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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On January 31 at around 11:35 p.m., a Moorcroft Police Department officer responded to a report of a domestic disturbance involving Carrol-Liyne Marie-August Maul. On scene, the officer met with Maul and found the second person had left the residence. The officer found that it was a verbal argument with no physical contact and cleared the scene. At around 2:17 a.m., dispatch advised the officer that the second individual had returned to the apartment and was beating on the door, wanting to get inside to gather their items. As the officer...
Crook County Medical Services District (CCMSD) is among the healthcare providers set to benefit from a statewide initiative to increase access to ultrasound technology. Funded by the Leona M. and Harry B. Helmsley Charitable Trust, the initiative will see $13.9 million divided among hospitals and healthcare centers to purchase 143 ultrasound devices and to provide training for the new equipment. CCMSD will receive a grant total of $415,000 for ultrasound equipment in the hospital and each of...
With fire season already underway, Crook County is now under burn restrictions. Fire Warden Charlie Harrison requested the restrictions be put in place last week, telling the county commissioners that more Wyoming acres burned in February than in the entirety of 2023. While the county has had a little moisture recently, in some places there was "barely any", he said, and temperatures are still above average. "There's no good news in the forecast," he said. While the restrictions have been put...
There's not much chance of flooding this spring, according to the National Weather Service (NWS). The county continues to slide into drought conditions after a winter that brought little snow. The flood outlook summary for this spring is below average across all of northeastern Wyoming and western South Dakota. This is the time of year for ice cover on streams, rivers and lakes to melt and for ice-jam flooding to potentially occur. Flooding from snowmelt on the plains typically takes place betwe...
Two wildfires that ignited on Sunday burned a combined estimated total of 1600 acres and required a sizeable response from firefighters around the county and beyond. In New Haven, a fire located on a combination of private and state land is estimated to have reached 400 acres. According to Fire Warden Charlie Harrison, crews that responded to the fire included Oshoto, Carlile, Sundance, Pine Haven and Hulett. The lower portion of the fire was located in grass, but around 70% of the fire was in...
With an unknown number counterfeit hundred-dollar bills believed to now be in circulation after an incident in Billings, MT, last week, Andy Miller, President of Sundance State Bank, is warning businesses and citizens that some could make it through to Crook County. “I don’t know how much trickle will make it through to our area, but there’s certainly potential,” he says. “Be aware when you take a $100 bill from somebody to make sure it feels right, make sure it looks right, make sure the security features are there and just be cautious because...
A Moorcroft man has been given a split sentence on felony possession charges after marijuana was allegedly found on his person when he was arrested for failing to meet the conditions of his parole. According to court reports, Jason Anderson was arrested by a Crook County Sheriff’s Office Deputy at the Probation and Parole Office in Sundance due to noncompliance with the terms and conditions of his parole. The deputy reports that, during the arrest, he detected the odor of raw and burned marijuana about his person. Anderson allegedly denied h...
The Wyoming State Legislature meets for its 67th session soon and there are numerous ways for the public to participate or listen in. This year is a budget session, which means it will last approximately 20 legislative days. The other factor that sets it apart from a general session is that, aside from the budget bill, all other bills will require a two-thirds vote in the Senate or House in order to be introduced. The session begins on February 12 and a wide range of bills have already been assi...
A Pine Haven man has been charged with aggravated assault and bound over to District Court after allegedly pulling a knife on a person who was attempting to make him leave a local bar. On December 8, a Crook County Sheriff’s Office deputy was dispatched to a bar in Pine Haven for a disturbance involving a weapon. The suspect was later identified as Todd Allen Wiseman according to his driver’s license. According to court reports, Wiseman was asked to leave the bar after vomiting on the floor. Upon exiting, he allegedly remained outside on the pr...
January As the annual Wyoming Legislative Session kicked off, Jason Perry was honored during the opening ceremonies for his work as Hulett's ambulance director and his efforts to get all of Hulett's EMTs certified as paramedics. Meanwhile, Ogden Driskill took the oath as President of the Senate and Chip Neiman was selected as House Majority Floor Leader – which, to the best of his knowledge, was a position never before offered to a freshman legislator. The Moorcroft Council began the year by m...
Over a thousand homes in Crook County are set to have access to broadband internet for the first time thanks to federal grant awards that aim to make access available across the nation. Two local projects were among 32 applications to be approved for funding, with a total of $70.5 million in federal funds to be spent expanding broadband to more than 11,000 locations across the state that do not currently have access to high-speed internet. “This is the single-largest broadband investment in Wyoming history,” said Governor Mark Gordon in the...
A series of public meetings has been scheduled for January to solicit input on plans to potentially introduce zoning to Crook County. These meetings will form the next step of the county’s exploration of whether zoning would suit this county in the light of the high level of development that has gone on over the last few years, and will aim to gauge exactly where the public stands on the issue. Meetings will take place in all four municipalities throughout January, led by a facilitator, and will focus on options for growth management. A c...
The Board of Trustees for Crook County Medical Services District (CCMSD) has been working with just four members since August, when Trustee Ed Ray resigned his position representing the Moorcroft area. At last week’s meeting, the board discussed next steps in finding a volunteer to fill out his remaining term, which ends in 2024. “I know this board has made significant efforts, I know there have been personal contacts, I know there was an article published in the newspaper,” said Board Attorney Kara Ellsbury. “If we don’t find someone s...
