One 5,000-gallon water tank was already in the ground when the second concrete tank arrived shortly after 2 p.m. on Wednesday.

The tanks, installed behind the tennis courts at Rush Valley Town Hall, doubled the town’s available water for fire suppression. Connected to a gravity-fed fire hydrant rated at 500 gallons per minute the tanks, are fed by a nearby spring, according to Weston Jensen of Utah Underground of Tooele. 

The $36,000 project was completed through a partnership between Shambip Conservation District, Rush Valley Water Conservation District and Utah Conservation Commission, according to Alisa Meyer, a board member of the Shambip Conservation District. The project to improve fire suppression capabilities was conceived about a year and a half ago, she said. 

“A lot of these remote communities don’t have a lot of access to water, especially in the winter time,” Meyer said. 

While fire departments may have access to irrigation lines or reservoirs in the summer, many of those sources are frozen or unavailable in the winter, Meyer said. 

“In the winter we need a freeze-proof source of water that they can tap into to fight these mostly structural fires,” said Darrell Johnson, a Rush Valley Water Conservancy District board member.  

Meyer said Shambip Conservation District and its state and local partners are looking to install water tanks and other resources in remote communities in the county, such as Terra and Ibapah. 

On Tuesday, they received confirmation the state Division of Forestry, Fire and State Lands would be providing $50,000 for the next project. 

“We’re going to keep coming back to our existing partners and see if we can get a minimum of … six sites,” Meyer said. 

Rush Valley Fire Chief Kevin Russell said prior to the tank installation, the town’s fire engines were limited to the water they could carry, about 4,000 gallons. Mutual aid resources coming into town during a fire would be to resupply water, he said. 

“Our response time is cut down immensely by having this system put in,” Russell said. “Sometimes we’ve actually had to go out of town to get water for fires, so this is a big, big help.”  

Russell said the fire department’s Insurance Service Offices rating is currently a 9 out of 10, on a descending scale. He said the improved water supply should likely lower the rating to an 8, working toward a 7.5. 

It means cost of insurance for the Town of Rush Valley and its residents should also drop, with the improved ISO rating, Russell said. Residents should contact their insurance providers about the improvement to the fire department’s rating once it’s finalized. 

Meyer said the next step for the conservation district and its partners is to identify the locations next in line by need. The partnership is working with Tooele County Fire Warden Daniel Walton to locate the next project.

Some of the best shots in the state of Utah gathered at Dugway Proving Ground for the Tactical Top Shot 3-Gun Competition last Friday. 

The annual event is hosted by Dugway’s Directorate of Emergency Services during National Police Week, with local, state and regional law enforcement officers, military personnel and civilian competitors taking aim. There were 72 shooters competing in Friday’s event, held at Dugway’s Firearms Range Complex. 

The three-gun competition tested participants’ abilities with the rifle, shotgun and pistol.

Competitors tackled five different courses, which included long-range rifle with targets up to 518 yards away, combined rifle and pistol, three gun, pistol and shotgun courses. The awards for the event were determined by combined time over the five courses. 

There were two classes — factory, with a pump shotgun and no optics, and practical, with a semi-automatic rifle with optics — and a men’s and women’s division in each class. 

Kirk Holmer, with the Utah Army National Guard, was the top men’s shooter in the factory class, while Ketrah Dekanich, a Tooele High School graduate in U.S. Army ROTC, won the women’s division. 

The men’s division of the practical class was won by Phillip Vollmer with Unified Police Department and Tennille Chidester, a civilian competitor, won the women’s division. Vollmer, who also won the practical class in 2018, completed the five courses with the fastest overall time of 198.16 seconds.

A Lake Point man died early Tuesday morning as a result of a single-vehicle rollover accident on state Route 36, according to the Utah Highway Patrol. 

A black GMC Sierra was traveling northbound on SR-36 when it drifted off the right shoulder of the roadway, according to a release from UHP. The driver, identified as Michael S. Gollaher, 62, overcorrected to the left, causing the vehicle to slide.

Following the overcorrection, the truck went over the dividing barrier and into the southbound travel lanes, the release said. The truck continued northbound in the southbound travel lanes until it began to roll. 

The vehicle rolled multiple times before going off the left shoulder of the roadway south of the intersection with Bates Canyon Road. Gollaher was ejected from the vehicle and suffered fatal injuries. 

Following the fatal accident, both southbound lanes of SR-36 were temporarily closed at Bates Canyon Road, according to the Utah Department of Transportation.

The Tooele County Sheriff’s Office took the time to honor some of its most exemplary members during an employee appreciation and award banquet last Thursday. 

As in past years, the award banquet coincided with National Police Week and followed Peace Officers Memorial Day, which is May 15. 

Tooele County Sheriff Paul Wimmer handed out a number of outstanding service awards to road deputies, corrections deputies, dispatchers, crossing guards and civilian employees. 

Sgt. Heather Prescott was a recipient of the Sheriff’s Award for her work in the county’s dispatch center, which included a records audit, scanning documents for electronic access and generally having knowledge, skills and dedication to benefit the agency. Wimmer said Prescott’s work on the audit ensured the sheriff’s office retains access to FBI databases. 

“Without her maintaining and providing the information and seeing us through these audits, we would be up a creek,” Wimmer said. “And anytime she does something that benefits us in our entirety, which she does, I really can’t thank her enough.”

Bonnie Rasmussen, head nurse at the Tooele County Detention Center,  also received the Sheriff’s Award after she networked with a new physician for the jail, who recommended a new pharmacy provider that has saved the jail thousands of dollars. Since her promotion to head nurse, Rasmussen has brought new ideas, addressed concerns about distribution of medication to inmates and improved the level of care, Wimmer said. 

