This is your daily news rundown for Tuesday, October 1. In this edition:
- Railroad "quiet zones" have been temporarily suspended from Ogden to Provo
- Yellow Lake Fire continues to grow and remains uncontained
- Updates on Hurricane Helene
- Red Cross of Utah wants to raise $1 million for relief efforts
- The Utah Task Force is helping on-the-ground efforts in affected communities
- Two people were injured in separate collisions with trains in Salt Lake City
Railroad ‘quiet zones’ suspended from Ogden to Provo after inspection issues
4:43 p.m.
All trains going between Ogden and Provo must now sound their horns at every railroad crossing, regardless of the time of day, after “deficiencies” were found during recent inspections.
Segments of rail line can be designated “quiet zones,” which means it has has met certain safety requirements and thus locomotives don't need to sound their horns when approaching railroad crossings.
However, after the Federal Railroad Administration found "deficiencies" in a recent inspection, all quiet zones from Ogden to Provo have been suspended until all crossings are fully compliant.
As of Tuesday, all freight trains and Utah Transit Authority FrontRunner trains must sound their horns when coming up on any public grade crossing according to the federal Train Horn Rule.
This means nearby residents may hear more train horns at odd times of the day or night.
The Federal Railroad Administration didn’t detail what deficiencies they found in the inspections, but they said they were minor and posed no safety risk to the public.
Yellow Lake Fire continues to grow, remains uncontained
4:43 p.m.
The Yellow Lake Fire has grown another 1,000 acres in one day and remains 0% uncontained.
The human-caused fire first sparked Sunday morning in the Uinta Mountains southeast of Mill Hollow Reservoir and has since burned 2,474 acres.
Suppression efforts have reportedly been dangerous and difficult, according to the U.S. Forest Service, because of fall heat waves and a lack of moisture in the air this summer.
Officials don’t anticipate the fire being put out soon due to those and other complicating factors in fighting the fire.
Highway 35 will also remain closed for at least one to three days for public and firefighter safety.
Red Cross of Utah hopes to raise $1 million for Hurricane Helene relief efforts
4:43 p.m.
The American Red Cross of Utah is launching its first-ever “giving challenge” to raise a million dollars for relief efforts in southeastern states affected by Hurricane Helene.
The Category 4 hurricane made landfall in Florida on Monday. It’s led to 128 deaths, entire communities destroyed, and millions without power. Many are also short on basic resources like food and water and are struggling to access them due to ongoing damage.
To assist ongoing relief efforts, the Red Cross of Utah is urging Utahns to help them raise $1 million by the weekend that can go towards shelter, food, and clothing for those affected.
Individuals can donate to American Red Cross Disaster Relief by calling 1-800-REDCROSS, texting HELENE to 90999, or on their website.
Utah Task Force helps care for communities affected by Hurricane Helene
8:52 a.m.
Utah volunteers and first responders are stationed across the Southeast helping care for communities hit hard by Hurricane Helene.
Utah Task Force 1 is among those in the Southeast in the aftermath of the storm. Currently stationed in Knoxville, Tennessee, the Utah team was originally headed for Georgia. However, the rapidly changing situation rerouted them to Tennessee.
The team is used to dealing with situations such as hurricanes and other natural disasters according to Utah Task Force I Chief Bryan Case who told KSL.com the 45-member team, and some canines, are trained in technical rescues.
The team brought six boats along on the roughly 37-hour drive to help remove victims who might be trapped in the collapsed structures downed by the hurricane.
Two more injured in train-cyclists in Salt Lake City
8:52 a.m.
Two people were injured Monday in separate collisions with trains in Salt Lake City, police said.
The rail company confirmed a cyclist was hospitalized after colliding with a Union Pacific train in Salt Lake City Monday morning.
Another person was injured later Monday in a separate train crash, police said. The crash happened in the area of 200 S. Redwood.
The person sustained injuries described as serious. Salt Lake police said the injuries did not appear to be life-threatening,
Monday’s accidents were the second and third accidents in September involving a Union Pacific train.
40-year-old Jacob Pratt of Logan was killed September 18 after the van he was driving was hit by a Union Pacific train while crossing railway tracks in Cornish.
