Author: KIFI

Danielle Mullenix

ISLAND PARK, Idaho (KIFI) — The U.S. Forest Service is developing a plan to reduce wildfire risk across roughly 25,000 acres of National Forest land near Island Park — but the proposal is still in its early stages.

Before any work begins, the Forest Service will conduct an environmental review and public-involvement process designed to identify potential impacts, concerns, and alternatives.

So, what is a fuels-reduction project?

“Fuels” are vegetation and other forest material that can feed a wildfire.

That can include dead trees, fallen branches, thick brush, smaller trees and dense vegetation. When those materials accumulate, they can provide a continuous path for fire to spread and potentially allow flames to move from the forest floor into the tree canopy.

The Forest Service’s Island Park proposal is designed to reduce that fuel and change how a future wildfire could behave.

The project framework focuses on about 25,000 acres along the U.S. Highway 20 corridor in the Ashton/Island Park Ranger District. Areas near communities such as Mack’s Inn and Stonegate, powerlines and substations, and important evacuation routes are among the priorities identified by the Forest Service.

Potential treatments could include thinning dense stands of trees, removing hazardous vegetation, creating fuel breaks and other vegetation-management techniques.

The goal is not to simply remove as many trees as possible.

Instead, the Forest Service says treatments would be strategically placed to reduce potential wildfire intensity, protect critical infrastructure and give firefighters safer opportunities to respond to a fire.

The Forest Service has identified Island Park as a High-Risk Fireshed under the agency’s Wildfire Crisis Strategy.

A fireshed is a large landscape where a wildfire could significantly affect communities and important resources.

The Forest Service says dense vegetation and high fuel loads in the Island Park area could contribute to high or extreme fire behavior under the right weather and fuel conditions.

Officials are particularly focused on protecting homes, communities, power infrastructure and evacuation routes.

Preparing for Reduction

The 25,000-acre proposal is not yet a construction project, and residents should not expect crews to begin cutting trees immediately.

The Forest Service is currently developing the proposal and identifying potential concerns that will need to be addressed through the environmental review process. The agency plans to use an Emergency Action Determination authority as it moves through that process, which is intended to provide an expedited path while still including environmental analysis and public involvement.

The next step will be giving the public and stakeholders a closer look at the draft proposal.

Public input begins with the proposal

The Forest Service plans to present its draft proposal to the Targhee Forest Collaborative on September 2 at the Island Park EMS Building.

The meeting begins at 9 a.m., followed by an afternoon field trip to areas being considered for treatment.

The collaborative includes people and organizations with different interests in management of the Caribou-Targhee National Forest.

That meeting is part of the early collaborative process. The Forest Service says a formal public comment period will come later, after the proposal has been developed further and potential concerns have been identified.

Public input can help the agency identify issues it may not otherwise see — including concerns involving environmental resources, access, wildlife, recreation, private property and how proposed treatments could affect individual communities.

The Forest Service’s own project framework describes public input as an important part of refining the broad proposal into a final proposed action.

The Forest Service estimates full implementation could be two to three years away.

For now, the Forest Service is encouraging residents to learn about the proposal and participate as the project develops. Click here to learn more at the U.S. Forest Service’s website.

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Curtis Jackson

SALT LAKE CITY (KIFI)—An 11-year-old Meridian girl who was critically injured in a crash on the Teton Pass remains hospitalized in Salt Lake City.

Neeka Korn was riding in an RV on Aug. 17 along Wyoming Highway 22 when it crashed with a car near Wilson around 9 p.m.

Neeka was flown to an Idaho Falls hospital and later flown again to a Salt Lake hospital, her family said.

Her family shared an update with Local News 8 on Wednesday, saying Neeka has undergone major surgery for multiple injuries. According to the family, those injuries include a broken leg, injuries to her spleen, other internal injuries and several additional broken bones.

Her mother, Michelle, has remained at the hospital in Salt Lake City while Neeka receives intensive treatment for her injuries and subsequent complications. Family members said Neeka’s recovery process has included both progress and sudden setbacks, requiring the family to take her treatment one day at a time.

To assist with the financial burden, relatives created a GoFundMe for the family. The funds are intended to cover the costs of the two emergency airlifts, surgeries, extended hospitalization, ongoing rehabilitation, travel and lodging between Idaho and Utah and lost income during her recovery.

