This is your daily news rundown for Wednesday, Sept. 16. In this edition:
- Crews are on scene to fight a new fire on Fremont Island
- Charlie Kirk's family took a step towards suing Utah Valley University for his death
- There are more tickets to tour the Salt Lake City Temple next year
- A Utah teacher died unexpectedly weeks after being named Teacher of the Year
Lighting sparked a new fire on Great Salt Lake's Fremont Island
Even though it’s feeling more like fall, the fire season isn’t over yet — a new fire sparked on Fremont Island on Great Salt Lake.
As of about 2 p.m. on Wednesday, the fire was estimated at 60 acres. It was initially active, but rainfall helped slow forward progress.
According to Utah Fire Info, air resources are on scene and state crews were able to access the island by airboat, with more ground crews en route.
The fire was determined to be caused by lightning.
Charlie Kirk’s family takes a step toward suing UVU and the state for his death
The family of Charlie Kirk is preparing the way for a lawsuit against Utah Valley University and the state of Utah for his death last year.
In a wrongful death notice announced on Wednesday, the family claims the university’s security failures contributed to Kirk’s death.
That includes an allegation that campus police promised they would secure nearby roofs but did not.
The notice is a required step under state law before Kirk’s family can file a lawsuit over death caused by a government entity or employee's negligence. That lawsuit would also need to be filed before the anniversary of Kirk’s death next year, on Sept. 10.
More tickets are available to tour the Salt Lake City Temple
More tickets are available for tours of the renovated Salt Lake City Temple next year.
Ticket reservations initially opened on Sept. 1, and a million were claimed in one day.
Because of that demand, the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints opened another batch of tickets on Wednesday, and will do another on Oct. 1.
The tours are free and open to the public. Tickets can be reserved online, with options for those who are Deaf, blind/low vision, neurodiverse, or immunocompromised.
A Utah teacher died unexpectedly weeks after being named Teacher of the Year
A sixth-grade teacher in Moroni died unexpectedly less than two weeks after being named Utah’s Teacher of the Year.
Talia Casares was a Spanish Dual Language Immersion teacher at Moroni Elementary. Originally from Mexico, she earned her masters at Brigham Young University and had a nearly decade-long teaching career.
On Monday, she experienced a medical episode and collapsed. Responders were unable to revive her.
Casares’ family and community shared their love for her online. North Sanpete School District said, “Her love for her students, her passion for learning, and her joy in teaching were evident in everything she did.”
