UW ag center hay burns

LARAMIE - A fire has destroyed about 140 tons of hay at the University of Wyoming Livestock Center in Laramie.

There were no reports of injuries in the Thursday night fire and no structures were damaged.

Officials say two stacks of baled hay were destroyed. No estimates were immediately available on the cost.

Travis Smith, who manages the beef unit at the center, said lightning probably caused the fire. Smith said he heard a lightning bolt and smelled smoke about 20 minutes later.

The Laramie Fire Department says the blaze is under investigation.

Rescuers find stranded kayaker

MOOSE - An Indiana woman spent the night on a sandbar in the Snake River after she missed her pullout site while kayaking.

Grand Teton National Park said 71-year-old Jane Dukes of Colfax, Ind., floated several miles beyond her scheduled destination of Deadman's Bar landing on Wednesday.

With darkness setting in, Dukes pulled out on a sandbar and huddled overnight underneath her inflatable kayak as temperatures dropped to 35 degrees.

Searchers using a helicopter spotted Dukes on Thursday morning and rangers took her off the sandbar in a raft.

Rangers credit Dukes for beaching her kayak overnight instead of continuing down the river in the darkness. They warn all novice boaters to consult with rangers before beginning their trips.

Supreme Court upholds conviction

CHEYENNE - The Wyoming Supreme Court has upheld a conviction of involuntary manslaughter for a man who told police that he wrapped his girlfriend's infant daughter tightly in a blanket to stop her crying.

Randall Britton was convicted in Uinta County District Court last year of involuntary manslaughter in the suffocation death of the 11-month old girl.

Court records say Britton told police he had wrapped her with a blanket, "like a burrito."

In his appeal, the 44-year-old Britton argued the jury shouldn't have learned doctors found bruises on the girl's body or that he told police he spanked her.

The Supreme Court ruled that there was enough evidence to support Britton's conviction even without the evidence he had abused the girl.

Man dies near Hill City

HILL CITY, S.D. - A Wyoming man is dead after a crash near Hill City in western South Dakota involving a sport utility vehicle and a semitrailer that was hauling logs.

The Highway Patrol says 67-year-old Roy Lougee of Torrington was driving the SUV, which collided with the semi at a highway intersection south of Hill City shortly after noon Thursday.

The driver of the semi was not injured. A passenger in Lougee's vehicle suffered minor injuries.