Month: July 2026

By Michelle Hofmann

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    CORPUS CHRISTI, Texas (KRIS) — When the United States marks 250 years of independence, it will celebrate innovation that has shaped the nation. Today, that innovation is rewriting history, helping identify American service members lost in World War II and returning them to the families who spent decades wondering whether they would ever come home.

For the family of Navy Seaman 1st Class Clyde Clifton McMeans, that wait lasted more than 80 years.

“We are here to celebrate the homecoming of my uncle Clyde,” his niece, Linda Lynch, said as family, veterans and community members gathered at the Coastal Bend State Veterans Cemetery for his funeral service in May.

McMeans was serving aboard the USS *California* on Dec. 7, 1941, when Japanese aircraft attacked Pearl Harbor, killing more than 2,400 Americans and drawing the United States into World War II. For decades, his family knew how his story began. They simply didn’t know whether he would ever come home.

“He was killed in Pearl Harbor,” Lynch said. “He’s been real to us our whole lives.”

Although she never met her uncle, Lynch said stories about McMeans were woven into her childhood. To her parents and grandparents, he was never forgotten.

“Family talked about him all the time,” she said. “He was so real to our parents.”

Years ago, the Defense POW/MIA Accounting Agency asked McMeans’ surviving relatives to submit DNA samples, hoping new technology could help identify his remains.

“We remember when we got the kit for the DNA,” Lynch said. “My dad and my uncle and my aunt were so excited to give their DNA.”

The family waited. Then they waited some more.

Before her father died, Lynch said one conversation stayed with her.

“He said, ‘I wonder if they’ll find Clyde,'” she recalled. “I told him, ‘I know they’re going to find Clyde. It’s just going to take a little while.'”

That “little while” turned into decades.

More than 80 years after McMeans’ death, the Defense POW/MIA Accounting Agency identified his remains using DNA analysis, forensic anthropology, dental comparisons and military records. The identification allowed the Coastal Bend sailor to return to Texas this year, where he was laid to rest with full military honors.

“It’s amazing,” Lynch said. “They didn’t give up.”

McMeans is among a growing number of Pearl Harbor service members identified through advances in forensic science decades after the attack. He is the second sailor from Texas’ Coastal Bend to be returned home within a six month timeframe, following another Pearl Harbor casualty whose remains were identified and buried last fall.

Lynch said that family helped prepare them for a journey unlike any other.

“They kind of helped us and showed us the ropes,” she said. “We were very, very appreciative.”

What surprised her most, however, was the outpouring of support. The McMeans family expected relatives to attend. Instead, veterans, friends and strangers arrived to honor a sailor most had never known.

“We’re a little overwhelmed that people were so interested in our story,” Lynch said. “People still have that love for their veterans and that love for their country.”

Among those paying their respects was Navy veteran Ernie Whitson of Three Rivers. When Whitson learned McMeans had been identified, he discovered the two men shared an unexpected connection. McMeans had attended school in Agua Dulce with Whitson’s father decades before World War II.

“I felt the need that I really needed to represent my dad,” Whitson said.

His father enlisted in the Navy a year after McMeans was killed at Pearl Harbor. Unlike McMeans, he survived the war, returned home and eventually raised a family. Whitson later followed that same path of service, joining the Navy as a Seabee during the Vietnam War. Working as a construction electrician alongside Marine units, he said military service became part of a family legacy that stretches back generations.

“I’m either fourth or fifth generation Navy,” he said.

For Whitson, the ceremony honored more than one sailor. It reflected a promise that service members are never forgotten, no matter how much time has passed.

“The Navy’s efforts? I love it,” he said. “I’m proud of my military history. I’m proud of the Navy, and I’m proud to be a patriot.”

Officials say every DNA sample submitted by a family member helps investigators identify another missing American service member. Thousands of cases remain open, and advances in forensic science continue to provide answers once thought impossible. Lynch hopes families asked to participate will answer that call.

