Week of January 22, 2026
Week of January 22, 2026
At approximately 5:10 a.m. on Thursday, January 15, two suspects forced entry into the Thermopolis Middle School and burglarized items from the buidling. The suspects were caught on cameras, which provided important details to law enforcement officials about their identities. The suspects ran from the building at approximately 5:40 a.m., shortly before an employee is shown arriving at the school. The Thermopolis Police Department, in coordination with the Hot Springs County Sheriff’s Department, began actively investigating the incident....
With a relatively light agenda, the Thermopolis Town Council held its first regular meeting for this year on January 6. There were no public hearings on the council’s agenda, and no member of the public appeared to speak for citizen participation. Police chief Pat Cornwell advised the council that his department has hired a new patrol sergeant, who will be starting on January 16. The new officer is from South Carolina and has thirteen years of prior law enforcement experience. Anthony Barnett, town engineer, advised the council that the...
The Hot Springs Speech and Debate Team continued their successful season, bringing home a 1A/2A Championship trophy for the second time this season after finishing first at the large Worland Speech and Debate Tournament held at Worland High School on December 12-13, 2025. The Bobcats followed up the Worland competition after holiday break with a second place 1A/2A sweepstakes trophy at the Riverton Speech and Debate Tournament at Riverton High School on February 16-17, 2026. Senior Dean Bihr...
The Department of Environmental Quality/Water Quality Division (DEQ) has conducted a review of the proposed Town of Thermopolis - Lead Service Line Investigation & Replacement Project in accordance with EPA and State of Wyoming procedures for implementing the State Environmental Review Process. DEQ has determined that this project is eligible for a categorical exclusion. Accordingly, DEQ is exempting the project from further substantive environmental review requirements under the State Environmental Review Process. Neither an Environmental...
The Wyoming Office of Outdoor Recreation facilitates Outdoor Recreation Collaboratives throughout the state. These Collaboratives bring together local community members, recreation stakeholders, businesses, conservation groups, federal and state agencies, and elected officials to identify and prioritize grassroots opportunities to grow and enhance outdoor recreation in Wyoming. Members of the public are welcome to attend these virtual meetings. Near the end of each meeting, a designated time will be allocated for public comments. Dates,...
The Hot Springs County Commissioners held their first meeting of the new year on January 6, 2026. The commissioners were advised that the Kirby Creek Irrigation District was not in compliance with their filings with the Wyoming Secretary of State, and were in jeopardy of being dissolved as a result. It is understood that the entity has recently made the necessary filings with the state. At the meeting is was not known if the filing would abort the dissolution. Updated information was not available at press time. County maintenance director...
Newspapers and staff members from around Wyoming were honored for their hard work and talents at the 127th Wyoming Press Association Convention held last week in Casper. Major awards for excellence are given out as well as pacemaker awards. The Thermopolis Independent Record won second place for overall photographic excellence in the Hanway (mid-size) newspaper division. They received first place for best use of photos throughout three full issues submitted for the contest. Nadja Cavin earned three individual pacemaker awards in the Hanway...
Middle school students across Wyoming and in Hot Springs County are encouraged to take part in the 2026 National Civics Bee®, a nonpartisan competition designed to inspire civic engagement, strengthen civic knowledge, and give young people a platform to share ideas for improving their communities. The 2026 deadline to apply is February 3. The National Civics Bee invites students in grades 6-8 to respond to an essay prompt proposing a solution to a real-world community issue, incorporating civic virtues and principles. This free competition...
Hot Springs County High School physical education / health and wellness teacher Shannon Hill has been nominated for National Life Group’s 2025-26 LifeChanger of the Year award. National Life Group’s LifeChanger of the Year recognizes and rewards the very best K-12 educators and school district employees across the United States who are making a difference in the lives of students by exemplifying excellence, positive influence, and leadership. Hill was nominated by her principal, Catelyn Deromedi, for her contributions to students...
The #2 ranked Hot Springs County High School Bobcat basketball team has spent the early weeks of the 2025-26 season competing in non-conference action around the state. Last weekend, together with Worland, Thermopolis co-hosted the Big Horn Basin Classic and for a change of pace, faced off with four non-conference opponents on their home court. To kick-off their tournament schedule, the Cats met up with the unranked Wind River Cougars on Friday. The Cougars have had a rough go of it in recent...
Thermopolis Wrestling Club team members won the Rocky Mountain Nationals Wild West Championships Tournament last weekend in Casper with a total of 310 points. Coming in second in the team standings was Black Fox Wrestling Academy from Colorado with 296 and Ridge Wrestling Club also from Colorado with 272.5 points placed third. Wrestlers from 196 teams across 15 different states met in Casper to battle it out on the mats. Thermopolis brought home 11 individual championships along with five...
