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

<title>You Still Here? Saturday, December 16, 2023 | Cowboy State Daily</title>

You Still Here? Saturday, December 16, 2023

 There's nothing better than waking up refreshed and ready to conquer the day...

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

Clair McFarland

Government & Politics

Politics

[{"type":"text","text":"The attack ads against governor candidate Sen. Eric Barlow continue."}]

A federal PAC earlier this summer dispatched a TV commercial saying Barlow had voted to allow sex change procedures “to be done on kids” in 2023. The record, conversely, shows that Barlow voted in favor of a child sex-change ban that year.

The new attack ads say Barlow voted to send money to illegal immigrants. He denies making such a gesture, saying his nay votes on two immigration bills were due to the short, rushed nature of the budget-planning sessions that fall on even-numbered years.

“This is getting super wonky,” said Barlow in a Monday phone interview. “It truly is.”

He said the bills he's now being criticized for opposing were either poorly written or rushed - sometimes both. 

"So look, good bills make strong laws that work for the state of Wyoming," said Barlow. "Hastily done things that are less than complete in both their policy approach and their consideration just need more time." 

[{"type":"text","text":"First, The Race"}]

The race for the GOP nomination for governor pits Barlow against Superintendent of Public Instruction Megan Degenfelder, retired Marine Corps Col. Brent Bien, and Curt Blake.

[{"type":"text","text":"Barlow, Bien and Degenfelder each gained bragging points last month."}]

Bien won the Wyoming Republican Party’s endorsement, as about 50 members of the party’s state central committee broke tradition to endorse him and other statewide candidates.

For Degenfelder, President Donald Trump reiterated the endorsement he gave her in January.

And Barlow touted the results of a poll, which Cowboy State Daily has reviewed, showing him with a 42% support rating and well above the other candidates.

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

[{"type":"text","text":"Second, The Ads"}]

A federally registered 501(c)4 issue group called Women For Responsible Government Action produced attack ads earlier this summer casting Barlow as liberal on social issues involving kids.

The group claimed Barlow voted to allow sexual orientation and gender identity to be taught to kindergarteners and to allow sex change procedures “to be done on kids.”

[{"type":"text","text":"The record tells a different story."}]

Barlow voted against the 2023 Senate File 111, which would have applied a felony punishable by up to 10 years in prison to anyone involved in medically transitioning a child from one gender to another, with exceptions for intersex and other unique situations.

Barlow criticized the bill’s definitions, calling it imprecise. But that same year he voted in favor of “Chloe’s Law” – which sought to strip medical professionals of their licenses for medically transitioning kids.

Barlow had, as the ad notes in a subtext, voted against the 2023 Senate File 117. The bill sought to ban teaching of gender ideology to public-school kids in grades kindergarten through third grade.

But Barlow voted in favor of that bill’s 2024 successor, Senate File 9, which became law.

The sequel legislation bans schools from teaching sexual orientation or gender identity without permission, and compels schools to notify parents if their children experience psychological changes, which may include a newly-voiced transgender identity.

[{"type":"text","text":"He told Cowboy State Daily that the 2024 bill was simply written better."}]

[{"type":"text","text":"The PAC Talking About Immigration"}]

Barlow supporters voiced consternation on social media last week and over the weekend, in response to fliers and commercials characterizing him as liberal on immigration.

“Liberal Eric Barlow can’t be trusted with your money,” begins the TV commercial. “Barlow voted to spend Wyoming tax dollars on illegal immigrants.”

The ad cites two bills: the 2016 House Bill 135 and the 2018 House Bill 105.

“Eric Barlow keeps sending your money to illegals,” says the ad, after saying Barlow voted to fund sanctuary communities.

[{"type":"text","text":"Barlow countered in a Monday interview."}]

“None of these votes were about sending money to anybody. They were about restricting how money could be spent,” he said. “I’ve never voted to send money to illegal immigrants. Period. I’ve never had that bill.”

[{"type":"text","text":"The ad touts Degenfelder as fighting for Wyoming families and businesses."}]

Those ads are from a Wyoming-based group, Wyoming’s Turn PAC, which Cheyenne resident Joe Milczewski incorporated on Jan. 14.

Milczewski serves on the board of directors for the Petroleum Association of Wyoming.