“We live in an awesome country,” she said. “Look how much we respect someone that has been gone and missing for over 80 years. If the Navy asks you for DNA, give the DNA. They’re hard at work.”

As America prepares to mark 250 years of independence, McMeans’ return serves as a reminder that history is not only preserved in museums and monuments. Sometimes it is rewritten in a laboratory, fulfilled through a family’s patience and faith, and completed with a flag-draped casket finally making its way home.

Please note: This story was provided to CNN Wire by an affiliate and does not contain original CNN reporting. This content carries a strict local market embargo. If you share the same market as the contributor of this article, you may not use it on any platform.

By Sidney Moore

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    ELKHART, Indiana (WBND-LD) — Whether you are taking a road trip or just commuting to work or the grocery story, you are bound to run into one of two things, a highway or train tracks. In honor of our Nation’s 250th year of independence, ABC57’s Sidney Moore dives into why Indiana is labeled as the “Crossroads of America”.

Brent Holaway, Assistant Curator, New York Central Railroad Museum explains, “The country was not built on the roads or the airline industry; it was the railroads. The railroads built this country.” The railroad boom in Indiana came after we started to realize travel through the major waterways really limited our capabilities. By 1854, Indiana was ranked 5th for Rail Mileage across the United States. The railway revolution brought communities together and shaped many local cities to what they are today.

Abigail Gratzol, Assistant Curator, New York Central Railroad Museum paints the picture saying, “It’s just a place where a lot of important corridors meet, and because of that, it brought a lot of people to the city, and it helped fuel our industries a lot by, you know, transporting goods and people here.” Elkhart was one of the key stopping points for some of the most prestigious trains. Gratzol says, “They brought people here that might not have passed through otherwise, and using Elkhart as an example, our downtown was full of theaters and hotels that were, you know, probably specifically geared towards train passengers, because this was a very common, passenger train route.”

It is pretty hard to travel coast to coast and not make your way into Indiana, when looking at a map of the state you can see how many pathways lead to Indianapolis at the center of our state. But “The Crossroads of America” is an evolving term, going from waterways, to trains and more recently cars.

Fast forward to the 1950s, travel looked a lot different, as the development of highways sparked new jobs and pathways through the state. Part of that boom came from the creation of two nationwide highways that get you from coast to coast. The Dixie Highway and Lincoln Highway.

Aaron Helman, an Author and Historian explains, “At one point in time there were only two transnationals in the United States and the intersection of those two highways was right here where we are standing. It was really South Bend that was the crossroads of the United States first, and that’s our heritage, and we have always been in the middle of it all.”

Right at the corner of Washington and Michigan streets in downtown South Bend sits a memorial marker to honor this historic intersection. Helman says, “Being in the middle of everything has brought a lot of diversity to South Bend, and you meet people from other parts of the state who are impressed by the diversity that we have, the Polish neighborhoods that we had, the Hungarian neighborhoods that we had going back for hundreds of years, and that’s what happens when you’re the place that everyone’s coming through all the time.”

Now in present day is Indiana still the “Crossroads of America” after all this change?

Gratzol says, “At the peak of the railroad industry, the United States had 2000 sorry, 266,000 rail miles, and today we have about half of that, but that still gives us the largest rail transportation system in the entire world, even though it used to be double its size.” But Helman comes in with a different viewpoint saying we are straying away from the tagline. “Indiana has distanced itself from that tagline in the last several years, because Indiana doesn’t just want to be a place that you cross through to get to somewhere else, they want to be a destination.”

But at the heart of the state, Indiana is still home to many railways, highways, and pathways, to bring you to wherever your next destination is. One of many reasons why we remain indivisible after 250 years.

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By Andres Valle

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    ESPARTO, California (KCRA) — One year after the deadly fireworks facility explosion in Esparto killed seven men, their families gathered Wednesday night at the same site where they had once waited for answers — this time to honor their loved ones, share their grief and renew calls for accountability.

