Beloit man hurt in semitrailer crash

BELOIT -- A semitrailer driver was taken to the hospital Monday morning after his truck rolled in rural Mitchell County.

According to the Kansas Highway Patrol, Ward Thomas, 37, Beloit, was driving a Kenworth west on K Road, just west of the intersection with 230th Road, just before 10 a.m. when the semitrailer left the road and went into the north ditch. The truck rolled onto its side and Thomas, who was not wearing a seat belt, was ejected.

He was taken to Mitchell County Hospital; he was not listed as a patient there Monday evening.

Suit dropped against sheriff's office

A civil lawsuit seeking more than $500,000 from Saline County and a sheriff's deputy was dismissed and costs were assessed to the plaintiff -- a Salina man who fell while getting out of a Saline County Sheriff's Office patrol vehicle.

Saline County District Judge Daniel Hebert dismissed the case without prejudice June 19, and ordered William Giltner to pay court costs.

Giltner filed the civil suit after he broke his hip while attempting to exit the back seat of a patrol car with his hands cuffed behind his back.

Westar looks for cause of outages

Workers with Westar Energy on Monday were looking into why 2,600 electrical customers in east Salina lost power for brief periods Sunday and Monday mornings, but by late afternoon Monday they still hadn't determined a cause.

Customers in that area lost power from 11:07 to 12:28 a.m. Sunday and from 9:03 to 9:52 a.m. Monday.

Officials first thought there had been a failure of a mechanical device controlling the electrical circuits for the area.

"After today's deal I'm not so positive," said Tom Sydow, Westar regional director. "It's odd to have a fault that's temporary like that. Our crews are going pole to pole to find out what is causing it."

Experts find pipe bomb a fake

Bomb disposal experts from Fort Riley came to Salina on Monday morning to disassemble what appeared to be a pipe bomb found underneath a car, but the device was found to be a fake.

Salina Deputy Police Chief Carson Mansfield said the device was discovered under a car parked at 520 W. North at about 8 a.m. The Salina Police Department requested assistance from Fort Riley's Explosive Ordnance Disposal unit after determining that the device could be explosive.

Police blocked off streets surrounding the area where the car was parked for about three hours until the bomb disposal crew determined the item was not dangerous and police collected evidence, Mansfield said.

Roth appointed to pay plan committee

Rep. Charlie Roth, R-Salina, has been appointed to represent the Kansas House of Representatives on the State Employee Pay Plan Oversight Committee.

Lawmakers began working on the new state pay plan during the 2007 Legislative Session after Speaker Neufeld appointed a House Select Committee to study and make recommendations to improve the state's current system. Roth served on the nine-member select committee.

The new pay plan will be implemented during the next five years. The oversight committee will report each year to the Legislature the progress made in the development, implementation and administration of the new pay plan.

Roth represents the 71st House District.