“Our medical program has changed remarkably since bringing on (Rasmussen), even before she was the lead nurse,” he said. “Just the ideas, just the willingness to take the hard jobs.”

Deputy Chad Evans was the recipient of the Lifesaving Award. He responded to an overdose call and found the male subject was having trouble breathing and gurgling at the mouth, Wimmer said. 

Evans quickly recognized the surroundings and determined the man had overdosed on heroin and administered naloxone.The man was breathing normally and coherent shortly after the antidote was administered but could have died without quick action, Wimmer said. 

Trent Fawson, a control room operator at the county jail, received an outstanding service award for his work ethic, professionalism and attentiveness on the job. 

Crossing guard supervisor Holly Langston was honored for always providing help on shifts in Stansbury Park and ensuring the crossing guards have the proper equipment for the job.

“Keeping all the crossing guard positions filled is a very challenging endeavor,” Wimmer said. “ … The fact I can drive around Stansbury Park and there’s always a cross guard where they need to be, when they need to be, and we don’t have to pull deputies off the road to do it is invaluable.”

The investigations division was also recognized with outstanding service awards for its ability to handle a challenging workload, especially last October when investigators were tasked with investigating a shooting, and an officer-involved shooting for another agency within a week, in addition to their existing case load. Detectives Shane Starks, David Bleazard and Chris Reyes, Sgt. Marshall Evans and Chief Deputy Brian White were the recipients. 

Tooele County Sheriff’s Sgt. Norberto Aranda and Sgt. Richard Maroney received outstanding service awards after they stopped a drug smuggling operation at the county jail following a months-long investigation and prevented the use of weapons created in the jail, including a shank crafted from a hairbrush handle. 

Deputy Mindy Millett was also recognized for her outstanding service after she suspected someone being booked into the jail was the victim of another crime. Due to Millett’s awareness, the victim received the services they needed and the suspect was arrested, Wimmer said. 

Deputy Brandon Oborn received an outstanding service award for his willingness to take on other assignments and being an asset to the department. Oborn took on a leadership and training role with new deputies. 

Sgt. Dustin Long was recognized for being respectful to arrestees being booked into the jail and his great attitude and willingness to assist. 

“As a sheriff you get feedback from other agencies that are booking people into jail and Sgt. Long and his crew are one of those crews that you get a lot of compliments (for),” Wimmer said. 

Dispatcher Lore Maloney received an award after receiving a promotion and working to take on additional assignments and responsibility, including work to complete crisis intervention training. 

Sgt. Shannon Gowans earned an outstanding service award after handling a difficult 911 call last July in a calm and professional manner, despite the nature of the call and the young age of the victim, in addition to her hard work and professionalism day-to-day. 

A citizen nominated Deputy Brandon Roberts, who received an outstanding service award after he located a man who was injured on Stansbury Island and had not been located for several hours, taking him to proper medical care. 

Employees were also recognized for five, 10, 15 and 25 years of service in law enforcement.

A Tooele man facing three felony charges failed to make his initial appearance in 3rd District Court on Monday. 

Talanoa Cocker, 22, is charged with two counts of first-degree felony sodomy on a child and a single count of third-degree felony dealing in materials harmful to a minor. 

A Tooele County Sheriff’s deputy was dispatched to a call at Primary Children’s Hospital regarding a sex abuse case in February, according to a probable cause statement. The deputy spoke with a nurse in the forensic child abuse department who told him the victim, who was younger than 10 years old, had been abused over the past four years. 

The victim’s mother told the deputy the victim had been abused by Cocker and he showed them illicit images over the four years, with the most recent incident in April 2018. 

The victim was able to describe three different incidents of abuse to the police, with two incidents of sodomy and one of being shown illicit images. The first occurred four years ago, with the other two instances of abuse three years later. 

Charges against Cocker were filed on April 24 and a summons to court was issued by 3rd District Court Judge Matthew Bates on April 26. His initial appearance was scheduled for Monday at 10:30 a.m. 

When Cocker did not appear for Monday’s initial appearance, Bates issued a $20,000 bench warrant for him.

Anyone looking to travel outside of Tooele County over the holiday weekend to visit family or go on vacation can expect delays and congestion on at least one of Utah’s major interstate highways. 

The Utah Department of Transportation recommends motorists plan ahead for delays on Interstate 15 along the Wasatch Front on Friday and Monday due to holiday traffic, according to a news release Thursday. UDOT’s traffic engineers expect delays of up to 40 minutes on southbound I-15 through Salt Lake and Utah counties on Friday, as well as up to 30-minute delays on northbound I-15 through Davis County. 

The heaviest traffic Friday is expected between 1 p.m. and 7 p.m., with longer delays during the evening commute, the release said. 

On Monday, which is a federal legal holiday, delays of up to 20 minutes are expected on I-15 between Provo and Nephi, and up to 10 minutes on U.S. Route 6 in Spanish Fork Canyon, according to UDOT. Traffic volumes are anticipated to increase around 2 p.m. and continue through 8 p.m. 

While many UDOT construction projects will suspend construction and open all lanes to traffic, some lane restrictions or traffic shifts will remain in place, the release said. 

Some seasonal roads, such as Guardsman Pass, may not be opened by Memorial Day as they typically are due to heavy snowfalls this winter, according to UDOT. To see a list of seasonal state roads that remain closed, visit udottraffic.utah.gov.

Middle Canyon, however, is expected to open today at noon, according to Tooele County Facilities Management Director Mark McKendrick. 