The association has endorsed Degenfelder but has nothing to do with this PAC, its spokesman Ryan McConnaughey told Cowboy State Daily in a Monday phone interview.

Barlow said he has had business dealings with Milczewski and thought those went well.

Milczewski did not respond by publication to phone messages placed with the number he listed as an incorporator, or another one listed to him online.

[{"type":"text","text":"Degenfelder is not listed as an incorporator or director of the PAC."}]

Her campaign said prior that she is not affiliated with the federal issues group that had spoken to gender issues. Regarding the state-level PAC with the immigration ads, Degenfelder’s campaign manager Charlotte Jones said, “The campaign has not and is not permitted to communicate or coordinate with outside groups."

“Megan Degenfelder is the only candidate for governor with a proven record of delivering wins for conservatives,” added Jones.

[{"type":"text","text":"Break Down The Bills"}]

[{"type":"text","text":"Both immigration votes the ad highlights happened on even-numbered years."}]

That means the legislative session was about 20 days long rather than 40. The Legislature’s top priority in even-numbered years is passing a two-year budget for the state.

Barlow said the rush of a budget session drove both his nay votes, which he cast on the introductory votes before either bill had entered the chamber for full debate.

The Legislature numbered 275 proposed bills in 2016, and 118 of those became law.

Then-Rep. Mark Jennings, R-Sheridan, brought the 2016 bill seeking to ban public benefits for illegal immigrants.

[{"type":"text","text":"Barack Obama was president."}]

Jennings told the House of Representatives on Feb. 12, 2016, that the bill was a response to other states acting to condition eligibility for public benefits on lawful presence in the U.S. The bill had carveouts for emergency medical conditions, disaster relief, public health, soup kitchens, crisis counseling, and short-term shelters.

Rep. Ken Esquibel, D-Cheyenne, asked why the bill didn’t exempt prenatal care as well, since women afraid of seeking prenatal care might end up in emergency birth situations that also cost the public more via Medicaid bills.

[{"type":"text","text":"Jennings said he wanted to add that exemption."}]

The bill died on a 26-33 vote. It needed two-thirds approval to enter the chamber during the budget session. Only Republicans backed it. A mix of Democrats and Republicans opposed it.

That bill was numbered two days before its introduction vote, Barlow noted in his Monday interview.

“This is a significant issue that had implications for local governments,” said Barlow. “We got that bill literally two days before that vote was taken.”

Had it passed, the bill would have added to the duties of local governments by requiring them to verify the lawful presence of each person age 14 or older applying for state, local, or federal public benefits.

Barlow voted in favor this year of a bill, by Senate President Bo Biteman, restricting public welfare benefits across health and family services programs like food stamps, Medicaid and the Power program. He said Biteman worked this bill more carefully during the non-session months.

[{"type":"text","text":"Biteman did not immediately return a voicemail request for comment."}]

[{"type":"text","text":"Then Came 2018"}]

In 2018, then-Rep. Chuck Gray, who is now secretary of state, brought a House Bill 105 seeking to ban sanctuary communities by withholding state money from local governments with any sanctuary-style policies.

“We’ve seen a disturbing trend where … cities and counties and states are refusing to follow immigration law and trying to use that as leverage to gain concessions,” said Gray on Feb. 14, 2018.

Two Democratic legislators pressed Gray on whether that was an issue in Wyoming.

[{"type":"text","text":"Gray said he had seen it."}]

[{"type":"text","text":"The bill fell short of the two-thirds threshold, 33-26."}]

“There were just big implications in both of these bills,” said Barlow, referencing again the short budget session and, for HB105, the eight-day window from its numbering to its introductory vote.

When Gray resurrected the bill in another budget session in 2020, Barlow voted nay again.

Barlow in the longer 2025 general session voted in favor of a bill to ban sanctuary cities. That bill became law.

[{"type":"text","text":"The Bill The Sheriffs Hated"}]

A Wyoming’s Turn PAC mail flier Cowboy State Daily received Monday also criticizes Barlow for his nay vote on the 2025 bill Senate File 124.

That was a huge immigration bill that would have required all Wyoming sheriffs to work with federal immigration authorities. Even sheriffs who work well with U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) 

Sheriffs said by requiring them to contract with ICE, the bill put them at a negotiating disadvantage. They also feared small-town sheriffs couldn’t afford ICE’s contracting requirements, which could involve mandatory jail housing.

