Episode Details

It's time to take a look at what's happening around Wyoming for Monday, August 18th. I'm Wendy Corr, bringing you headlines from the Cowboy State Daily newsroom - Brought to you by the Converse County Tourism Promotion Board! Discover Douglas and Glenrock in beautiful Wyoming, where rich history, outdoor adventure, and welcoming communities await. Feel the Energy of Converse County at www.ConverseCountyTourism.com.

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Since it first sparked Wednesday, the Red Canyon Fire continues to surge in multiple directions about 11 miles east of Thermopolis.

By Sunday evening, the fire had grown to nearly 92,000 acres and was spreading quickly, according to Cowboy State Daily's Greg Johnson.

"It was started Wednesday by a bolt of lightning. And we know that because people saw it… these oil field workers working up on the mountain looked down, and they actually saw the lightning bolt strike, and then they saw the fire spreading… it's just burning through a bunch of cheatgrass, a bunch of other other grasses, brush. They're just really dry this time of year, and the wind is blowing it… it's now kind of passed a little bit into Washakie County. It's pushing south into Fremont County. So it's 0% contained… they're just trying to get some kind of a handle on it."

So far, officials believe only one barn has been lost to the blaze, but that tally could definitely rise as firefighters get more of a handle on managing the fire.

Read the full story HERE.

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Two Casper-based electricians were headed for a job in Evanston on Monday when they noticed a plume of dust billowing up from the roadway in the distance ahead, around 20 miles east of Farson.

Cody Carpenter and Jacob Lanier arrived to discover a man lying face-down in the gravel on the shoulder of Wyoming Highway 28 and a crumpled motorcycle 20 feet away. Cowboy State Daily's Zakary Sonntag reports that while the men thought the biker had to be dead, they sprang into action when he groaned.

"It was clear that the man had suffered some serious brain injury. He was confused. He was asking the same questions over and over again… They got 911, dispatch on the call, and they just stayed there with him and gave him comfort and kept him out of the sun… It's tough to say what the outcome may have been without them there."

Bob Newman, a retired deputy sheriff from Roundup, Montana, is being treated for multiple head traumas, six broken ribs and other injuries. But he's alive, thanks to Carpenter and Lanier.

Read the full story HERE.

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Wyoming's junior U.S. senator and the speaker of the state House of Representatives both support the idea of a pardon for a 65-year-old mechanic who is in federal prison for deleting emissions systems from diesel engines.

Troy Lake was convicted in June 2024 of conspiring to violate the Clean Air Act. That was after years of deleting or helping to delete emissions controls on diesel engines, including fire trucks and commercial trucks. Cowboy State Daily's Clair McFarland spoke to several elected officials about whether or not they support an effort to secure a presidential pardon for Lake.

"When I talked to Holly Lake on Friday… She said that people are working behind the scenes to help the Lake family… Senator Cynthia Lummis, up in Congress, was like, Absolutely, pardon this man. This is ridiculous. And Speaker of the House on the state level, Chip Neiman agreed, saying this