With extra vehicles on the road, UDOT cautioned drivers to stay alert, use seat belts, put away distractions and take breaks to avoid drowsy driving. 

The holiday is also the beginning of Utah’s 100 deadliest days, as fatal crashes double in the summer months between Memorial Day weekend and Labor Day, according to UDOT and Utah Highway Patrol. Human error, including speeding, aggressive driving, drowsiness, impairment, in-car distractions and not buckling up, cause 94% of all crashes. 

All told, nearly 43 million Americans are expected to travel over the Memorial Day weekend, according to AAA. The projections are for the second-highest travel volume on record for the holiday weekend, an increase of 1.5 million over last year. 

The majority of travelers — 37.6 million — are expected to travel by car, the most ever on the holiday weekend, according to AAA.

After hearing from surrounding property owners during a lengthy public hearing, a split Tooele City Planning Commission forwarded a negative recommendation for a rezone of the former Harris Elementary School during its Wednesday night meeting. 

The application from Skull Valley Health Care would rezone the 9.42-acre property from R1-7 residential to MR-8 multi-family residential to repurpose it for a drug rehabilitation center. The staff report for the proposed rezone noted the school building would not be torn down, but remain and be utilized. 

During the public hearing, residents adjacent to the former school described concerns about drug traffic, vehicle traffic and property values if the property was rezoned and used for a drug rehab center. 

Randy Green said he is totally against a drug rehabilitation center in the area and said there is already a lot of foot traffic in the area by people he claimed to be homeless. 

“I don’t quite understand how they can take that school and make it multi-family living and make it look nice,” Green said. “It should be torn down and there should be residential homes put in there.”

Austin Barney said he’s called the police multiple times in the past week in relation to drug and alcohol use and speeding vehicles on 100 East to the west of the school. Another concern he had is the effect of a drug rehab center on property values and he’s considered moving. 

“It’s bad enough that I have to go out and check my yard for needles,” Barney said. “We’ve had some scary stuff in our yard.” 

Steve West, the operations director for the school district, who maintains the school property and monitors it around the clock using surveillance cameras, said he’s looking forward to the property being viable again.  

“I’m excited for the opportunity to repurpose the building and be able to get it back, to get it functional and to be able to use it for something again,” West said. “It’s exciting to see that happen.”

After most of the resident comments were made during the public hearing, Tyson Dixon, the CEO of Renaissance Ranch Treatment Centers, spoke. He said he understood the concerns the community had about issues such as home value and safety, but said his rehab centers in other communities have had barely any issues. Renaissance Ranch uses the 12 Steps approach to addiction treatment, along with The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints gospel principles, to treat alcohol and drug addiction, according to the company website. 

Dixon said his rehab company is a contracted agency working with the Skull Valley Band of Goshutes. The tribe opened the Skull Valley Health Center in Overlake in 2018. 

“They don’t have the funds to purchase a location and they don’t have the behavioral health and mental health and medical treatment experience that we have,” Dixon said. “So we’re partnering with them to help arrange how to provide those services and to invest in the properties we’re going to be investing in.”

Dixon said the school building would undergo a full-scale remodel, including a resurface and repainting of the exterior. About five of the classrooms would be retained as group educational areas, while the majority would be converted into bedrooms at the facility, he said. 

Detox and other acute medical situations would be handled at different facilities, Dixon said. The school site would be for long-term patient stays for those looking to recover from addiction. 

Commissioner Chris Sloan made a motion to forward a positive recommendation to the Tooele City Council on the rezone, which he amended to condition the rezone on use of the existing building. Commissioner Tyson Hamilton seconded the motion. 

Sloan, Hamilton and Commissioner Melanie Hammer voted in favor of the positive recommendation of the rezone, while commissioners Shauna Bevan, Phil Montano and Matt Robinson voted against it. Bevan, Montano and Robinson cited the rezone not being consistent with the intent of the master plan in their opposition. The school is currently zoned R1-7 and surrounded on all sides by other R1-7 property. 

Planning Commission Chair Tony Graf was the tie-breaking vote and he voted against the positive recommendation. 

“I feel that in this particular packet of information, I do not have enough information to say that it meets each of the conditions that I should be looking at to approve a zoning change,” Graf said. 

The rezone is now forwarded to the Tooele City Council with a negative recommendation. When the rezone is addressed by the City Council, there will be another public hearing prior to the deciding vote.

Tooele County’s first responders were recognized for their contributions at a First Responder Appreciation Lunch on Wednesday, hosted by Mountain West Medical Center. 

Jonny Thatcher, Tooele County Emergency Medical Council chairman, presented the awards, which ranged the entirety of emergency medical response, from dispatchers through emergency medical technicians. The lunch was held outside the medical center near the emergency room. 

Tooele County Sheriff’s Sgt. Heather Prescott received the Tooele County EMS Dispatcher of the Year award, in recognition of her 13 years of service and two lifesaving awards she received this year. 

Tooele County EMT of the Year was awarded to Joshua Karabatsos, a firefighter and EMT with Tooele Army Depot for the past three years.

“He helped instruct all of his peers and he responds to medicals not only on base, but off base,” Thatcher said.

Mountain West Ambulance’s Joseph Aune was recognized as Advanced EMT of the Year. Aune has been with the agency for about two years, according to Thatcher. 

“He continually maintains not only a professional, but just an all-around good attitude, on and off call,” Thatcher said. 

The Tooele County Paramedic of the Year was presented to Jared Wright with Mountain West Ambulance, in part due to his 13 years of service in the county. Wright has also recently begun teaching numerous EMT and Advanced EMT classes with a high success rate, according to Thatcher. 

