Santa Teresa livestock crossing to reopen amid New World screwworm prevention efforts

KVIA on September 17, 2026

Lauren Bly

SANTA TERESA, N.M. (KVIA) — U.S. Secretary of Agriculture Brooke L. Rollins on Thursday said the Santa Teresa livestock port will reopen Sept. 24.

The opening is part of a phased reopening of ports as officials work to restore operations with protocols to prevent the spread of New World screwworm. NWS is a parasite that can infect livestock through open wounds.

The New World screwworm lays eggs that hatch into maggots, which feed on the living flesh of animals, prompting the widespread halt of cattle imports and exports.

Last year, U.S. and Mexican authorities closed the livestock crossings to prevent the spread.

The Santa Teresa POE, the largest in North America, typically handles more than 500,000 head of cattle annually. This cattle trade through the Santa Teresa port represents an economic value of between $1.2 and $1.4 billion per year.

“Livestock ports of entry on our southern border have played a very historic and critical role in the American cattle trade for more than 120 years. Imports from Mexico make their way to US feedlots. In fact, most of the cattle who cross at this port make their way to Texas feedlots, eventually ending up on dinner tables across America,” said Secretary of Agriculture Brooke Rollins.

The U.S. Department of Agriculture announced some cattle reports would start Aug. 24. The first port scheduled to open was in Douglas, Arizona. Which has been successful according to officials.

“Douglas port reopening has exceeded all expectations,” said Rollins.When the USDA made the announcement, Texas Agriculture Commissioner Sid Miller said allowing a limited resumption of cattle importation is not the finish line, and said there needs to be a “sustained commitment to aggressive use of every proven eradication tool.”

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Rexburg man faces felonies in Internet crimes against children probe

KIFI on September 17, 2026

Seth Ratliff

REXBURG, Idaho (KIFI) — A Rexburg man is facing multiple felony charges following an Internet Crimes Against Children investigation in Madison County.

Dakota Beattie was arrested after detectives investigated a CyberTip forwarded by the Idaho Attorney General’s Office ICAC Task Force earlier this month. He is charged with felony possession of sexually exploitative material and AI-generated sexually exploitative material.

A judge set Beattie’s bond at $250,000.

If convicted, a single count of possessing sexually exploitative material carries a maximum sentence of 10 years in state prison and a $10,000 fine. The charge for possessing AI-generated material carries an additional penalty of up to 5 years in prison and a $5,000 fine. Possessing AI-generated sexually exploitative material carries an additional prison sentence of up to 5 years and a $5,000 fine under Idaho law.

EDITOR’S NOTE: Charges represent a formal accusation. All defendants are presumed innocent unless and until proven guilty in a court of law.

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Firefighters knock down salvage yard fire at Shaw’s Auto Parts

KIFI on September 17, 2026

Seth Ratliff

POCATELLO, Idaho (KIFI) — The Pocatello Fire Department is investigating after two vehicles caught fire in the yard of Shaw’s Auto Parts along N 1st Ave on Wednesday.

PFD spokesperson Kim Stouse says the call came in around 2:23 p.m. that flames had broken out in a single vehicle and quickly spread to a nearby car.

Multiple fire crews responded and quickly knocked down the flames, keeping the fire from spreading.

No injuries were reported, and the cause remains under investigation.

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Thursday morning rollover crash causes traffic impacts near Colorado Springs Airport

KRDO on September 17, 2026

Alexander Brunet

COLORADO SPRINGS, Colo. (KRDO) – A driver was unharmed after his car rolled over on Powers Boulevard, just north of the Milton E. Proby Parkway intersection, just before 5 a.m. on Thursday.

The crash scene was outside the main entrance to the Colorado Springs Airport.

Police said that the driver was traveling west on the parkway and attempted to merge onto northbound Powers when he lost control on the ramp, which has a fairly sharp curve.

“He was going too fast,” an officer at the scene told KRDO 13’s The Road Warrior, and the pavement was damp from rain overnight.

The car rolled, possibly twice, before stopping upside down on the center median and the left lane — leaving a trail of shattered glass and other debris behind.

When the Road Warrior arrived, the driver stood in the median beside the car, leaning on a lightpost and grinning: “I’m OK, just embarrassed.”

Police said that the driver wasn’t hurt.

Officers briefly closed both lanes of northbound Powers around the crash, leaving a narrow path for traffic to move through and clogging traffic from the double left-turn lanes on the eastbound parkway.

