Wednesday, September 3, 2025 |
Photo – CCSO podcast monthly update – Courtesy Sheriff Alex Bakken
Carbon County Sheriff Alex Bakken provided an overview of his department’s operations for the month of August.
In his second monthly podcast, Sheriff Alex Bakken recapped the Carbon County Sheriff’s Office’s activities from the previous month. The Sheriff began with a brief mention of the Carbon County Fair. Held from August 2nd to August 9th, the fair draws visitors from across the region to Rawlins.
In his August 30th broadcast, Sheriff Bakken explained that this year’s Carbon County Fair was busy, but relatively uneventful. The Sheriff said he will continue working with the Fair Board to ensure the safety of future events.
Next, Sheriff Bakken discussed his department’s August Search and Rescue activity. The first large-scale Search and Rescue operation occurred on August 2nd in the Platte River Wilderness near Elk Horn Point, where a hiker suffered an ankle injury in a difficult-to-reach area. The Sheriff said Search and Rescue volunteers took turns carrying the hiker down the mountainside to the North Platte River, where an Intermountain Health Flight and Ambulance Service helicopter was waiting.
Another Search and Rescue operation occurred on August 20th in the Sheep Creek area of the Medicine Bow National Forest, where a mushroom hunter broke his ankle. Sheriff Bakken said the forager’s wife was able to hike to a nearby road and call for help. As in the earlier operation, Search and Rescue volunteers carried the injured party down the mountain to the medical transport helicopter.
The Carbon County Sheriff’s Office also participated in a large fentanyl seizure in the Town of Medicine Bow. Sheriff Bakken said his office, along with Wyoming Highway Patrol and the Wyoming Department of Criminal Investigation, discovered 400 illegal fentanyl pills while executing a search warrant at a Medicine Bow residence. The Sheriff thanked the partner agencies for helping get dangerous drugs out of the community.
The month’s most significant event was the widespread power outage that occurred on the evening of August 29th. A powerful storm passed through southern Wyoming, leaving roughly 5,000 Carbon County residents without electricity. According to Rocky Mountain Power Media Team Member Jonathan Whitesides, a lightning strike caused the Platte, Sage Hill, and Parco substations to automatically disconnect from the grid.
Power was restored to the Platte River Valley roughly five hours after the outage. However, large portions of Rawlins remained without electricity until Monday afternoon, with essential buildings such as Memorial Hospital of Carbon County forced to rely on backup generators.
Sheriff Bakken said thankfully, the generators worked as designed.
Sheriff Bakken also thanked Carbon County Emergency Manager Lenny Layman for coordinating the resources necessary to ensure county buildings remained operational during the power outage.
The Sheriff reminded residents that Carbon County remains under Stage One fire restrictions, despite the recent rainfall. Under these restrictions, all open flames are prohibited. Sheriff Bakken directed the public to his Facebook page, Alex Bakken–Carbon County Sheriff, for more information about the restrictions.
On a lighthearted note, Sheriff Bakken announced that on August 9th, he completed the Running for Peace Marathon. The Sheriff ran 26.2 miles along the Medicine Bow Rail Trail to raise money for Citizens Organized to See Violence End, or COVE. The nonprofit organization provides free services to victims of domestic violence, sexual assault, and stalking. Through his GoFundMe campaign, Sheriff Bakken said he raised more than $2,300 for COVE.
The Sheriff said he wasn’t eager to run another marathon.
Finally, Sheriff Bakken said archery hunting season began on September 1st. The Sheriff reminded the public that his office is following the 10th Circuit Court’s ruling on corner crossing, where the activity is legal as long as the person does not physically touch private property while moving between public parcels of land. The Sheriff encouraged both sportsmen and landowners to respect one another throughout the season.
