Author: KIFI

Kaelyn Blessinger

UPDATE:

IDAHO FALLS, Idaho (KIFI) – Many grain farmers across southern and eastern Idaho may be experiencing significant crop losses after a combination of freezing temperatures and dry conditions damaged wheat fields earlier this year.

Some of the hardest-hit areas were farther south, where April frosts devastated winter wheat just as the crop was beginning to grow.

“There’s a grower yesterday from Rockland Valley that said those cold temperatures killed a lot of the wheat he had,” Juliet Marshall, from the College of Agricultural and Life Sciences, said. “He was getting yields as little as 2 to 5 bushels an acre, when we’re really expecting in those dry land areas, 40 to 70 bushels an acre.”

Despite the widespread damage, not every field suffered the same fate. Marshall said many crops planted later in the season were still in earlier stages of development when the cold snap arrived, allowing them to survive and recover.

“A lot of our crop, because it was planted later, survived better and was in a younger growth stage,” Marshall said. “It was able to withstand those cold temperatures, and those crops bounced back.”

While this year’s harvest brought a mix of losses and unexpected recoveries, Marshall says farmers are already looking ahead to next year with concern.

She says weather forecasts pointing toward a strong El Niño pattern could bring hotter, drier conditions, increasing the risk of water shortages throughout the region.

“We are very concerned for whether or not we have enough snow,” Marshall said. “Not only to recreate on the ski slopes, but to provide the irrigation that’s needed.”

A lack of snowpack could force difficult water management decisions across southern Idaho. Marshall says that, in some years, hundreds of thousands of acres in southeast Idaho may have to remain unplanted to ensure enough irrigation water is available for senior water rights holders in the Magic Valley.

The impacts, she says, extend well beyond the farm.

“It could have a huge economic effect because not only do our growers participate in the local economy, they buy tractors, they buy equipment, they buy fertilizer,” Marshall said.

Marshall says weather conditions over the coming months, especially this winter’s snowfall, will play a key role in determining what next year’s growing season looks like for Idaho farmers.

Original:

IDAHO FALLS, Idaho (KIFI) – Grain farmers across southern and eastern Idaho are dealing with a difficult growing season after months of drought, spring frost, and increased pest pressure damaged wheat and barley fields.

Despite the difficulties, University of Idaho researcher Juliet Marshall says the overall outlook isn’t as bleak as they first expected.

Professor Juliet Marshall from the College of Agricultural and Life Sciences, associate director of the Idaho Agricultural Experiment Station, and an Extension cereals specialist, says the problems began during an unusually warm and dry winter. Because temperatures never stayed cold enough for crops to go fully dormant, wheat and barley continued using up soil moisture throughout the winter months.

“In some cases, it’s been as bad as you can imagine, with farmers having to mow, while in other cases some of the worst outcomes have been avoided depending on when and where the crop was planted,” Marshall said. “Overall, the crops recovered quite a bit more than I ever expected.” 

Farmers across the region have noticed this as well. Despite the unusual weather patterns, it did not hit their crop quite as harshly as expected.

“The season has gone pretty well,” Adam Young, a 3rd generation farmer of Bingham County, said. “We started out really hot. We had a series of frosts that I think that will have had some impact, but luckily, the timing of those frosts was such that I don’t think it’s going to have a major impact on our yields. We probably won’t be breaking any records this year, but we expect to have a decent yield across our fields.”

Adam Young is growing 1,000 acres of wheat and 1,000 acres of barley this year. Eastern Idaho farmers, however, may have avoided even greater damage. Because they typically harvest crops like potatoes and sugar beets later in the year, they also plant fall grain later. Those younger crops hadn’t reached the stage where they were most vulnerable when the April freeze hit. Although he will have a slight decrease in his yield, Young says the harshest impact happened to farmers further south.

“The frost did do a significant amount of damage to fields to the south of where we’re at, like American Falls and I believe in the Magic Valley, there was a lot of damage that was done as well. But up in our area, the stage of where the crop was when the frosts occurred was more fortuitous than I think is going to have much less of an impact.”

The warm winter also allowed aphids and mites to survive in higher numbers than usual. Those insects spread barley yellow dwarf virus and wheat streak mosaic virus, both of which have reduced grain yields across southern and eastern Idaho this year.

Despite the challenges, Marshall says the spring grain crop is looking much better than she anticipated earlier this year.

