It’s time to take a look at what’s happening around Wyoming for Tuesday, February 3rd. I’m Mac Watson.
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Although robots aren't ready to fix roads now and cut down on the $400 million to $600 million shortfall Wyoming faces in the next two years, they could help in the future. Cowboy State Daily’s Renee Jean spoke to experts who say robotic road repair is on the horizon and could save big money in the long run, but not in the next few years.
“The construction guy I talked to said, probably 10 to 15 different machines at half a million dollars. That's a lot of chump change, right there. Hard to see how that would be less expensive, as AI claimed, if each of these units cost that much money, and then, how long do the units last? How often do you need to repair or replace them? So the other one I talked to was a robot expert. She's done a lot of work in autonomous robots, including road repair, and her take on this was a little subtly different. She also doesn't think it's too likely by 2030.”
Some officials have said the shortfall was caused by a combination of factors, ranging from rising material costs to stagnant revenue, given that the last fuel tax increase was in 2013.
Read the full story HERE.
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Data collected across Wyoming shows temperatures between 2 and 13 degrees warmer than average in December and January. Cowboy State Daily’s Andrew Rossi reports that these temps have the making of the warmest start to winter ever.
“The data released by the National Weather Service shows that temperatures between December 1 and January 31 were anywhere from two to 13 degrees above average across most of Wyoming, which makes it the warmest winter for a majority of the state. So what does that mean going forward? Well, we have about a third of the winter season left. There are signs that there's a shift on the horizon by long range weather models, but those are the same long range weather models that didn't anticipate that we'd have so many high pressure blocks, one after the other so it's not that Wyoming didn't get the winter that was anticipated. The winter that we were supposed to get is happening. It's just happening in the eastern United States.”
Lander Lil and Punxsutawney Phil both saw their shadows this Groundhog Day. Meteorologically, that means nothing, but meteorologist Don Day is forecasting colder weather on the way for Wyoming.
Read the full story HERE.
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34-year-old Jose Benito Ocon is facing federal first-degree murder charges for shooting a man in the head in a moving car on Wyoming’s Wind River Reservation. Cowboy State Daily’s Clair McFarland reports “The affidavit and the eyewitness accounts describe 2 women, 2 men in this car, and there's meth and there's alcohol and there's marijuana use that evening, and Ocon is said to confront his girlfriend who's driving with the words, ‘Do you love me?’ And then another witness, well, the same witness, describes the victim says, ‘Bro, she said she loves you,’ and that is allegedly when Ocon shot the victim, who then slumped onto him in the backseat… If convicted, Ocon faces mandatory life in prison.”
Ocon’s girlfriend was able to confiscate the gun after he shot the passenger.
Read the full story HERE.
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Known for her charity work and devotion to Wyoming’s Curt Gowdy State Park, Jerre Gowdy, the wife of the late Hall of Fame sportscaster, died last week at age 101. Cowboy State Daily’s Renee Jean reports that she leaves a legacy of kindness and philanthropy.
“I met Jer, it was 2023. She was 99 years old. She traveled to Wyoming to unveil Little House on the park . So Jer all her philanthropy, lots of medical institutions and lots of different arts and culture, but she always had time to come back to Wyoming, even when she was 99 years old, to do things at Curt Gowdy State Park like open this little house on the park for all the children in Wyoming.”
Born Geraldine Ophelia Dawkins, Gowdy died on Jan. 27th, surrounded by her family at her home in Manchester-by-the-Sea, Massachusetts. She was 101.
Read the full story HERE.
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I’ll be back with more news from Cowboy State Daily right after this.
Cowboy State Daily news continues now…
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Laramie County Sheriff Brian Kozak is calling out a social media post and photos incorrectly tagged “terrorism in action” by his department’s immigration task force. Cowboy State Daily’s Greg Johnson reports that the sheriff says the photos were of a stolen car recovery and had nothing to do with ICE.
