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You still here 7 20 23

Cowboy State Daily is Wyoming’s largest newspaper with Wyoming’s most experienced journalists. 

<title>You Still Here? Thursday, July 20, 2023 | Cowboy State Daily</title>

You Still Here? Thursday, July 20, 2023

 Yes, the best thing to do when attacked by a cat is to apologize to the cat....

Headshot of Cowboy State Daily's general assignment reporter, Clair McFarland.

Clair McFarland

Government & Politics

Politics

David Giralt is trying to send a message to Wyoming voters. He's touting the endorsement of six sitting U.S. House members — plus rock star Ted Nugent. 

Giralt, a former active-duty Army Ranger from Casper, is running against nine other candidates for the Republican nomination to Wyoming’s lone U.S. House seat.

[{"type":"text","text":"The primary election is Aug. 18."}]

Giralt conceded in a Thursday phone interview with Cowboy State Daily that he’s short on name recognition in the crowded GOP field. 

He faces state Senate President Bo Biteman, former Superintendent of Public Instruction Jillian Balow, philanthropist Steve Friess and Secretary of State Chuck Gray, to name a few.

Giralt said he’s also “not the richest person in this race by any means." 

He faces well-heeled contenders such as Friess, Gray, and Casper businessman Reid Rasner.  

But Giralt has garnered arguably more high-profile endorsements than any other House candidate. Those include one from Nugent.

[{"type":"text","text":"Multiple U.S. House representatives have endorsed Giralt, he said. "}]

Those are Reps. Ryan Zinke (Montana), House Armed Services Committee Chair Mike Rogers (Alabama), Jack Bergman (Michigan), Jake Ellzey (Texas), and Pete Stauber (Minnesota). Giralt said Thursday that Rep. Rich McCormick, R-Georgia, has also lent his endorsement.

To Giralt, it’s a sign that, “Although my life goal hasn’t been building name-ID and trying to capture headlines, I can do the work. And there are very influential people who are senior in their careers who agree with me, and I think just driving that home is important.”

The endorsements reflect the time Giralt, a former congressional staffer, spent serving delegates in Washington, D.C., and what he calls the valuable relationships he forged there.

“Many of them, I’ve known them for years. They’re not fly-by-night,” he said. “It’s very rare for members of Congress to endorse in a crowded, 10-way primary.” 

Nugent, the rock star known for “Stranglehold” and “Cat Scratch Fever,” national spokesman for Hunter Nation and outspoken conservative activist, told Cowboy State Daily he researched Giralt and liked what he found.

Nugent also called Wyoming “one of the last states that represents real America.”

“My research showed me that David, as a veteran, Christian, Constitutional, conservative, conservationist, stands for and will fight for God, family, country, law and order, private property rights, game laws based on real science and against Fedzilla's overreach in the Cowboy State,” said Nugent in a Thursday email. “My conversations with the man fortified my trust.”

Giralt said he’s listened to Nugent’s music but didn’t know the rocker personally. He believes Nugent found him through his national news hits through conservative outlet Newsmax.

“We did have a conversation, off-air, before I was ever interviewed with him, and he had a lot of questions about public lands – stuff like that,” said Giralt, referencing the 

Giralt said he told Nugent the same thing about public lands he tells others: he seeks multi-use principles, responsible energy development, protecting lands “so we can recreate on them, hunt fish, enjoy the land – all those sorts of things.”

[{"type":"text","text":"Nugent is no stranger to Wyoming."}]

He hunted with the late Sen. Malcolm Wallop, R-Wyoming, on a muzzleloading pronghorn hunt to legalize the Hunters for the Hungry venison donation system for homeless shelters. That hunt was in October 1993. 

Cowboy State Daily executive editor Jimmy Orr founded the Hunters for the Hungry initiative in Wyoming while working for Wallop, and pitched the idea to Nugent while backstage at a concert in Baltimore.

