Statewide news briefs

Sugar beet deliveries slowed by warm weather

POWELL (WNE) — Sugar beet harvest in the Lovell Factory District of the Great Western Sugar Cooperative has turned into a test of careful pile management at beet receiving stations under continuing daytime temperatures of 70-80 degrees.

Only about 30% of the crop was received during the first week.

“Good pile storage makes for good grower payments. It’s all about risk,” said Ric Rodriguez, Heart Mountain grower and member of the four-state cooperative board.

The all-out regular harvest was supposed to have started on Oct. 6, but because of the high daytime temperatures, an early harvest schedule was implemented again.

Each contracted grower was given an allotment of 1.25 tons per acre for deliveries to open pile grounds on a rotating basis. That schedule prevailed until Friday, Oct. 11 when the weather forecast allowed for a limited regular harvest to proceed.

That allows growers to deliver as much as they can harvest until stopped for the day.

Pile grounds open at 6 a.m. The receiving stations were able to operate until about 11 a.m. into the weekend “and actually made it to 1 p.m. on Sunday,” Rodriguez said.

“The beets won’t store if they are put into piles hot,” he said. “We have a heat policy that once the beets reach 50 degrees, piling will be halted. The beets are going into the piles cool at this time.”

The other issue is the piled beets sitting through 70-80 degree temperatures for extended periods of time, Rodriguez said.

“The forecast looks cooler later this week so we should get going full blast by then,” Rodriguez added.

Sugar content of early beets is averaging 17.83% with average tonnage suggesting a crop around 30 tons to the acre.

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Elk Fire nears 90K acres burned, containment at 27%

GILLETTE (WNE) — The Elk Fire continued to grow over the weekend as firefighters made progress on containment.

As of Monday morning, the fire had burned 89,315 acres, an increase of more than 10,000 acres since Friday morning, and it was 27% contained. A total of 944 people are working on the fire, including 13 aircraft, 19 crews, 59 engines, eight dozers and 18 water tenders.

All of the containment lines are on the north edge of the fire, while the southern part of the fire remains uncontained.

Sunday, crews continued strategic firing operations south of the main fire to reduce fuels and slow the fire’s spread. Firefighters started ignitions at Red Grade Road and the operations progressed to the north, according to a press release from Rocky Mountain Area Complex Incident Management Team 3.

Structure protection crews will continue work near homes and other properties in the Poverty Flats area Monday, clearing flammable debris and setting up ponds, pumps and sprinkler systems.

Up Red Grade Road in the National Forest, crews are using heavy equipment to clear vegetation on both sides of Forest Service Road 26 in order to create a defensible line for strategic firing operations, if needed, to keep the fire from moving south.

In the Burgess Junction area, hand crews and heavy equipment are working to remove trees and vegetation.

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$15K fuel felony

RIVERTON (WNE) — Felony theft charges allege a Riverton man embezzled nearly $15,000 after he parted ways with an employer but kept a gas credit card and used it to fill up multiple vehicles, including his own.

Travis Lopez, 50, faces three charges of felony theft, each carrying a maximum penalty of 10 years in prison and a $10,000 fine, and one count of theft.

On Thursday, he pleaded not guilty in Fremont County District Court.

According to the charging documents, Riverton Police Department Officer Brandon Brookover met with the owner of Wrangler Well Services on Valentine’s Day. Brookover learned that Lopez had parted ways as a driver with the company in December 2021, and the owner believed he had taken one of two gas cards when he left.

The owner reportedly said the continued use of the card had gone overlooked due to other employees using Lopez’s former work truck.

“[The owner] informed me that Lopez has been using the co-op card since 2021 and he estimated approximately $15,000 worth of charges at [a local co-op],” Brookover said in the Affidavit.

Lopez allegedly used the gas card to fill up his personal vehicle and several other vehicles, including his wife’s vehicle and a Silver F150 FX4 and a green late ‘90s to early 2000s model Chevy 1500.