Latest news with #MannyAbarca
Yahoo
4 days ago
- General
- Yahoo
Gladstone community details deadly home explosion: ‘Still in shock'
KANSAS CITY, Mo. – The Red Cross is offering assistance after an explosion on Saturday morning destroyed a home in a Gladstone neighborhood. Authorities confirm that one person who lived there and a dog died. People who live nearby are still in a state of shock. Shawnee Police searching for Jackson Co. Legislator Manny Abarca, son 'My husband and I just fell to the ground. The kids were downstairs. The dogs were terrified. It was just really scary,' next door neighbor Ashleigh Tomlin recalled. 'A little bit of PTSD, I think, just we're still in shock, the loss of our neighbor is just devastating. My husband's known him for 20-plus years.' Tomlin's doorbell camera shows the moment her next-door neighbor's home exploded. 'Our cars are probably not totaled, but they're pretty close, so they're going to tow those off and get us rental cars tomorrow. Then the structural people and the engineers, and USAA, our homeowners insurance, will be out here tomorrow morning,' Tomlin said. A spokesperson for the Red Cross told FOX4 on Sunday, they are working with two impacted neighbors and are in contact with the family of the person who passed. The Red Cross offers assistance for those whose homes were affected in a fire or explosion, such as this, with replacement of medicine, food, clothing and a place to stay. The Red Cross also has disaster mental health workers to assist those affected. Tomlin said a state representative also stopped by the neighborhood Sunday to offer support. 'He came to our door. He works out of Jeff City and represents us. He said if we had any problems, just to give him a call personally, and he would help take care of things. So I can't say enough for the integrity of a man like that to come to your door personally and offer his help,' Tomlin said. She's also thankful for the response from law enforcement and first-responding agencies at the scene on Saturday. 'We just ran out. The police officers were wonderful. They helped me. They went through the house. They got the dogs in their kennels. They helped me carry them. I mean, it was really neat to see the community kind of come together and really help us out,' Tomlin explained. Royals call up No. 1 prospect Jac Caglianone to MLB Gladstone Police did not have any updates to share on Sunday. FOX4 reached out to Spire to inquire about the explosion. A spokesperson for Spire sent the following response: 'While we are cooperating with authorities on their investigation and defer to them on a cause, it is our understanding this was not a natural gas-related incident.' Copyright 2025 Nexstar Media, Inc. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.
Yahoo
4 days ago
- General
- Yahoo
Shawnee Police searching for Jackson Co. Legislator Manny Abarca, son
KANSAS CITY, Mo. – The Shawnee, Kansas, Police Department is searching for Jackson County Legislator Manny Abarca and his son. According to police, a missing persons report has been filed and is under investigation as of June 1. Alexis Garcia Abarca tells FOX4 she last saw Manuel 'Manny' Abarca IV on Thursday. The mother of their two-year-old son, Manuel 'Luca' Abarca V, says she last saw the toddler on Wednesday evening. 'I would want him to know is that I just want my son,' she said when asked what she'd like her husband to know. 'I want my son to be safe. I want my son to be with me.' See the latest headlines in Kansas City and across Kansas, Missouri Alexis Garcia Abarca says she's concerned for both Abarca and their son's safety. The wife and mother indicated that none of their family members, friends, or Abarca's public service colleagues have been able to reach him since Friday. However, Shawnee Police did share that 'there is no immediate indication of danger'. While he reportedly hasn't been seen by family since Thursday, Abarca did send out the following post on X, on Friday, May 30, at 12:11 pm: 'Today, after a spirited conversation at the Urban Summit this morning. Then immediately after, we advanced a preliminary budget amendment to the Legislative 2025 budget amendment we passed December 31st. It's a step towards a compromised solution led by a solid coalition of legislators and the executive directly.' Abarca also reposted a missing juvenile post from the Kansas City Police Department account that was tweeted at 5:19 p.m., also on May 30. Gladstone home explosion leaves one dead, cause still unknown Abarca is a prominent figure in Kansas City. He represents Jackson County's First District and serves as the Chair of the Health and Environment Committee. This is a developing story. Stay tuned to FOX4 News for the latest updates and information. Copyright 2025 Nexstar Media, Inc. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.