Nugent also said he “arrowed a magnificent cow elk on another hunting adventure" with his son Toby. “Love Wyoming and everything she represents.”

Nugent said American families look to states like Wyoming “as an example of hope for all of America. Ranching, farming, freedom, conservation, rugged individualism, independent spirit, strong self-sufficiency and all the attributes of what the best of America still believes in.”

He said he believes Giralt will fight for those values “in this culture/spiritual war for the soul of the last best place.”

Giralt said the congressional delegates who have endorsed him are also serving in roles significant to Wyoming.

Rogers endorsed Giralt in April, saying he “has the backbone and the principles to hit the ground running in Washington.”

Rogers highlighted Giralt’s 12-year active-duty Army career and command of troops in multiple combat deployments to Afghanistan.

Giralt told Cowboy State Daily this endorsement “means a lot and is very humbling.”

He worked for Rogers for a year in a congressional fellowship program while still on active duty, he added.

The Armed Services Committee is one of the only authorizing committees that passes a bill annually, and it has for more than six decades, said Giralt. He said he hopes to serve on that committee if elected, and this endorsement tells voters he could do so.

“And (it allows me to have a vehicle to pass legislation and not just talk about it or say, ‘Oh I’ll build relationships when I get there, or I’ll learn about the process when I arrive.’”

Giralt said he also hopes to serve on the House Committee on Natural Resources, and Committee on the Budget.

Stauber chairs the House Committee on Natural Resources’ Subcommittee on Energy and Mineral Resources.

Giralt announced Stauber’s endorsement Wednesday, in a statement in which Stauber called said Giralt would be “a strong voice for Wyoming.”

In May, Giralt announced the endorsement of Zinke, who is also a former Navy SEAL and former U.S. Secretary of the Interior.

Zinke serves on the House Appropriations Committee, which Giralt called a good fit, saying he wants to work toward fixing the nation’s exorbitant debt problem.

“If we want to actually tackle $40 trillion in debt, I need to work on the budget. There’s no way around that,” said Giralt. “I’m passionate about it.”

Bergman, who’s a retired three-star Marine Corps lieutenant general, voiced a “proud” endorsement of Giralt in a June 8 press release.

Giralt called that one’s meaningful because they have a “shared commitment to serving veterans and rural communities.”

“Jack Bergman is most likely the incoming chair of the Veteran Affairs Committee in the House,” Giralt said. “That matters significantly. Because we have one of the highest per capita rates of veterans anywhere in the country.”

Giralt said he wants to focus on rural health care and leveraging telehealth options for veterans, as well as end-of-life provisions and burial rights.

Committee members have “already said they want to work with me on that,” he added.

Giralt called Ellzey a leader on small business issues, and McCormick a leader on sentinel missile upgrades — more issues the candidate cast as important to Wyoming.

David Giralt and Mike Rogers 7 9 26

<title>Another Day, Another Huge Endorsement For U.S. House Candidate David Giralt | Cowboy State Daily</title>

David Giralt acknowledges that he has less name recognition than some of the nine other Republicans he's running against in the GOP race for U.S. House. He's also touting endorsements by six sitting U.S. House members — plus rocker Ted Nugent.

Another Day, Another Huge Endorsement For U.S. House Candidate David Giralt

[{"type":"text","text":"How I hand you a beer, based on friendship level....."}]

Bonus vid 2 7 10 26 no play

<title>Bonus Video 2: Friday, July 10, 2026 | Cowboy State Daily</title>

How I hand you a beer, based on friendship level.....

Bonus Video 2: Friday, July 10, 2026

Employee kate meadows cropped

Kate Meadows

Agriculture

A severe water shortage has one irrigation district serving eastern Wyoming and western Nebraska is warning that it could run out by the first week of August unless farmers and ranchers sharply improve efficiency.

The Pathfinder Irrigation District, which serves parts of eastern Wyoming and the Nebraska panhandle, told customers this week it is experiencing "extremely high water losses" throughout its canal system, with seepage levels far greater than expected after one of the driest winters on record.