“The spring crop looks really good,” Marshall said. “There was some frost damage, but not nearly enough to cause yield loss.”

While many producers are still facing difficult harvests and lower yields, researchers say some Idaho grain fields have proven more resilient than expected, offering hope as the growing season continues.

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Stephanie Lucas

AMMON, Idaho (KIFI) –  A 29-year-old man is in jail after he was arrested for a hit-and-run crash he claims he did not know of, although police say his dash cam footage showed otherwise.

Ashtyne Lane Whiting was arrested at a residence by Bonneville County Sheriff’s Deputies on Wednesday night and booked into the Bonneville County Jail.

Dispatchers received a call around 6:20 PM that same evening from witnesses who saw a vehicle strike a woman walking in the Albertson’s parking lot on 25th East, then speed away.

When Sheriff’s Deputies and Idaho Falls Ambulance personnel arrived on scene, they found a 58-year-old woman with injuries who was transported by ambulance to the hospital.

A witness to the crash reported following the suspect’s vehicle after it left the parking lot and drove onto 17th Street “at more than 60 miles per hour” to a residence on South Ammon Rd.

Deputies were able to contact Whiting at the residence, where Whiting admitted to driving through the parking lot, but claimed he did not know anyone was struck. Whiting provided dash camera video from his vehicle to Deputies, which showed the victim being struck by the front of the car and falling onto the hood and windshield area.

Whiting was then placed under arrest and transported to the Bonneville County Jail, where he was booked on a Felony charge of Leaving the Scene of an Injury Crash.

Deputies are continuing their investigation, and no further information is available.

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Seth Ratliff

SWAN VALLEY, Idaho (KIFI) — A local dog is safely back in her owner’s arms after becoming trapped on a steep hillside Wednesday night.

Wednesday evening, an elderly dog named Bentley accidentally wandered down a steep slope and found herself stuck waist-deep in a slide of loose rocks. Shortly before 7 p.m., the Swan Valley Fire Department and the Bonneville County Sheriff’s Office responded to the scene to rescue the old pup.

A team of five first responders navigated the steep terrain to reach the stranded dog. Photos posted by the SVFD capture a heartwarming scene: crew members carefully balancing on the gravel slope, gently petting and comforting a nervous Bentley as they worked to dig the pup out.

Thanks to their swift work, Bentley was safely hoisted back up the hillside into her owner’s waiting arms.

“While we don’t often get calls like this, it warmed our hearts to help out this sweet pup and her owner and to have a happy ending,” SVFD wrote in a post featuring Bentley proudly posing with her heroes.

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Megan Lavin

REXBURG, Idaho (KIFI) — For years, competitive figure skaters in eastern Idaho faced a challenge many athletes never have to think about: finding a place to practice.

But that didn’t stop a determined coach and a group of dedicated athletes. So much so that three Idaho Falls teenagers — Alexis Lee-Maes, Kinlee Preussner and Lexee Yanex — are now headed to one of the country’s biggest amateur sporting events.

From Idaho to the State Games of America

The three skaters qualified for the State Games of America, an Olympic-style competition featuring some of the nation’s best amateur athletes.

Fifteen-year-old figure skater Alexis Lee-Maes is excited. “I’m really excited. This is something I’ve always wanted to do.”

The trio will represent Idaho against about 1,400 figure skaters from across the country. The event is unique because it features not only figure skating, but many of the sports found in both the Summer and Winter Olympics, complete with opening ceremonies and more than 14,000 athletes.

Searching for year-round ice

Getting there looked a little different than it does for many of their competitors.

The Idaho Falls rink closes from spring until October, so the athletes drive two hours each way to Logan, Utah, several times a week during the offseason just to find year-round ice.

Their coach, Sydnee Nethery, remembers those sacrifices.

“There have been times that we’ve left our camper in the parking lot and lived in the parking lot.”

Now, they’re training much closer to home thanks to the recent opening of the year-round Neutral Zone in Rexburg.

A coach who knows the journey

It’s a journey Nethery understands firsthand.

As a competitive skater, she spent weeks at a time living with coaches in Utah so she could continue training. Now, she’s worked to build something different for the next generation.

“I fought really hard to be able to do it,” Nethery said. “It’s not super accessible here, but I’ve done everything that I can to get these kids on the ice.”

