21 minute read
Casper Airport lights it up
from Interchange – October 2022
by WYDOT
Interchange
October 2022 Vol. 50, Iss. 10 Casper Airport lights it up
Live-burn scenarios give emergency responders realistic fire-fighting experiences. More than 100 emergency responders have been trained or re-certified in 2022
By Mark Horan
A specialized training facility housed and hosted by the Casper/Natrona County International Airport (CPR) conducts live fire burns on a plane fuselage as a way to provide Aircraft Rescue and Firefighting (ARFF) personnel with realistic, hands-on experience.
The Wyoming Regional ARFF Training Center allows emergency responders from the Rocky Mountain region and beyond to acquire and practice firefighting skills and earn or maintain their FAA-required certifications.
Per federal regulations, ARFF team members must go through a 40-hour course for their initial training and must take part in a live fire burn every year to be re-certified.
The training center offers anywhere from 12 to 16 sessions a year. Two of those trainings are the 40-hour courses. The remaining sessions consist of either hand-line or fire truck live burn scenarios.
More than 100 emergency responders were trained or re-certified in 2022, a record high for the facility. Trainees included in that statistic are ARFF responders from Wyoming airports and states such as Colorado, Nebraska, Oregon and Kansas.
Originally built in 1995, the training center was reconstructed and expanded in 2020. It is the only one of its kind in Wyoming. The next closest facility with similar capabilities is in Helena, Montana.
Over 25 years, more than 2,700 firefighters from about 75 departments have trained at this airport.
WYDOT Aeronautics provides annual grant funding to help with the operations and maintenance of the training center. The grant also helps keep fees lower for in-state attendees.
The fuselage mock-up was purpose-built for ARFF training. Similar in size to a regional aircraft that might be used in Wyoming, it has a broken wing on one side which firefighters are able to walk on and enter the fuselage of the aircraft.
Burner boxes can be ignited inside the aircraft itself, so firefighters can enter the aircraft and fight either a rear galley fire or cockpit fire.
“It adds a tremendous value to the experience of the firefighters,” said Dan Kittinger, deputy director of operations and public safety for CPR.
“We’re able to keep a petroleum based fuel, so we actually burn diesel fuel that
Features
1 Casper Airport lights it up
WYDOT Aeronautics helps fund unique firefighter training program 8 District 2 wrapping up construction projects
End of season nears for summertime projects 9 Veteran healthcare fliers now posted in rest areas
VA partners with WYDOT to increase awareness 10 Looks like we got ourselves a convoy
Annual truck convoy fundraiser for Special Olympics Wyoming
Programs & Partner Agencies
Employee Safety ............................................................................................7 Game & Fish.................................................................................................14 HR Happenings ............................................................................................12 Training ........................................................................................................12 Travel & Tourism..........................................................................................13
Also in this issue
District Briefs.................................................................................................3 Awards .........................................................................................................11 By the Numbers ...........................................................................................15 District News ...............................................................................................16 WTDEA .........................................................................................................19 Passings.......................................................................................................20 Outdoors/Rides............................................................................................21 Break Time...................................................................................................23
Kindly recycle this publication after reading. Interchange is published for employees of the Wyoming Department of Transportation by its Public Affairs Office and a number of field correspondents.
Interchange invites submissions from all employees. Please send them to either your district correspondents or to:
Carlie Van Winkle, Interchange editor 5300 Bishop Blvd., Cheyenne, Wyoming, 82009-3340 or send an email to carlie.vanwinkle@wyo.gov.
Staff
WYDOT Director:
K. Luke Reiner
Public Affairs Manager:
Doug McGee Editor:
Carlie Van Winkle
Contributors:
Jordan Achs Public Affairs
Matt Groth Public Affairs
Mark Horan Public Affairs
Carlie Van Winkle Public Affairs
Andrea Staley District 1
Jeff Goetz District 2
Stephanie Harsha District 3
Laura Dalles District 4
Cody Beers District 5
Sgt. Jeremy Beck Patrol Photography:
Rick Carpenter Public Affairs
Be sure to check out the online version of Interchange at http://issuu.com/wydot.pao or click on the link found on the employee’s internal
ARFF continued from front cover gives a realistic type of event for an actual aircraft emergency. A lot of other facilities use propane but that doesn’t have the realistic burning capabilities like diesel fuel does,” Kittinger said.