The bill proved unpopular in the Senate: 10 Republican senators voted in its favor while 20 senators – 18 Republicans, including Barlow – voted to kill it.

Within days of his nay vote on SF 124, Barlow voted in favor of House Bill 133, banning sanctuary cities. He called the latter bill better-written.

Barlow during session 8 3 26

<title>Barlow Says Attack Ads On Sex Changes And Illegal Immigrants Aren't True | Cowboy State Daily</title>

Sen. Eric Barlow on Monday said attack ads accusing him of voting to allow sex changes and voting to send money to illegal immigrants are not true. He said the bills he voted against were poorly written or rushed and are being twisted against him.

Barlow Says Attack Ads On Sex Changes And Illegal Immigrants Aren't True

Employee kate meadows cropped

Kate Meadows

Outdoors

Big Horn County Search & Rescue has become one of Wyoming's busiest volunteer emergency organizations at the same time its funding has been cut nearly in half.

Last year, the team responded to 55 rescue calls – almost four times its historical average of about 15 – making it second only to Teton County in call volume. This year, volunteers have already answered 40 calls and are on pace to surpass last year's record.

Yet the organization's county funding dropped from about $106,000 to $50,000 after property-tax reductions squeezed county budgets.

"We lost a lot of money," Big Horn County Search & Rescue Coordinator Jeff Schmidt told Cowboy State Daily from Colorado, where he was helping fight a wildfire.

Additional property-tax reductions being debated by Wyoming lawmakers could tighten those finances even further, he said.

"As call volume goes up, we just have to have more people doing these things," Schmidt said.

Big Horn County Sheriff Jason Beal said county leaders are doing what they can despite increasingly difficult financial realities.

[{"type":"text","text":"\"We're navigating a very tight, very critical budget,\" Beal said."}]

[{"type":"text","marks":[{"type":"bold"}],"text":"A Small County With Big Demands"}]

[{"type":"text","text":"The challenge facing Big Horn County is unique."}]

Although only about 12,000 people live in the county – which ranks among Wyoming's lowest for median family income – nearly 1 million visitors travel to or through it each year.

Search and rescue volunteers cover more than 3,100 square miles that range from desert badlands to towering alpine peaks, caves and swift mountain rivers.

Three major highways – U.S. Highways 14, 14A and 16 – cross the Big Horn Mountains, carrying thousands of tourists to and from Yellowstone National Park each summer, Beal said.

That variety means volunteers never know what type of rescue they'll face.

One call might involve recovering an injured horseback rider deep in the wilderness. Another could require rescuing stranded climbers from vertical cliffs, navigating caves or performing swift-water rescues during spring runoff.

"We run high-risk missions all the time," Schmidt said. "We have to have tons of training."

[{"type":"text","marks":[{"type":"bold"}],"text":"Training Comes At A Price"}]

Big Horn County certifies volunteers in high-angle rope rescue, swift-water rescue, cave rescue and other specialized disciplines.

The foundational wilderness rescue course alone requires about 80 hours of training on volunteers' own time and costs roughly $2,000 per person.

Ideally, Schmidt said, the organization would spend $30,000 to $40,000 annually on training alone.

Instead, it has to fund its training from the $50,000 yearly operating budget.

The county also contains more than 200 known caves, adding another layer of technical expertise many search-and-rescue teams elsewhere never need.

[{"type":"text","marks":[{"type":"bold"}],"text":"Tourism Changes The Mountains"}]

Schmidt said he has watched the backcountry transform over the past several years.

Before the COVID-19 pandemic, he said it was unusual to encounter more than a couple dozen people above 11,000 feet in the Big Horn Mountains.

[{"type":"text","text":"Now, he routinely sees hundreds."}]

He attributes much of that increase to outdoor recreation becoming more popular during the pandemic, combined with social media showcasing spectacular mountain scenery.

"People post all these beautiful pictures on social media," he said. "But they don't say, 'Be careful. The mountain really doesn't care what happens to you.'"