The seven men killed were Jhony Ramos, Jesus Ramos, Joel Melendez, Christopher Bocog, Angel Voller, Carlos Rodriguez-Mora and Neil Li, the general manager of Devastating Pyrotechnics.

For the families left behind, the pain remains unimaginable.

“We’re bonded for life,” Tiffany-Nolan Rodriguez, whose husband Carlos Rodriguez-Mora was killed in the explosion, said at the vigil. “And that shouldn’t be a bond. It should be barbecues and birthday parties. It shouldn’t be this kind of a bond.”

Rodriguez said she spoke with her husband just seven minutes before the blast.

“I talked to him seven minutes before the blast,” Rodriguez said. “I’m one of the lucky ones; we got to say, ‘I love you.’”

Maria Melendez, whose husband Joel Melendez was killed, said the past year has been consumed by grief and survival.

“This last year has just basically been about surviving,” Melendez said.

Rodriguez said the tragedy cannot be reduced to a single loss.

“There’s seven. There’s seven lives, not just my husband,” Rodriguez said.

Melendez, who was pregnant when her husband was killed, later gave birth to their youngest son. She said one of the hardest parts has been knowing her child will only know his father through images and recordings.

“I show videos, he’ll say, ‘Dad,’” Melendez said. “So it sucks that this is the only way that I can keep his memory alive is through pictures and videos.”

Rodriguez said the last year has been filled with painful milestones for her children.

“Paige turned 14. She graduated with honors from eighth grade. And he wasn’t here for any of it,” Rodriguez said.

During Wednesday night’s vigil, families lit candles, shared photos and laid flowers in memory of the men killed. But the gathering was also a call for justice.

“More should have been done. More can still be done,” Melendez said.

“All the families, we’re not going to stop fighting for accountability and justice,” she said.

Rodriguez described the past year simply: “It’s been a lot this year.”

Still, both women said they are determined to make sure the victims are remembered and that those responsible are held accountable.

A jury has indicted eight people in connection with the explosion, but families say major questions remain about how the illegal fireworks operation was able to grow for nearly a decade without being stopped.

The blast remains one of California’s deadliest fireworks disasters.

Please note: This story was provided to CNN Wire by an affiliate and does not contain original CNN reporting. This content carries a strict local market embargo. If you share the same market as the contributor of this article, you may not use it on any platform.

By Nicholas Gallo

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    NEW MEXICO (KOAT) — Irish ultra-cyclist Joe Barr has completed a 2,400-mile journey along Route 66 in 10 days, six hours, and 27 minutes, with the time submitted for Guinness World Record ratification.

“It’s been the journey of a lifetime,” Barr said.

The ride concluded in Chicago the day before Barr’s 67th birthday, marking the end of a challenging yet rewarding experience.

“The second last day, whenever the weather turned into that storm process in Illinois and the tornadoes hit,” Barr said, describing one of the obstacles he faced.

He also recounted the extreme heat and headwinds in New Mexico.

“There was a point in the race actually when I was crossing, it was in New Mexico when I was crossing the Great Divide, we had a day where the heat was incredible. It was like 108 degrees, and there was a direct headwind all the way,” he said.

Wildlife posed additional challenges during the nighttime in Texas.

“In Texas in the nighttime, there was a huge amount of rattlesnakes that come out onto the road. And we had to use the team cars to segregate the snake so that we could get all the team cars through and I could get through safely,” Barr said.

Despite the difficulties, Barr found moments of beauty along the way.

“I remember in Navajo, we came across a lot of wild horses, and they were on the left side of the road,” he said. “The whole troop of horses crossed across, and we got it on camera where they just continually ran beside me for ages.”

Barr was also motivated by the people he met during his journey.

“There was a police officer with the direct follow car. You instantly think, oh, what have we done wrong here? But it was the complete opposite,” he said. “He actually gave me one of the police challenge coins and the certificate to go with it.”

He recalled a memorable moment in Joplin, Missouri.

“The whole team came with all these huge foil trays where someone had come and fed the whole team. The ice cream shop supplied them all ice cream,” Barr said.

