It’s time to take a look at what’s happening around Wyoming, for Friday, July 12th. I’m Wendy Corr, bringing you headlines from the Cowboy State Daily newsroom - brought to you by Wyoming Senior Olympics, reminding you that this year's Summer Olympics start July 31st in Cheyenne and volunteers are needed, become a volunteer today at Wyoming senior Olympics dot org.
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Less than three weeks after a section of mountain dropped off and took part of Wyoming Highway 22 with it, the temporary fix was done on Teton Pass.
For the Wyoming Department of Transportation, the work is just getting started, according to Cowboy State Daily’s Jake Nichols, who reports that engineers have figured out how to put the highway back right where it was to begin with.
“The part of the real mountain that was created back when mountains were created - that didn't fail. What failed was about 70 feet from the surface, 70 feet down, of manmade fill that was done in the 1960s. That fill was pretty good for the 1960s, but after a while, every spring, you know, water seeps in, runoff seeps in, and it just finally had had enough. So they're gonna put better fill in there, and just put it back where it was, better.”
It will be a massive undertaking, but WYDOT already pulled off one miracle this summer, by getting the highway re-opened in record time. It will only take time and money to make the fix permanent — but those are two things the department never seems to have enough of.
Read the full story HERE.
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Wyoming’s congressional delegates are sounding alarms about the United States’ trajectory after President Joe Biden hosted a solo press conference following an hour delay Thursday evening.
Cowboy State Daily’s Clair McFarland spoke to Senators John Barrasso and Cynthia Lummis, as well as Representative Harriet Hageman, after Thursday evening’s event.
“They're concerned for the nation's trajectory under Biden, and they're saying that, in addition to not being fit to run, also not fit to run the country… Senator Cynthia Lummis said that Biden's performance, both at the June 28 debate and at this press conference, make America look weak on the world stage.”
The president articulated his prepared speech about the legacy of NATO fluently, but was often incomprehensible during the press question period that followed.
Read the full story HERE.
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The upgrade to the missile defense program at F.E. Warren Air Force Base in Cheyenne is expected to bring billions of dollars in construction money and thousands of jobs to the community.
But Cowboy State Daily’s Renee Jean reports that the project is coming in at 81% over budget.
“That did trigger a Department of Defense Review, that's required by congressional act, when a project is that much over. It was caused by not knowing some things about the ground work that was going to have to be done. But even as they were conducting that review, they were already teeing up money for this project in Congress. $1.6 billion is headed to F.E. Warren's way to get started preparing for this… But it's gonna move forward. And there really wasn't ever any doubt of that, the system is just too important for deterrence with countries like Russia, and now China, China has entered the nuclear sphere of things.”
Acquisition costs for the Sentinel missile program are now estimated at $140.9 billion dollars.
Read the full story HERE.
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A tiny exploration company from Canada has become the latest entrant to the once abandoned Shirley Basin uranium mining district in central Wyoming, where it hopes to attract interest from larger players in the strategic ore market.
Cowboy State Daily’s Pat Maio spoke to the CEO of Indigo Exploration, a Vancouver-based company, which recently acquired old uranium claims in a roughly 2-square-mile area sandwiched between other mining claims.
“Nothing's been done on the property, he said, since like, literally, the 60s, it's just been sitting there and is these old holes in the ground… they need to get contractors in there and redrill, see what's down there with new modern technology, as far as measuring the ore deposits down there.”
A number of uranium companies are collectively rushing to Wyoming’s Shirley Basin, restarting long dormant operations in some cases, because of renewed demand for uranium, as the United States weans itself off foreign sources.
Read the full story HERE.
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More details have been released in the case of an Idaho woman whose body was found in her vehicle, which was pulled from the Buffalo Fork River in Grand Teton National Park on July 7th.
The vehicle belonging to 54-year-old Laura Lane had landed in the river, then floated in heavy spring runoff before submerging under water about a quarter mile downstream, according to Cowboy State Daily’s Jen Kocher.
“The highway patrol is still investigating how she went off the road and why she went off the road. And what they released is that she crossed the lanes and careened off a cliff, about 60 feet in the air. And that's all they know, at this point, her autopsy is still pending. So there's still answers are still forthcoming.”
The vehicle was located by aerial drone Sunday after a fisherman in the area found Lane’s wallet near the area where her car left the road, prompting a search by law enforcement and park rangers.
Read the full story HERE.
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One of the most significant public records court cases in Wyoming history has finally come to a conclusion.
First Judicial Court Judge Steven Sharpe ruled Wednesday that former Superintendent of Public Instruction Brian Schroeder, the Wyoming Department of Education, and the department’s chief communications officer each must pay $700 fines for their roles in withholding public records in 2022. And according to politics reporter Leo Wolfson, it is one of the first times - if not the first time ever in Wyoming history - that public officials have been held accountable for not complying with public records requests.
“It's also worth noting, although the $700 fines may seem kind of small, the maximum fine that can be assessed is $750. So the judge actually handed out one of the most serious penalties possible for a crime, if you will, like this. So it's significant. And it will set a precedent that there are situations where if public officials don't provide public records, they will have to pay the cost.”
Cheyenne attorney George Powers, a plaintiff in the lawsuit, told Cowboy State Daily the case represents the first to his knowledge in Wyoming where any court has found that a state agency and its officers knowingly or intentionally withheld records in violation of state law.
Read the full story HERE.
