Wyoming
Elk Fire containment at 10% as Wyoming wildfire grows to nearly 73,000 acres
DAYTON, Wyo. – Fire crews have established containment on 10% of the Elk Fire burning in the Bighorn National Forest even as the wildfire reportedly grew to nearly 73,000 acres.
In an update Monday morning, fire officials said the wildfire has been mapped at 72,998 acres. A total of 680 personnel are currently assigned to fight the fire, which was first reported on Sept. 27.
Two homes have been lost to the flames, and evacuation orders remain in place for many areas affected by the fire.
Also on Monday the Sheridan County Sheriff’s Office announced some cabin owners in the area of Red Grade Road would be allowed into the closed area to retrieve items.
Here is the full Monday update:
Key Messages: The fire is now 10% contained. The added containment is along the northeast edge of the fire, to the north of Dayton. Efforts on the southern end of the fire are focused on taking actions to get ahead of fire movement and protect communities, as well as municipal watersheds in the Big Goose drainage, that are potentially threatened by the fire. Crews will be working using a variety of tools, such as structure protection and fireline construction, to prepare for future potential fire movement.
Current Situation: Smoke is settling over the Elk Fire area from fires further to the west. This is expected to continue and is likely to keep fire activity lower today. This smoke may also impact air operations as helicopters need a minimum of one mile visibility to operate safely on wildland fires.
Structure protection work will continue northwest of the fire in Little Horn Canyon and subdivisions along US HWY 14 between Dayton and Burgess Junction. They will be patrolling and mopping up any heat sources around structures. Structure protection is accomplished through a variety of methods such as removal of vegetation near structures, construction of fireline, and placement of hose and sprinklers where possible. On the eastern side of the fire, firefighters will continue to extinguish areas of heat along established firelines. Crews will also continue to patrol the area that is now contained.
South of the fire, crews are implementing strategies intended to protect homes, communities, the Sheridan watershed, and key infrastructure. The work includes developing new fireline on Red Grade Road near Bighorn, using heavy equipment and several fire crews. Structure protection tactics have been utilized to prepare the Big Goose Water Treatment facility for any fire that may move into the area. Efforts continue to minimize fire effects to the Big Goose Creek watershed, which feeds the water treatment facility.
Firefighter and public safety remain the top priority. The tactics used to suppress the fire will be determined by the terrain, fire and weather conditions, and medical response time with a focus on implementing plans and tactics that have a high probability of success.
Approximately 700 cattle were transported off the fire area this morning. This was possible through the collaborative efforts of this community and agencies supporting the fire.
Closures and Evacuations: The newest evacuation map can be found at the Sheridan County Emergency Management website, Sheridan County (sheridancountywy.gov). US Highway 14 remains closed from Dayton to Burgess Junction. See todays new release regarding temporary access to Red Grade Road for cabin owners. Please contact the Sheridan County Sheriff’s Office at 307-672-3455 or Sheridan County Emergency Management at 307-752-2174 for more information on evacuations and road closures.
The Bighorn National Forest Closure has been expanded to include the closure of Red Grade Road. Please view the updated order on the Bighorn National Forest website, Bighorn National Forest – Alerts & Closures (usda.gov).
Weather & Smoke Information: Today will continue to bring warm and dry conditions to the fire area as a high pressure system moves into the area. Winds are expected to be light and terrain-driven over the course of the day. Smoke from fires further to the west may cause smoke shading and keep temperatures lower than the forecasted highs ranging in the mid 60s to low 70s.
It is anticipated that the Elk Fire will continue to put up a smoke column; please go to the AirNow website (https://www.airnow.gov/) for smoke information.
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CASPER, Wyo. — High school athletics in Wyoming could see some drastic changes in the coming years following legislative changes to the state’s education budget, the Wyoming High School Activities Association recently announced in a statement.
According to the WHSAA, Wyoming school districts are facing a projected $3.9 million shortfall in activities funding, forcing officials to consider significant cuts to high school sports and extracurricular programs.
The WHSAA shared details regarding a new “silo” funding model implemented by the Legislature, stating that the recalibrated block grant model reduced funding for student activities and extra-duty responsibilities from $46.3 million to $42.4 million, an approximately 8.4% decrease statewide.
WHSAA Commissioner Trevor Wilson said the restructuring also restricts district access to an additional $76.2 million in previously flexible funding.
“A significant portion of the [April 28 WHSAA Board of Directors] meeting was dedicated to discussing the projected funding shortfall,” Wilson wrote.
The WHSAA is weighing several strategies to address rising costs with fewer resources. Proposed changes include eliminating regional tournaments and reducing the number of teams qualifying for state events from eight to four; limiting wrestling to two classes and restricting track and field state participants to the top 16 marks; making cuts to soccer, indoor track and field, Nordic and Alpine skiing, swimming and diving, spring golf and tennis; and reducing in-person speech and debate events by half and centrally locating All-State Music events to minimize travel. The board also recommended increasing gate admission or implementing student participation fees to offset costs.
