Month: July 2026

POCATELLO, Idaho (KIFI) – A tradition born from tragedy is back in Pocatello for the twelfth year– the annual Parrish Family 3-on-3 Basketball Tournament. The competition serves as a fundraiser for the NO C.O. Foundation and the Chubbuck Lions Club, as well as an opportuity to raise awareness about carbon monoxide poisoning.

In an incident that shook the community, Bill Parrish, his wife Ross, and their two young sons died in their sleep from carbon monoxide poisoning in 2014. Carri Parrish Curtis, Bill’s sister and vice president of the NO C.O. Foundation explained a hot water heater malfunctioned and emitted the toxic gas throughout the night.

“The furnace was of course, running because it was February, and it sucked that carbon monoxide being released from the hot water heater into the vents to the house and pushed it throughout the house while they were sleeping,” Parrish Curtis said.

The remaining family members learned a valuable lesson: death by CO poisoning is preventable.

“We want to make sure that this never happens to anybody else ever again,” Parrish Curtis said. “As long as we have more people become educated and have detectors in their home, so we started the NO C.O. Foundation.”

The foundation provides free CO detectors to anyone in need. Unlike functioning smoke alarms, in order to buy or rent a living space, a carbon monoxide detector is not required. Parrish Curtis said others have suffered from vacation rentals not being equipped with a detector, leading the foundation to provide portable equipment.

Just three months after the tragedy in the Parrish family, Carri and her husband decided to host a basketball tournament in honor and memory of their lost loved ones.

“My brother is a big basketball player, he played college ball and raised his kids to play basketball, so it’s a love of all of our family,” Parrish Curtis said. “We thought of it to commemorate them and remember them and do a fundraiser for the Lions Club.”

The Chubbuck Lions Club is a service organization focused on restoring eyesight and hearing for local people. The Parrish family combined forces with them to create the perfect event for the community.

“It’s not just to create awareness and fundraise, it’s to create a fun event where we’ve got food, live music and high energy basketball,” Parrish Curtis said.

She said all ages are welcome to compete, from eight years old to 88. The divisions are split into men’s and women’s as well as by skill level categories. The event has grown to nearly 100 teams each year.

“We were wishing and crossing our fingers for 20 to 30 teams total, and it has grown and spread across all the divisons,” she said. “We’re so grateful for all the support, we want to make sure everyone gets to play.”

Their main focus post-tournament is to turn the funds around right back into the community, including to purchase and distribute more carbon monoxide detectors across the region. At the basketball tournament under the NO C.O. Foundation tent, visitors can grab a free detector. They’re also asking anyone with extra glasses lying around to come donate them to the Chubbuck Lions Club at the tournament.

Each registered player gets a Parrish Family T-shirt. Parrish Curtis said they switch colors each year, and 2026 is the year of coral. This year’s event will also have a focus on cooling stations, with misters, water guns and hydration stations available to keep all players safe during the heat advisory.

Parrish Curtis said she’s already had multiple families tell her how the detectors saved their lives.

“Two more people who have come to the tournament and got carbon monoxide detectors, their lives were saved because they had a leak in their home,” she said. “Otherwise, without those detectors, they went off when they were already sleeping, so they could’ve not made it.”

The tournament begins at 5 p.m. on Friday, July 31. Opening ceremonies are at 8:30 a.m. on Saturday, August 1 with tournament play to follow. Sign-ups for teams are still open through Thursday, July 30. To register, visit chubbucklions.org.

IDAHO FALLS, Idaho (KIFI) — The federal government is proposing to give Idaho, Montana and Wyoming greater authority to manage grizzly bear populations.

Since 1975, grizzly bears have been a protected species under the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, meaning only the federal agency can handle anything regarding a grizzly bear’s status.

In 1993, the federal organization created a recovery plan to boost the species population. Since then, there have been cases, starting back in 2017, to remove grizzlies from the protected species list.

This proposal would allow specific state organizations to capture and kill grizzlies under their own terms instead of the federal governments. The move could increase flexibility for grizzly bear management in the areas where species have met or exceeded federal recovery benchmarks.

Sens. Jim Risch, Mike Crapo, along with Gov. Brad Little have applauded the move, each stating that the grizzly population have exceeded recovery goals and that management should be left to each state.

“It’s abundantly clear Idaho’s grizzly bear populations have widely exceeded recovery goals,” Risch said. “Increasing state authority to manage grizzly bears ensures our own local wildlife agencies, who understand Idaho’s environment best, can follow the science and make commonsense conservation decisions without bureaucratic inefficiencies.”

“The recovery of the grizzly bear in the West is a conservation success story made possible by decades of work from state, tribal, federal and local conservation partners,” Crapo said. “For years, I have advocated for returning grizzly bear management to the states as recovery objectives and benchmarks have been achieved. Secretary Burgum’s announcement moves us one step closer to allowing Idaho wildlife professionals to manage a recovered grizzly population in a way that protects both the species and Idaho communities.”

“Idaho has proven we can successfully conserve grizzly bears while responsibly managing wildlife and protecting our communities,” Little said. “This proposal is another important step toward returning wildlife management to the states, where decisions are guided by science and those closest to the land. I appreciate President Trump and Secretary Burgum for recognizing what Idaho has long maintained – that recovered grizzly populations should be managed by the states, not Washington, D.C.”

For more information about the proposal, you can visit the United States Fish & Wildlife Service.

You can submit your comment here.

IDAHO FALLS, Idaho (KIFI) — Drivers traveling between Idaho Falls and Rigby should expect nighttime traffic shifts and temporary exit closures beginning this week as the Idaho Transportation Department enters the next phase of its U.S. Highway 20 resurfacing project.

According to the Idaho Transportation Department, overnight work is expected to begin Tuesday evening at Hitt Road. Crews will remove a portion of the existing pavement. Speed limits will be reduced through the work zone, with repaving scheduled for next week.

ITD said work at the remaining interchange areas will follow a similar schedule and expected to be complete by mid-August.

During that time crews will begin resurfacing on and off ramps one ramp at a time. Drivers will be able to use neighboring U.S. 20 exits as detours while work is underway.

“These closures and traffic shifts mark the end of this project to help create a smoother, safer ride for drivers,” ITD Project Manager John Cleveland said. “Repaving this busy route will help the road serve Idaho and any visiting traffic for years to come.”

Specific areas where crews are working will be noted in detail on the Idaho 511 app and at 511.idaho.gov.