The Hot Springs County High School Bobcat wrestling team was in Shoshoni last weekend to compete at the Clash at the Crossroads Tournament. Finishing in third place in the team standings (out of fourteen teams) the Cats had a productive weekend, bringing home two individual championships and placing six of the team’s seven varsity wrestlers. Cokeville carried the team championship with 163 team points. Juniors Dyllan Myers and Cannon Boren each dominated the field in their respective weights, winning all their matches by pin, including both...
Last weekend, the #5 ranked Hot Springs County High School Lady Cats basketball team faced off with some talented teams from Class 3A, and met up with the #1 ranked Class 1A team from Burlington at the Big Horn Basin Classic. The tournament was co-hosted by Rocky Mountain and Powell, and sported ten teams from around the Big Horn Basin. On Friday, the Lady Cats began their tournament playing the #4 ranked 3A team from Lovell. Like their fellow boys team, the Lady Bulldogs are a high-quality team with a number of very talented players. Still,...
After dividing the team to compete at three different locations the week before, the Hot Springs County High School Lady Cats wrestling team was reunified last weekend for the Clash at the Crossroads Tournament in Shoshoni, where all members of the team were able to place in the event. As a team, the Lady Cats were dominant in Shoshoni, going 16-4 in their matches, and garnering two championships for the squad. Thermopolis finished in fifth place in the team standings (out of ten teams) with 102 team points - just behind Big Piney, with 122.5...
Current District 23 Senator and 2026 Republican Wyoming Governor candidate Eric Barlow visits with Marshall Keller during a meet and greet held at Storyteller on Jan. 16. The IR will do initial candidate announcements including bios and information at a later...
KJ and Weston Burgess stopped by Timothy Marshall's booth at the Stars and Pipes Gun Show held last Friday Saturday at the fair...
Thermopolis residents have been treated to a string of beautiful sunsets with pastel skies and passing flocks of birds creating a peaceful scene over the...
by Andrew Ellsworth, MD Many of us have been there before—near the top of a ladder, stretching just a little farther to finish the job. Maybe we are cleaning a gutter, hanging Christmas lights, or rescuing a cat from a tree. There is always the temptation to climb one rung higher to reach that final spot. According to CDC data from 2022, accidents are the third leading cause of death in the United States, behind heart disease and cancer. For those ages 1–44, accidents are the leading cause of death. These unintentional injuries include...
Welcome to a new monthly column by John Bernhisel. Enjoy! Test yourself: Q1. There are five letters of the alphabet that don’t appear in the names of any of the months. Name them. Q2. January is named after which Roman god? Q3. What major World War II battle began on December 16, 1944? Q4. In what city and state was Elvis Presley born? Q5. What answer did an eleven-year-old John Lennon give when asked what he wanted to be when he grew up? Fun Facts: The coldest temperature ever officially recorded in the continental United States occurred...
The Wyoming Press Association award plaques on the wall at the Independent Record office date back to 1988. Awards were won prior to that, but older plaques have been replaced by newer ones as the years went by. We enjoy winning awards. Who doesn’t? However, we determine our success through the eyes of our readers. If you are reading, we are succeeding. Our advertisers are a big part of our success, too. We are thankful for your faith in the IR to get the word out about your business, event, service, etc. A community paper is not possible...
Ruth Galovich died on January 11, 2026, following a brief illness. Surrounded by friends and family she passed away peacefully. Born on September 9, 1937, to John and Lili Skelton in Lucerne, Wyo., Ruth was an early Wyoming native. She was the youngest of four children and was preceded in death by her siblings, Jim, Jack and Mary, as well as her mom and dad. After graduation from Thermopolis High School in 1955 Ruth was soon married to Gary Hillman, a Worland native. Having set up house in...
Jean Marie Stanhope passed away at her home on January 17, 2026, in Thermopolis. Jean was born in Beach, N. D., on November 4, 1935, to Harold and Veva (Schrader) Oldis. They lived in Sentinnial Butte, N.D. They moved to Iowa when Jean was 2. They then moved to Baker, Mont., when Jean started 7th grade. Jean was in 4-H, Glee Club, and Band while in school. Jean married Gary Stanhope May 3, 1953. To this union four children were born; Jerry, Thomas, Lona and Dona. Before Jerry was born, Dad was... Full story
On the Record policy It is the Thermopolis Independent Record’s policy that all people arrested or cited under the “Sheriff’s office” or “Police department” in the On the Record section are presumed innocent until proven guilty in a court of law. We print the names of all people upon their initial arrest. Names of minors are not printed. Sheriff’s office Tuesday, Jan. 13 9:40 p.m. Agency assist for emergency medical services. Wednesday, Jan. 14 3:32 p.m. A deputy performed a traffic stop on Highway 20 at milepost 41 for...
