The sheriff's office says deputies pulled over a 2013 GMC SUV for a traffic violation in the 19900 block of W. US 54 in the early morning hours of May 11. Deputies searched the SUV and found two packages containing around three pounds of meth.  That meth is valued at $60,000 to $70,000. The driver, a 32-year-old Arizona woman, was booked for possession with intent to sell methamphetamine.

Sedgwick County Commissioners take action to ban sky lanterns, or aerial luminaries, in unincorporated parts of the county. Sky lanterns are most often made with oiled rice paper and a bamboo frame. They are released into the air after a candle inside is lit. The hot air gets trapped inside, and they float away like a hot air balloon. Firefighters say they can come down on roofs or dry fields and trees and start fires. The Sedgwick County Fire Department says its fire code does not allow "open flames" to be unattended, and the lanterns are a violation.

More than 600 students spent the day learning about animals.  The ARC of Sedgwick County had a special field trip at Tanganyika Wildlife Park Monday. The field trip was part of the Circle of Friends program.  The program matches students with special needs to their regular education peers.      Also attending the field trip was Miss Kansas Sloan Lewis.  She says programs and events like this can make a big difference in the life of a student with special needs.

A Sedgwick County judge has sentenced a former Wichita police officer to a "hard 50" for sex crimes against children. Gregory Nicks pleaded guilty to four counts of sexual exploitation of a child last month. In court Friday, a judge ordered the former officer and Wichita Wild player to serve two 25 year sentences consecutively, and two concurrently. If he is eligible for parole in 50 years, he will be a lifetime parolee, and will be forced to register as a sex offender. A co-defendant, Luz Coronado, was sentenced to life in prison in April.

Sedgwick County residents turned in more than 700 pounds of expired or unused medications over the weekend.  The Sheriff's Office took part in the Drug Enforcement Administration's "National Take Back" initiative. Three locations were set up in Sedgwick County between 10:00 and 2:00 Saturday, bringing in a combined total of 723.7 pounds. Officials say many citizens may not be aware of how to safely and properly dispose of unused medications.  The "National Take Back" initiative offers citizens of Sedgwick County a safe way to dispose of these medications.              

The Child Advocacy Center of Sedgwick County will soon have a new home.  The Wichita School Board voted Monday to sell the former Lincoln Elementary to the CAC. The old school will be transformed into a place to help young victims of sex crimes.  “Sexual abuse, physical abuse, neglect, it could be internet crimes or human trafficking,” said Diana Schunn, executive director of the Child Advocacy Center of Sedgwick County....