Two homes were destroyed Saturday morning in the Horseshoe subdivision west of Dayton by the growing Elk fire, according to fire officials.

The fire grew to around 60,000 acres Saturday, largely due to high winds and unpredictable fire activity in the area of northern Wyoming, according to a news release from Sheridan County Emergency Management.

Firefighters were in the Horseshoe area throughout the night and early morning to protect the home, but erratic fire behavior during a passing cold front forced them to evacuate, according to emergency management.

Dayton residents prepare for evacuation as Elk fire grows

The Elk fire has grown to about 60,000 acres with zero percent containment as of Saturday.

Check the Sheridan County Facebook pageor the Sheridan County website for the latest information.

A California homeless man found guilty of brutally stabbing to death a UCLA graduate student inside a boutique furniture shop was sentenced to life in prison without the possibility of parole on Wednesday.

Shawn Laval Smith, 34, was convicted in September for the gruesome murder of Brianna Kupfer, a 24-year-old architectural graduate student, on Jan. 13, 2022. 

The sentence was handed down after Los Angeles Superior Court Judge Mildred Escobedo reviewed reports from doctors and determined Smith was sane at the time of the murder, FOX11 Los Angeles reported.

Kupfer was working alone at Croft House in Los Angeles’ Hancock Park neighborhood when Smith, a homeless man with a long criminal history, entered the store and stabbed her 26 times during an unprovoked attack. 

WHO IS BRIANNA KUPFER, THE LOS ANGELES STABBING VICTIM?

Kupfer suffered 11 stab wounds to the chest, two in the abdomen, one to the pelvis, two on her right arm, five on her left arm, two on her right leg and three on her left leg. Security cameras showed Smith at the store and his DNA was found on the knife, prosecutors said. 

Smith was arrested six days after Kupfer’s murder. 

Brianna Kupfer worked at Croft House, a luxury furniture store in Los Angeles, when she was stabbed to death. (Todd Kupfer)

During the trial, prosecutors argued that Smith went “hunting for a woman alone” on the day of the murder, having approached six other stores before finding Kupfer working alone.

Moments before her death, Kupfer had sent a text to a friend that said she was getting a “bad vibe” from someone inside the store, authorities have said. 

The 24-year-old was studying design as a grad student at UCLA. (Todd Kupfer)

BRIANNA KUPFER SENT PAL OMINOUS TEXT BEFORE SHE WAS STABBED TO DEATH

The friend said they saw the message about 15 minutes later, although police said Kupfer was killed within 10 minutes of sending it. A customer found Kupfer dead inside the store.

Kupfer’s family remembered the 24-year-old as someone who always worked to better herself and her community.

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“In many ways, [Brianna] embodied everything that is great about Los Angeles, and the entire city should grieve over this senseless act,” the family said in an earlier statement. “Brianna was a smart, funny, driven and a kind soul who only wanted to better herself and her community on a daily basis.”

Fox News’ Louis Casiano, Brie Stimson and Lawrence Richard contributed to this report.

There may be no single Arizona Fall League hitting prospect that is more highly-touted than San Francisco Giants first baseman Bryce Eldridge.

The way he’s tracking, he could be with the parent club as soon as next season.

MLB Pipeline recently selected the top prospect for each Major League team going into the AFL, which starts on Monday. Naturally, Eldridge was the Giants’ selection.

There are players that are ranked higher in MLB Pipeline’s Top 100 (Eldridge is No. 35). But there may be no 19-year-old player closer to the Majors than him, as he’s on a track eerily similar to that of former No. 1 prospect Jackson Holliday of the Baltimore Orioles.

San Francisco selected him No. 16 overall in 2023 and signed for $4 million out of Vienna, Va., as Eldridge turned his back on his commitment to Alabama and opted to start his pro career. Holliday did the same thing, passing on Oklahoma State (where his uncle is the head coach).

Post-draft, both played a handful of games after their selection. Holliday batted .297 with a home run and nine RBI in 20 games. Eldridge started with the Arizona Complex League Giants and then went to Class-A San Jose. He had a slash line of .294/.400/.505/.905 with six home runs and 18 RBI.

Holliday blew through the Orioles’ system in 2023. He played for all four full-season affiliate and had a slash line of .323/.442/.499/.941 with 12 home runs and 75 RBI. By season’s end he was poised to make Baltimore’s opening-day roster.

Well, guess what? Eldridge did the same thing this season. Starting at San Jose, he played his way up to Triple-A Sacramento and finished the season with a slash line of .291/.374/.516/.890 with 23 home runs and 92 RBI.

The AFL could be an accelerant for Eldridge. The Orioles didn’t send Holliday to the AFL last year. It didn’t really stunt Holliday’s development leading up to the Majors. He had a tremendous spring training earlier this year but didn’t make the Opening-Day roster. That appeared to be about Baltimore starting his clock later to control his player rights.

He eventually played 60 games and finished with a slash line of .189/.255/.311/.566 with five home runs and 23 RBI.

Eldridge heads to Arizona for extra at-bats and use it as a launching pad for next spring training, when Eldridge is sure to be a contender for a roster spot. As MLB Pipeline pointed out, “he has a huge frame (6-foot-7, 223 pounds) and huge power, and he’s also an advanced hitter with a good plan at the plate.”

The Giants could use some of that next season.