By just after 6 a.m., a tow truck driver had removed the wreckage and traffic returned to normal.

Stay up to date with the latest local news, sports, and investigations by downloading the KRDO13 app. Click here to download it from the Apple App Store. Android users can download it from Google Play here.

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College and Career Fair returns to Coachella Valley

KESQ on September 17, 2026

Dakota Makinen

RANCHO MIRAGE, Calif.(KESQ) — Coachella Valley students and families can explore college and career opportunities today at the Regional College and Career Fair.

The event brings colleges, universities, career and technical education programs, employers and community organizations together to help students plan for life after high school.

Students can also learn about financial aid, career opportunities and other resources.

The event runs 4 to 7 p.m. at Agua Caliente Resort Casino Spa Rancho Mirage, located at 32-250 Bob Hope Drive.

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NMSU Holocaust exhibit presents ‘Survivors Who Made New Mexico Home’

KVIA on September 17, 2026

Nicole Ardila

New Mexico State University is hosting the “Americans and the Holocaust” traveling exhibit, and this week’s programming showcases “Refuge in the Land of Enchantment: Holocaust Survivors Who Made New Mexico Home.”

On Thursday, Camelia Caton-Garcia, an archivist at New Mexico Holocaust & Intolerance Museum will share the personal stories of survivors who migrated to the U.S. during the Holocaust.

The programming event is part of Americans and the Holocaust, a traveling exhibition from the U.S. Holocaust Memorial Museum and American Library Association.

It discusses the motives, pressures and fears that shaped Americans’ responses to Nazism, war and genocide in Europe during the 1930s and 1940s.

The NMSU Zuhl Library was selected as one of 50 U.S. libraries to present the touring version of the special exhibition between 2024 to 2026.

“Americans and the Holocaust” will be on display at Zuhl Library until Friday, September 25, 2026.  

Next Thursday, Sept. 24, there will be a film screening of “Nazi Town, USA” with Director Peter Yost.

Admission is free and all ages are welcome.

The events are from 3 p.m. to 4 p.m. every week.

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KRDO13 live from the airstrip ahead of Pikes Peak Regional Air Show

KRDO on September 17, 2026

Bradley Davis

COLORADO SPRINGS, Colo. (KRDO) – The annual Pikes Peak Regional Air Show returns this weekend to the Colorado Springs Airport with live flyovers and close-up aircraft encounters.

The air show has partnered with the National Museum of WWII Aviation to bring refurbished wartime planes to the airstrip for crowds to see up close.

The F-18 Rhino Demo Team will headline the show. The group flies at 1:55 p.m. both Saturday and Sunday.

“They will be loud. They will be ones that you could feel in your bones, and they will be putting on an incredible show for us,” said Colorado Springs Sports Corp Director of Marketing Rands Keasler.

The hot ramp landing strip opens in the morning for guests to check out before the shows start at 10:50 a.m. The pilots will be around talking to guests and showing off their planes.

Tickets are still available. General admission is $55 per person. You can find a full schedule of events here.

Stay up to date with the latest local news, sports, and investigations by downloading the KRDO13 app. Click here to download it from the Apple App Store. Android users can download it from Google Play here.

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Man caught on video beating puppy to death, admits he “went too far,” deputies say

CNN Newsource on September 17, 2026

By Steven Yablonski

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    PUNTA GORDA, Florida (WFOR) — A Florida man is in jail after investigators say he was caught on video repeatedly punching a 6-week-old puppy until it died.

Neil R. Puterbaugh, 53, of Punta Gorda, was arrested Tuesday at his home by Charlotte County Sheriff’s Office deputies. He now faces felony aggravated animal cruelty charges and a violation of probation.

According to the Charlotte County Sheriff’s Office, deputies began to investigate the case on Tuesday when a local news outlet sent a crime tip to investigators that included video showing Puterbaugh forcefully striking the puppy multiple times.

The abuse continued until the animal died, and Puterbaugh then disposed of the puppy’s body, investigators said.

Detectives obtained the video and spent the next two days building their case before arresting Puterbaugh at his home.

“My heart hurts for what this sweet puppy endured,” Sheriff Bill Prummell said in a statement. “There is no excuse for abuse of this kind, and I believe the only word to describe it is ‘evil.'”

After his arrest, Puterbaugh was interviewed where deputies said he admitted to striking the puppy and said he went too far.