The run-up to Christmas is upon us, with plenty of local events to enjoy as Santa prepares his sleigh. The Moorcroft Area Chamber of Commerce will present its annual Parade of Lights on December 10 on Big Horn Avenue at 5 p.m. Hot cocoa bars will be available at Mousse Lodge and the West Texas Trails Museum, while Santa himself will be at the museum for cookies and greetings after the parade. If you’d like to decorate a downtown light pole for the season, the chamber is also offering opportunities to do so. “There is a prize for best dec...
Almost a hundred seventh graders from across the county convened in Sundance last week for a day of learning about civics. Elected officials were on hand to introduce the students to the functions of local government and the impact each office will have on their adult lives. Arranged by Sara Fleenor, 4-H Educator, and educators from each of the three schools, the field trip included visits to each of the county offices, as well as the museum. The visit began with a welcome speech from Sundance...
Once upon a time, the word “zoning” was akin to a curse in this part of the world – but that doesn’t seem to be the case any more. To make sure this is more than an illusion, the county commissioners will include public forums in the process of researching possible new zoning rules. Last month, the commission kicked off the process of developing a possible zoning plan for the county by inviting a community planning and zoning consultant to do the necessary groundwork of figuring out exactly what the county wants and needs. As Jayna Watson...
The county commission will be hosting a public hearing on December 5 at 2 p.m. regarding some updates and amendments to its minor subdivision rules and the bylaws that apply to its planning and zoning commission. Should the updates to the subdivision rules be approved, the Crook County Commissioners will now have the authority to approve the covenants drafted for new subdivisions. The minimum size of an allowable lot, tract or parcel has been reduced from five acres to 2.5 acres. The updated rules would increase the size of a cul-de-sac at the...
A joint powers board formed in 2016 to investigated options for a countywide solid waste district will likely soon be revived. The board, which included representatives from the county and each municipality, met regularly but ultimately disbanded without reaching a resolution. Last week, after a discussion that involved numerous elected officials from across the county, the county commissioners determined that resurrecting the board was the most reasonable next step in answering the lingering question of whether it’s worth constructing a l...
Crook County Sheriff’s Office is offering Critical Incident Response Training to any interested member of the public and is hosting sessions in each of the four municipalities. The dates for Pine Haven’s event have now been announced. Training will take place on October 27, beginning at 4 p.m. in the Pine Haven Community Center. The class is expected to last for between three and four hours. Even if you’ve taken ALICE training with the Sheriff’s Office before, Sheriff Jeff Hodge encourages you to consider attending. Aside from the new aspects...
Crook County School District (CCSD) continues to fare well in meeting the state's performance expectations, including across-the-board proficiency results assessment that are higher than the average for the state in this year's WY-TOPP assessments. At the elementary and middle school level, Sundance Elementary and Moorcroft Elementary are both exceeding expectations this year, according to the latest Wyoming Department of Education data. Hulett School is meeting expectations. All three schools...
With the resignation of Trustee Ed Ray, the Board of Trustees for Crook County Medical Services District is seeking an appointee to fill out his term representing the Moorcroft area. “It is with great sadness that I hereby resign from my position as a member of the Board of Trustees,” wrote Ray in his resignation letter. “I am grateful for the time I served the residents of Crook County and enjoyed my time serving with my fellow trustees.” Candidates to fulfill Ray’s term are asked to contact the board. The trustee position represent...
Active shooter training isn’t just about school safety. It’s for anyone and everyone who would like to know more about how to protect themselves in a dangerous situation. For this reason, Crook County Sheriff’s Office offers its Critical Incident Response Training to any interested member of the public and is hosting sessions in each of the four municipalities. The events are open to anyone and Moorcroft’s will take place on October 24, beginning at 4 p.m. in the old school library room of the Moorcroft Town Center. The class is expecte...
Crook County is one of the focus areas for Chronic Wasting Disease (CWD) testing this year and hunters are asked for their help to collect lymph node samples. "Game and Fish is requesting samples from herds we've not addressed in a while, where we are trying to get a significant sample size so we can accurately determine what the CWD prevalence is in these herds," says Jessica Jennings-Gaines, Game and Fish Wildlife Health Laboratory supervisor. Deer hunt areas 1 through 6, all located in this...
A partial burn ban went into effect across the county on August 1, imposing caution on county residents as the summer weather finally settles in and the danger of wildfire increases. With the risk of fire set to increase as the rains clear up and the land dries out, creating a heavy fuel load and dry summer conditions the restrictions were approved by the county commissioners on Tuesday and aim to offset situations that could over-extend the county’s firefighting capabilities. The county will be imposing open burn restrictions that prohibit the...
Fair week is officially underway, this year to the theme of "A Brand of Its Own". Events began with entertainment including the youth and ranch rodeo, the ice cream social and animal shows including horses and 4-H dogs. As the week continues, head down to the fairgrounds this Thursday evening for the Muley Fanatics Family Fun Night or the youth rough stock rodeo, both at 5:30 p.m. These follow the day's animal shows, which include sheep, poultry and rabbits, cats and pocket pets, as well as the...
