Fire was accident
The fire Saturday at 1235 Exchange St. that killed Louis Patrick Tucker, 58, has been determined to be accidental, caused by unattended cooking.
According to a press release from the Emporia Fire Department, all four apartments at the address were equipped with battery-operated smoke detectors. The smoke detectors in both upstairs apartments were disabled with the battery removed in one case. The other smoke detector had the battery installed but was disconnected. At lease one smoke alarm was sounding when firefighters arrived on scene.
The press release stated that this is the second recent fatality in Emporia with similar circumstances. Both were middle-aged men who died from smoke inhalation started by unattended cooking. Having a working smoke detector in the home reduces a person’s chances of dying in a fire by nearly half.
Kansas Guard on hold
TOPEKA — Twenty-one members and three helicopters from a Kansas Air National Guard unit were supposed to be helping with the response to Hurricane Ike.
Now the Guard says that mission is on hold.
This morning, spokeswoman Sharon Watson said the airmen and helicopters, from the 108th Aviation Battalion, planned to fly to Camp Robinson in Arkansas, just outside of Little Rock, but the transfer was delayed because of worries the hurricane might hit Arkansas.