Colorado
Small plane attempts emergency landing on highway, lands in creek bed near Larkspur; 2 injured
Two people aboard a small plane were injured Sunday morning when their aircraft made an emergency landing near Interstate 25 and the town of Larkspur.
The pilot apparently attempted to land on the interstate, per preliminary information gathered at the scene. But the plane struck a traffic sign in the center median, “causing the plane to veer off to the east and crash,” the Douglas County Sheriff’s Office explained in a social media post.
Copter4 found the damaged sign and a likely piece of plane debris several hundred yards north of where the plane stopped.
A photo from the scene shows the underside of the plane, indicating it came to rest on its roof. The landing gear are protruding from thick brush.
According to the Federal Aviation Administration, the plane is a twin-engine Tecnam P2006T.
A spokesperson with the Douglas County Sheriff’s Office, Dep. Cocha Heyden, said the plane came down just east of the highway at mile marker 173. Radio traffic from the scene, plus live images from Colorado Department of Transportation’s highway cameras, suggests the right two lanes of I-25 are closed where Spruce Mountain Road’s on-ramp joins northbound highway traffic. Vehicles are slowly moving past the plane crash scene using only one lane, the express lane. Other cameras to the south of the scene show extensive northbound backup on the highway.
The plane evidently landed in the East Plum Creek drainage immediately east of I-25. It’s not known yet if the plane itself landed in water, but fire department personnel waded through waist-deep water to get to the two injured people.
The crash was reported just before 8 a.m., according to DCSO’s Heyden.
Two patients from the plane were transported by ambulance from the location. There has been no report from the scene about the extent of their injuries.
The Colorado State Patrol’s hazardous materials (HAZMAT) unit is handling cleanup of fuel that has leaked from the plane. Unconfirmed radio traffic from the scene indicates 30-40 gallons of unleaded fuel have leaked from the plane; CSP’s HAZMAT crew is attempting to contain the fuel with booms on the water’s surface.
The Perry Park Airport, a small private landing strip, is located immediately west of I-25 at the crash location. It is not known at this time if the crashed plane departed or was attempting to land there.
Local authorities say federal investigators from the National Transportation Safety Board and the Federal Aviation Administration will later announce their conclusions about the cause of the accident.
Colorado
Every Colorado Buffaloes First-Round Pick In NFL Draft History
With the NFL Draft approaching, many players will hear their names called, and their lives will be changed forever. The Colorado Buffaloes have been fortunate to have 25 of their players selected in the first round of the NFL Draft.
So here is a list of all 25 Colorado players who have been selected in the first round of the NFL Draft.
Every Colorado First Round Draft Pick
- RB Byron “Whizzer” White (1938): No. 4 overall, Pittsburgh Pirates
- LB Jerry Hillebrand (1962): No. 13 overall, New York Giants
- RB Bobby Anderson (1970): No. 11 overall, Denver Broncos
- DT Herb Orvis (1972): No. 16 overall, Detroit Lions
- RB Bo Matthews (1974): No. 2 pick, San Diego Chargers
- TE J.V. Cain (1974): No. 7 overall, St. Louis Cardinals
- C Pete Brock (1976): No. 12 overall, New England Patriots
- DT Troy Archer (1976): No. 13 overall, New York Giants
- OT Max Koncar (1976): No. 23 overall, Green Bay Packers
- DB Mark Haynes (1980): No. 8 overall, New York Giants
- OT Stan Brock (1980): No. 12 overall, New Orleans Saints
- WR Mike Pritchard (1991): No. 13 overall, Atlanta Falcons
- DE Alfred Williams (1991): No. 18 overall, Cincinnati Bengals
- DB Deon Figures (1993): No. 23 overall, Pittsburgh Steelers
- DT Leonard Renfro (1993): No. 24 overall, Philadelphia Eagles
- WR Charles Johnson (1994): No. 17 overall, Pittsburgh Steelers
- WR Michael Westbrook (1995): No. 4 overall, Washington Redskins
- RB Rashaan Salaam (1995): No. 21 overall, Chicago Bears
- OG Chris Naeole (1997): No. 10 overall, New Orleans Saints
- WR Rae Carruth (1997): No. 27 overall, Carolina Panthers
- TE Daniel Graham (2002): No. 21 overall, New England Patriots
- DE Tyler Brayton (2003): No. 32 overall, Oakland Raiders
- OT Nate Solder (2011): No. 17 overall, New England Patriots
- DB Jimmy Smith (2011): No. 27 overall, Baltimore Ravens
- WR/CB Travis Hunter (2025): No. 2 overall, Jacksonville Jaguars
Key First Round Buffaloes
There have been several Colorado players who have made a significant impact in the NFL after being drafted in the first round.