Reflecting on the ride, Barr said it was about more than setting a record.

“I felt that I was traveling a journey that almost demanded me to leave a little bit of myself so I could become part of what that historic journey was,” he said.

“In the Route 66, I have this little grain of sand of history that I can be proud of,” Barr said, adding that his journey coincided with the centennial year of the iconic Mother Road.

Barr’s journey was documented by a film crew, and they plan to release a movie about the experience later this year.

Please note: This story was provided to CNN Wire by an affiliate and does not contain original CNN reporting. This content carries a strict local market embargo. If you share the same market as the contributor of this article, you may not use it on any platform.

By Eric Graves

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    KANSAS CITY, Missouri (KMBC) — Hundreds of thousands of people in Kansas City for FIFA World Cup matches, watch parties, and more means a lot of fun but also the potential for a lot of waste.

With pre-prepared meals in Arrowhead Stadium suites, FIFA Fan Fest parties, and even player meals at team hotels, leftover food can lead to filled dumpsters.

“A third of all food that’s produced in the U.S. gets wasted,” said Tamara Weber.

That’s part of the reason she created Pete’s Garden, a food-recovery nonprofit.

“We work with the food service sector, so that means restaurants, caterers, food service operations, anyone that’s preparing food in bulk, and a lot of times there’s surplus food that is perfectly good to eat, but it was just more than what was needed for the number of people that attended the event,” Weber said. “We’re able to bring that food back to our kitchen here, where our volunteers are portioning and packaging it into take-home family dinners.”

Pete’s Garden works with more than 20 partners year-round, including restaurants, convention centers and sports teams like the Chiefs, Sporting KC and the KC Current.

Volunteers with Pete’s Garden pick up the food and bring it back to Grace & Holy Trinity Cathedral in downtown Kansas City.

In the church’s basement, a team of volunteers places the food in a walk-in freezer until it’s ready to be repackaged.

“When food comes in, it gets weighed and labeled, so we know what all these items are,” Weber said. “This is all food that is stored in our walk-in cooler waiting for volunteers to pack. So, on Monday mornings especially, this walk-in is completely full with food from weekend events.”

From the freezer, more volunteers repackage the food into meal containers for local families.

“It’s whole food,” Weber said. “It is real food, made from scratch. So then we have volunteers who will take the food that comes in and portion and package it into these take-home family dinners.”

Weber said Pete’s Garden then works with other organizations that distribute the food to families in need.

“We work with organizations like Operation Breakthrough Boys and Girls Club,” she said. “These are organizations that are already providing a host of services to families. Our meal is one additional benefit.”

Since starting in 2020, Pete’s Garden has helped thousands of families across the metro.

“This year we will recover about 260,000 pounds of food, which doesn’t really mean anything until I put it in terms of a thousand families a week take home a complete family dinner at least once a week,” Weber said.

Their operations grew even larger in June and July due to the World Cup. Pete’s Garden is working with KC2026 to pick up food from Arrowhead Stadium, FIFA Fan Fest and even team hotels.

“We are expecting to distribute about 10,000 additional meals over the course of June and July during the FIFA period, and at this point, we’re on pace to hit that,” Weber said.

It’s created some funny situations for the Pete’s Garden team, like when untouched food from KC’s base camp teams shows up at their doors.

“We’ve been picking up food from the Argentina hotel,” Weber said. “That’s been fun. Although we did not get any birthday cake from Lionel Messi’s birthday. We were looking for it. But, you know, that’s been fun because our volunteers get to see, ‘Oh, this is what the Argentinian team ate last night for dinner.'”

Ultimately, it’s feeding families in need in Kansas City, but it’s also giving families the extra time to sit down and have a nice family meal.

“Our free take-home dinners allow the family extra time to connect over a nice meal,” Weber said.

Pete’s Garden is always looking for more restaurants to work with across Kansas City; you can find out more information on their website.