Yahoo
15-05-2025
- Business
- Yahoo
Jackson County budget still undecided as officials' frustrations grow
KANSAS CITY, Mo. — Jackson County officials have yet to decide on the 2025 budget, leaving it up in the air, as it has been since January. No decisions were made when legislators met Wednesday morning. 'So today, not much has changed. We've heard kind of a justification as to why things need to change quickly for the prosecutor leading into the summer, which we hear not just from the prosecutor, we hear from our outside agencies, we hear from contractors who haven't been paid,' said 1st District Legislator Manny Abarca. As crime rises in Kansas City, Mayor Lucas prepares for trip to Qatar Jackson County Prosecutor Melesa Johnson shared the impact of not having a solidified budget. She said it's impacting the preventive work of agencies funded through COMBAT, the Community-Backed Anti-Crime Tax. 'They're taking out loans, they're laying people off, they're limiting the amount of people that they serve,' Johnson said during Wednesday's meeting. On December 31, 2024, the Jackson County Legislature approved this year's budget. However, it was vetoed by County Executive Frank White. The legislature has not passed a new one since, and the county has been operating without an approved budget. Legislator Manny Abarca says the disagreement has to do with budgets for the assessment department, the board of equalization, and the collections department. 'We're kind of stuck at the moment, trying to figure out how we move forward. We just had conversations about how we do amendments and how we make changes. But fundamentally, the County Executive disagrees on a lot of our approach here,' Abarca explained. The Jackson County Legislature is expected to discuss the 2025 budget again on Thursday morning. The agenda says, 'There may be an ordinance introduced regarding the 2025 budget.' Copyright 2025 Nexstar Media, Inc. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.
Yahoo
15-02-2025
- Politics
- Yahoo
Community stands in support of local Mexican restaurant after employees detained
LIBERTY, Mo. — One week after federal agents made an unannounced visit to El Potro Mexican Café in Liberty, their community came to help the restaurant on Valentine's Day. 'Let's focus on Valentine's Day,' said Jackson County Legislator Manny Abarca. 'Let's put the Super Bowl behind us and help out in the kitchen side of things because this is a very busy day on Valentine's Day for restaurants.' Abarca and others didn't come to just show their support at El Potro, they came to be put to work. Abortion facility licensing requirement lifted by Missouri judge 'When we asked them what they needed, this is what they needed,' Abarca said. 'They needed help immediately, as 12 of their dedicated employees were taken from them.' Last week, restaurant staff said that Homeland Security Agents surrounded El Potro, before detaining and leaving with 12 employees. Clay County Sheriff Will Aikin told FOX4, at the time, that the agents had come to the restaurant to serve a warrant for a single person. El Potro closed another location in order to staff their Liberty store, which stayed open. Now, Abarca and others are helping out around the restaurant on one of their busiest days of the year. Abarca says it's time for local leaders to step up about decisions being handed down from the federal level. 'Local officials, I think now more than ever, are going to have to step up to the plate and do this for a myriad of issues right now, not just for the Latino community, or for immigration broadly, but for any federal issue that is now coming down that challenges our current existence. There is some level of accountability that folks in Liberty and in the Clay County community should be asking of their own elected officials. And if anyone's going to show them how to do it, I'm happy to help.' Neighbors and Liberty residents who offered their support on Friday brought signs that read 'Immigration Built This Nation' and 'We Support Immigrants and Refugees'. One of those signs was held by Laura Gitterman, an English teacher who regularly works with immigrants. 'Unfortunately, I'm not surprised because I fear that something like this would be in the works and would come to fruition,' she told FOX4. Some details released in Independence chase that led to police shooting She says her students have been worried for weeks about operations like this, and some have expressed their fears to her. 'I've had students ask me for their parents, where can they be adopted if the parents get deported?' she said. 'I have had students saying, 'I'm carrying my papers with me to school because I'm afraid ICE is coming. How many windows, how many doors do we have in school? Will I be safe?' And then when I heard that this happened in Liberty and I'm from Liberty, Missouri, I felt like I needed to take a stand and show the support and solidarity for my community.' Copyright 2025 Nexstar Media, Inc. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.
