The Voice of the Community Since 1909, Serving Moorcroft and Pine Haven, Wyoming
The Voice of the Community Since 1909, Serving Moorcroft and Pine Haven, Wyoming
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Snowboarder dies at Jackson Hole Mountain Resort JACKSON (WNE) — A snowboarder was found dead in a tree well Monday morning at Jackson Hole Mountain Resort. The Virginia man, Daniel Tatum, 27, was visiting the Tetons with friends, resort spokeswoman Anna Cole said. Tatum became separated from his friends around 10:45 a.m. Sunday. When he didn’t show up at the end of the day at their agreed-upon meeting time, the friends notified ski patrol around 5 p.m. Ski patrollers led a search that included other resort employees Sunday night, sea...
The National Park Service (NPS) seeks feedback on a project to upgrade substandard employee housing in the monument. The existing six-unit, single-story building was built in 1961 as part of the NPS Mission 66 program – an initiative launched to improve facilities by 1966, the 50th anniversary of the NPS. Since then, very few upgrades have been made to this facility and it is currently unable to meet park needs. None of the units adhere to physical accessibility standards, and there is no fire suppression system. Additionally, the lack of a...
The future of the landfill has long been a concern for not only Moorcroft, but also for the surrounding communities and county residents who take advantage of the lower prices and convenience of a local repository. However, at last week’s meeting of the Crook County Commission, the decision was made to appoint a committee to continue the discussion, rather than form a solid waste district as requested by Mayor Dick Claar. In response, the Moorcroft council has decided to explore the possibility of going it alone and will be investigating p...
With an average wind chill of -21 this weekend, the flags were about the only activity to be found outside in Moorcroft. Dog walkers and pedestrians were scarce as snow continued to fall and wind chill reached -22 over the weekend. Some folk reminisced about similar weather decades ago, though not necessarily with any degree of longing....
The dash cameras Moorcroft’s police department has used for the last several years were sadly out of date and in need of an upgrade, according to Police Chief Bill Bryant. Bryant explored his choices and, about six months ago, became serious in his efforts to acquire three up-to-date dash cams for himself and his officers. The system the chief chose is far better than the camera system the department has been using. Bryant says, “The old system saved two minute clips, didn’t have audio outsi...
Austin Smith, lifetime resident of Moorcroft, was sworn into office at Monday night’s meeting of the council. Smith replaces elected Paul Gallegos, who resigned before taking office last month....
Cody resident detains burglary suspect CODY (WNE) — Jumping over neighborhood fences as he chased the auto burglary suspect, Cody resident Colton Johannsen, 20, was not willing to let the man go despite the late-night hour and winter’s chill. Despite not being armed, Johannsen still took the law into his own hands in order to stop an attempted auto burglar from getting away on Feb. 1, and was successful, tackling and apprehending suspect Bryan Nihei, 31, of Powell. “I felt like I had to catch him no matter what, even if he was armed,” Johanns...
A solid waste district is not on the cards as a means to solve the county’s issues with trash, but the commissioners are still willing to explore the available options. A committee will be formed to more fully investigate what possibilities exist to preserve the last remaining landfill in the county. Commissioner Kelly Dennis voiced that the 30 days since the issue was last discussed have brought new information from sources including the Department of Environmental Quality and private entities. Commissioner Fred Devish described having been c...
JACKSON — The daily morning feeding of 7,000 or so wapiti on the National Elk Refuge began for the winter on Wednesday, after animals started to get antsy as the grasses they graze on waned. Biologists use a criteria of 300 pounds of grass and forbs per acre to determine when to begin the supplemental feeding season, a 109-year-old tradition on the federal refuge north of Jackson “I was starting to see anecdotal signs that elk were starting to leave the refuge,” said biologist Eric Cole. Elk were starting to move into the Twin Creek subdi...
On February 1, police responded to a traffic accident on South Big Horn. While traveling east on Converse, driver of a Ford Expedition lost consciousness and their car proceeded to turn right onto South Big Horn. While on Big Horn, the Expedition veered left and went onto the sidewalk striking a Kia Sedona, two Town light poles, and a Chevy Malibu before crossing to the right side of the street and striking the buildings of Clearwater Xpurts and Happily Ever After Daycare. EMS and Fire responded to the scene. There were no injuries associated...
RCS continues to work on the rip rap for lagoon cell 1 as well as the rebar for the eastern contact chamber. They are prepping for concrete pouring for both chambers at the end of the week, but will reschedule for a warmer date depending upon the weather. Work this week will likewise be dependent upon the weather....
Over the last two months, three different vehicles have been stolen from Moorcroft. Each of these thefts was simplified by the actions of the owner. Residents are leaving the keys in their cars and pickups like they’ve done for years, but, according to Moorcroft Police Chief Bill Bryant, “This isn’t the Moorcroft of years ago.” He advises, “Take your keys and valuables inside with you.” The cars were eventually recovered, one from Rapid City, SD; another from Miles City, MT; and the third from...
Due to a reported medical emergency, a local individual driving an SUV westbound on Converse on Monday afternoon lost control while turning into South Big Horn Avenue at a high rate of speed. The vehicle careened onto the east sidewalk, hitting two light posts and two parked cars before crossing onto the west sidewalk and into the Clearwater Xperts plumbing building and the Happily Ever After Daycare, bringing the out-of-control vehicle to a stop. The driver was examined by emergency medical...