[{"type":"text","marks":[{"type":"bold"}],"text":"A Search Unlike Any Other"}]

[{"type":"text","text":"The team's growing workload reached its peak almost exactly one year ago."}]

In August 2025, Big Horn County Search & Rescue launched what Schmidt believes might have been the largest operation in the organization's history after 

38-year-old Minnesota hiker Grant Gardner disappeared

The call came in Aug. 1 — already the team's 31st rescue of the year — but Gardner likely had disappeared several days earlier.

[{"type":"text","text":"At first, rescuers knew only that he had climbed Cloud Peak."}]

Finding him meant searching miles of rugged alpine terrain, including enormous boulder fields riddled with countless crevices where a person could disappear.

"There are literally hundreds of thousands of holes you could drop into," Schmidt said.

[{"type":"text","text":"The mountain's steep terrain complicated every aspect of the operation."}]

Much of Cloud Peak is bordered by sheer cliffs, making it impossible for search teams to simply hike the 11 to 15 miles in and out.

Helicopters frequently inserted exhausted crews onto the mountain and later flew them back after long days covering terrain.

[{"type":"text","text":"Grant’s remains were found Aug. 27."}]

The 29-day search involved more than 220 helicopter flights, five aviation companies, specialized dog teams and assistance from Teton County Search & Rescue.

[{"type":"text","text":"Volunteers logged more than 1,300 hours."}]

Even with a volunteer team, the mission cost Big Horn County about $60,000 – more than the organization's entire current annual budget.

Officials estimated replacing the donated volunteer labor and partner agency assistance with paid resources would have cost roughly $1.7 million.

"There was just a huge amount of resources used on that mission," Schmidt said.

[{"type":"text","marks":[{"type":"bold"}],"text":"Searching For Help"}]

Despite the financial strain, Schmidt said volunteer morale remains strong.

"We've been very fortunate to have a group of young, strong people fit for backcountry hiking," he said. "Some run their own businesses and sacrifice the time."

Volunteer Morgan Dufort has increasingly shifted into fundraising as equipment needs continue to grow.

The organization needs additional rescue gear, technical equipment, training money and vehicles, Dufort said.

[{"type":"text","text":"\"Our south location has one working truck,\" Dufort said."}]

That truck carries nearly all of the specialized equipment needed for rope, cave and swift-water rescues.

"If four volunteers respond and rescue two people, they can't fit everyone and all the gear in the truck," Schmidt said. "It would be much better if we were able to split that gear to more than one vehicle."

Those needs helped earn Big Horn County Search & Rescue a spot as one of five finalists nationwide in the 

The winning organization will receive a customized Land Rover Defender 130 SUV along with a $30,000 cash award.

The vehicle seats eight people, can tow up to 9,000 pounds and would allow rescuers to carry both additional personnel and specialized equipment deeper into the backcountry.

"It'll just go more places," Schmidt said. "Everywhere we go with our side-by-side, we could just take the Defender."

[{"type":"text","marks":[{"type":"bold"}],"text":"Competing For New Vehicle"}]

Public voting for the award continues through Aug. 14. Big Horn County Search and Rescue is contending with Custer County Search & Rescue in Custer, South Dakota, along with search-and-rescue organizations in Tampa, Florida, McLouth, Kansas and Rancho Cucamonga, California.

At the Old Shell Store in Shell, Emily Clark taped a flyer announcing the competition on the counter next to the cash register.

“I’m telling everyone they’ll get a free cookie if they vote,” Clark told Dufort.

Dufort said she hopes the competition also brings to light that one of Wyoming's busiest search-and-rescue organizations is operating with fewer resources than ever.

"Ninety-nine percent of the time, the people we talk to in our communities don't know that the organization is under-funded," she said. "If they don't know, they can't help us."

[{"type":"text","text":"Still, she said, the volunteers never hesitate when the pager goes off."}]

"The calls don't stop because the budget gets smaller," she said. "We still have a job to do."

Big Horn County SAR training 4 8 3 26

<title>Big Horn County Search & Rescue Calls Nearly Quadruple While Funding Slashed | Cowboy State Daily</title>

Big Horn County Search & Rescue is second only to Teton County in calls due to booming tourism and uniquely rugged and remote terrain leading to the high-risk missions. But as demand for rescues have quadrupled, the agency's budget has been cut in half.