Teton Pass driver safety

WILSON, Idaho (KIFI) – The Idaho Transportation Department has teamed up with the Wyoming Department of Transportation and Make Teton Pass Safer to put up signs and give warning to travelers going on the pass.

“The group is interested in advanced signage right now,” Sky Buffat, the Public Informations Officer for the Idaho Transportation Department, said. “That’s their main push. We realize that Idaho is a place where advanced warning, as far as what to expect on the pass would be needed, so we’re happy to be a willing and helpful partner.”

The signs will have general warnings, offer alternate routes, and give advice to keep you safe on the mountain. It is not just Semi Trucks who need to shift into a lower gear but all vehicles should when going down the steep terrain.

“One thing that the discussion seems to have kind of centered on is right now the signs read ‘trucks use lower gear,'” Buffat explained. “And the biggest push immediately is to see signs read all vehicles use lower gear. Even if you drive an automatic, there is a way to lower your gear so your brakes aren’t in danger as you’re crossing the mountain.”

Your car may be capable of shifting to a lower gear. It can appear as S, L, or B on your car’s shift. It could even be a button on newer vehicles. But this has the capability to save your car’s brakes as well as keep you safe when going down those steep slopes.

“Just knowing to use a lower gear and a lower speed when you’re on a mountain pass like that of any kind, really will can save a lot of problematic instances from happening,” Buffat said.

You can find information on your vehicle’s lower gear shift in your owner’s manual or just by looking at your shift and finding the letter that doesn’t match the rest.

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Seth Ratliff

JACKSON, Wyo. (KIFI) — Teton County Search and Rescue (TCSAR) volunteers responded to back-to-back backcountry emergencies earlier this week, highlighting the importance of preparation and safety when venturing into the backcountry.

Green Mountain Trail Fall

The first call arrived just before 12:30 p.m. on Monday, August 24, after a 70-year-old backpacker tripped and fell while descending the Green Mountain Trail on the west side of the Tetons. The woman was left injured and stranded about two miles from the North Leigh Canyon trailhead.

Nine TCSAR volunteers hiked in from both ends of the trail, using a wheeled stretcher to carry her out to an awaiting Teton County, Idaho Fire & Rescue ambulance. She was then turned over to medics for further care.

Hawk’s Rest Bear Encounter

A second call came in late Monday evening from an outfitter in the remote Hawk’s Rest area. Two brothers in their early 30s had wandered into the guide camp severely dehydrated and exhausted following a bear encounter, which left one man with torn pants and bear spray residue on his arm.

Determining that the brothers weren’t in immediate Danger, TCSAR volunteers responded with a helicopter team at first light on Tuesday.

As the crew landed at the site, rescuers learned one brother had separated from the group and departed earlier that morning. Fortunately, as team members began coordinating a larger ground search, the missing hiker returned to the camp. Both men were flown back to TCSAR headquarters in Jackson.

“Our team is here to help, and the volunteers appreciated the opportunity to bring these backpackers out of the wilderness,” TCSAR shared in a statement on social media, emphasizing safety reminders for all backcountry visitors:

Preparation is essential: All backcountry users should make sure they are prepared for their chosen objective and carry adequate gear, clothing, and enough food and water for the duration of their trip.

Stay together: It also is very important for groups to stay together, especially after making an emergency call.

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KIVI Staff

Originally Published: 25 AUG 26 13:52 ET

By Joey Martin

Click here for updates on this story

    TWIN FALLS, Idaho (KIVI) — A father and son from Burley are speaking exclusively to Idaho News 6 about the moments they stepped up during the mass shooting at the Twin Falls In-N-Out — taking a bullet and trying to save lives as chaos erupted around them.

Paul and Jason Cannon are among the good samaritans credited with saving lives when gunfire erupted at the In-N-Out drive-thru earlier this month. The shooting left three people dead and several others injured.

“We were going to make sure we got everybody out,” Paul said.

The pair say an off-duty Idaho State Police Trooper, Steve McClain, identified himself to them during the shooting, and the father and son sprang into action to back him up.

“I didn’t know exactly what was going on — but I know that we had to help,” Paul said.

“God… he urged me to get up and see what was going on,” Jason said.

“We followed him into the back area … my main thing was to get everybody out,” Paul said.

Surveillance video released by the Twin Falls Police Department shows Paul and Jason appearing as Trooper McClain clears the kitchen. That’s when they began trying to help Ashley Garibay, identified by Twin Falls Police as the first victim shot.