The Crook County Republican Party has voted to censure U.S. Representative Liz Cheney for her recent actions in supporting the impeachment of ex-President Donald Trump. “Like a lot of the counties around the state, we are disappointed in her decision,” says Roget Connett, Chairman of the local party. “It was unanimous on the vote.” Cheney has attracted criticism from Republicans across Wyoming who do not feel she was representing this state’s interests when she voted, alongside nine other House Republicans, in favor of the second impeachment of...
Powder River Energy recently donated several poles to Moorcroft that will be used at the landfill to hold the ten- or 12-foot high netting intended to mitigate the flying debris currently contaminating the surrounding ranchland. The existing fence cannot contain the airborne garbage and this is one of the answers, along with crews hired to pick up a radius around the landfill periodically. When the DEQ inspected Moorcroft’s solid waste facility last year, their reaction to the condition of t...
RCS continues to work on the rebar in preparation for concrete pouring. They currently plan to pour the walls for the chambers next week. At the same time, they continue to work on the rip rap for lagoon cell one and are nearing completion on this cell. They will move on to the removal of the rip rap for lagoon cell two once this is completed....
Yellowstone visitation down 5% in 2020 CODY (WNE) — Yellowstone National Park reported its final 2020 numbers on Thursday, down 5% compared to 2019. A total of 3,806,305 recreation visits took place to Yellowstone during the year. It was the fewest people who attended Yellowstone since 2014 and the first time since that year in which fewer than 4 million people entered the Park. But it was also the year of the comeback, as the Park recorded its busiest September and October on record and second busiest August. The Park was closed due to h...
The Moorcroft Interfaith Community (MIC) saw record numbers of clients at its food pantries during the month of January. “January was kind of crazy,” says MIC President Monte Reichenberg. “We had a suspicion that numbers would be up after the holidays. But the numbers surprised us.” Reichenberg went on to say that the first pantry on January 7 was rather modest as the pantry served 176 families representing 580 individuals. But the Wyoming Food Bank of the Rockies Mobile pantry on January 14 was attended by a record 348 families representing 11...
RCS, the contractor working on the mandatory upgrading of Moorcroft’s lagoon has to date used more than a million gallons of municipal water. This amounts to only fraction of the water needed and is an issue that had not been considered when the project began. Heath Turbiville of HDR Engineering explained at a workshop Monday evening that cells one and two each hold around four million gallons. Mayor Dick Claar said of the contractor’s response, “They were a little shocked at how much money...
At 9:54 a.m. Sunday, Pine Haven and Moorcroft Volunteer Fire Departments responded to a structure fire on Pine Ridge, east of both townships. A garage and addition to a cabin was ablaze. Upon preliminary investigation, the father and daughter who reside at this property were found not at home when rescue crews arrived. Two fire units responded from Pine Haven and Moorcroft arrived with six trucks including fire, water and air tank recharging components. Before crews completely contained the blaze, Sundance Fire Department was asked to bring...
With restrictions on timing, dose numbers, eligible candidates and more, it’s quite the logistical challenge to roll out a COVID-19 vaccination program. That’s why it’s not yet possible to host walk-in clinics, says Public Health Nurse Carol Stutzman. For the time being, Crook County Public Health has devised a strategy to vaccinate citizens according to level of priority and available doses. “Because of the priority phases and the restriction of having to use all ten doses in the vial within...
CHEYENNE — A legislative committee advanced a bill Thursday that would make not wearing a seat belt a primary offense in Wyoming, meaning law enforcement officers could pull a driver over solely for not being buckled up. The proposal, which will now head to the full Legislature for consideration, was promoted by state highway officials as a way to reduce the number of crash-related deaths in Wyoming, which had 147 deaths from car crashes in 2019. Of those deaths, 39% were not wearing their seat belts, Wyoming Department of Transportation D...
Florida congressman to protest Cheney in Cheyenne CHEYENNE (WNE) — A couple weeks after Congresswoman Liz Cheney, R-Wyoming, voted to impeach former President Donald Trump, one of Trump’s strongest supporters in Congress is set to visit the Wyoming State Capitol later this week in reaction to Cheney’s vote, which has drawn some GOP pushback at home and in Washington, D.C. U.S. Rep. Matt Gaetz, R-Florida, who has repeatedly criticized Cheney since her impeachment vote, plans to visit Cheyenne on Thursday for a rally at the Capitol. Tentatively s...
Two years ago, Moorcroft Clerk/Treasurer Cheryl Schneider applied for and received a $25,000 Wylite Energy grant through the Wyoming Energy Authority to replace the old halogen lighting in the gymnasium at the Moorcroft Town Center (MTC) with new energy efficient fixtures. This year she again applied and received $25,000 to install exterior LED lighting around the circumference of the building. The work was completed Tuesday morning and will ensure well lit and safer nighttime accessibility for...
Pine Haven’s emergency system, including siren, email alerts and text messages informing residents of an emergency situation and what actions are recommended, was tested last Tuesday morning, and a couple of glitches were found. While the siren worked without a hitch, one of the issues with texting is specifically for those subscribed to Verizon. “We discovered people with Verizon phones were only getting the first sentence,” emergency alert coordinator Chris Bingham explained. “We shortened [th...