“His knowledge of the area and of what to do on calls is impressive,” Thatcher said. 

Five agencies received the Tooele County Event of the Year: Mountain West Ambulance, Air Med, Tooele County Sheriff’s Office, North Tooele Fire District and Utah Highway Patrol. 

The event occurred last September, when a red Jeep Liberty traveling southbound on state Route 36 struck another vehicle while attempting a lane change. The vehicle lost control, crossed into the northbound lanes and struck a Honda Civic head-on. 

The driver and passenger of the Jeep were airlifted to a Salt Lake-area hospital and the driver of the Honda suffered fatal injuries. 

The crash, which occurred in Lake Point, temporarily closed both directions of travel on SR-36 at the ramps to Exit 99. 

“That was a huge thing in our county and it involved a lot of players,” Thatcher said. “And for as bad as the situation was, it could have been a lot worse.”

A 23-year-old man was taken to a Salt Lake-area hospital following a motorcycle accident on state Route 112 on Saturday, according to the Tooele City Police Department. 

The accident occurred near milepost 6 on SR-112 at 6:15 p.m., according to Tooele City Police Detective Nick Cutler. The motorcyclist told investigators he was heading eastbound on SR-112 when wind pushed him into oncoming traffic. To avoid a head-on collision, he said he intentionally laid down his motorcycle, which was corroborated by witnesses to the accident. 

Following the crash, the motorcyclist was transported to a Salt Lake-area hospital by ambulance in stable condition, Cutler said. No one else was injured as a result of the accident. 

The holiday weekend marked the beginning of the 100 deadliest days on Utah’s roads, when fatalities double during the summer months leading to Labor Day. In 2018, there were 47 motorcycle fatalities, up almost 24% from 38 the previous year.

As Jared Esselman sees it, drones completing tasks such as package delivery won’t just happen, but will be commonplace within the next decade.

Esselman, Utah Department of Transportation’s director of aeronautics, said there will be a progression, as drone package delivery progresses to the skies and the deliveries move from small packages to cargo up to 500 pounds. The uses will also become more diversified, with unique services like ambulance drones that can fly a defibrillator to an accident scene or medical needs from one hospital to another. 

Esselman, who gave a guest lecture at the Tooele headquarters of Deseret UAS earlier this month, said drone delivery will most likely start in a commercial-to-commercial setting. Moving product from a distribution center to a retailer, for example, is the most likely start, as home delivery with a single-package payload drone is fairly inefficient, he said. 

So while drones are expected to take to the skies in the near future, UDOT is laying the groundwork to make it happen safely and efficiently. In the same way UDOT builds roads to accommodate ground vehicles, drones will also have corridors to follow in the sky. 

Many of those transportation corridors will likely mirror public roads, to alleviate privacy concerns of aerial drones outfitted with cameras and other devices, according to Esselman. 

UDOT teamed up with students at the University of Utah and the Federal Aviation Administration to create “Drone Commander,” software, which simulates the possible flow of future drone traffic in Salt Lake City. Esselman said “Drone Commander” works as a traffic simulator for drones, identifying possible chokepoints and other stumbling blocks for aerial drones in a city. 

While UDOT plans for the transportation elements of drones, the equipment that is expected to be overhead soon is being tested at facilities including Deseret UAS, a nonprofit collaboration between the state and Tooele and Box Elder counties. Deseret UAS was founded in 2018 with the help of a $1.2 million grant from the state of Utah. 

The test sites operated by Deseret UAS in Box Elder and Tooele counties include a 4,500-foot paved runway with a covered airplane hanger, mobile test units and training facilities. 

“They really are hoping to be that test site or test range,” Esselman said. 

UDOT is also partnering with the Nevada Institute of Autonomous Systems, which has been testing commercial drones in Reno. 

Esselman said it’s important to remember the drones being tested now are more than pie-in-the-sky concepts — you can sit in them, test them and they fly. The aircraft certification process is long, however, so it will take years for some to be available commercially. 

Beyond the more modest drones expected to be the pioneers of commercial traffic, Esselman said there are package delivery drones and even aerial taxis that are ready for maiden test flights. With a variety of drones being tested and certified, it’s now up to UDOT to create the system to go with the vehicles, he said. 

Drones are already permitted for a variety of uses, including aerial photography, bridge inspections, mapping construction sites and traffic monitoring. For more on the state’s current policy on unmanned aircraft systems, visit udot.utah.gov.

Fire investigators believe the explosion that rocked a garage on the southwest side of Tooele City and severely burned a man on Thursday night was an accident, according to Tooele City Fire Chief Rick Harrison. 

The explosion, which burned a man badly enough for him to be transported by medical helicopter to the University of Utah hospital, was likely caused by human error while working with, or near, propane at a home near 1000 West and 880 South, Harrison said. Tooele City fire crews responded to the residence following reports of the explosion around 5:30 p.m. 

Harrison said the initial page mentioned a lit cigarette as a possible cause of the explosion and said there were cigarette butts in the garage, but investigators were unsure if it was the cause. Unified Fire Authority’s investigation bureau responded to assist in the review of the scene. Dominion Energy also assisted at the scene. 

Tooele Army Depot Fire Department was also called out to the explosion but Harrison said there was no fire damage to the garage where the explosion occurred.

As of Tuesday morning, there was no update on the condition of the man injured in the explosion.

As is usually the case during graduation season, the past and future were on the forefront of the minds of Tooele High School graduates during ceremonies on Friday at the University of Utah’s Jon M. Huntsman Center.  