Detectives also recovered additional videos from his residence showing further acts of abuse against the puppy.

“Thank you to the person who reported this, and to our media partner who shared it with us to investigate,” Prummell continued. “I wish we could have known sooner so that maybe we could have prevented this terrible outcome. I pray this puppy is now playing free for eternity in a world without pain and fear.”

Puterbaugh is being held at the Charlotte County Jail without bond.

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.

Yellowstone 2026 summer tourism shows decline in visitors

KIFI on September 17, 2026

Danielle Mullenix

YELLOWSTONE, Wyo (KIFI) – Yellowstone National Park has welcomed nearly 3.5 million recreation visits through August 2026, according to new National Park Service visitation data. This however shows a slight decline in the number of summer tourists traveling through the park compared to 2025.

The park recorded approximately 3.49 million recreation visits through August this year, compared with 3.54 million during the same period in 2025.

That represents a decrease of about 56,000 visits, or 1.6%, from last year.

The difference is more noticeable when compared with 2021, when Yellowstone was experiencing record-setting visitation.Through August 2021, the park recorded approximately 3.59 million recreation visits.

August Visitation also down

Yellowstone recorded 856,467 recreation visits in August 2026, down about 3% from August 2025.

Despite the decrease, August remains one of Yellowstone’s busiest months of the year, with millions of visitors traveling through the park during the summer season.

West Yellowstone remains a major gateway

For visitors coming into Yellowstone from eastern Idaho and southwest Montana, the West Yellowstone entrance remains the park’s busiest entrance.

National Park Service entrance data through July show nearly 425,000 recreational automobiles entering through the West Entrance in 2026.

That compares with approximately:

244,000 through the North Entrance 152,000 through the South Entrance 84,000 through the East Entrance 75,000 through the Northeast Entrance

The West Entrance accounted for roughly 43% of recreational automobile entries through the five traditional Yellowstone entrance stations through July.

Summer season still successful, despite smaller numbers

While the 2026 visitation is running below both 2025 and 2021 levels, Yellowstone continues to draw millions of people each year.

For communities surrounding the park — including West Yellowstone and Island Park — the summer tourism season remains a major driver of visitors traveling through the region, and the success of local businesses.

The National Park Service tracks “recreation visits,” which represent visits to the park and do not necessarily correspond to the number of unique individual visitors. A full release of the 2026 Calendar Year Statistics will be available in January of 2027.

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‘Let’s be kind and generous’: WWII veteran reflects on going viral after singing ‘God Bless America’ at Brewers game

CNN Newsource on September 17, 2026

By TJ Dysart

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    MILWAUKEE (WISN) — Sverre Vinje, a 102-year-old World War II veteran, sang “God Bless America” at last week’s Brewers game on the 25th anniversary of the September 11 attacks, fulfilling a dream he has had for decades.

During an exclusive interview, Vinje shared his lifelong connection to music.

“I can remember I was always the lead tenor in choirs and things like that,” Vinje said. “That’s been the story of my life.”

His love for music began at age 7, when he competed in a singing competition.

“I won the contest at age 7, and I won first prize, which was a quarter,” Vinje said. However, he added with a laugh, “Somebody stole my quarter!”

Vinje’s passion for music continued during his service in the Navy in 1943, when he was just 19 years old.

“I was ready to go after Pearl Harbor,” he said.

Even in the midst of enemy planes and ships, music provided him with an escape.

“We had a little group. I used to sing along with the group,” Vinje said.

One of the songs Vinje sang during those days was “God Bless America,” which he performed again 83 years later at American Family Field in front of more than 41,000 Brewers fans. Reflecting on the experience, Vinje said, “It was wonderful. All the people I had talked to were so friendly. 150 people or more came up and shook my hand. I was there for them.”

Vinje explained why the song holds special meaning for him.

“It expresses our way of life that we should be living,” he said. “Let’s be kind and generous to each other. We don’t need gun butts; we need to shake hands. That’s what we need.”

After 102 years, a war, and a lifetime of music, Vinje remains steadfast in his belief in “friendship and care.”

Although Vinje lives in Rockford, Illinois, he has long dreamed of singing at a major ballpark. The Brewers were the first team to take him up on the offer, and his family shared that the team wants him back for the upcoming postseason.

When Vinje sings “God Bless America,” it’s clear that people hear more than just a song—they hear a lifetime of resilience, kindness, and hope.

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.