Episode Details

It's time to take a look at what's happening around Wyoming, for Monday, June 9th. I'm Wendy Corr, bringing you headlines from the Cowboy State Daily newsroom - presented by Cheyenne Frontier Days. From sun-up to sun-down - there's something for everyone! Check it out at C-F-D RODEO DOT COM!!

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A "catastrophic failure" of Wyoming Highway 22 over Teton Pass overnight Friday washed away a huge section of the lifeline corridor between Jackson, Wyoming, and Victor, Idaho, the Wyoming Department of Transportation reports.

And Cowboy State Daily's Andrew Rossi says the road washout is going to cause problems for tourists and commuters alike for some time to come.

"It's really a total loss along that span of the highway. There was no earthquake or anything like that. It's just a landslide, a natural shift along that slope. And unfortunately, it's just going to take what it takes to get that highway repaired and in use. So it's going to be putting people out of the way - their 30 to 40 minute drive between Victor and Jackson just turned into a two hour drive, and probably more to get around it. But there's nothing, unfortunately, that people can do."

Governor Mark Gordon has declared a state of emergency for Teton Pass, which will open up some federal highway funds to repair the damage. But there's no anticipated date of reopening in sight.

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More than seven months after a Wheatland woman went missing, her car has been found abandoned 1,100 miles away in California - but there's no clue where she might be.

Hyo Jin Min was reported missing by her ex-husband, Edward Min, on Oct. 14th of last year. And Cowboy State Daily's Jen Kocher reports that there are some disturbing elements to Min's disappearance.

"Everybody I talked to said there's no way she would go without talking to her son. She was devoted to her son. And prior to her leaving town, she never missed a meeting with him, never missed a phone call… it's not clear if she's been endangered, or if she left on her own. And the police, you know, when … a person is reported missing by family or a friend, they can't take them off the missing list until that person contacts the local police station or them. So as of now she's still missing."

Her ex-husband said he is worried because she has not contacted their son, but he also can't say if she is intentionally missing.

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Wyoming's U.S. House Representative, Harriet Hageman, made an appearance at the Wyoming Mining Association convention in Cody last week, and drew a red line with Washington, D.C.'s ever-expansive powers, which it possesses through the Bureau of Land Management and Environmental Protection Agency, and which intends to shut down the coal industry by 2041.

Energy reporter Pat Maio was in attendance for Hageman's speech, in which she pointed out that if fossil fuels are so evil, then liberal cities like Boulder should just give them up proactively. They could start by giving up gas stations - oh, and pavement should be removed.

"She called it this lala land thinking. And, you know, people need to wake up to the fact that we're in trouble if we go down this path of destroying the coal industry."

Both Hageman and Wyoming Governor Mark Gordon gave a hand-slapping series of speeches to close out the Wyoming Mining Association's annual convention.

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TV shows like Yellowstone and Longmire and stars like Beyonce have helped to make cowboy fashion popular again.

Business reporter Renee Jean visited one particular shop in Jackson, and noticed that tourists were spending big money on hats, art and all things western.

"The hats were practically flying off the shelves, I couldn't believe how man