The district operates a vast canal network that diverts water from the North Platte River at Whalen Dam, delivering irrigation to more than 100,000 acres of farmland. The water originates in Pathfinder Reservoir southwest of Casper.

The reservoir is now less than 24% full, 

according to the Bureau of Reclamation website

. District officials warned in a statement that water losses in portions of the canal system are among the worst the district has ever experienced.

[{"type":"text","marks":[{"type":"bold"}],"text":"Drought Driving The Problem"}]

George Finnegan, North Platte water scheduler and civil engineer with the Bureau of Reclamation, told Cowboy State Daily the losses are being driven almost entirely by drought.

Peak snowpack during the 2025-26 winter in the upper North Platte Basin — which supplies roughly 75% of the North Platte River's water — was the worst on record, he said.

The effects have rippled through the entire North Platte irrigation system.

Wyoming also experienced its fifth-driest winter since statewide records began in 1895. Nearly the entire state remains in drought, with about 45% currently classified in extreme drought.

Irrigation districts commonly begin drawing water in April. This year, however, deliveries didn't begin until June because there simply wasn't enough runoff.

"There really hasn't been a lot of water in the river filling those banks," Finnegan said. "Those banks have been very thirsty this year."

[{"type":"text","marks":[{"type":"bold"}],"text":"'Hungry Ground'"}]

[{"type":"text","text":"The drought is creating another challenge beyond reduced runoff."}]

Months of dry weather have left canal banks and surrounding soils parched, causing water to seep into the ground before it can reach farms downstream.

[{"type":"text","text":"\"That hungry ground — it takes up the water,\" Finnegan said."}]

The dry conditions mean irrigation districts must push even more water through their canals just to deliver the same amount to users at the end of the system.

Many irrigation districts across the North Platte Basin are facing similar seepage problems this year, he added.

[{"type":"text","marks":[{"type":"bold"}],"text":"Less Water Left Than A Year Ago"}]

The Bureau of Reclamation has begun sending weekly allocation letters to irrigation districts showing how much water remains available for the season.

[{"type":"text","text":"Such letters are only issued during low-water years."}]

Last year was also dry enough to warrant the letters, but irrigation districts still had the benefit of water carried over from wetter years.

[{"type":"text","text":"\"We've been kind of living off of that storage,\" Finnegan said."}]

As of Thursday, the Pathfinder Irrigation District had about 393,000 acre-feet of irrigation water remaining for the season.

[{"type":"text","text":"At the same point last year, about 676,900 acre-feet remained."}]

[{"type":"text","marks":[{"type":"bold"}],"text":"Silt Run May Help, But Won't Solve Problem"}]

An annual "silt run" scheduled for Saturday is expected to provide some relief.

During the operation, water is released through reservoirs at higher flows to stir up sediment and carry it downstream. As the silt settles into canal bottoms and banks, it reduces seepage losses.

But Pathfinder officials cautioned they cannot rely on the silt run alone to solve this year's water shortage.

Adding to the district's challenges, a June 8 storm caused extensive damage to the Pathfinder irrigation system, including seven canal breaches, five of them major. Repair work diverted crews and equipment that normally would have been preparing canals for the irrigation season.

On June 15, the district even sought to rent a water truck to assist with canal-repair efforts.

"We understand that this has been a difficult year for our users, and we recognize how important it is to deliver water as soon as possible," the district said in its public statement.

The district has also previously said it does not favor borrowing water for the 2026 irrigation season because of the high cost per acre-foot and the requirement that borrowed water be repaid before next year's irrigation season begins.

For now, district officials are urging irrigators to conserve every drop, warning that without improved efficiency, available irrigation water could be exhausted in a few weeks.