A total of 389 students moved on from Tooele High School during the ceremony, with 377 diplomas, including 21 early graduates, and 12 certificates of completion. The class totaled $4.3 million in scholarships, representing every university in the state and 18 outside of Utah, according to Tooele High Principal Jeff Hamm.  

It also marked the first time Tooele High graduates all wore the same color graduation gowns, which were purple with an embroidered patch of the school logo and white piping. 

Valedictorian Spencer Kenison, who graduated with a cumulative 4.0 GPA and was president of the school’s chapter of the National Honor Society, compared the four years of high school to a race, with graduation as the finish line. 

Kenison recommended graduates view the time after graduation as a clean slate for their future. 

“So, after this whole ceremony is over, when you’re finally done celebrating with family and friends, and have a moment to look at your diploma when you get home, I’d like you to view it as a blank slate,” he said. “Now this is certainly not because diplomas mean anything. Rather, I believe the diploma itself represents the opportunity that we have to shape it and ourselves into what we truly want to become.”

Citing the 2008 movie, “Kung Fu Panda,” Kenison compared diplomas to the mystical dragon scroll which supposedly revealed the secret to limitless power. When the scroll is finally revealed, it’s simply a reflective surface. 

“The only secret to accomplishing or overcoming anything is you. Nothing else can replace that. Sometimes I think we like to believe that a certificate or diploma is going to get us where we want to go,” Kenison said. “However, just like the dragon scroll, a diploma itself isn’t going to do anything for you. All the power to make things happen is in you and to be honest, it always has been.”

Salutatorian Melissa Colledge challenged her classmates to do more than follow in the footsteps of those who went before them, citing the life stories and humble beginnings for luminaries such as Albert Einstein and Abraham Lincoln. 

“It is critical in our modern lives that we stop trying to grow off each other and grow on our foundation,” Colledge said. “A foundation should be built off the lessons we’ve learned, not the accomplishment of others. How do we do this? We do this by devoting ourselves to knowledge by reaching out to the unknown and finding your passion.”

While giving advice to make the most of every moment, Colledge, who graduated with a 3.9 GPA and qualified for nationals in debate, recommended the class embrace the world of experiences to come. 

“You don’t have to let the world change who you are,” she said. “Let you change what the world thinks.”

Senior Class President Amalie Jo Thorpe said she was lucky to go through high school with her classmates and she learned to be herself, citing the school’s “Be the Change” motto promoted by Hamm. 

“If we remember to stand up for what we believe in in our lives, we can reach our goals,” Thorpe said. 

The commencement ceremony featured performances by students, including an address by Gabby Dobson and the high school band playing the processional and recessional.

Anyone who watched the last two seasons of Game of Thrones can tell you it takes more than subverting expectations to create an enjoyable experience. 

It can, however, be an important ingredient, as I found out over the holiday weekend on a camping trip near Black Canyon of the Gunnison National Park in Colorado. 

I’ve made no mystery of the fact I love national parks. I’ve been to quite a few since moving to Utah, including all of the in-state parks except Capitol Reef. Many of the parks have been bursting at the seams with people, holiday weekend or not. 

Visitation to national parks topped 318 million in 2018, the third-highest total since record-keeping began in 1904, according to the National Park Service. I’ve been to three of the most visited — Zion (4.3 million), Yellowstone (4.1 million), and Glacier (3 million). 

So my expectations for visiting a national park over Memorial Day weekend with three others were it would be something of a mob scene. Even after our muddy campsite on National Forest Service land was the only one in sight, I assumed there would be crowds of people. There are always crowds in national parks, especially on holiday weekends once school is out. 

So you can imagine my surprise as we drove down a dirt road to the north side of Black Canyon to discover there was no line. There wasn’t a toll booth, with a park ranger handing out maps, or a massive asphalt parking lot. There was only a dirt road to the right and a dirt road to the left.

We still hadn’t seen another car. Consider my expectations completely subverted. 

On the north side of the park there is no visitor center. There’s simply a ranger station, which was sometimes occupied and sometimes not during our trip, a vault toilet and a spigot for water, which didn’t boast any particular warnings and was therefore deemed drinkable. 

While the gravel parking spots were full to overflowing at the ranger station, there was still only about 15 cars. Most of them were connected to rock climbers who were off to parts unknown. 

From the north side of the park, you can see the south side, with its paved roads and amenities. While it’s just across the yawning chasm for which the park is named, it’s actually a nearly 2-hour drive from one side of the park to the other. 

Even paying was a different experience; visitors simply put cash into an envelope, deposit it, and retain an attached receipt. It was nearly an honor system, especially since I only saw one ranger on duty at any point, and they weren’t driving around the park looking for cheats. 

The first day, we filled out a wilderness permit so we could travel on one of three routes to the bottom of the canyon. We chose one of the two easier routes, as the description for the most difficult one mentioned it as “unsettlingly steep.”

The route was short in distance — only .9 of a mile — but dropped over 1,500 feet. It wasn’t really a hike but more of a rock scramble down, where you had to pick your way through loose footing, prickly plants and poison ivy. 

It was all worth it for the payoff at the bottom, however. The route ends on rocks along the rushing Gunnison River, with nearly 2,000 feet of sheer rock walls rising overhead. 

The bottom is a peaceful place to grab a snack and rehydrate for the journey upward, with the stunning views and places to sit amongst the large stones. It’s a good thing, too, because the hard part is yet to come. 

Heading back over the 1,500 vertical feet on the way out is a fairly demanding cardio workout, complete with portions where a bit of rock climbing experience doesn’t hurt and scrambling on all fours over loose ground. It was about as quick to go up as down, but certainly more physically demanding. 

