Sorted by date Results 901 - 925 of 1122
A train derailment occurring west of Green River resulted in no injuries Monday night. According to Calli Hite, a spokesperson for the Union Pacific Railroad, the derailment occurred around 7 p.m. Monday. The intermodal train originated from Chicago and was traveling to Los Angeles. Intermodal trains are used to transport goods as part of a larger transportation network. The UP is investigating the derailment’s cause. Hite said trains are currently being held back to allow work crews to clear t...
A Colorado native became one of Green River's newest residents after being hired as the Sweetwater County Historical Museum's new curator. Amanda Benson started with the museum Thursday, filling a position that's been vacant since the museum's executive director Brie Blasi was promoted in February. The curator is in charge of managing the artifacts and archives, along with planning as to which artifacts should be displayed. Blasi also said the curator plays a role in conducting historical...
The Sweetwater County Commissioners solidified details of a proposed voluntary separation program, an early retirement program, Tuesday afternoon. The county started discussions regarding the program two weeks ago. However, information about the program was not available until the day of the meeting. The initial program allowed certain employees near retirement age to take a payout amounting to 30 percent of their gross salary, with the decision to use that payout to accept a check, take the...
Fast-moving water flowing along the Green River is a reason to be cautious during Flaming Gorge Days. Due to high runoff levels, precipitation and releases from the Fontenelle Reservoir, the Green River has been flowing at high speeds with high water levels within the past weeks. Debris is flowing down the river as well. These elements combined make for a more dangerous combination when recreating in the river. The Green River Fire Department and Green River Police Department urge those...
The election for the House District 60 seat in the Wyoming Legislature may have ended before it began as the Republican challenger in that race will resign. Bill Hooley will resign from both the race and his position as chairman of the Sweetwater GOP, planning a to move to American Fork, Utah, for a new job opportunity. Hooley challenged incumbent Democrat John Freeman for his seat. It would have been the second time the two faced off in an election. Hooley sought to replace Freeman two years...
An exhibit titled “Waterfowl/WOW!” recently opened in the Natural History Museum at Western Wyoming Community College. The exhibit, which features live mounts of swans, cranes, geese, ducks and upland game birds, is designed and installed by Dave Mead, Exhibits Coordinator at the Sweetwater County Museum, and Will Clark, WWCC Biology Professor. The waterfowl on display are part of a large collection of mounted birds donated to WWCC by Ray Johnson of Helena, Mont. Johnson, a taxidermist, visited the college’s Wildlife Museum and found it so im...
Mike Nielsen, a motorcycle enthusiast and veteran, is traveling across the country to discuss the problem of suicide among veterans. Nielsen is a medically retired veteran of both Iraq and Afghanistan and knows firsthand the pitfalls of depression and anxiety that can lead to so many suicide attempts among fellow veterans, as he has had his struggles with them personally. Nielsen will have a stop in Green River July 1, from 11 a.m. to 1 p.m. at Flaming Gorge Harley-Davidson. He plans to ride his Harley more than 5,500 miles to 22 national...
Voters in Sweetwater County are requesting more absentee ballots than they have in the past. As of Friday, 378 voters have asked for the ballots, which will be sent out July 1. In previous election years, the county would have only received about 100 requests for the ballots by mid-June. Sweetwater County Clerk Dale Davis said he believes the increased interest comes from fliers inserted in residential water bills. “I’m kind of surprised by the number of requests we’ve had so far,” Davis s...
Green River City Councilman Ted Barney's life-changing, mind-opening experience happened many years ago when he made the decision to go on a high school trip to Paris and London. "It was the best decision I ever made in my life," he said. "It opened my eyes to a great big world. It brought me out of the box of Sweetwater County." Barney pays close attention to what is going on around the world; and that is a big reason he is running for county commissioner. Barney is a Green River resident who...
Summer is approaching, but with the rise in temperatures comes a rise in possible fire danger. Fires need fuel to start and spread, and with the moisture the area has received recently, the plant life has had great opportunity to grow. “It depends on how much water we get and how much brush grows,” Green River Interim Fire Chief Mike Liberty said. “The plants dry out with wind and heat, so if there’s no moisture, there’s an increase in danger.” “We’ve gotten a little bit of moisture, so we’re good right now, but that could change, and it pr...
Residents will have a lot to think about while marking their ballots in the upcoming primary election. Both Republicans and Democrats will have to decide which two commissioner candidates from their respective parties will move on to the November election, cutting a group of eight total candidates in half. Green River residents in Ward I will face a similar decision, deciding which two out of the three candidates for City Council will move on to the primary. In Green River, the race for the...
A man who pleaded guilty to spitting on a Sweetwater County Detention officer will serve prison time for his actions. Keith Allen Rhodes, 40, of Rock Springs, appeared in the Third District Court of Judge Nena James at a change of plea and sentencing hearing to five felonies, two counts of aggravated assault and battery, interference with a peace officer and two counts of aggravated assault and battery on a detention officer. The two aggravated assault and battery on a detention officer counts...
