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TOUR BUS CRASH-BRYCE CANYON-THE LATEST
The Latest: Police expect higher injury count in bus crash
SALT LAKE CITY (AP) — Authorities say they expect the number of people injured in a deadly tour bus crash near a national park in Utah to rise.
The Utah Highway Patrol tweeted Friday that 12 to 15 people suffered "very critical injuries." Cpl. Chris Bishop later said the agency expects the number to be higher and that victims were sent to three hospitals.
One of them, Intermountain Garfield Memorial Hospital, says it's received 17 patients.
A spokesman for the small hospital in the tiny town of Panguitch tweeted that three people are in critical condition, 11 in serious condition and three in fair condition.
Lance Madigan says Intermountain has sent two helicopters and two planes to help transport victims.
Bishop says patients also are being taken to Cedar City and St. George.
The highway patrol says the bus was carrying 30 people, primarily Chinese-speaking tourists.
FAKE OXYCODONE-SENTENCE
Utah man sentenced to 10 years for selling fake oxycodone
(Information from: Deseret News, http://www.deseretnews.com)
SALT LAKE CITY (AP) — A federal judge has sentenced a Utah man to 10 years in prison after he pleaded guilty to selling fentanyl-laced fake oxycodone pills that led to another man's death.
The Deseret News reported Thursday that 38-year-old Adam Hemmelgarn of Hooper was sentenced to 128 months imprisonment and three years' probation Wednesday after he was convicted of conspiracy to distribute controlled substances.
Prosecutors say they dropped three other charges against him.
Authorities say Hemmelgarn sold Tyrell Perry fake pills in March 2018, who then distributed the pills to several others, including Jaydon Rogers.
Hemmelgarn agreed to pay $15,100 to cover the funeral expenses of Rogers.
Authorities say 20-year-old Perry pleaded guilty and will be sentenced in November.
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KAYAKERS RESCUED-UTAH
Searchers rescued kayakers who got lost on Great Salt Lake
SALT LAKE CITY (AP) — Searchers have rescued three kayakers who became separated and were forced to swim while being battered by 8-foot (2.4-meter) waves on the Great Salt Lake in northern Utah.
Davis County authorities says the last two kayakers were found alive early Friday morning and are OK. The two men were found treading water without their kayaks. A third was found Thursday evening after kayaking to an island and calling for help.
The kayakers said to be 20-year-old men from Davis County got separated Thursday afternoon while heading to an island.
The kayakers' identities weren't released.
Sheriff's officials said the men were wearing T-shirts and shorts and that none had a life jacket.
Crews from several agencies and state Department of Public Safety helicopters participated in the search.
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This story has been corrected to show that only two of the three kayakers had lost their boats, not all of them.
GRAND CANYON-BISON
31 bison from Grand Canyon sent to Oklahoma tribe
GRAND CANYON NATIONAL PARK, Ariz. (AP) — Over 30 bison roaming Grand Canyon National Park's northern reaches are joining a herd in Oklahoma.
Hundreds of the massive animals have made their home at the Grand Canyon in recent years, but park officials say they're spoiling water sources and harming the landscape.
Officials came up with a plan two years ago to reduce the herd partly by corralling the animals and shipping them elsewhere. Thirty-one bison loaded in multiple livestock trailers were shipped to the Quapaw Tribe in Oklahoma on Wednesday.
Several other bison were fitted with tracking devices and released back into the park.
The bison are descendants of ones introduced to northern Arizona in the early 1990s as part of a crossbreeding experiment. The state allows them to be hunted on the neighboring national forest.
VAGOS TRIAL-CASINO SHOOTING
Prosecutors say key witness in motorcycle gang trial lied
(Information from: Las Vegas Review-Journal, http://www.lvrj.com)
LAS VEGAS (AP) — Prosecutors have asked a judge to throw out the testimony of a key witness in a federal racketeering trial stemming from a 2011 shootout killing a Hells Angels leader in a Nevada casino.
The Las Vegas Review-Journal reported Thursday that Gary "Jabbers" Rudnick lied after spending more than three days telling jurors that members of the Vagos Motorcycle Club had plotted to kill a rival biker in Sparks.
Officials say the eight men standing trial represent the first group of 21 defendants that prosecutors say were involved in crimes in California, Arizona, Hawaii, Oregon, Utah and Nevada.
Prosecutors say there are doubts as to whether the witness will be truthful.
Defense attorneys for the men have asked to have the murder and racketeering charges thrown out.
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BOUNCE HOUSE FIRE
Bounce house sparks fire, power outages in Utah neighborhood
DRAPER, Utah (AP) — A bounce house in Utah has started a fire that left thousands of residents without power after strong winds lifted the inflatable into nearby power lines.
The Drape Fire Department says nobody was injured and that crews responded Thursday to the scene and put out the fire while closing nearby traffic because of downed power lines.
Authorities say a neighborhood business was setting up the bounce house, a pumpkin patch and corn maze for a Halloween event in Draper south of Salt Lake City.
Witnesses say there were gentle winds at the time of the accident but a rogue gust of wind took everyone by surprise and lifted the inflatable away.
Rocky Mountain Power says more than 3,500 customers were without power in the city and surrounding areas.
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