“I saw Ashley laying under the table, where they do the potatoes, and I turned around and tried to call 911 a couple times — I turned back around and she was already lying flat on her stomach,” Jason said.

The pair say Ashley was already gone.

Surveillance video shows the shooter returned just seconds later. According to video narration released by Twin Falls Police, the off-duty trooper and the gunman exchanged fire. The gunman retreated before returning to the payment window a fourth time, firing inside and striking a fourth victim — a good Samaritan who was attempting to assist the off-duty trooper and render aid to the victim inside.

That fourth victim was Paul.

“I saw the suspect turn around and he fired at us and I tried to shield my son — so I kind of turned and I got it right in the side,” Paul said.

Even with a gunshot wound to the abdomen, Paul kept trying to help others who were still hiding get out.

“All I know is that I wasn’t leaving anybody behind — so I told the girl hiding under the bench … ‘come on sweetie — I’ve got to get you out of here — if you don’t leave, I can’t leave’ and I said ‘I’ve been shot and I need to go to the hospital,'” Paul said.

Still bleeding, the two say they stayed to make sure no one else was left behind.

“My son tried to pick up Ashley and was having a hard time with her, so he ran out and got somebody else to come in — and that young man came in and grabbed Ashley and pulled her out — and then we went to the bathroom to make sure both bathrooms were cleared and then we cleared the rest of the restaurant,” Paul said.

Once outside, Jason focused on getting his father to the hospital — but chaos in the parking lot made that difficult. Another bystander stepped in to help.

“Another guy said, ‘hey I can get out — let me take you to the hospital’ — it was a pastor out of Hazelton and they asked if they could pray for me and I said ‘heck yeah, I could use all the prayer I could get’ and I apologized several times for bleeding all over his truck,” Paul said.

Paul was treated and released and is now back home recovering.

“I’ve got a lot of shrapnel in my arm — and my side and my back. But…” Paul said.

When I asked if he was doing OK, he smiled.

“Yeah, I’m here today,” Paul said.

Paul and Jason say they don’t consider themselves heroes. They say the true heroes are those who lost their lives, the first responders, and those who fought back.

This story was reported on-air by a journalist and has been converted to this platform with the assistance of AI. KIVI verifies all reporting on all platforms for fairness and accuracy.

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.

The-CNN-Wire™ & © 2026 Cable News Network, Inc., a Warner Bros. Discovery Company. All rights reserved.

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David Pace

IDAHO FALLS, Idaho (KIFI) – Idaho National Laboratory is creating a physical launch pad across 2,000 acres in the Idaho desert for the future of nuclear power.

Twelve companies and 13 projects have been selected to participate in the Nuclear Energy Launch Pad program, which is hosted by the National Reactor Innovation Center (NRIC) and will be located at the Central Facilities Area.

“The NRIC Nuclear Energy Launch Pad allows private industry to come in and build their own facilities on Idaho National Laboratory property,” said NRIC Chief Operating Officer Josh Gillespie. “We have set aside about 2,000 acres out in the desert site that we’re setting up – similar to a subdivision – where we’re going to put in roads, utilities, survey the land and allow developers to apply to obtain a lease and build their own facilities at their own cost, but we will bring to bear the resources of the national laboratory system to help them with their objectives of testing out their technology with the purpose of obtaining a commercial license.”

Companies participating in Launch Pad INL and Launch Pad USA include:

Antares Nuclear

Atlas Atomics

Deployable Energy (2 projects)

Forge Atomics

Hexium Inc.

Lightbridge Corporation

Nusano, Inc.

Oklo

Raven-Flint Nuclear

Scaled Atomics

Sublime Nuclear

Valar Atomics

Six of the projects will be located here in Idaho.

“We have three reactor demonstrations,” Gillespie explained. “We have a fuel enrichment. We have a fuel fabricator, and we have a fuel converter.” 

These later projects will help work toward American fuel independence.

“The fuel fabrication space, the fuel enrichment space is one area that as a nation we’ve lagged behind over the past few decades,” Gillespie said. “There is a definite national need to go off and grow our ability to domestically manufacture fuel in this country. For decades, we’ve obtained the fuel from other nations. We need to go off and develop that capability here to do that domestically.”

With more AI data centers, factories and electric vehicles coming online, INL is also aiming to fill the world’s voracious appetite for energy with nuclear power.