Please note: This story was provided to CNN Wire by an affiliate and does not contain original CNN reporting. This content carries a strict local market embargo. If you share the same market as the contributor of this article, you may not use it on any platform.

By Ella Wales

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    NEW ORLEANS (WDSU) — Sports agents in Louisiana will now have to register with the state Department of Justice’s public protection division. An online registration portal launched on Wednesday.

The portal comes after a state law went into effect in June. The process to get registered includes training, paying a fee and passing a background check.

It’s all meant to keep young student-athletes from falling in with unlicensed agents, as name, image and likeness continues to change the landscape of college and high school sports.

Attorney General Liz Murrill announced the launch of the new portal at a press conference Wednesday morning.

“I commend the attorney general for doing this because it has literally turned into the wild, wild West,” Alvianne Brule said.

Brule is a certified NFL sports agent and student-athlete advocate. She said she has seen student-athletes be taken advantage of, or sign a contract they don’t fully understand.

“This student athlete signed an agreement that went beyond his collegiate eligibility, which basically put his NCAA eligibility at risk, so there was a lot he had to go through and was almost ruled ineligible because of that contract he agreed to,” she said.

The new process to become a registered agent in Louisiana will be similar to what NFL agents have to go through.

Former Saints player turned agent Lance Moore said it’s a great step.

“Why would there not be a similar process or at least a registration process for the state to be able to do such things like background checks, and make sure that the people who are registering are who they say they are, and looking out for the best interest of the athletes,” he said.

According to the state, 427 Louisiana athletes conducted NIL deals that totaled $17 million during the 2024-25 school year.

That number is only expected to grow, as even high schoolers are signing NIL deals.

Attorneys at Davillier Law Group look over NIL contracts for athletes.

“I definitely think that from our role, more regulations kind of controlling the industry is a positive for students and their parents,” Dominique Davillier said.

Davillier said parents and students can often miss red flags in contracts that are hidden by legal jargon.

“There’s a lot of terms I think that parents should be especially paying attention to. Exclusivity is a really big one; also matching the term date with the end of the season that the student athlete is playing in, I think those are some big traps that student athletes, we’ve seen fall into,” she said.

Any athlete agent already operating in Louisiana must be registered under the new system no later than Aug. 1, 2026.

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By Rachel Whelan

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    FLORENCE, Kentucky (WLWT) — When Tom O’Connell was 9 years old, a stroke left him without the use of the right side of his body.

Most people, he says, would see that as one of the worst days of their lives.

O’Connell sees it differently.

“Most people would consider that a bummer, but I didn’t,” he said. “I considered it a goldmine.”

That perspective became the foundation of his memoir, “Cherish the Challenge,” a 305-page book he spent four years writing one keystroke at a time.

The stroke forced him to relearn how to walk, talk and write. While he never regained the use of the right side of his body, he never allowed the stroke to define the rest of his life.

Instead, O’Connell built a career as an accountant, married his wife, raised two children and is now a proud grandfather.

His memoir reflects on those experiences, sharing stories from his childhood, the love and support of his family and the lessons he learned along the way.

Writing the book was no small task.

Because he only has the use of his left hand, O’Connell typed all 305 pages, 25 chapters and nearly 100,000 words using a single finger.

“I had to write it just using one finger of this hand because I didn’t have any use of this hand,” he said.

For O’Connell, however, the accomplishment isn’t simply finishing a book. It’s sharing the outlook that has guided him since childhood.

“I’d like people to get out of it that nothing is impossible and that nothing is that bad,” he said. “People who are kind of sad … will read this book and say, ‘It’s not that bad.'”

O’Connell hopes “Cherish the Challenge” encourages readers to look beyond their hardships and appreciate the opportunities that can come from them.

“Cherish the Challenge” is available at Barnes & Noble in Florence and through online retailers.

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By Jordan Ryan

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    OKLAHOMA CITY (KOCO) — Oklahoma City firefighters are preparing to use new tools and training to better assist autistic individuals during emergencies, an initiative supported by local partnerships.