Stan Blake, who has represented House District 39 for the past 10 years, is seeking another two years in the Wyoming Legislature. Blake, a democrat, said he values integrity, common sense, government transparency and working across party lines to do what's right for Wyoming. He also supports the Second Amendment and individual privacy rights. Blake has served on a number of committees during his time with the Wyoming Legislature. He has served on the House Transportation, Highways and Military...
The candidate filing period for local offices started Thursday and a few people have already stepped up to run for county and city council seats. At the county level, two county commissioner seats will be up for election this year. So far, two people have registered to run for those seats. Green River City Councilman Mark Peterson has filed to run as a Democrat, while current commissioner Don Van Matre has also filed, running as a Republican. In Green River, Richard Baxter is currently the only person running for the Ward I Council Seat. In War...
The Sweetwater County Museum and the Wyoming chapter of the Sierra Club are cosponsoring a Green River float trip on May 14-15 to observe birds, other wildlife and the riparian/high desert landscape of southwest Wyoming. Participants will drift through Seedskadee National Wildlife Refuge in canoes and kayaks to get close-up views of waterfowl, shorebirds, raptors, songbirds and other wildlife, including pronghorn, deer and moose. The outing will be led by Kim Wilbert and guided by local boat...
"No contest." Those were the words out of Jacob Triplett's mouth when he responded to the six felony charges District Court Judge Nena James read to him during a change of plea hearing Friday morning. Triplett faced charges related to the 2014 death of his infant daughter, Susan Triplett, as well as instances of child abuse involving his other children. Initially, he was charged with first-degree murder, as well as two counts of aggravated child abuse and three counts of child abuse. The...
Amongst the large number of Republican candidates seeking Wyoming’s sole U.S. House of Representatives seat in Washington, D.C., Darin Smith thinks he’s the most qualified. Smith believes his life experience has given him the edge on other candidates vying for the position. Holding both a bachelor’s degree in political science from the University of Wyoming and a graduate from the university’s law school, he built up and sold an investment company before starting his current career with the Chri...
At first glance, it isn’t a terribly impressive wooden box. The paint is worn, though its patriotic influence can still be seen in the design mimicking an American flag. The front of this battered and well-used box reads “S.I. Field Express.” While it isn’t associated with Sweetwater County’s well-known historical figures like Butch Cassidy or Major John Wesley Powell, the history it represents is important to both the state and the nation and was submitted for consideration as being one of Wy...
As Sweetwater County’s offices and agencies prepare to present budgets to the county commissioners, the funding picture for the county remains grim. The county is looking at an $8 million shortfall in the coming fiscal year, roughly a 20-percent decrease in revenues from last year. The county commissioners voted 3-2 to notify county agencies to request at least a 20-percent decrease in funding from the previous year. The two dissenting votes come from Commissioners Reid West and Randy Wendling....
A large winter storm passing through the state has resulted in between 1 and 3 inches of snow throughout Wyoming, according to the National Weather Service. The NWS, based in Riverton, said a second storm is expected to hit Thursday. In Sweetwater County, snowfall hasn’t been as severe as it has in other parts of the state, with between 1 and 2 inches being reported county-wide. However, that amount still was enough to close Interstate 80’s eastbound lanes. I-80 is the Wyoming Department of Tra...
Democrat and Sweetwater County resident Michelle Irwin is no longer seeking the Senate District 14 seat she announced she would run for last November. She’s taking another shot at the House District 18 seat she initially lost during the 2014 election. Rep. Fred Baldwin, R-Kemmerer, who defeated Irwin, announced he would run for Cooper’s senate seat. Irwin’s decision comes after Sen. Stan Cooper, R-Kemmerer, announced he would not run for re-election. Cooper has served in the Wyoming Senat...
New details involving the train derailment outside of Granger last week remain scarce as the National Transportation Safety Board continues its investigation. Last Monday evening, a coal train and intermodal train derailed a few miles outside Granger, between the town and the Tronox mine. The NTSB, which is investigating the derailment, have not released any information regarding the incident. A spokesperson for the NTSB said the investigations typically take between four and 18 months, but...
A railroad incident resulting in two trains derailing on a Union Pacific line near Granger late Monday evening is still under investigation. According to Calli Hite, a spokesperson for the Union Pacific Railroad, the incident occurred at about 9:45 p.m. and did not involve serious or life-threatening injuries. The two trains involved were a coal train and a intermodal train. Hite said intermodal trains are used to carry stacked freight as part of a larger transportation system to distribute...
There is a row of long vertical wooden frames that line the hallway in the Hospice of Sweetwater County office. Within the frames are lists of names, separated by years. The names are the people, every patient that hospice has had in its service over the years, dating back to their first patient in 1983. "Every patient has been important to us somehow," hospice nurse Susan Arguello said. "I remember every person on there," a second hospice nurse, Christa Miller, said. Every hospice nurse travels...
In a single vote, delegates attending the Sweetwater GOP's county convention decided to support Sen. Ted Cruz as their preferred presidential nominee. With a total of 45 votes, Cruz secured a majority of county delegates. Rock Springs resident Nolan Leatham was selected to support Cruz and be one of 29 Wyoming delegates sent to the Republican National Convention, which takes place in Cleveland, Ohio July 18-21. According to Sweetwater GOP chairman Bill Hooley, a majority vote of 50 percent,...
