State investigating pneumonia cases
CODY (WNE) – The Wyoming Department of Health is currently investigating a pneumonia break out that has stricken Park County. The state Infectious Disease Epidemiology Program reports 31 people have contracted the infection in recent months.
Most of the pneumonia cases are from elementary-aged children, but the department said children as young as 1 year old and adults up to 41 years old have also been identified.
Not all cases of pneumonia are contagious, but its germs can be spread that lead to pneumonia.
Sporadic cases of the disease were found as early as late February, but contraction appears to have spiked the week of April 29. WDH said cases continue to be reported “with onset of illness within the past several days.”
Most cases of the disease have been found in Cody, but a few recent cases have reached Powell as well.
One recent infected person tested positive for Mycoplasma pneumoniae bacterium. According to the Centers for Disease Control this is sometimes known as “walking pneumonia” since symptoms tend to be milder than other pneumonia caused by other germs.
WDH recently sent three samples to the CDC in Atlanta for testing.
For more information, assistance with testing, or to report a case of pneumonia, call (888) 996-9104.
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Under new owners, dude ranch to serve alcohol
POWELL (WNE) — After a lengthy dry spell, alcohol will again be served at a North Fork dude ranch, which is under new ownership.
On Tuesday, Park County commissioners approved a restaurant liquor license for Absaroka Mountain Lodge. It gives the establishment the ability to sell beer, wine and/or liquor — but alcohol can make up no more than 40 percent of the business’s gross sales.
Craig Kenyon and Carol Crowell, formerly of Powell, recently bought Absaroka Mountain Lodge through a corporation called Gunbarrel Creek Inc. Kenyon and Crowell purchased it from Kerry and Theresa Boyd of Montana, who’d owned the ranch since 2005 through a corporation called Shooting Star Enterprises.
Although alcohol had not been served at Absaroka Mountain Lodge in the recent years, Commissioner Lee Livingston recalled that the guest ranch had a liquor license in the past.
“At least, you could buy beer there,” quipped Livingston, a longtime North Fork resident.
This is the first restaurant liquor license that the county has issued in some time; until recently, the county still had full-fledged retail licenses available. They’re generally more desirable for businesses, but the state caps how many of those licenses a city, town or county can issue based on their population.
Like most of the North Fork guest ranches, Odde said Absaroka Mountain Lodge will only be open seasonally. Founded in 1917 as Gunbarrel Lodge, it lies about 13 miles east of Yellowstone National Park and about 40 miles west of Cody, off of U.S. Highway 14/16/20.
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Man accused of stalking teen
JACKSON (WNE) — A Teton County inmate was ordered not to have contact with six people after two alleged incidents.
Brian Bentley, 47, is accused of driving to Jackson from Utah to stalk a 15-year-old girl. Bentley was arrested May 16 for criminal trespass and criminal entry after a Jackson woman — a second victim — said he wouldn’t stop coming to her mother’s house.
“He went up the stairs and went inside and looked around my mother’s bedroom,” the woman told Teton County Circuit Court Judge James Radda during a protection order hearing.
The woman and her mother said Bentley is a stranger to them, and they’re confused why he keeps showing up at their house.
“I thought it was somebody else’s property,” Bentley told the court during a stalking protection order hearing.
Bentley was remanded into custody pending a psychological evaluation and later given a $5,000 bond.
A Jackson man who has known Bentley for a long time testified that Bentley has been stalking his 15-year-old daughter. The man said Bentley’s relationship with the teenager has become “creepy” in recent years.
“Do you feel this connection?” Bentley reportedly texted the girl. “Next time I see you I want to make you mine.”
Radda granted two separate orders of protection against Bentley. The first one includes the 15-year-old girl and her two sisters. The other includes the woman, her mother and her sister.
“I do not know that woman, so it isn’t going to be a problem,” Bentley told Judge Radda. “I am not going to come looking for her or anything.”
He remains in Teton County Jail.
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EMS students beat national testing average
ROCK SPRINGS (WNE) — For the third-straight year, Western Wyoming Community College’s emergency medical services (EMS) students beat the national testing average pass rate for first-time skills testing.
The 27 students achieved a 93% pass rate on their skills tests. The testing is rigorous and ensures that the individuals are prepared to handle a medical emergency. The Wyoming state average is 87%, and the national average for the first attempt is around 77%.
The skills testing is done each semester, and Western students have always scored well-above the national average. The WWCC first-time pass rate has been 100% in 2016-17, 86% in 2017-18, and 96.5% 2018-19.
“These students have to give up many hours of time on weekends and evenings to achieve competency in these skills. But it doesn’t stop there, they have to also spend countless hours studying and learning knowledge. We try to teach critical thinking because no patient ever is exactly like the textbook. These success rates show the dedication of the students and the instructors to ensure that we are training excellent prehospital providers,” said Andrew Appleby, instructor of paramedics and EMS at Western.
For more information about the EMS program or the AS degree in paramedicine, contact Appleby at aappleby@westernwyoming.edu
Wyoming this Weekend, May 31-June 2
By Wyoming News Exchange
A 29-year-old celebration of the art of quilting tops this weekend’s activities in Wyoming as Green River once again hosts “Quilting on the Green.”
A quilt show, contests, workshops and a “trunk show” featuring Fort Collins, Colorado, quilter Marci Baker will all be offered at Green River’s Expedition Island during the celebration to be held Friday and Saturday.
Quilts submitted for judging will be on display throughout the weekend, while the “trunk show” will be held Friday evening and classes will be held Saturday.
Other activities scheduled for the weekend around Wyoming include:
The Chief Yellow Calf Memorial Club Feast and Powwow in Ethete on Friday and Saturday;
Cheyenne’s Hispanic Festival on Friday and Saturday;
An exhibit of the artwork of Shelby Head at Sheridan’s Edward A. Whitney Gallery through the weekend;
“Party in the Pasture” in Meeteetse on Saturday;
The annual Durham Ranch Buffalo Stampede 5K/10K Walk/Run in Gillette;
An “adventure trek” to Riverton’s railroad tie treatment plant on Saturday;
A presentation on the Rawlins/Fort Washakie stage at Lander’s Pioneer Museum on Saturday, and
The opening performance of the Cody Nite Rodeo on Saturday;
For more information on these and other events, please visit the Wyoming Tourism Division website at TravelWyoming.com