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And the old post office building in Marbleton now sits at the Sublette County dump, after a 17-year-old boy destroyed it with one high-speed turn of a stolen half-ton truck towing a fifth-wheel gooseneck trailer.
Cowboy State Daily’s Clair McFarland reports that 17-year-old Connor Hanson attempted to take a 90-degree turn at 64 mph, and survived almost by a miracle, according to the owner of the building.
“When they looked at the truck, according to Tim Thompson, two by fours were wedged in the bottom and through the windshield and through the console, and the way Thompson put it, the only place that wasn't toothpicks was where that teen was sitting. So he called him the luckiest kid in Sublette County.”
Hanson faces a multitude of charges, including felony theft, two counts of property destruction, and one count of aggravated fleeing.
Read the full story HERE.
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The outgoing House majority whip is concerned that a Lander-based conservation advocacy organization is waging a war on Wyoming’s middle class through the state’s oil and gas lease auction bidding process.
Energy reporter Pat Maio spoke with Representative Cyrus Western, who said he is nervous that the Wyoming Outdoor Council may be prioritizing preservation of a pronghorn migratory route south of Pinedale over drilling for oil and natural gas — a cash lifeline for Wyoming.
“He says, well, we can't have any of that where you know, a nonprofit could come in and bid it up a piece of land and basically keep it out of the hands of the oil and gas industry, which potentially could lead to lower revenues for the state, like in education, all important stuff.”
In a worst case scenario, Western said he sees the group’s strategy as one that could lead to layoffs, as the energy industry comes to grips with significant cuts to more than $2.4 billion in taxes that the industry contributes annually to state coffers.
Read the full story HERE.
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There wasn’t much the Republican state Senate candidates for Districts 4 and 6 in southeast Wyoming didn’t agree on at a Politics In the Park forum Wednesday night.
That is, except for a massive $800 million Facebook data center recently unveiled for south Cheyenne, which split the candidates, according to politics reporter Leo Wolfson.
“Some, like Mark Torriani and Taft Love, are concerned about it and believe it's not a good deal for Wyoming… I spoke to Eric Johnson, who said that he's mostly supportive and thinks it can provide a ton of job opportunities in the local area, as does Greg Smith.”
The data center is projected to employ 100 people long-term and up 1,000 people at peak construction.
Read the full story HERE.
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A woman held hostage at gunpoint by her estranged husband fought him for the weapon while taking a beating.
Court documents say 49-year-old Cody Birdwell Jr. eventually gave up, but not before terrorizing his wife and repeatedly telling her they both would die, according to Cowboy State Daily’s Clair McFarland.
“He was served with a protection order that afternoon and told to vacate the house. The deputy gave him a little time to pack and shower. But when she got back, he was reportedly still there. And so there's this situation where he's allegedly saying we're not leaving here alive, call the cops to come get our kids, because the kids were out in the car.. And at some point she grabs the gun and is fighting for it… And the law enforcement negotiator steps in and eventually coaxes and barters for her release.”
Birdwell faces up to 32 years in prison if convicted of kidnapping, aggravated assault and various misdemeanor charges.
Read the full story HERE.
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And that’s today’s news! For a deeper dive into the people and issues that affect Wyoming, check out The Roundup, video conversations with the most interesting people in the Cowboy State. A new episode drops tomorrow, when I have a conversation with Dr. Charles Preston, founding curator of the Draper Museum of Natural History in Cody. You can find the link on our website, on our YouTube Channel, and wherever you get your podcasts. And of course, you'll find it in our FREE daily newsletter!
Thanks for tuning in - I’m Wendy Corr, for Cowboy State Daily.
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Radio Stations
The following radio stations are airing Cowboy State Daily Radio on weekday mornings, afternoons and evenings. More radio stations will be added soon.
KYDT 103.1 FM – Sundance
KBFS 1450 AM — Sundance
KYCN 1340 AM / 92.7 FM — Wheatland
KZEW 101.7 FM — Wheatland
KANT 104.1 FM — Guernsey
KZQL 105.5 FM — Casper
KMXW 92.5 FM — Casper
KBDY 102.1 FM — Saratoga
KTGA 99.3 FM — Saratoga
KJAX 93.5 FM — Jackson
KZWY 106.3 FM — Sheridan
KROE 930 AM / 103.9 FM — Sheridan
KWYO 1410 AM / 106.9 FM — Sheridan
KYOY 92.3 FM Hillsdale-Cheyenne / 106.9 FM Cheyenne
KRAE 1480 AM — Cheyenne
KDLY 97.5 FM — Lander
KOVE 1330 AM — Lander
KZMQ 100.3/102.3 FM — Cody, Powell, Medicine Wheel, Greybull, Basin, Meeteetse
KKLX 96.1 FM — Worland, Thermopolis, Ten Sleep, Greybull
KCGL 104.1 FM — Cody, Powell, Basin, Lovell, Clark, Red Lodge, MT
KTAG 97.9 FM — Cody, Powell, Basin
KCWB 92.1 FM — Cody, Powell, Basin
KVGL 105.7 FM — Worland, Thermopolis, Basin, Ten Sleep
KODI 1400 AM / 96.7 FM — Cody, Powell, Lovell, Basin, Clark, Red Lodge
KWOR 1340 AM / 104.7 FM — Worland, Thermopolis, Ten Sleep
KREO 93.5 FM — Sweetwater and Sublette Counties
KGOS 1490 AM — Goshen County
KERM 98.3 FM — Goshen County
Check with individual radio stations for airtime of the newscasts.