“We need more and more electricity. Our goal is a nation by 2050 is to have 400 GW of electricity powered by nuclear on our grid,” Gillespie said. “Today, we only have 100 GW of nuclear.”

400 GW of power can power 300 million homes.

Quadrupling America’s nuclear energy output in 24 years requires the best minds in industry to converge with Idaho National Laboratory’s infrastructure and decades of experience in cutting-edge nuclear research and leadership.

“That’s a tremendous challenge, and it’s only a challenge we’re going to achieve by partnering with industry, by working to advance and deploy very quickly and very safely to make sure that we can satisfy the needs of Americans and industry, and keep us as positioned as the premier power providers in the world,” Gillespie said.

The Nuclear Energy Launch Pad adds to the Department of Energy’s successful Reactor Pilot Program and Fuel Line Pilot Programs launched last year, safely accelerating the advanced nuclear technology pipeline from test prototypes to full deployment.

The Launch Pad will help the nuclear industry test new advanced technologies and prepare to scale them commercially across the globe.

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Hadley Bodell

POCATELLO, Idaho (KIFI) — Back-to-school means buses running their routes each morning and midday across the area. Police are prepping their patrol for extra caution to protect school children as they walk or ride the buses on weekdays, and urge caution amongst drivers in the new school year.

Lt. Lacey with the Pocatello Police Department said the new school year means more activity on the roads in the morning, whether it’s buses or parents driving kids to school. The Pocatello-Chubbuck School District 25 is also growing steadily.

“They have so many routes,” Lt. Lacey said. “Our schools are growing; we just have a lot of kids.”

Drivers must yield to school buses when their lights are flashing and especially when the stop arm is out. Lt. Lacey says the most important thing to understand is that younger children are unpredictable and may run across the street without looking.

“Both directions need to stop. The kids will jump out and go the opposite way of what you expect,” he said. “Drivers need to be very cautious about the kids that are around both sides getting picked up and dropped off at bus stops. We just don’t want our kids to get hurt.”

The only exception to stopping for a school bus is if there are four lanes of traffic and a clear median in between each duo of lanes, as demonstrated by this graphic posted by the City of Chubbuck.

City of Chubbuck

Once the doors are closed, the lights are off, and the stop arm is pulled back to the side, drivers may proceed.

The school zones in Pocatello and Chubbuck are also clearly labeled with times for reducing speeds to 25mph. School District 25 includes 23 schools, with over 75 buses running daily routes. Many students also walk to their school each day, meaning when school starts on August 26, crosswalks will be busier.

“You’ll see a lot of areas with crossing guards; yield to their sign. They are a human traffic signal,” Lt. Lacey said. “Until they’re fully out of the crosswalk and their stop sign is down, proceed and yield to them like you would any other stop sign.”

Lt. Lacey said Pocatello Police will have more patrol officers out on duty during back-to-school to ensure the safety of students. They will also coordinate with fellow agencies like the Idaho State Police to increase presence.

“We encourage our citizens to let us know if there are areas that are problems, especially for your kids that are walking to school, if they come home and say it’s hard for them to cross the street,” he said.

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Seth Ratliff

UPDATE 8/26/26 5 PM: Idaho Falls School District officials said school will be back in session at Ethel Boyes Elementary School on Thursday. They reported the air conditioning system has been repaired.

“The replacement mechanical part was installed, and the system is up and running,” Superintendent Karla LaOrange said. “We will continue to monitor air temperature this week.”

ORIGINAL STORY:

IDAHO FALLS, Idaho (KIFI) — Classes have been canceled for all Ethel Boyes Elementary School students tomorrow, August 26, due to air temperature issues related to the school’s air conditioning system.

In an email announcing the closure, Idaho Falls School District 91 Superintendent Karla LaOrange confirmed the D91 Maintenance team is currently handling the issue. A replacement mechanical part ordered last week was installed this morning, but the repair must cure for 24 hours before the system will function as normal.

Without air conditioning, LaOrange says temperatures in the building reach upwards of 85 degrees.

“We recognize that it is unreasonable to expect our students and teachers to have an effective learning day in the building at those temperatures,” writes LaOrange. “For that reason, there will be no school at Ethel Boyes tomorrow.”

The early release only applies to Ethel Boyes Elementary and does not affect other District 91 schools.

“We appreciate the patience and support shown by parents and teachers this week as we work to ensure a comfortable learning environment for both students and teachers,” states LaOrange.

