Manhattan

• Emergency crews are working to contain an 1,800-gallon diesel fuel tank that sank into 20 feet of water at Tuttle Creek Lake on Sunday. Boaters are advised to avoid Tuttle Creek Cove while dive teams and environmental responders mitigate potential contamination. →
• Award-winning morning show DJ Rick Thomas passed away Saturday at age 58 after suffering an apparent heart attack while shopping in Manhattan. The 2024 KAB Medium Market Air Personality of the Year was a beloved figure and significant presence in the Kansas broadcasting community. →
• Fort Riley and the Manhattan school district have established a formal intergovernmental agreement regarding shared construction and infrastructure projects. →
• The County Commission is backing Senate Bill 404, which would allow counties to adjust motor vehicle transaction fees to better recover the costs of providing services. →
• The city is attempting to renegotiate construction costs for the downtown water feature renovation after initial contractor bids came in over budget. →
• Following a consultant report, the tourism organization is seeking a director to recruit mid-level travel tournaments and maximize the use of local athletic facilities. →
• A historic local church is being converted into a community hub designed to support and foster growth for Black entrepreneurs. →
• The Riley County Historical Museum is preparing to debut a new program aimed at increasing community outreach and engagement. →
• Expect a mostly cloudy day with highs reaching 53 degrees and breezy south winds gusting up to 25 mph.

🌾 Kansas

• Kansas legislators remain deadlocked on closing a widening budget deficit, with House and Senate budget bills projecting shortfalls exceeding $700 million for fiscal year 2026 despite passing slimmer spending plans. →

• Marion County commissioners voted 3-1 to ban large-scale commercial wind energy systems in several southwest townships and directed staff to draft a separate resolution banning solar projects in the same area. →

• The House Taxation Committee advanced a bill modifying property tax refund eligibility rules while the Federal and State Affairs Committee approved legislation requiring the state to send savings account information to families of newborns. →

• Legislative committees advanced bills granting state universities more procurement autonomy, raising counties' public bidding thresholds and exempting registered agritourism operations from local code enforcement. →

• The Kansas City Chiefs traded a 2027 sixth-round pick to the New York Jets for quarterback Justin Fields to serve as backup while Patrick Mahomes recovers from December ACL and LCL surgery. →

🇺🇸 US

• Retired Rear Adm. Mark Montgomery has outlined a multi-layered plan to secure the Strait of Hormuz during the U.S.-Israel campaign against Iran, calling for four to eight aircraft overhead during convoy operations and 10 to 14 Aegis destroyers as escort ships. →

• Israel killed Iran's security chief Ali Larijani in airstrikes Monday night, according to Israel's defense minister, as Iran's government launches a new wave of repression against domestic dissent. →

• Iran's security and military forces are experiencing pay delays for the third time this year, desertions and low morale, with unverified reports indicating absence or desertion rates approaching 90 percent in some police units. →

• Fully autonomous semi trucks will begin regular interstate runs in 2027, with multiple companies preparing to roll out fleets in Texas later this year that could reshape the $900 billion U.S. freight-truck industry. →

• President Trump told reporters Monday he believes he will have "the honor of taking Cuba," saying "whether I free it, take it — I think I can do anything I want with it," as the island suffered a nationwide blackout. →

Weather

March 17 1958: Vanguard I becomes first solar-powered satellite in orbit

Launched by the U.S. Naval Research Laboratory, Vanguard I was a small aluminum sphere about the size of a cantaloupe placed into Earth orbit. As the first satellite to use solar cells for power and now the longest‑lasting human-made object in space, it proved the durability of solar technology in orbit and provided critical early data on Earth’s shape and atmosphere, influencing both space science and later satellite design.

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