We returned to the park the following day for a more traditional hike, which gave high-angle views of the canyon. It’s always fascinating to look down on birds flying hundreds of feet above the ground. 

Despite the beautiful weather and interesting terrain, we only saw eight people on the hike. Compared to the usual conveyor belt of humanity at a national park, even on off-peak times, it was a refreshing change of pace.

If you’re looking to see more of America’s natural splendor but don’t feel inclined to deal with crowds, I’d strongly recommend Black Canyon of the Gunnison National Park. It may not have the Instagram appeal of the more iconic parks, but anyone who has wanted a clear picture of Delicate Arch without 35 people in it can tell you, that’s not all it’s cracked up to be.

A trial date has been set for the Wendover woman accused of killing her 15-month-old daughter in September 2017.

April Dawn Carter, 30, is charged with first-degree felony aggravated murder. She pleaded not guilty to the charge last November; a second-degree felony charge of obstructing justice was dismissed without prejudice at the same hearing. 

During a pretrial conference Tuesday, Carter’s defense asked to schedule a jury trial. Third District Court Judge Matthew Bates set the five-day jury trial for Oct. 28 through Nov. 2, with a final pretrial conference on Oct. 9 at 10 a.m. 

The victim’s father, Nicholas Ray Rutherford, 32, is charged with second-degree felony obstructing justice and misdemeanor abuse or desecration of a dead human body. 

Wendover City police were originally dispatched to a cardiac arrest at Rutherford and Carter’s residence the morning of Sept. 27, 2017, according to a probable cause statement. Officers performed CPR on the victim but suspended lifesaving efforts once it was apparent the child was deceased.

An officer noticed bruising on the victim’s body and documented the injuries before securing the residence to preserve evidence, the statement said. Investigators obtained a search warrant and four children were removed from the home and placed in the care of the state Division of Child and Family Services.

Carter said the victim may have been injured by hitting her head on a coffee table or when Carter tripped and fell, possibly landing on the child, the probable cause statement said. Rutherford told police he came home from work to find Carter holding the child, whom she said was not breathing.

Rutherford said Carter refused to call 911 and he attempted to resuscitate the child but did not call first responders, due to confusion from sleep deprivation, the statement said.

The medical examiner’s office completed an external exam of the victim the following day and documented bruises on the victim’s head, face, neck, chest, elbows and feet. A spinal fluid sample contained blood, which was consistent with head trauma.

During the full autopsy, the medical examiner’s office determined the victim suffered multiple rib fractures, including five on the left side and three on the right side, the statement said. The fractures appeared to be healing and were not consistent with injuries sustained from CPR.

The autopsy also determined the victim showed signs of brain swelling and hemorrhage. The medical examiner’s office determined the injuries were not the result of normal childhood development but consistent with severe blunt force trauma.

During an interview with police following the autopsy, Carter said she tripped and fell on the victim but provided no further explanation, the probable cause statement said. Rutherford said Carter told him she planned to confess but did not give him details on what she meant.

Investigators noted in the probable cause statement that full custody of the victim had only been awarded to the parents on Aug. 24, 2017, after a trial home placement organized by the state Division of Child and Family Services. 

The victim had been removed at birth from the parents due to drug use; the victim and several of her siblings had tested positive for illegal substances prior to their initial removal from the home.

The Tooele City Council isn’t accepting or approving any multi-family residential zones for up to one year, following a policy approved at a special meeting Wednesday. 

City Council Chairman Steve Pruden introduced the policy, which he described as a response to the recent “avalanche” of applications for multi-family rezones. According to the written policy prepared by city attorney Roger Baker, Tooele City has received many applications for multi-family housing in various areas ranging from R1-7 zones, with minimum lot sizes of 7,000 square feet, to RR-5 zones, with a minimum lot size of 5 acres. 

City Councilman Scott Wardle said he wanted to wait for the study on the city’s infrastructure, including water, sewer and transportation, before approving more multi-family zone changes.

“One of the things that concerned me when I first ran back … a long time ago, was growth without planning,” Wardle said. 

The sentiment was echoed by City Councilman Brad Pratt, who said the city needed to take a step back on multi-family rezones. 

“I think we need to be very careful and not let development outrun services we can provide,” Pratt said. 

Baker’s recommended policy language, read by Pruden, said questions were raised about the city infrastructure being able to meet the need of additional multi-family housing. 

“Facing these questions, the City Council finds it prudent for the welfare of city residents to conclude its infrastructure modeling before approving any new multi-family projects,” the policy said. 

The policy also emphasized it was not a moratorium and is not an attempt to slow growth and development. It will temporarily restrict approval of new rezone applications for the selected densities while the city completes its infrastructure analysis. 

“Effective immediately, as of tonight, no new rezone applications to multi-family residential zoning districts for new multi-family residential projects will be accepted or approved for a period of up to 12 months to allow time for the analysis to be completed,” the policy said. 

While applications for the affected rezones will not be considered under the temporary policy, any associated fees will be refunded if the application is withdrawn, according to the policy. Any other zone changes for different uses will still be considered and land use applications for subdivisions, site plans and other actions in existing zoning will be processed as normal. 

When the City Council is prepared to lift its policy restriction multi-family rezones, it will be announced in a public meeting. 

The policy was approved unanimously on a motion by City Councilwoman Melodi Gochis, seconded by Pratt.

Possible uses for the balance in Tooele City’s solid waste budget were part of the discussion of a $53 million tentative budget during a special meeting of the City Council on Wednesday. 