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Kaelyn Blessinger

IDAHO FALLS, Idaho (KIFI) — Lunches are packed, and the outfits are perfect; now time to pose for that iconic back-to-school picture. But before you snap that photo for social media, be aware of some of the hidden risks of sharing too much information on social media.

The Bonneville County Sheriff’s Office warns a child’s image can be spread far beyond the intended audience. Even if you’re just sharing to a small group of people, you have no control over where others can share your information.

“Be careful about what you, as a parent, post on social media when it’s tied to your kids and other sensitive information,” Sergeant Bryan Lovell, the Public Information Officer with the Bonneville County Sheriff’s Office, said. “Social media is one of those things that’s out there. It’s on a lot of different platforms. They get a lot of fraud and crime and people, you know, hacking or pages and things like that. So making sure that you understand the security features on those platforms and you’re utilizing those to keep you safe”

Certain details such as your kids’ age, grade level, school information, and many more personal details can pose a risk to you and your kids’ privacy. Law enforcement has seen that criminals can access this information.

“You have criminals that are doing a variety of things to get your information,” Sergeant Lovell said. “And they may be using what you post and what’s on your social media to get more information. And that could be about your kids and where they go to school or where you live. And parents just need to be real careful about that. Even if you’re not posting that publicly and say you’re only limiting that to a group of friends or family or a neighborhood or something like that. Once it’s out there, it’s still vulnerable. It’s not private. Once you put any of that information out there, you can’t get it back.”

Sharing details about your children’s routines and what grade they’re in could be a safety risk as well. It’s important to limit details on social media but that doesn’t mean you have to stop this back-to-school tradition. Just be mindful about what is shared online.

“So just being cautious that way,” Sergeant Lovell said. “I mean, social media is a great way to communicate and keep up with people. But you want to be careful and make sure that they know how to be safe and that your kids are doing appropriate things online.”

The Sheriff’s Office encourages parents to start those conversations on internet safety once your child starts going online. It’s important to stay educated on various internet platforms and their safety policies. To learn more information about online posting safety, the ICAC website offers age-appropriate resources to teach adults and children about internet safety and to identify and avoid child predators.

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Hadley Bodell

POCATELLO, Idaho (KIFI) – Classes are officially underway at Idaho State University in Pocatello and students are ready for another fall semester packed with events and education.

Classes began on Monday, August 24. The “Welcome Back and Orange Black” event held in downtown Pocatello had to be cancelled due to weather concerns. However, Tuesday night is “Cold Butts and Beer” hosted by Chi Alpha Christian Ministries at Bartz Field. The rest of the week holds events for incoming freshmen to meet fellow students and explore the campus.

This year also marks the first semester with the restructured university. In the Spring of 2026, President Robert Wagner announced the budget cuts were leading to university-wide changes for several colleges, including combining the College of Education with The College of Arts and Letters.

Even after a nationwide hack of the online educational program Canvas during finals week of the spring semester, Idaho State University remains a user of the software. Students find their classes, assignments, tests and quizzes through the online portal.

“This is my first semester doing in-person classes; last year I did all online,” said Lizette Gamino, a sophomore student majoring in health sciences. “I’m just excited about meeting my teachers and classmates.”

Other students on campus echoed Gamino’s sentiment, saying they’re excited to be back in the social circles of the campus.

“I’m excited, I’m getting to hang out with my friends,” said Nate Kopp, a third-year bachelor student majoring in biochemistry. “I’m going to be finishing my honors thesis on new treatments for antibiotic-resistant bacteria, and I’m excited to do some new classes and learn some new things.”

For students like Kopp, the Fall 2026 semester is where they decide whether their major was the right fit.

“This is the year I get to take biochemistry, so it’s kind of like the year where I find out if I actually like the degree that I have, but it’ll be good one way or another,” he said.

“I’m excited for the labs to get to do the science; I have more science classes this semester,” said Gamino. “I also want to be more part of the institution, like all the student activities and stuff since I’ll be here every day.”

Idaho State University will have the official census for the Class of 2030 after the tenth day of the semester next week. They’ll also get a count on Census Day in October. The last several years have shown an increase in the incoming freshman class for the university, with each year beating the last. ISU took to Facebook and Instagram to welcome their newest freshman class with the iconic ISU logo filled with students.

Idaho State University AUG 2026 Class “I” Photo / SU/ Jordon Beesley

For a full list of events happening at ISU this fall, visit isu.edu/calendar.

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