Pathfinder reservior Kyle Spradley via Alamy 7 9 26

<title>Eastern Wyoming Irrigation District Warns Water Could Vanish By Early August | Cowboy State Daily</title>

With Pathfinder Reservoir less than 24% full, some farmers and ranchers in eastern Wyoming and western Nebraska are being warned they could be out of irrigation water by the first week of August. Drought has left reservoirs drained and canals low.

Eastern Wyoming Irrigation District Warns Water Could Vanish By Early August

Wyoming’s lone U.S. House representative is demanding answers from Mark Zuckerberg on a Cheyenne-area data center wastewater contamination incident that caused the city’s reuse system to shut down for months.

The Cheyenne Board of Public Utilities (BOPU) issued a public notice June 26 that laboratory staff identified a bacterium, Cupriavaidus gilardii, in a wastewater sampling.

The board on July 2 identified the source of the initial contamination as Goat System LLC — a Meta ​data center company in the development known as Project Cosmo.

That public announcement about the contamination came more than four months after the Meta contractor — which is building an $800 million data center in south Cheyenne — disrupted the city’s reclaimed wastewater system with the rare bacterial contaminant.

The board had revoked Goat Systems’ industrial discharge privileges for fill-and-flush operations, and Cheyenne’s reuse water system was taken offline.

U.S. House Rep. Harriet Hageman demanded answers in a Thursday letter to Meta CEO Mark Zuckerberg.

“Many are rightfully concerned about high water consumption rates by data centers in our communities where every drop of water is accounted for and needed,” wrote Hageman, “so I am even more concerned that this contamination seemingly came from your facility’s closed-loop cooling system, a technology that is marketed as being a solution to high data center water consumption rates.”

Hageman added that, “Many Wyomingites are also rightfully concerned that they learned about this contamination on June 26 and that the Meta Cheyenne facility was identified as the culprit on July 2nd, when the discharge privileges for Goat Systems was revoked on March 24th.”

New industries seeking to enter small-community Wyoming life can only do so with support from local communities, wrote Hageman, “which is earned built on trust, collaboration and communication with our citizens.

“I am deeply concerned that Meta did not follow this model in this instance.”

[{"type":"text","marks":[{"type":"textStyle"}],"text":"She poses five questions to Zuckerberg:"}]

• How did the contamination happen, including from the closed-loop cooling system — and had that happened elsewhere?

• When did the project companies and contractors learn of the issue and what steps did they take to alert the local, state and federal authorities and mitigate the threat?

• Where is the facility taking its wastewater now, and how will that prevent threats to Wyoming communities?

[{"type":"text","text":"• Does Meta plan community outreach on this incident?"}]

[{"type":"text","text":"• Can closed-loop cooling systems scale down water consumption safely?"}]

Hageman concluded, “Wyoming deserves information and consultation from the industries which plan to call our state home.”

A Meta spokesperson in a Thursday email reiterated the company's earlier statement on the contamination. 

"Meta is supporting the efforts of our general contractor, Fortis, to resolve this issue with the City of Cheyenne Board of Public Utilities," the statement says. "When the board shared that it found a substance in the city's wastewater — not public drinking water — Fortis immediately stopped discharging industrial wastewater and began hauling it offsite. Fortis also began its own water testing with an independent environmental specialist which has found no trace of the substance."

The statement concludes, "Meta is committed to being a good neighbor in Cheyenne, including through the protection of local water resources, and will continue encouraging collaboration between Fortis and the board until this situation is resolved.”

[{"type":"text","marks":[{"type":"bold"}],"text":"‘Unpleasant Surprise'"}]

The delay between the contamination and making it public 

Cheyenne City Councilman Pete Laybourn told Cowboy State Daily last week that learning the contamination originated from Meta's data center was unwelcome news.

"It's a very, very unpleasant surprise," Laybourn said. "I have a lot yet to learn. It definitely complicates matters."

Laybourn said he has already expressed concerns about some of the arrangements the city has made with data center operators, adding that he expects the disclosure will prompt additional discussion.

"It's about the last thing we need right now," he said. "But it's a reality we're going to have to work through.”