Tooele City Mayor Debbie Winn told the City Council she had lengthy discussions with staff on equipment needs. With the City Council looking to move $2.1 million of the balance in the solid waste fund, following the necessary public hearings, Winn suggested having flexibility in how the one-time money for equipment is spent. 

“Tomorrow something might break, where I go, ‘You guys just said we could buy this, but we really need this now,’” Winn said. “ … We as administration and the department heads really determine what is best that we need. Then as those purchases take place, we bring them to the council and say, ‘This is what we’re buying, here’s for your approval.’”

City Councilman Scott Wardle followed Winn’s comments with a proposal to use the $2.1 million for some one-time purchases and establishing the base funding for equipment replacement plans in four departments — parks, police, fire and streets. He called the city’s lack of an equipment replacement plan deeply concerning. 

Wardle proposed using $500,000 toward the new police station, $960,000 for equipment replacement, with a priority on snowplows, $375,000 for self-contained breathing apparatus (SCBA) for the fire department, $51,000 for a police vehicle, $97,000 for new carpet in the library and $40,000 for cemetery fencing along Skyline Drive. 

The tentative budget included the first $80,000 payment for a five-year lease for the SCBAs and five police vehicles. By paying for the SCBAs and one police car upfront using the solid waste fund money, $131,000 would be freed up in the current tentative budget. 

Wardle proposed splitting the $131,000 evenly between the parks, police, fire, and street departments. The $32,750 would be the seed fund for equipment budgets in those departments. 

The funds would be included in the department budgets annually and be restricted for equipment purchases only, Wardle said. If the money isn’t spent, it would roll over to the next year and if the City Council holds the certified tax rate for the foreseeable future, the annual contribution could increase, he said. 

“As long as we keep the certified tax rate where it’s at, we add $10,000 to each of those funds every year,” Wardle said. 

Over the next 10 years, the annual contribution to the equipment funds for the departments could be nearly $150,000, Wardle said. There would be enough for the fifth police car annually to meet the city’s fleet replacement goal within two years. 

“To me this seems like, for the first time, it seems like we’re paying forward instead of playing catch up,” Wardle said. 

There is currently a $2.3 million balance in the city’s solid waste fund, a number that is expected to grow again at the end of the budget year by about $200,000, according to Tooele City Assistant Finance Director Shannon Wimmer.

City Council Chairman Steve Pruden proposed using the remaining balance of the $2.1 million on security for City Hall, including security cameras and secure doors and windows in the finance and administrative offices. 

During the meeting, which lasted over three hours, the City Council also discussed freeing up funds to contract with a grant writer to work toward securing federal funds for city projects.

A Tooele man facing three felony counts connected to alleged sexual abuse that occurred several years ago made his initial appearance in 3rd District Court on Monday. 

Michael C. Hare, 40, is charged with two counts of first-degree felony aggravated sexual abuse of a child and one count of first-degree felony object rape of a child. 

Tooele City police were contacted by the mother of the victim, who had disclosed to her they had been sexually abused by Hare, the probable cause statement said. The victim, who is now an adult, said the abuse occurred when they were younger than 15. 

Tooele City police investigators interviewed the victim, who said the abuse occurred over the span of about two years, the statement said. The victim said Hare abused them many times during that time span. 

According to the victim, Hare would get them drunk then make them strip and touch themselves, the probable cause statement said. The victim said Hare digitally penetrated the victim on one occasion and only stopped when they cried out and told him it hurt. 

In the interview with police, the victim said Hare threatened to hurt them if they told anyone about the abuse. 

Hare was originally scheduled to make his initial appearance in 3rd District Court on June 11. The hearing was rescheduled to Monday, where he was ordered to have no direct or indirect contact with the victim.

Hare is scheduled to return to 3rd District Court for a scheduling conference before Judge Matthew Bates on June 25 at 1:30 p.m.

A well-loved community tradition returns this week as the first Fridays on Vine concert is set for June 7. 

A Tooele native, Carver Louis will kick off the free summer concert series at 7 p.m. Friday at the Aquatic Center Park at 200 W. Vine Street. It’s the first of 11 performances running through Aug. 16. 

For Louis, the return home for his third Fridays on Vine performance is a welcome one. 

“It’s always a good time to come back and play for the hometown crowd,” he said. 

Louis said the homecoming will be especially nice after spending time on the road. He’s opened for notable country music performers Travis Denning and Diamond Rio, performed on state with Chris Janson, and played in a Santa Rosa, California, music festival headlined by Florida Georgia Line. 

Describing his sound as a mixture of modern country and country rock, Louis said his music is friendly for all ages. 

In addition to his travels, Louis said a new single, “Change Up,” will be released soon and he’s working on a sophomore album. His debut album, “Through With You,” is available on Spotify, Apple iTunes, Google Play, Amazon Music and other social audio players. 

“We’ve had some pretty good success with our digital album,” Louis said. 

Louis is also scheduled to perform at Country Fan Fest this July 25-27 at Deseret Peak Complex and will open for Phil Vassar on Aug. 2, also at Deseret Peak Complex. 

While attending Tooele High School, Louis went by Carver Jaramillo and starred as quarterback for the Buffaloes. He graduated from THS in 2016. 

Fridays on Vine begins every Friday at 7 p.m. at the Aquatic Center Park at 200 W. Vine Street. The concerts are free to the public, but seating is limited. Patrons are encouraged to bring a blanket or lawn chair.

Tooele County residents paid among the lowest rates for water last year, according to information compiled by the Gardner Policy Institute at the University of Utah.