That dedication has helped produce not only high-caliber athletes, but also resilient young women who aren’t afraid of falling, either in the sport or in life.

Her daughter, 12-year-old figure skater Kinlee Preussner, said everyone fears falling at first.

“We know that falling is a part of the sport. So we have to get past it.”

More than a sport: Learning to express emotion

Figure skating demands athleticism, but it also asks athletes to be vulnerable. Under the spotlight, they have to let their emotions shine through their facial expressions and movements.

Fourteen-year-old Lexee Yanex said that’s one of the things she enjoys most about skating.

“I can bring out some major emotion that I don’t think I could off the ice.”

Kinlee agrees.

“It’s a way for you to express your emotions through movement, which is a really good way to not put it on other people.”

Lessons that last beyond competition

Unlike many sports, there isn’t a referee telling skaters what went wrong in the moment.

“There’s an entire learning curve that comes with being in an individual artistic sport,” Nethery said. “We don’t have referees out there blowing whistles if we’ve done something wrong. We have to learn that after the score sheet comes out, and sometimes that’s a really hard lesson.”

Those lessons don’t just build better skaters. They build confident adults.

Nethery believes the experience will benefit them long after their competitive careers end.

“They’re going to be able to walk into a boardroom one day and lead a meeting because they’ve been performing for years and years of their life,” she said. “They don’t have to walk in feeling nervous or timid or shy — they’ve already worked through that.”

From long drives across state lines to representing Idaho on a national stage, this trio is proving that sometimes the hardest path helps you find your footing.

A sport that changed one skater’s life

For Alexis, the benefits of figure skating have gone far beyond competition.

Alexis has cerebral palsy. Doctors encouraged her family to keep her skating because of the positive effects it was having on her body.

“They told her time and time again, ‘Please don’t quit the figure skating because the figure skating is what’s helping you improve,'” Nethery said.

She said Alexis eventually no longer needed regular neurology appointments.

“She graduated from having to go to her neurology appointments consistently, and they attributed it to the figure skating.”

As the three skaters prepare to represent Idaho on the national stage, their story is about much more than medals. It’s about perseverance, sacrifice and the opportunities that come from refusing to let obstacles stand in the way.

To follow their journey at the State Games of America, visit Syd’z Kydz of Idaho Falls on Facebook.

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Curtis Jackson

MALAD, Idaho (KIFI)—A 31-year-old Pocatello man died Wednesday following a crash on I-15 in Oneida County Wednesday afternoon.

Idaho State Police said the accident happened around 3:50 p.m. at mile marker 20 north of Malad.

ISP said the driver was northbound in a GMC Savana van. The van drove onto the shoulder and collided with a disabled Ford Mustang that was park and unoccupied.

After the collision, the van came to rest in the median, and the driver was ejected from the vehicle. He was not wearing a seatbelt, police said.

The driver taken by ambulance and then an air ambulance to a local hospital, where he later died from his injuries.

The northbound left lane was blocked for about three hours as crews cleard the roadway.

The crash remin under investigation by Idaho State Police.

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David Pace

IDAHO FALLS, Idaho (KIFI) – Debate in Idaho is ramping up around the “Reproductive Freedom and Privacy Act,” which opponents characterize as an “abortion” initiative.

The ballot title for the initiative states it’s a “measure creating right to abortion before fetus viability, and post-viability to protect health; right to privacy; [and] healthcare provider liability protections.”

Idaho Chooses Life Executive Director and Founder David Ripley told Bonneville County Republicans that Idaho’s existing Defense of Live Act has saved the life of 6,800 babies in Idaho since it passed four years ago. He spoke Wednesday evening at the Veterans Memorial Hall in Idaho Falls on 485 Constitution Way.

“Idaho right now has the best law in the country in terms of protecting our values, protecting our children and our families,” Ripley said.

On the other side, Idahoans United for Women and Families Executive Director Melanie Folwell, spearheaded the successful signature drive that gathered 110,000 signatures to place the initiative on the ballot, setting a record for the number of signatures gathered.

“Our initiative is seeking to make sure that we can return to the standard we had in Idaho for 50 years,” Folwell said.

Folwell said the measure qualified in 20 out of 35 Legislative districts, surpassing Idaho’s requirement to obtain signatures from six percent of voters from the last election in 18 districts.

She is concerned about the flight of OB-GYNs from the state and the closure of clinics in Idaho.

