Wyoming Briefs, Friday June 11

F.E. Warren unveils park

CHEYENNE (WNE) – The new park at F.E. Warren Air Force Base has been around a year in the making. The idea came about because anyone who wanted to see the missile display would have to technically go onto the base, even if the farthest they went onto it was the display.

More than 1,400 people come to the base every year just to see the missile display and static aircraft, so the Air Force officials and the city of Cheyenne partnered together to see how they could make life a little simpler for base visitors.

The city engineering department managed to create an accessible, yet classic, design for a park that would give guests the chance to park in front of the base and walk over to the displays without having to go through security checks.

On Thursday, the new F.E. Warren Air Force Base Air Park was officially opened to the public with a ribbon cutting ceremony featuring multiple Air Force officials, Cheyenne Mayor Patrick Collins and Greater Cheyenne Chamber of Commerce CEO Dale Steenbergen.

Three intercontinental ballistic missiles that tower high above head are on display at the park, all of which were operated during the Cold War Period. There is also the Bell UH-1F Huey helicopter, which was used to transport military personnel to and from the base from 1966 to 1980. The helicopter was restored in 2000.

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Search turns up meth and fentanyl

GILLETTE (WNE) –- A Gillette man faces five drug charges after state agents searched his home and found supplies of fentanyl powder and pills, as well as meth.

Agents with the Wyoming Division of Criminal Investigation believe Preston Ray Wisenbaker, 30, intended to distribute the narcotics as they continue their efforts to find people selling fentanyl, which has caused seven overdose deaths in Campbell County in the last 19 months

Wisenbaker has been charged with five felony counts: possession with intent to deliver fentanyl and meth, and possession of fentanyl pills, fentanyl powder and meth.

DCI got a search warrant to search Weisenbaker’s home on Oregon Avenue on June 3 and found a zippered bag hidden in the ceiling on the second floor of his home, according to an affidavit of probable cause.

Inside, they found a container with 35 grams of fentanyl powder, a container with about 10 grams of light green pills, six jeweler’s bags with nine to 19 light green pills, a jeweler’s bag with about 13 grams of meth and a baggie with 162 grams of meth.

The pills had the marking of “M” on one side and “30” on the other, according to the affidavit. They had the same markings as an oxycodone pill, but because of recent investigations, agents believe those pills are actually fentanyl.

Wisenbaker remains in Campbell County jail awaiting a preliminary hearing to determine if there is probable cause to suspect him of the charges and to send the case to District Court for trial. The date has not yet been set.

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Ultra changes name to PureWest

PINEDALE (WNE) — What’s in a name? With its acquisition of Pinedale Energy Partners Operators’ assets, the Anticline’s largest natural gas producer is changing its name again to pursue a new image.

With the continued downturn in natural gas prices and a competitive market, Ultra is carving a new niche to distinguish itself as an environmentally friendly operator with lowered emissions and more efficient equipment.

“Along with our name change, we have changed our mission – to advance modern life by producing natural gas in a safe, environmentally-responsible, and cost-conscious manner – and these changes reflect these new commitments,” said PureWest CEO Christopher Valdez.

It has partnered with Project Canary to certify its wells as TrustWell “responsibly sourced gas” and will have 871 wells certified this year and the rest by the end of next year, he said.

Between Pinedale and Denver, PureWest now has about 150 employees. Valdez declined to say how many from PEPO were retained after Ultra took over.

“We operate in one of the most stringent regulatory environments in the country,” Valdez said last week. “We’ve taken the momentum of reaching the high bar set for us by (Wyoming and federal) regulatory agencies and continued to innovate and advance a number of voluntary initiatives.”

Those include quarterly camera-based leak inspections on all facilities, which he said shows “one of the lowest methane intensity rates in the country – 0.04 percent.

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