Lt. Ryan Woodard of the Oklahoma City Fire Department highlighted the challenges faced by families with special needs during crisis situations.

There are a lot of these families that are just hanging on by their fingernails, you know, trying to get through every day. You have elderly people taking care of adults with all kinds of different special needs. We just need to make sure that we take good care of this population because they’re just trying to get through every day,” Woodard said.

According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, 1 in 31 children nationally is diagnosed with autism spectrum disorder, meaning firefighters often encounter patients on the spectrum during calls.

“It can either be that the driver is autistic or the passenger is autistic,” Woodard said.

To address these situations, firefighters will soon have access to communication cards available in both English and Spanish.

“When they’re stressed, we can offer them a communication card. And these are available in both English and in Spanish, and they can indicate to us what they’re wanting and needing, whereas verbalizing those things would be very difficult for them in the middle of an emergency. Seventy percent of our patients are autistic. Patients, when stressed, are going to have a very difficult time communicating whatever is going on,” Woodard said.

Emily Scott, executive director of the Autism Foundation of Oklahoma, emphasized the importance of equipping first responders with the right tools and training.

“We want them to feel completely equipped and completely trained in order to help these individuals. These kits were thoughtfully put together by individuals with autism, with parents and our staff, who have experience in these situations,” Scott said.

Woodard, who travels across the state and country to train others, shared his personal connection to the initiative.

“I have had experiences with autistic patients including experiences having autistic family members. I’m probably a little bit more prepared to deal with this, and especially now that I’ve been teaching it. So yes, I have had these experiences, and allowing those on the spectrum to have what they need to deal with the situation is by far the best thing we can do,” he said.

Local partnerships, such as one with Bob Moore Subaru, have made these resources possible.

“It’s been a great partnership, a great opportunity, and it’s always nice to see that we’re able to give back. Customers help by choosing a charity when purchasing a vehicle. It’s going to people that need it and going back to our hometown charities,” Dylan West from Bob Moore Subaru said.

The kits include items such as fidget spinners, headphones and communication booklets to help autistic individuals effectively communicate during crises.

Woodard noted that the training is already making a difference.

“I get emails and text messages quite often from people saying, ‘Hey, I took your class, and because of that, we were able to deal with this situation.’ Or, I’ve had people call me in the middle of an emergency and say, ‘Hey, we have this going on. What should we do? How should we deal with this?’ It’s grown into a mobile integrated health division where we’re getting resources for people with children and their family members,” he said.

With these new resources set to be implemented soon, Oklahoma City firefighters will be even more prepared to assist autistic individuals during emergencies.

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By Olivia Hickey

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    OKLAHOMA CITY (KOCO) — More than 500 animals, including over 450 birds, were seized during a drug bust in southwest Oklahoma City last week and surrendered to Oklahoma City Animal Welfare, clearing the way for their adoption.

For the first time, Oklahoma City Animal Welfare has released videos showing the animals, which were taken in after the meth bust on June 25 and June 26.

Johny Sandoval, animal welfare superintendent for the city of Oklahoma City, said the animals’ health concerns became apparent as the seizure progressed.

“As the seizure progressed throughout the night on June 25 into June 26, we did identify that a lot of the animals did have some health concerns,” Sandoval said.

In addition to drug charges, the owners of the home could face animal cruelty charges.

“Our animal welfare investigators are pursuing cruelty charges with the district attorney’s office,” Sandoval said.

Officials have not disclosed specifics about the animals’ conditions but said every available space inside the shelter is now being used to care for them.

“We had to convert all of our existing space that we would typically use for horses and large livestock to house the birds,” Sandoval said.

The one horse seized during the bust is receiving care at another facility.

With hundreds of animals still needing care and the investigation ongoing, transferring the animals to other facilities and finding them new homes will take time.

Animal Welfare officials said the best way to help is by donating or adopting an animal to create space during their “Name Your Price” adoption event, which runs through Friday.