“With this training, the firefighters are going to see the jet fuel spilling out on the ground. They’re going to see a lot of flames and a lot of black smoke that we’re able to produce here,” he added.
“We’re giving them a realistic fire to fight.”
Casper/Natrona County International Airport owns three trucks that participants can use to demonstrate their skills: two 1,500 gallon rigs and one 3,000 gallon rig. Some responders bring a truck from their home airport to train with. Individuals only need to qualify on one truck in order to stay certified.
Inside the ARFF control tower, instructors operate a touchscreen television to select which burners they want to ignite and how much fuel to dispense to simulate different types of emergency response scenarios. A normal fire will release about 100 gallons of fuel for the firefighters to extinguish.
Water from inside the pit, along with any leftover diesel fuel, is reclaimed, recycled and reused.
Both substances are collected by a double set of plastic liners, gravity drained into a pit about 40 feet deep in the ground, and then sump-pumped back out.
“All that diesel fuel goes through two or three stages of settling off from the water getting pumped out, and then we actually reuse that unburned diesel fuel for the next training,” Kittinger said.
The water is reclaimed for multiple trainings as well, and then at the end of the year it’s tested to make sure it contains no contaminants so it can be put down the sewer.
Although actual wrecks on Wyoming Airfields are infrequent, it’s important for ARFF teams to be ready for different types of emergency situations.
“You never know when something might happen,” Kittinger said.
“In the event of an aircraft fire, we want to be prepared to save as many lives as we can. That’s our number one priority.” n
Firefighters reinforce their skills to quickly control an aircraft fire by effectively maneuvering an ARFF vehicle while using a mounted turret.
District Briefs
Headquarters
CHEYENNE – The Wyoming Transportation Commission awarded over $15 million in contracts for five Wyoming Department of Transportation construction projects during its September 15 business meeting.
A $5.18 million bid was awarded to Casper-based Casper Electric Inc. for a project involving electrical, structure, and other work on a 1-mile section of US Highway 14/16/20 in Park County.
The commission awarded a $2.96 million bid to Afton-based Avail Valley Construction-WY, LLC, for a project involving milling, paving, grading, guardrail and other work on almost 9.5 miles of Wyoming Highway 414 in Uinta County.
Avail was also awarded a $2.93 million bid for a project involving milling, paving, sidewalk work, curb and gutter work, and other work on almost 1.5 miles of Wyoming Highway 789 in Fremont County.
The contracted completion date for the above projects is October 31, 2023.
Lander-based C C & G, Inc. was awarded a $1.75 million bid for a project involving structure replacement, grading, paving and other work on approximately 0.20 mile of County Road CN20-86 over Cottonwood Creek in Washakie County. The contracted completion date is June 30, 2024.
The commission awarded a $1.95 million bid to Mills-based King Enterprises for a project involving fencing, grading and other work on just more than 5 miles of US Highway 189/191 in Sublette County. The contracted completion date is September 30, 2024.
All of the above projects are funded primarily by federal dollars. The only project funded primarily with state dollars was awarded to Casper-based Modern Electric Co. with a bid of $291,756. The project involves electrical, sidewalk, curb and gutter and other work on US Highway 26/287 in Fremont County. The contracted completion date is October 31, 2023.
Almost all WYDOT projects are awarded to the lowest bidder. September’s meeting saw an average of about 2.5 bids per project. Feds approve Wyoming’s National Electric Vehicle Infrastructure Plan
CHEYENNE – The Federal Highway Administration announced Sept. 27 that Wyoming’s National Electric Vehicle Infrastructure plan has been approved and Fiscal Year 2022 funding has been
Briefs continued on page 4
Briefs continued from page 3 released.