"I think it's a disappointment to everyone involved," he told Cowboy State Daily.

Collins also praised the BOPU for catching the contamination and getting the city's sewage reuse system cleaned up. 

Hageman and Zuckerberg 7 9 26

<title>Hageman Demands Answers From Zuckerberg About Cheyenne Data Center Contamination | Cowboy State Daily</title>

Wyoming U.S. Rep. Harriet Hageman in a Thursday letter is demanding answers from Meta founder Mark Zuckerberg about how its Cheyenne data center contaminated the city’s wastewater system. “I am deeply concerned,” she wrote.

Hageman Demands Answers From Zuckerberg About Cheyenne Data Center Contamination

Headshot of Cowboy State Daily's Feature Reporter, Andrew Rossi.

Andrew Rossi

Around Wyoming

An extreme heat wave is headed for Wyoming, and it’s going to be one for the record books.

The National Weather Service (NWS) issued 

or much of northern and central Wyoming from Saturday through Monday in anticipation of “dangerously hot conditions.”

[{"type":"text","text":"How hot will it get?"}]

[{"type":"text","text":"According to the NWS, 110 degrees in Worland."}]

[{"type":"text","text":"Around 105 degrees in Cody."}]

[{"type":"text","text":"Up to 103 in Casper."}]

And it won't be a single day of intense heat. It's expected to be an extended period 

 multiple days of triple-digit temperatures.

“It’s definitely a big deal,” Cowboy State Daily meteorologist Don Day said. “It’s a significant heat wave, and I expect some record temperatures. I’d certainly be concerned about people and animals.”

[{"type":"text","marks":[{"type":"bold"}],"text":"Day After Day After Day"}]

July and August are Wyoming's hottest months, so days with triple-digit temperatures are expected. This heat wave is different and dangerous.

“This is going to be an extended period of hot, hot temperatures,” said lead meteorologist Grant Smith with the NWS office in Rapid City, South Dakota. “A ridge of high pressure will set over (the western U.S.), keeping the hot air in place, and we won’t see any change in temperatures until we see a drastic change in the weather pattern.”

According to Smith, that period will be at least from Saturday through Monday and could easily extend beyond that. He wouldn't be surprised if the entire region was just as hot Tuesday and Wednesday. 

Day expected this heat wave to catch many Wyomingites off guard. While this has been 

, this is the first “prolonged heat snap” of the summer.

“The combination of heat and low humidity is going to be impactful, especially for north-central and northeastern Wyoming,” Day said. “That's where it's going to be the worst.”

[{"type":"text","marks":[{"type":"bold"}],"text":"How Hot?"}]

The NWS is already anticipating record-breaking temperatures across most of Wyoming.

Smith said residents of northeast Wyoming should expect highs of 105 degrees on Sunday and Monday.

“That’s just the first draft,” he said. “They’ll be flirting with highs between 101 and 105 degrees on Tuesday and Wednesday, and even beyond that.”

Nobody will be hotter than the Bighorn Basin. It’s always a hot spot during heat waves, and this will be exceptional.

“The eastern edge of the Bighorn Basin will be our warmest spot,” said meteorologist Richard Lowe with the NWS office in Riverton. “Greybull, Worland, Thermopolis, and even Cody and Meeteetse will be in the area of greatest concern for the highest temperatures.”

Worland’s daytime high is 110 degrees on Sunday and 105 degrees on Monday. It could be even hotter in Greybull, with a daytime high of 111 degrees on Sunday.

[{"type":"text","text":"That would break all-time highs for July 12 in Greybull and Worland."}]

It won’t be as hot in southern Wyoming, but it’ll still be historically hot.

Lander’s all-time high for July 12 is 102 degrees. Sunday’s high is anticipated to be 103, according to the NWS.

“We’re in a state where everything with the weather is being amplified,” Day said. “Southern Wyoming will have temperatures well into the 90s, while northern and central Wyoming may hit triple-digit highs for three or four days in a row.”