The first player to note is running back Byron “Whizzer” White, who was the first-ever Buffaloes player drafted in the first round of the NFL Draft. White had a solid career in the NFL and definitely was worth the selection.
Colorado also had an interesting trend of multiple players being selected in the first round on eight separate occasions, which showed the Buffaloes ‘ ability to develop talent on a consistent basis.
One of the more successful Colorado players in the NFL was an offensive tackle, Nate Solder, who was drafted by the Patriots in 2011 and won two Super Bowls while blocking for Tom Brady. Solder provided consistent protection and was someone that the Patriots could rely on to do his job well.
Former Colorado cornerback Jimmy Smith also had a successful career after being drafted in 2011 by the Baltimore Ravens. One of the highlights of Smith’s career was when he won Super Bowl XLVII with the Ravens and made crucial stops on the goal line to seal the game. Throughout his career, Smith was always solid in coverage and could make a play when he needed to.
Currently in the NFL is former Colorado Heisman Trophy winner Travis Hunter, who was selected by the Jacksonville Jaguars at No. 2 overall in the 2025 draft. Hunter had a decent rookie season, but it was unfortunately ended early by injury.
Heading into a sophomore season, Hunter will be making a change to cornerback and looks to be a great contributor for the Jaguars on defense while adding some value as a situational receiver.
As indicated by the number of players drafted in the first round from Colorado, the Buffaloes definitely have a history of being able to develop great talent that can be successful in the NFL.
Unfortunately, there are no Buffaloes projected to be first-round picks this season, however next year could be the perfect opportunity with players like wide receiver Danny Scudero and defensive tackle Santana Hopper poised for big seasons.
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Colorado
Denver nostalgic-themed bar opens after lengthy permitting delays
South Broadway’s newest bar in Denver is a “nostalgic-forward neighborhood cocktail bar” called the Good Luck Club. However, it’s been anything but lucky.
“It would have been really helpful to have a road map of here’s how you open up a bar,” said Ben Hamilton, Good Luck Club’s general manager. “Here are the steps you need to take.”
It’s finally open, six months behind target, thanks to a guessing game they didn’t know they were playing.
“I was like jumping over hurdles and navigating a maze to try to figure out and put all the pieces of the puzzle together,” Hamilton added. “There was a good list of complications that we ran into when we were filing for our liquor licenses, our zoning permits, our assembly permits.”
However, the city knows about the problems behind the permit process.
Tuesday marks exactly one year since Denver Mayor Mike Johnston signed his first executive order overhauling the city’s permit process with a new office.
“It’s really hard for our customers to understand what is needed for every type of construction project that could be out there,” said Robert Peek, the director of development systems performance with the Denver Permitting Office.
Hamilton says that was exactly what he and his team faced: “It seemed like it was never the full answer.”
That’s why the Denver City Council approved a $4.6 million contract with ComplyAI for a tool that will help streamline and speed up the process.
“It’ll do an initial review of their applications and their plans and identify anything that I’m missing or anything that is approvable for the city,” Peek said.
The software could shave weeks off the process, and hopefully, in the future, businesses like the Good Luck Club can serve the community more quickly.
“We see this as part of our larger effort to really revitalize our local economy by getting these businesses and homeowners to move into their homes,” Peek said.
The permitting office is just beginning the implementation process to integrate the artificial intelligence tool into the system. They hope to launch it to the public by the end of the year.
Meanwhile, the Good Luck Club is having its grand opening on April 30.
Colorado
Colorado Avalanche coach suffers facial fractures after being hit with a puck
The Colorado Avalanche’s head coach will not travel with the team this week due to injuries he sustained after being hit with a puck during a game over the weekend.
Jared Bednar will stay at home as the team travels for two of its last regular season games in Canada, according to a statement from the team. Bednar was diagnosed with facial fractures and a corneal abrasion, but is expected to make a full recovery without surgery.
During Saturday night’s game against the Vegas Golden Knights, a stray puck hit by the Knights’ Keegan Kolesar went over the boards and into the Avalanche’s bench. Bednar was struck on the right side of his face and taken to the hospital to be evaluated.
The assistant coaching staff, which includes Dave Hakstol and Nolan Pratt, took over after Bednar left the game. Pratt told reporters in the postgame press conference that the hit was “unnerving.”
“It’s scary when the pucks are flying in there, it happens all the time,” Pratt said, adding that it was “unfortunate tonight.”
But the team recalibrated and returned to play, Pratt said.
The Avalanche lost in overtime, but have already secured their playoff spot.
Pratt and Hakstol will lead the Avalanche in the Monday night game against the Edmonton Oilers and Tuesday’s game against the Calgary Flames. The team will return to Denver’s Ball Arena for its final home game before playoffs on Thursday.
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