“Prop One ensures that private medical decisions are made between a woman, her doctor, her family, her faith rather than the government,” she said. “I’ve never seen a single issue related to somebody’s own family that benefited from having a politician involved.”

But Ripley called the proposed measure a return to “Roe v. Wade” in Idaho.

“This proposition would do away with all those protections that are in place today,” he said. “In fact, the protections that the Legislature has enacted over the last 30 years – including parental consent laws, the ban on late-term abortions, the waiting period for women, their right to an ultrasound – all of that would be wiped out if this proposition passes.”

The Proposition One measure will be on the ballot this November.

Idahoans United for Women and Families Executive Director Melanie Folwell and Idaho Chooses Life Executive Director David Ripley share their views on November’s Proposition One ballot initiative.

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Kaelyn Blessinger

IDAHO FALLS, Idaho (KIFI) – Serengeti Care is collecting donations until September 10th to create care packages for military personnel who are currently overseas. Something as small as a Cookies and Cream Hershey’s bar could help these heroes feel remembered.

Melina Lemons is the branch manager for Serengeti Care, and is one of the organizers behind the event.

What inspired her was her family’s history with the military. While living in Fort Stewart, Georgia, she discovered a love for making care packages for her friends who had been deployed. The experience was so rewarding, not only for her but also for those currently serving overseas.

“It was just like Christmas to them,” Lemons recounted. “Hearing back on how excited they were for the little things that you know, we can go to the gas station, pick out a candy bar or anything like that, and just sending that over to them, especially the personnel that have been overseas for a while. It means so much to them.”

“So getting into this role, I wanted to do it on a bigger scale,” Lemons said. “Just because a lot of people that get deployed maybe can’t receive care packages or some of them don’t even have family back home. And it’s crazy to me the little things they miss. We have actually reached out to some of the people deployed and asked if they have any special requests and Hershey’s cookies and cream was the big one!”

If you wish to donate, they have a list of acceptable items including:

Protein Bars

Beef Sticks

Beef Jerky

Tuna Pouches

Gum

Granola Bars

Snack packs of cookies

Trail mix

Nuts

Fruit snacks

Puzzle books

Puzzles

Games

They will not accept any pork products.

You can drop off donations at 901 Pier View Dr. Suite 202 B, Idaho Falls, ID 83402

The care packages will be assembled at the Veterans Coffee event on September 11th. Anyone is invited to assist with the assembly and grab a cup of coffee.

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Kaelyn Blessinger

RIGBY, Idaho (KIFI) – Anyone Awake is a local band from Rigby that will be hitting the road in two days for their “I Meant What I Said” tour.

They will be stopping at 17 different locations across the nation over the next 40 days.

“We’ll be gone for 40 days,” Cassius Moore, the band’s vocalist and rhythm guitar player, said. “We won’t have a home or a consistent bed for more than a night or two. And we’re going to go see the world as far as New York, Toronto, Orlando, Texas, Omaha, and that’s just to name a few.”

The band began when a group of BYU-Idaho students discovered their shared passion for music. They started out in 2023 and have since gained over 15,000 monthly listeners on Spotify. Now that they are officially off on their first tour, they feel grateful to all of the supportive people surrounding them.

“This is a lame answer,” Seth Chamberlain, the band’s drummer, said. “But we’ve just spent so long on social media, like having people like, ‘we want to see you’ and I’m just so excited to go to all of them and to meet people because, it’s just so cool to finally meet people that you’ve made a difference in their life.”

The support isn’t just from online fans but local Idahoans who are excited to see some of their own taking to the limelight.

“There’s a thing called McMidnight in Rexburg and I was there and my friend stood on one of the tables and was like shouting, ‘this guy is going on tour!’,” Jeff DeSoto, the bands lead guitarist, recounted. “Then everybody was like clapping and getting excited for us. So it’s definitely crazy that just random people that you run into will show support, because it is like we’re doing something that could potentially be pretty monumental for this area in Idaho. I’ve been like really just like shocked at the support in the community.”

Here is a link to their website, if you are interested in purchasing tickets or checking out their latest album.

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Seth Ratliff

LINCOLN COUNTY, Wyo. (KIFI) — A 42-year-old man is in custody facing multiple felony drug and child endangerment charges after a multi-agency early morning raid spanned state lines on Tuesday, uncovering large caches of narcotics across three separate locations in Idaho and Wyoming.