Big Horn County Search & Rescue Calls Nearly Quadruple While Funding Slashed

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

Andrew Rossi

Public Safety

Wildfires are burning homes and habitat across the western U.S., filling the skies with smoke, but even these fearsome flames can have incredible moments of beauty.

 witnessed along the banks of the Snake River in eastern Idaho on Sunday. As the fire raged near Heise, the conflicting wind currents came together into a twirling spire of destruction.

“It came and went for a couple of minutes, at least,” Duke told Cowboy State Daily. “It would spin up and die down, and then do it again.”

The Big Rock Fire started on the north bank of the Snake River, 30 miles west of the Wyoming state line, on July 31. As of Monday afternoon, the lightning-strike fire had burned nearly 2,500 acres and was 0% contained.

Duke lives around three miles from where the first flames were spotted. Since it was burning away from him, he decided to step outside to get some photos.

“I was working in the yard and could see the fire off in the distance,” he said. “I've got a pretty big wildlife lens on my camera, so I figured I’d try to go get a few action shots of helicopters dumping water buckets.”

From across the river, Duke could see the fire spreading and brush spontaneously bursting into flames from the surrounding heat.

As he watched and documented, the flames suddenly started swirling together. As multiple spokes of flame came together, they were thrust into the air.

“I was about a mile away from the spin,” he said. “It's hard to say how high it went, but I would guess a couple hundred feet.”

The spiral would slow down and collapse, only to surge upward again with renewed intensity.

“It was changing pretty quickly,” he said. “The sun was going down, temperatures and humidity were changing, and it was going uphill. That all affected how fast it was moving.”

<a href="https://www.instagram.com/jduke8/reel/DbhEfHYPnfu/" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer" style="display:block;text-decoration:none;color:inherit;width:100%;max-width:460px;background:#ffffff;border-radius:12px;overflow:hidden;border:1px solid #dedede;box-shadow:0 1px 4px rgba(0,0,0,0.1);font-family:-apple-system,BlinkMacSystemFont,'Segoe UI',Roboto,Helvetica,Arial,sans-serif"><div style="width:100%;aspect-ratio:16 / 9;background:rgba(0,0,0,0.05);overflow:hidden"><img src="https://scontent.cdninstagram.com/v/t51.71878-15/762864159_3272173343170551_6548764045925133745_n.jpg?stp=cmp1_dst-jpg_e35_s640x640_tt6&amp;_nc_cat=106&amp;ccb=7-5&amp;_nc_sid=18de74&amp;efg=eyJlZmdfdGFnIjoiQ0xJUFMuYmVzdF9pbWFnZV91cmxnZW4uQzIifQ%3D%3D&amp;_nc_ohc=5FNZo_pwvpgQ7kNvwGyBTVr&amp;_nc_oc=AdrgLBzSnjRELwx22kMgw4xQRLa1LpxeGfuMrBezQ4JMxYHI87v-Uxz9YXvxhEixvZQ&amp;_nc_zt=23&amp;_nc_ht=scontent.cdninstagram.com&amp;_nc_gid=2dkfk_SIZ8mIYJeyZIR6hw&amp;_nc_ss=70689&amp;oh=00_AQHdquCkKLmclx4ZhDHryBm-Osp5zT7jgaVqDE331avfDQ&amp;oe=6A76BBFA" alt="" onerror="this.onerror=null;this.src='https://static.cdninstagram.com/rsrc.php/yr/r/rzWiSjZRxk5.webp';this.style.objectFit='contain';this.style.padding='15%'" style="width:100%;height:100%;object-fit:cover;display:block" /></div><div style="padding:14px 16px;display:flex;flex-direction:column;gap:6px"><div style="display:flex;align-items:center;gap:8px;flex-wrap:wrap;min-height:15px"><img src="https://static.cdninstagram.com/rsrc.php/yr/r/rzWiSjZRxk5.webp" alt="" style="width:15px;height:15px;border-radius:4px;flex-shrink:0" /><span style="font-size:11px;font-weight:400;color:#999999;letter-spacing:0.5px;text-transform:uppercase">Instagram</span></div><div style="font-size:16px;font-weight:400;color:#000000;line-height:1.4;margin:0">Justin Duke (@jduke8) • Instagram reel</div><div style="font-size:13px;color:#000000;line-height:1.4;display:-webkit-box;-webkit-line-clamp:3;-webkit-box-orient:vertical;overflow:hidden;margin:0">108 likes, 4 comments - jduke8 on August 1, 2026: “The Big Rock fire spun up this little guy. Check out the trees for scale. #fire #seidaho #fireseason #wildfire”.</div></div></a>

[{"type":"text","marks":[{"type":"bold"}],"text":"Fire Devils"}]

[{"type":"text","text":"These swirling spirals of fire are seen during many wildfires."}]

Many people call them “fire tornadoes.” Cowboy State Daily meteorologist Don Day would prefer they didn’t.