While the WHSAA release states that no plans have been finalized and the various changes are currently just possibilities, Natrona County School District 1 Board of Trustees member Mary Schmidt criticized the WHSAA’s handling of the news at Monday’s board meeting.
“I take some issues with this, [including] the sheer fact that we as Board of Trustees members have not talked about that at all,” Schmidt said. “It is not our intent and it has not been brought to us to cut our athletics or activities budget for the upcoming school year. … I take issue with them picking sports and getting the community upset and ginning them up to be upset that this is all going to be cut when that hasn’t been discussed.”
Later in the meeting, Superintendent Angela Hensley clarified that Natrona County School District 1’s athletics and activities budget saw a reduction of roughly $550,000 in the coming year’s budget, but said the local school district does not plan to cut any sports.
“Thank you, Trustee Schmidt, for saying this, because I think people are wondering — we are not planning to cut athletics and activities for next year,” Hensley said. “We do have to take a look at our entire budget as we have talked about, as we learn more about these new rules that come in.”
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Republished with permission from Wyoming News Now, a TV news outlet covering the Cheyenne and Casper areas.
Cheyenne City Council has introduced a temporary moratorium, or pause, on new data center construction.
“The end goal is to actually have regulations in place, to have really heavy public involvement with this with data centers,” said Councilman Mark Moody.
The proposed ordinance is not a permanent ban on data centers and would not affect data centers currently under construction.
Councilman Moody says this is a bipartisan issue.
“I just want to make this clear, I’m not against data centers. We do need them from a national security perspective,” he said.
He said there needs to be more public input and regulations regarding data centers in Cheyenne.
The ordinance would require city staff to study data center impacts such as electricity usage, electricity tariffs, closed-loop cooling systems, groundwater impacts, agricultural impacts, and land value.
Cheyenne LEADS, the economic development corporation for Cheyenne and Laramie County, reported in November 2025 that there are 12 operational data centers in Wyoming, five under construction and plans for 43 data centers announced across the state.
“There needs to be more public input with this, and also to see how many we can sustain here in this community, cause there are talks of 43, and then another day 70. How many can we sustain here?” said Councilman Moody.
The proposed moratorium will now go to the Public Services Committee on Monday, May 18 at noon in the Municipal Building.
Sheridan will play in the North Regional Tournament at Gillette, while the South Regional Tournament will be played at Rock Springs.
North Regional Tournament at Gillette:
Checking record vs. highest team in the quadrant not involved in the tie, Thunder Basin gets the #1 Northeast seed over Campbell County, because the Lady Bolts went 3-1 vs. Sheridan, whereas the Lady Camels went 2-2.
Friday, May 15th:
(#1 NE) Thunder Basin vs. (#4 NW) Jackson – 11am
(#2 NW) Natrona County vs. (#3 NE) Sheridan – 11am
(#2 NE) Campbell County vs. (#3 NW) Kelly Walsh – 1pm
(#1 NW) Cody vs. (#4 NE) Worland – 1pm
Semi-Finals:
Thunder Basin/Jackson winner vs. Natrona County/Sheridan winner – 3pm Winner qualifies for the state tournament.
Campbell County/Kelly Walsh winner vs. Cody/Worland winner – 5pm Winner qualifies for the state tournament.
Consolation Round:
Thunder Basin/Jackson loser vs. Natrona County/Sheridan loser – 3pm LOSER OUT!
Campbell County/Kelly Walsh loser vs. Cody/Worland loser – 5pm LOSER OUT!
Saturday, May 16th:
TBA vs. TBA – 10am LOSER OUT! Winner qualifies for the state tournament.
TBA vs. TBA – 10am LOSER OUT! Winner qualifies for the state tournament.
2 10am winners vs. each other – 1pm 3rd Place
TBA vs. TBA – 1pm 1st Place
South Regional Tournament at Rock Springs:
Friday, May 15th:
(#1 SW) Laramie vs. (#4 SE) Torrington – 11am
(#2 SE) Cheyenne East vs. (#3 SW) Green River – 11am
(#2 SW) Rock Springs vs. (#3 SE) Wheatland – 1pm
(#1 SE) Cheyenne Central vs. (#4 SW) Cheyenne South – 1pm
Semi-Finals:
Laramie/Torrington winner vs. Cheyenne East/Green River winner – 3pm Winner qualifies for the state tournament.
Rock Springs/Wheatland winner vs. Cheyenne Central/Cheyenne South winner – 5pm Winner qualifies for the state tournament.
Consolation Round:
Laramie/Torrington loser vs. Cheyenne East/Green River loser – 3pm LOSER OUT!
Rock Springs/Wheatland loser vs. Cheyenne Central/Cheyenne South loser – 5pm LOSER OUT!
Saturday, May 16th:
TBA vs. TBA – 10am LOSER OUT! Winner qualifies for the state tournament.
TBA vs. TBA – 10am LOSER OUT! Winner qualifies for the state tournament.
2 10am winners vs. each other – 1pm 3rd Place
TBA vs. TBA – 1pm 1st Place
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