The state will now begin the process as outlined in the plan for year one of the program, which will involve a request for proposal process for the installation of charging stations within the towns of Pine Bluffs, Laramie, Wheatland, Douglas, Buffalo, Sheridan, and Sundance. The exact locations of these chargers will be determined as part of the RFP process.
While the overall plan was approved, the FHWA denied eight of the state’s key exception requests. Wyoming was seeking a series of 11 exceptions to federal requirements that the stations be placed every 50 miles and a maximum of one mile from an interstate exit.
The only approved exception request for the 50 mile requirement was the section of Interstate 90 between Gillette and Buffalo, while two 1-mile exceptions were granted for existing charging stations in Rawlins and Cheyenne.
“The decision to make these exception requests was not made lightly, but was instead in response to public feedback, limited EV adoption rates, increasing EV range capabilities and the long distances between Wyoming’s population centers,” said Luke Reiner, Wyoming Department of Transportation director. “Wyoming will continue to work with the FHWA and other partners to try to find a common sense solution for the denied exception requests to ensure the stations are economically viable and a good use of taxpayer resources.”
The exception requests were part of an overall strategy to use NEVI funding to facilitate travel to popular tourist destinations. Tourism is the state’s second-largest industry, and major tourism destinations like Yellowstone National Park are not close to an interstate.
The state will compile and release a NEVI Plan annually, with additional opportunities to make exception requests to the station spacing requirements.
The federal Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act (IIJA) allocated funding through the NEVI program for electric vehicle charging infrastructure along key corridors throughout the nation. Wyoming is allocated almost $24 million over five years for EV charging infrastructure along its federally-designated alternative fuel corridors: I-80, I-25 and I-90.
Once the Federal Government has certified the EV infrastructure build-out along the interstates, any remaining funding can be spent in areas outside of the interstates. No state funding will be used to install, operate or maintain the NEVI EV chargers.
For more information or to view the plan, visit: https://www.dot.state.wy.us/ home/planning_projects/zeroemission-vehicles/national-electricvehicle-infrastructure-(nevi)-program. html
District 1
Paving work on WYO 72 in Hanna
HANNA – Crews with the Department of Transportation and Simon Contractors began work on Wyoming Highway 72 through Hanna.
The work began at milepost 0 and ends at milepost 3.
The project includes milling, paving, chip seal, and ADA ramp upgrades. Traffic in town was temporarily on a milled surface and pilot car operations were used to navigate milling and paving times.
Motorists encountered delays.
The expedited schedule has an expected completion date of this fall. Rest Areas along I-80 closed for cleaning, repairs
LARAMIE – The Pine Bluffs Rest Area near milepost 401 on I-80 was temporarily closed Sept. 20-21 for deep cleaning and parking lot repairs.
The Summit Rest Area near milepost 323 on I-80 east of Laramie was also temporarily closed. The closure occurred on Sept. 22-23 for facility repairs, parking lot repairs and deep cleaning.
The closures began at 6 a.m. on the first day and remained closed throughout the second day while repairs to the facilities and parking lots, deep cleaning and maintenance took place.
Facilities, including restrooms and tourist information areas, were closed to the public. Truck parking remained available while car and RV parking was closed. Both rest areas were back up and open to the public after all work had been
Road work on WYO 216 in Albin
CHEYENNE – Crews with Simon Contractors and the Wyoming Department of Transportation began road work along Wyoming Highway 216 on Aug. 29.
The project consisted of milling and paving a section of the highway that runs through Albin, from milepost 15.7 to 16.2.
Crews also addressed a section of US Highway 85/South Greeley Highway between mileposts 3.9-7.3 in September. A 12-foot width restriction was in place for travelers through this project.
Motorists encountered delays through the work zones, including potential lane shifts and lowered speed limits.
The work is expected to be completed in October.
