Rock Springs, Wy – The state Department of Environmental
Quality has decided not to resume a project using 25-ton weights to
collapse old mine shafts in an area of downtown Rock Springs.
State Environmental Quality Director John Corra says the project
was causing too much damage to surrounding homes.
He says there was a mistake made when the age, type and
condition of the nearby houses were not properly taken into account
before the dynamic compaction project began.
The project was undertaken to make the land suitable for

By Peter O'Dowd

Laramie, WY – A 17-thousand-acre wildfire that closed the east entrance of Yellowstone National Park is now threatening a historic lodge at the Pahaska Teepee Resort just outside park boundaries.

The western icon Buffalo Bill Cody built the lodge in 1904 to attract visitors from Yellowstone. Now flames are encroaching on the building, which is covered in heavy foil to protect it against the fire. Resort owner Angela Coe says the situation looks grim.

It's a piece of history that if it burns, it can't be replaced, Coe said.

By Elsa Heidorn

Laramie, WY – The east entrance of Yellowstone National Park remains closed because of the 12,000 acre fire burning nearby in the park.

Fire management team spokeswoman Terina Mullen says the smoke is causing poor visibility on park roads.

"Winds did pick up this afternoon and therefore we have some increased fire activity and we have a decent-sized column coming off the fire right now. But the operations folks just came in and they did say that we are still within the boundaries of the park, so that's great news," she said.

Lander, Wy – A rock that killed the Rocky Mountain
regional director of the National Outdoor Leadership School as he
was climbing near Lander, Wyoming, last weekend had been thrown
deliberately over the cliff.
That's according to Ed Newell, the chief prosecutor in Fremont
County, Wyoming.
Newell says he is going to speak with relatives and friends of
the victim, 47-year-old Pete Absolon, before deciding whether to
file charges.
Newell declined to identify the rock thrower. But he says that

Yellowstone National Park – The east entrance to
Yellowstone National Park has been temporarily closed again,
because of the Columbine Fire.
The fire advanced toward a section of the East Entrance Road,
prompting the closure at 7 last night (Tuesday).
Park officials will re-evaluate the closure this morning. They
say they intend to reopen the road to traffic as soon as access can
be safely resumed.
The Columbine Fire was started by lightening and was estimated
yesterday (Tuesday) at 10,000 acres or about 16 square miles.

Casper, Wy – The Wyoming Healthcare Commission wants
state lawmakers to ban smoking in all public places in the state.
The commission met yesterday (Monday) in Casper and approved
recommendations for next year's legislative session. The commission
will forward its recommendations to the Joint Labor, Health and
Social Services Committee later this month.
The healthcare commission voted to ask the joint interim
committee to sponsor a bill to ban smoking in all of Wyoming's
public places. A similar smoking ban bill failed in this year's

Yellowstone National Park – The East Entrance to Yellowstone National Park is set to re-open to traffic at 8 o'clock this morning.
The park's east entrance has been closed since Sunday, because
of the threat posed by the Columbine Fire.
The lightning-caused fire started just before dark Thursday
evening, southwest of Sylvan Pass and the park's East Entrance
road. Park rangers temporarily closed the road between the East
Entrance station and Fishing Bridge, about 4:15 Sunday afternoon.

Sheridan, Wy – A wildfire southwest of Sheridan has burned three cabins and a shed and is threatening about 100 homes. State forester Bill Crapser says the fire has burned about 42-hundred acres and they had to evacuate about 100 homes.
"I think the evacuations have gone very smoothly. A lot of the structures in the area are seasonal cabins, so I think a lot of the folks weren't there. There are some full-time residents in the area, but from all the reports I've heard, all the evacuations went very smoothly."

By Peter O'Dowd

By Peter O'Dowd