[{"type":"text","marks":[{"type":"bold"}],"text":"High Altitude, Low Humidity"}]

Throughout the heat wave, it won’t feel quite as hot as the thermometer says. Because the atmosphere will be mostly dry, the heat shouldn’t be amplified by humidity.

“We’ll have relative humidity values below 10% over the weekend,” Lowe said. “Even though it could be 105 degrees, it might feel a couple of degrees less than that. I'm not going to say that’s cooler, but it won’t be as hot as the actual temperature.”

There shouldn’t be enough moisture for afternoon thunderstorms to form, though, and the wind will be relatively mild. That will reduce wildfire danger across Wyoming, provided nobody 

“Once the heat dome really kicks in, it lowers our risk for thunderstorms until the pattern changes,” Smith said. “You can't rule out the little thunderstorms that pop up, but they’d last only 15 or 20 minutes before they fade out.”

For anyone seeking a naturalistic solution to beat the heat, Day recommended a trip to Yellowstone, the Bighorns or the Snowy Range.

“Every 1,000 feet you go up, you'll be six to seven degrees cooler,” he said. “This would be a great time to head into the mountains.”

[{"type":"text","marks":[{"type":"bold"}],"text":"Too Darn Hot"}]

Air conditioners will be working overtime this weekend, and that might be one of the safest ways to beat the heat. These temperatures should be a legitimate cause of concern, Day said.

“Dehydration, sunstroke, and over-exertion will be real problems,” he said. “Pets and the elderly are really susceptible to this, so make sure to take care and check on them until things get cooler.”

Day, Lowe and Smith emphasized how severe this heat wave will be, especially because it’ll last multiple days without a break. That’ll be taxing on everybody.

“People should definitely take precautions,” Lowe said. “If you have to be outside, try to get out in the morning or evening, drink plenty of fluids, and stay out of the sun. Check in on your neighbors and relatives and keep an eye on everybody from Saturday to Tuesday and onward.”

The second half of July is actually looking 

 than the first half, but we have to get there first.

“We’re going to have at least three or four days under this big dome of heat,” Lowe said. “It’s going to get worse before it gets better.”

Worland church temperature 7 9 26

<title>Hot, Hot, Hot: Triple Digits Forecast In Wyoming For At Least Three Days | Cowboy State Daily</title>

The National Weather Service is predicting a record-breaking weekend for many locations in Wyoming with "dangerously hot conditions" in the forecast. Temperatures will be hottest in the Big Horn Basin with Worland and Greybull expected to top 110 degrees.

Hot, Hot, Hot: Triple Digits Forecast In Wyoming For At Least Three Days

Kolby fedore

Kolby Fedore

Crime & Courts

Courts

A Manderson, Wyoming, man and woman have been charged after the suspicious death of an infant in a case where investigators say a camper where the child lived was filthy, overheated, had no running water and was littered with human waste, animal feces and meth.

The investigation began just after 10 a.m. Monday, when agents with the Wyoming Division of Criminal Investigation were notified of the suspicious, unattended death of an infant.

By the time Special Agent Anthony Giles arrived at Three Rivers Hospital in Basin, the baby's mother — 22-year-old Destynie Study — had already told investigators what she said happened that morning.

A newly filed affidavit in the case available Thursday says Destynie fed and changed the infant around 1:30 a.m. before putting the baby back to sleep in a crib inside the family's camper in Manderson. 

She told investigators she woke around 9:45 a.m. and found the infant unresponsive.

She immediately grabbed the child, climbed into her father's vehicle and started driving toward Three Rivers Hospital, calling 911 along the way. 

The affidavit says the baby lived in the camper with the mother, her father Travis Study, and another child who is just over a year old.

A Big Horn County grandfather and mother have been charged after a baby died Monday in a 95-degree trailer filled with feces, garbage and a 5-gallon bucket of human waste. "The infant's diaper was completely saturated in urine,” an investigator says.

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