EXCHANGE-BUGLING ELK
In Wyoming, fall elk bugles screeching to halt for the year
JACKSON, Wyo. (AP) — Bull elk can bugle at any time of year but the shrill noise is typically associated with fall breeding season, also known as the rut. The season usually lasts from mid-September to mid-October. Biologist Eric Cole at the National Elk Refuge says bugling in Jackson Hole usually peaks in late September. The Jackson Hole News & Guide reports that while bugling itself isn’t a competition, it can play a role in preventing or starting skirmishes for the right to breed with a group of females, called a harem. Bulls that are equally matched will sometimes resort to combat.
VIRUS OUTBREAK-SKI SEASON
US resorts adapt to new normal of skiing amid pandemic
DENVER (AP) — Roughly seven months after the coronavirus cut the ski season short at the height of spring break, resorts across the U.S. and Canada are picking up the pieces and trying to figure out how to safely reopen this winter. Resort leaders are asking guests to curb their expectations and to embrace a new normal while skiing amid a pandemic. That could mean skiing with face coverings, socially-distanced lift lines, no dine-in service, sharing lifts only with your group and no large gatherings for an apres drink. Resorts are trying to avoid a repeat of last spring, when many mountain communities were disproportionately affected by the virus.
AP-US-ROCKIES-WILDFIRES
Strong winds fan Colorado’s largest recorded wildfire
CHEYENNE, Wyo. (AP) — The largest wildfire in Colorado history grew overnight as high winds pushed the blaze through rural communities and the forecast predicts more “extreme fire behavior” on Saturday. Cass Cairns, a spokeswoman for the Cameron Peak fire efforts, says gusts of up to 70 mph overnight created “very significant” fire activity, especially along the southeast section. Officials say they’re facing the same critical fire conditions today as yesterday. They’re expecting gusts of 60 mph midday. Boulder County fire officials warned of a new fire that forced the evacuation of Jamestown Saturday afternoon.
VIRUS OUTBREAK-WYOMING
Wyoming university reports 7 sorority students with COVID-19
CASPER, Wyo. (AP) — The University of Wyoming announced Thursday that seven students in a sorority house have tested positive for the coronavirus. The Casper Star-Tribune reported that members of the Kappa Kappa Gamma sorority who tested positive for COVID-19 were put in isolation, while those who had close contact were told to quarantine. It is unclear how many students were asked to shelter-in-place or quarantine. Officials say other members who live in the house and were not in close contact are still allowed to attend in-person classes, work and participate in religious activities. The announcement came as the university is increasing COVID-19 testing procedures.
VIRUS OUTBREAK-HOSPITALS
WMC reports record hospitalizations for the coronavirus
CASPER, Wyo. (AP) — The Wyoming Medical Center has reported that 21 of the facility’s 149 patients are being treated for the coronavirus, a record number for the state’s largest hospital. The figure as of Wednesday has forced the facility to divert patients from outside the county unless they are suffering from heart attacks, strokes or traumatic injuries. The hospital was also forced to hold 17 patients in its emergency room because of a lack of space. Hospitalizations have increased across Wyoming. The state reported on Oct. 8 an all-time high in one day of 56 hospitalizations due to the virus. As recently as early September, 13 people were hospitalized with the coronavirus.
ROCKIES WILDFIRES
Winds push Colorado wildfire to largest in state history
FORT COLLINS, Colo. (AP) — One of two Rocky Mountain wildfires that have been pushed by strong winds has become the largest in Colorado’s history. The Cameron Peak Fire has burned 256 square miles in northern Colorado as of Thursday. That’s about 40 square miles bigger than one in western Colorado that held the previous record and was fully contained Sept. 15. Meanwhile, the Mullen Fire in southeastern Wyoming and northern Colorado has burned 276 square miles. Forecasters expect dry air and strong wind to pose a challenge for firefighters into the weekend. The burning is occurring much later in the year than usual.