At the beginning of 2018, Tooele City residents paid the 106th highest rate for 30,000 gallons of residential water at $37.50, while Grantsville City residents paid the 113th highest rate ($31.10). The highest rate in the state was Park City, at $347.68, followed by Cedar Hills at $172.76. 

Wendover residents were 31st highest around the state, at $84.32 for 30,000 gallons.

Not included in the chart, which featured 119 municipalities and improvement districts and is based on information from the Governor’s Office of Management and Budget, was the Stansbury Park Improvement District. SPID charges a base rate of $17.55 for 25,000 gallons on meters under an inch and a base rate of $28.35 for one-inch meters. 

It also charges 75 cents per 1,000 gallons from 25,001 to 50,000 gallons and $1.05 per 1,000 gallons over 50,001 gallons.

While Tooele County residents weren’t paying as much as many other Utah residents for water, prices are increasing around the state. 

Last August, Grantsville City approved its first water rate increase since 1996, which also established a tiered rate system where the rate increased with more consumption. Under the increase, a user now pays $45.40 for 30,000 gallons, which would place Grantsville 93rd in the state based on the Gardner Policy Institute chart. 

The water rate increase in Grantsville also includes an annual increase of up to 2% each year, if approved by the city council during the budget process.

Other municipalities are also raising their rates. Salt Lake City water rates have gradually increased over the past three years and are expected to continue increasing in coming weeks. 

The need to improve or replace infrastructure has been a driving factor in rising water and sewer rates. Grantsville is replacing its Main Street sewer and water lines this year and was cited as one reason for the increase. 

If you attend a planning commission meeting for just about any municipal body in Tooele County, a major concern from residents is water availability. The state has also looked into water scarcity as the population is expected to nearly double by 2060, completing a recommended water strategy in July 2017.  

In the strategy document, it identified at least two-thirds of urban water in Utah is used for lawns and gardens. Recommendations included amending city ordinances on water use and pricing and modifying pricing structures to discourage over-use of water.

Up Middle Canyon on Monday, several crews were using chainsaws to trim low hanging branches and brush along the side of the road. 

The cut branches and other debris were stacked along the roadside, waiting for a wood chipper that slowly made its way up the canyon behind the workers. The crew, the Twin Peaks Type 2 Initial Attack, consists of four fire technicians, 17 seasonal wildland firefighters, and is sponsored by the state Department of Natural Resources Division of Forestry, Fire, and State Lands. 

The point of the operation is to create a shaded fuel break, according to Tooele County Fire Warden Daniel Walton.

“The idea there is not to just clear out the entire area along the road, but to create a buffer zone,” Walton said. “So should fire come down one side of the canyon, it gives us a place to stop it and slow the fire down and try and prevent it from jumping the road and getting to the other side.”

Last July, a fire burned 171 acres in Middle Canyon. As many as 101 personnel were assigned to fight the fire, with resources including six engines, two hand crews, a hotshot crew and a helicopter. 

During the spring, fire crews are training, acquiring equipment and completing on-the-ground fire mitigation in preparation for the fire season, Walton said.

Following a cold and wet winter, followed by one of the wettest springs in Utah’s recorded weather history, this fire season is shaping up to be a change from last year. At this time last year, it was already extremely hot and dry, but there wasn’t much grass crop, Walton said. 

“So throughout the summer last year, we didn’t really see large fire growth down in the valleys,” he said. “That’s going to be a totally different story should we dry out this summer. All it could take is one to two weeks of hot, dry weather and that grass starts turning yellow.” 

The amount of snowpack from the winter could also have an effect on the location of fires this summer. 

“Last year we saw more of a high elevation fire season,” Walton said. “There was a lot more … potential for large fires in the mountains. This year we’ll have a lot of potential for large fires in the valleys.”

With more potential for fire in the wildland-urban interface this year, Walton said property owners should be prepared by creating defensible space and having an evacuation plan. Rural residents should also prepare evacuation plans for any large animals they might have. 

Walton said most structure fires caused by wildland fires are the result of embers getting into the eaves or uncleaned rain gutters on homes. Sometimes the fire won’t be noticed until hours later, due to its modest start. 

Residents can also sign a pledge as part of a campaign called Spark Change through the Utah Department of Natural Resources. The pledge to prevent fires can be signed at sparkchange.utah.gov and those entering have a chance to win a $250 gift card. 

People should also be cognizant of other fire starting behaviors, especially with vehicles. Walton said vehicles are the top cause of human-caused wildfires, usually from worn brake pads, clogged catalytic converters, dragging trailer chains or loose lug nuts. 

Anyone welding or grinding should avoid dry vegetation and windy days, Walton said. ATV and UTV riders should check for a properly working spark arrester. 

Walton said there are fires started every year by target shooting in Tooele County. Persons who are shooting should only do so in fire-safe zones and not use tannerite on federal land. 

At this point in the year, there is typically about 20 human-caused fires. So far this year, there have only been 10.  

“We do anticipate that number to go up as soon as there’s possibility for wildfires,” Walton said. 

The predictive services of the National Interagency Fire Center predicts below normal wildland fire potential for Tooele County in June, but normal potential in July. 

“An average month for us is very busy,” Walton said. 

With the sandy soil and hot sun in the county, however, conditions can change rapidly as moisture doesn’t stick around long, Walton said. 

There are no statewide fire restrictions currently in place. The open burn season ended on May 30, however, and residents must seek burn permits, which must be approved by local fire departments in municipalities and by Walton in unincorporated Tooele County. 

Anyone with ideas about combating or preventing wildfires can contact Walton at 435-833-8123. For more information about wildfires, mitigation, burn permits and other related content, visit tooelecountysheriff.org/firewarden.htm.