Garfield man injured
due to traffic accident

GARFIELD — A 79-year-old Garfield driver was transported to Pawnee Valley Community Hospital with injuries following an accident in Garfield Wednesday evening.
Edward Ummel was driving southbound on Third Street in his 2010 Ford Fusion at 5:55 p.m. when he failed to yield to traffic on U.S. 56, according to the Kansas Highway Patrol. The Fusion was struck behind the driver’s side door by an eastbound Freightliner tractor-trailer operated by Gregory Reynolds, 51, Kerens, Texas, according to the KHP.
Ummel’s vehicle stopped on the north side of U.S. 56, while Reynolds pulled his semi from North Carolina to a stop on the south side of the highway. Reynolds and Alodia Reynolds, 51, reported no injuries.


Larned officers will
promote safety check

LARNED — The Larned Police Department will join other Kansas law enforce­ment agencies and issue citations to any individual who refuses to obey the traffic laws, whether it is for speeding, texting or failing to buckle up.
The check period will start Feb. 24 and go through March 7.
In 2012, 43 teens lost their lives due to car crashes in Kansas. The Kansas Highway Patrol reports that 74 percent of those teens were not properly buckled in their vehicles.
In an effort to change this trend, law enforcement across Kansas will be extra-vigilant when patrolling around schools.
For more than 20 years, officers have educated and warned passengers and drivers regarding the importance of using restraints while in their vehicle.
“Even one teen death is unacceptable,” said Larned Chief of Police Charles Orth. “Please slow down, put the phone away or turn it off, and always buckle up.”
For more than 20 years, officers have educated and warned passengers and drivers regarding the importance of using restraints while in their vehicle.

Health department
to offer flu vaccine

LARNED — Walk-in clinics with no appointment for flu vaccine are being held every Wednesday and Friday of every week at the Pawnee County Health Department from 8:30 a.m. to 4:30 p.m.  
You can download the consent form at:   www.pawneecountykansas.com.  Flu vaccine is recommended for anyone 6 months of age and older.   Flu mist and high dose vaccine are available.  Signed consent forms by parents for children under 18 years of age are required.  Insurance cards will be needed.  Private pay fees are accepted and the department has a sliding fee scale available as needed.   
For information, call  620-285-6963 or 800-211-4401.