ARIZONA

Officials agree on election oversight

PHOENIX — Election officials in Arizona’s most populous county reached an agreement a week before the state’s July 21 primary on how to jointly oversee the vote, ending a prolonged legal battle.

Republican Maricopa County Recorder Justin Heap sued the predominantly GOP board of supervisors in June 2025, alleging it illegally took control of certain aspects of election administration. The board called the lawsuit frivolous and said Heap was wasting taxpayer money.

They reached a settlement to resolve the lawsuit after mediated negotiations, and the board approved it on July 14.

“This deal gets us out of the courtroom,” board Chair Kate Brophy McGee, said after the vote.

Under the agreement, an interim plan proposed by Heap and approved by the Arizona Supreme Court will govern the July 21 primary. Early voting began in late June.

Heap will oversee much of early voting, selection of ballot drop box locations and other duties. The board will handle other areas, including Election Day voting, ballot tabulation and voting location equipment maintenance. The board also will fund a new $15 million information technology system and related positions for the recorder.

In the past, Heap has stopped short of repeating false claims that the 2020 and 2022 elections were stolen. But he has said voters don’t trust the state’s voting system and that it is poorly run.

Supervisor Steve Gallardo, a Democrat, did not vote to approve the settlement and criticized Heap during the board meeting.

MONTANA

Man recounts bison attack

Bison that appear to be grazing peacefully are able to accelerate into a terrifying pace, making them among the most dangerous animals in Yellowstone, where one of the giant bovines recently charged at and tossed a grandfather.

Carl McDaniel, 65, suffered multiple bone fractures in the July 10 attack at the national park but lived to tell the tale, as seen in a video he recorded a few days later from his bed at Bozeman Health Deaconess Medical Center in southern Montana.

“He wasn’t showing aggression or anything like that until it picked a target. That target happened to be me,” McDaniel said in the video posted on Instagram on July 18.

McDaniel was on a after-dinner stroll with his grandson when the attack happened at Bridge Bay Campground, not far from Yellowstone Lake.

“They move faster than you could ever imagine. He just kept coming,” he said. The bison did not connect with McDaniel’s grandson, who was not hurt.

Bison can run up to 35 mph, faster than the men’s world record in the 100-meter dash. They stand up to 6 feet tall, weigh up to 2,000 pounds, and are North America’s biggest land animal.

Yellowstone records on average a couple of bison attacks every year. At least two people were attacked in the park in 2025.

Bozeman Health emergency department Dr. Eric Lowe said in the video that McDaniel suffered fractures in multiple places. McDaniel said the hardest part wasn’t the creature’s horns, ti was landing on the ground.

UTAH

5 dead after flash flood

BICKNELL — Five family members who had set out for a day of hiking were killed after a flash flood swept through canyons of southern Utah on July 17, law enforcement officials said.

The victims were a captain in the Provo, Utah, fire department, his wife and their sons, according to fire officials. A daughter who was not on the trip survived.

The family arrived on July 17 at Sunglow Campground in a scenic red rock canyon near Bicknell, Utah for their day excursion, the Wayne County Sheriff’s Office said.

“It is believed the family fell victim to flooding caused by heavy rains,” the sheriff’s office said in a news release.

Although the sheriff’s office did not identify the victims, the Provo Fire Department confirmed in a social media post that a fire captain, Spencer Long, and his family members were killed.

“We are absolutely heartbroken by the death of Captain Spencer Long and his family. Our thoughts are with his family, friends, and colleagues during this difficult time,” officials with the fire department wrote.

Long, his wife Katrina and their sons Reid, Thayne and Gage died in the devastating floods, according to a GoFundMe site set up by a family friend to support the Longs’ daughter as she navigates the loss of her family.

WYOMING

Casper cuts parks watering

Casper residents noticing browner parks this summer are seeing the result of two forces: an unusually dry winter and the city’s push to reduce water costs.

During the July 14 work session, Casper City Council received an update on the city’s irrigation-saving efforts, with City Manager Janine Jordan asking the public for patience as some landscapes adjust.

“It is the time of year when things start to go from green to brown, and people start to notice,” Jordan said.

“Water conservation has been a strategic priority for several years as irrigation costs and water resource concerns have continued to increase,” Zulima Lopez, director of parks, recreation and facilities, added.

To reduce costs, the city has replaced baseline irrigation control and pump stations, implemented raw water well irrigation, tried alternative water rates and reduced and naturalized irrigated areas.

The impacts of each strategy are hard to parse because they have been introduced at the same time, Lopez said.

The city has now implemented baseline irrigation in city hall, fire stations, a soccer complex, and large park, Lopez said. At the soccer complex alone, estimated water savings are 5 million gallons.

The city also modernized irrigation pump stations at multiple locations, bringing faster response and reduced staff travel time. Since they were implemented in May, the city does not yet have accurate estimates for electricity consumption and irrigation runtime reductions.

Advancement of raw well water irrigation, which is already used at the golf course, has been limited over the past two years as other strategies have been prioritized.

Implementing a reduced water rate at parks, athletic fields, the cemetery, golf course and other seasonal public facilities has saved the city roughly $30,000, Lopez said.

The city’s efforts to reduce landscaped areas and watering frequency have resulted in roughly $100,000 in water cost savings, he noted.