“It’s not a tornado moving into a wildfire,” Day said. “It’s not a fire strong enough to create a tornado, in terms of what a tornado actually is. Putting ‘-nado’ at the end of things isn’t the correct thing to do.”

Nevertheless, these “fire devils,” as Day prefers to call them, can be extremely dangerous. They result from a wildfire strong enough to essentially create its own weather as it burns and intensifies.

“The heat from the fire generates a lot of rising motion, because hot air has to lift,” Day said. “There’s a natural spin motion in the atmosphere that these tap into. When you combine that vertical motion of the heat and flame with the natural horizontal motion of the wind, you get a ‘fire devil.’”

That’s a distinctly different phenomenon from a tornado, even if they have some superficial similarities.

According to Day, fire devils are a signal that a wildfire is getting worse. As they form, they feed the flames burning at their base.

“These vertical motions draw air up, and when you draw air up, you're pulling oxygen into the fire, which makes it worse,” Day said. “If fire devils pop up, it’s a very dangerous situation for firefighters, and there's nothing you're going to be able to do to mitigate them.”

[{"type":"text","marks":[{"type":"bold"}],"text":"Exorcising Devils"}]

 in southern Utah in July 2025. Jerod DeLay, assistant state forester and fire management officer with the Wyoming State Forestry Division, said he’d “never seen one as large as that.”

When firefighters respond to a wildfire, they don’t try to engage with the flames directly. They attempt to anticipate the fire’s next move and establish fire lines that will, hopefully, cut it off or redirect it into another line.

According to DeLay, fire devils tend to break through fire lines, making them even more dangerous and unpredictable.

“You have to make sure to see if your lines held,” he said in July 2025. “If your lines didn't hold, you make another plan to see where you can go. If they hold, you continue to strengthen and improve the lines that you already have.”

The one thing firefighters won’t do is attack the fire devil. It’s not worth the risk.

“You make sure you’re in a good, safe place and let it run its course,” DeLay said. “It adds another element that you probably weren't expecting.”

[{"type":"text","marks":[{"type":"bold"}],"text":"Fire Season In Full Swing"}]

As of Monday, four confirmed wildfires were burning in northeastern Wyoming. Two, the Left Creek and Newton fires, sparked within 

Day, without wanting to jinx anything, said Wyoming was “lucky” to get through a dry July with only a few wildfires.

“I think that the higher humidity and thunderstorm activity we did see really kept the activity down in July,” he said. “We had a lot of thunderstorms that kept the mountains in northwest and western Wyoming very active. Where it fell, that July rain really helped.”

That said, Wyoming’s fire season extends from July through October. If the first days of August are any indication, many potentially dangerous months are ahead.

Duke wasn’t anticipating an evacuation from his Heise home. The fire’s still 0% contained, but responding agencies seem confident they’ll be able to protect people and structures.

“It’s just burning through trees and stuff on public land,” he said. “I don’t think the situation’s improved much, but I know they've got the structures protected, and that's the main concern.”

Where there’s smoke, there’s fire. And where there’s fire, there’s a chance that a fire devil will spiral up and out of control.

Not every wildfire creates fire devils, but they’re real and potent threats that shouldn’t be underestimated.

“It was remarkable that we got through the month of July with very little activity in terms of wildfires in Wyoming,” Day said. “We dodged the bullet there, but I don't want to shout from the mountaintop that fire season's over. We’re not done, by a long shot.”

Fire tornado 1

<title>100-Foot ‘Fire Devil’ Spirals Out Of Control In Eastern Idaho Wildfire | Cowboy State Daily</title>

A wildfire watcher observing the Big Draw Fire in eastern Idaho on Sunday captured video of a spiraling tower of flame rising more than 100 feet into the air. "Fire devils" are created when flames reach high enough that they swirl.

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