Julio Jaimes Angeles was arrested and booked into the Lincoln County Detention Center following a coordinated sweep executed simultaneously in Etna, Wyoming; Jackson Hole, Wyoming; and Victor, Idaho.

The joint operation, led by the Lincoln County Sheriff’s Office and the Wyoming Division of Criminal Investigation alongside the Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA) and several local and federal partners, executed three search warrants simultaneously in the early morning hours on July 21.

The raid uncovered bulk amounts of methamphetamine and cocaine at each of the targeted sites.

Angeles has been charged with possession of a controlled substance with the intent to deliver for both methamphetamine and cocaine, felony possession of methamphetamine and cocaine, and child endangering for permitting a child to remain in a dwelling where methamphetamine is stored.

Investigators note that the investigation remains active, and Angeles could face additional charges in other jurisdictions as evidence continues to be processed.

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News Team

SALT LAKE CITY, Utah — Utah Gov. Spencer Cox signed an executive order today declaring a statewide state of emergency following historic wildfires and subsequent severe flash flooding across Beaver, Piute, and Sevier counties.

The declaration activates Utah’s Emergency Operations Plan, allowing the state to deploy critical resources, apply for federal hazard mitigation funds, and request interstate emergency assistance if needed. The executive order will remain in effect for 30 days unless extended by the Utah Legislature.

Burn Scars Trigger Dangerous Flash Floods

The order comes amid one of its most destructive fire seasons in recent history, with more than 590 wildfires scorching nearly 380,000 acres across the Beehive State. The massive Cottonwood Fire alone burned over 97,000 acres in Beaver and Piute counties.

While wildland crews have contained many of the fires, the remaining burn scars have left the landscape highly volatile, dramatically increasing the risk of flash flooding. Heavy monsoon rains over recent days triggered severe flash floods and debris flows across southern and central Utah, damaging homes, roads, irrigation systems and drinking water infrastructure while isolating communities and forcing evacuations.

“Wildfires don’t stop impacting communities when the flames are out,” said State Forester Jamie Barnes. “Burn scars can remain highly unstable for years, creating dangerous flooding and debris flows with even relatively small storms.”

Flooding has destroyed portions of State Route 153 in Beaver Canyon, disrupted culinary and agricultural water systems serving Beaver City, Marysvale, Junction and Circleville, and damaged homes and water infrastructure in Sevier County, including the town of Koosharem.

Since April, 18 Utah counties have declared local emergencies related to the compounding crises of wildfire, drought, and flooding.

“Utahns have endured an incredibly difficult wildfire season, and now many of these same communities are facing life-threatening flooding caused by those fires,” said Gov. Cox. “This declaration ensures we can continue providing every available resource to help local communities respond, recover and prepare for the continued flood risks that remain throughout the summer. We are grateful to the firefighters, emergency managers, law enforcement officers, public works crews and countless others working around the clock to keep Utahns safe.”

Tragedy in Wayne County: Fire Captain and Family Lost in Flash Flood

The Long Family: GoFundMe

The Governor also acknowledged the heartbreaking loss of Provo Fire Captain Spencer Long, his wife Katrina, and three of their children, who were tragically swept away by flash flooding in Wayne County last week.

“Our hearts are with everyone grieving this heartbreaking loss,” Gov. Cox said. “It’s a painful reminder that flooding can become deadly in moments, particularly in and below burn scar areas. We urge every Utahn to heed warnings, avoid flooded areas, and never underestimate the power of moving water.”

As of publishing, a GoFundMe created to support the Long’s surviving daughter, Lydia, has raised over $200K. For more information, click HERE.

Looking Ahead: Ongoing Flood Risks

State officials warn that the threat of flash flooding will remain elevated throughout the remainder of the monsoon season.

“Our emergency managers, first responders, and local officials have been working tirelessly to protect lives and restore essential services under extremely challenging conditions,” said Utah Department of Public Safety Commissioner Beau Mason. “This declaration strengthens our ability to coordinate resources across all levels of government and ensures affected communities receive the support they need as response efforts continue.”

Residents in flood-prone areas are urged to closely monitor local weather forecasts, strictly heed evacuation orders, and avoid traveling through flooded roadways or drainages.

Editor’s Note: AI tools were utilized in the initial research and structural development of this article. All content is thoroughly reviewed and verified for accuracy by the Local News 8 editorial team.

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