The Oklahoma City Police Department said the investigation is ongoing, and the district attorney’s office has not yet commented.

Please note: This story was provided to CNN Wire by an affiliate and does not contain original CNN reporting. This content carries a strict local market embargo. If you share the same market as the contributor of this article, you may not use it on any platform.

By Ben Winslow

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    ORANGEVILLE, Utah (KSTU) — A nuclear power startup and an artificial intelligence computing company are partnering to try to create a “waterless” data center.

At an event here on Wednesday, NVIDIA debuted a chip fully powered by Valar Atomics’ small modular nuclear reactor. It was used to launch a website to demonstrate its capabilities when scaled up. The website is accessible here when the reactor is powered up.

Valar Atomics founder Isaiah Taylor said it would not use water. Instead, helium cools it.

“Our architecture reactor that we’ve built here operates at higher temperatures which does not make water cooling necessary,” he told FOX 13 News. “On NVIDIA’s side, they’ve worked out an architecture for their cooling systems which operates at higher temperatures as well, once again allowing for air cooling and a closed-loop system.”

Valar Atomics has been working on its small modular reactor in a sandbox environment at the state of Utah’s San Rafael Energy Lab. The company announced last month it had achieved “criticality,” a milestone for nuclear power development and beating President Trump’s July 4 deadline for nuclear power pilot projects.

Under his “Operation Gigawatt” initiative to expand energy production in Utah, Governor Spencer Cox has pushed to introduce nuclear power to meet growing energy demands. Companies have been setting up various projects related to nuclear power across the state. So far, Valar Atomics is the first to have a working reactor.

As of Wednesday, when FOX 13 News toured the reactor, company officials said it was only generating 100 kilowatts of electricity. But Taylor said the plan was to begin scaling up.

“Over the next couple of years here in Emery County, you’ll see us take the next steps towards have a full commercial system,” he said.

Valar Atomics and NVIDIA’s partnership for a waterless AI data center is something being watched by Gov. Cox’s Office of Energy Development. The state has seen large public protests over celebrity investor Kevin O’Leary’s “Stratos Project” data center development in Box Elder County. The public pushback, with concerns about impacts to the environment and the Great Salt Lake in particular, has forced the governor to issue an executive order setting guardrails around data center development.

“You have to use our resources responsibly, or else we’re not going to let you do it. It’s always been that way and it’s going to continue to be that way,” said Emy Lesofski, the director of Utah’s Office of Energy Development.

Asked if she believed Valar Atomics and NVIDIA could achieve what they wanted to with a “waterless data center,” she told FOX 13 News: “We’re standing here today. A lot of people had skepticism about what we could do if we worked together, and we’re standing today at the San Rafael Energy Lab where we have a test reactor that is producing power and a power a chip. I would never say no.”

Taylor said he believed it could be a solution to data center concerns.

“We believe that this is the way forward. We know that the United States needs to be competitive in artificial intelligence,” he told FOX 13 News. “AI factories and scaling it out is a national strategic priority for the United States. But we need to do it without taxing local communities of water and power and that’s exactly what we’re proving today.”

NVIDIA went further in announcing plans for a future AI factory in Emery County, something that generated huge cheers from the crowd (though no timeline has been set for it). Community leaders have been largely supportive of Valar Atomics’ project, saying they have communicated extensively about their plans.

“It’s great for our local community, not only the job base but the tax base as well,” said Emery County Commissioner Jordan Leonard. “They’re hiring our local folks and just excited they’re here and the new technology with energy.”

Rep. Carl Albrecht, R-Richfield, who sponsored the legislation to allow nuclear power development in the state, told FOX 13 News he believed this is a good idea.

“We’re going to save water for you guys up north in the Great Salt Lake and we’re going to build some AI data centers down here in rural Utah that’ll help the economy,” he said. “I think it can be done.”

Please note: This story was provided to CNN Wire by an affiliate and does not contain original CNN reporting. This content carries a strict local market embargo. If you share the same market as the contributor of this article, you may not use it on any platform.