“Kozak said, Look, no, that's not what that's not what was happening. They found a stolen car. The deputies worked overnight to find this lady's car. They found the car, and what they were doing was processing the car at the location where they found it, and that was it had nothing to do, nothing to do with ice. Now, usually law enforcement doesn't respond to social media posts and things like that…but in this case, because of the emotion, over immigration and ICE that's going on nationwide right now, Kozak felt it was best to address it.”
One current deputy and retired police officer tells Cowboy State Daily that it’s dangerous for law enforcement officers to have this animosity against them and it could lead to some confrontations because of online misinformation.
Read the full story HERE.
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People with firearms suppressors or silencers no longer have to pay a $200 federal tax. Cowboy State Daily’s Mark Heinz reports that gun sellers are saying that could be the tipping point that makes the devices the next big thing for hunters.
“People have long said that suppressors, they're not a bad guy thing. They help people protect their ears, they reduce the recoil of a rifle for a kid out learning to hunt those sorts of things, and so that those shouldn't be those shouldn't be prohibited under this NFA. Well, they got a bit of a compromise under the one Big, Beautiful Bill. They're all the red tape, and the waiting period and special background check still applies, but it eliminated that 200 there was also a $200 tax stamp you had to get to get one. So that's no longer. The tax went all the way down to zero.”
Mark Jones of Buffalo, a national director for Gun Owners of America, tells Cowboy State Daily that the red tape and waiting period associated with buying suppressors under the 1934 National Firearms Act (NFA) still apply.
Read the full story HERE.
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A Utah man driving the wrong way on Interstate 80 died over the weekend after colliding head-on with a semitrailer near Evanston. Cowboy State Daily’s Andrew Rossi reports that witnesses say a pickup was driving eastbound in the westbound lane.
“There was someone driving eastbound on the westbound lanes of I 80 on Saturday morning, and then a pickup truck. And that pickup truck collided head on with a semi truck. The driver of the pickup truck died at the scene, and the driver of the semi truck was treated for injuries and release beyond that… The video was taken into the aftermath of the accident. It shows the force that went into it, and it's a really tragic thing. The SEP the semi truck, careened off of the road onto the shoulder and collided with a fence, nearly going into a residential compound on that side of the highway, and the pickup truck was beyond total it looked like the wheels were severed at the axle, and it was scrunched like an accordion. So clearly, a lot of force going into this.”
The Wyoming Highway Patrol confirmed Monday that 40-year old Duane Derrick of Logan, Utah, was driving a Chevy pickup the wrong way on the interstate at about 2 p.m. Saturday.
Read the full story HERE.
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Bison, elk and other animals die in droves in Yellowstone National Park’s remote “animal boneyard.” Outdoors Reporter Mark Heinz reports that the secluded spot is also a dangerous place for animals already weak from the winter.
“It kills a lot of animals, elk, and bison and animals like that, it’s kind of ironic, because what will happen is you'll get these animals that are so run down after getting through the winter on slim pickings that this, where this bone yard is, is where the grass starts to green. You start getting that lush, thick spring grass. It's one of the first places to get it. So they'll flood in there, and they'll start gorging themselves on that green grass. But sometimes, if they're in such a weakened state, their systems might not be able to handle that. And if an animal isn't doing well already, that'll push them over the edge and they'll die.”
Only a few know how to get to this elusive boneyard. Wildlife filmmaker Casey Anderson tells Cowboy State Daily that he wouldn’t get any more specific about the location than saying it’s in Yellowstone’s “northern range.”
Read the full story HERE.
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And that’s today’s news. Get your free digital subscription to Wyoming's only statewide newspaper by hitting the Daily Newsletter button on Cowboy State Daily Dot Com - and you can watch this newscast every day by clicking Subscribe on our YouTube channel, or listen to us on your favorite podcast app. Thanks for watching - I’m Mac Watson, for Cowboy State Daily.