District 2
Salt Creek Highway bridge crash
CASPER – A one-vehicle crash the night of Sept. 8 delayed work on the south Salt Creek Highway bridge in Casper.
According to the Mills Police Department, a driver of a Dodge pick-up headed south on Salt Creek Highway (WYO 254), drove around the road closure barricades and tried to drive over the recently installed in-place forms atop the bridge, located near the junction with West Yellowstone Highway (US 20).
An initial inspection on Sept. 9 revealed damage to one of the structure’s diaphragms. The diaphragms are laterally placed beams that join girders together, providing stiffness and strength to the bridge. Damage was also done to many of the in-place metal forms.
WYDOT’s bridge department inspected the bridge to determine if there was any structural damage.
At this time, there has been no dollar amount given to the damage nor has there been any estimation of how long these repairs will delay the overall project. Original completion date was end of November.
The driver of the pickup escaped uninjured. Please obey posted closures and other hazard warning signs and don’t try
A pick-up driver ignored road closure signs, driving into a construction zone, causing extensive damage to recently placed deck forms and one of the structure’s diaphragms.
Photo: Jeff Goetz
District 3
Paving operations in Snake River Canyon cause delays
JACKSON – The Wyoming Department of Transportation and contract crews from Avail Valley Construction paved a wearing course on US 89 through the Snake River Canyon from mileposts 127 to 132. Traffic during the day and evenings was reduced to a single, alternating lane with a pilot car, under the direction of flaggers and traffic control devices. No work took place over the Labor Day holiday weekend.
Following the completion of the paving operations, the road was striped.
Crews worked to accommodate drivers during morning commuter hours, but drivers were advised to expect delays up to 20 minutes and to plan accordingly.
Photo: Stephanie Harsha
A pilot car waiting to guide a line of cars through the construction zone.
District 4
Paving operations from Burgess Junction to Cutler Hill on US 14
SHERIDAN – The Wyoming Department of Transportation and its contractor Mountain Construction began milling an 8-mile section of US 14 between Burgess Junction and Cutler Hill on Sept. 19.
Milling began on the west end of the project at milepost 57.27 and proceed east to milepost 65.01.
Motorists encountered delays with flagging operations, a pilot car, reduced speed limits and one lane of travel.
Both lanes of travel were open after work hours with areas of milled surface.
Milling operations were expected to take approximately a week to complete with paving to follow.
This project has a completion date of Oct. 31. I-90/US 16 interchange bridge repair, short term road closure
BUFFALO – The Wyoming Department of Transportation and its contractor, S&S Builders, LLC, repaired damages to a bridge on I-90 in Buffalo.
The bridge was damaged in July 2021 when a high-profile truck traveling southbound on US 14/16 struck a portion of the I-90 bridge, causing damage to the structure. The damage resulted in the closure the driving lane of the eastbound lane of I-90 at milepost 58.65.
The extent of the damage included a portion of the bent cap being broken off, and severe damage to the outside girder, a primary support system of the bridge. Upon inspection, it was determined the passing lane of the bridge structure was sound and allowed for traffic to be detoured to the passing lane.
S&S Builders, LLC did preliminary work at the end of August in preparation for repairing the bent cap and replacing the girder. Removal of the girder required the contractor to temporarily close US 14/16 on Sept. 1 to remove the girder. The new girder was replaced with another short-term road closure. A detour was put in place.
The bridge repairs are scheduled to be complete by Oct. 31. US 14 Ranchester bridge to switch to one-way traffic with signal
SHERIDAN – The Wyoming Department of Transportation and its Contractors, Reiman Corp. and High Country Construction, have completed work on the eastbound lane of the new Ranchester bridge on US 14 and switched traffic onto the new bridge section on Sept. 6.
All traffic is now using the new eastbound lane. Vehicles are encountering a traffic signal at both the east and west ends of the project area which, directing one-way traffic over the bridge. The posted speed limit is 20 mph.
Wait times at the signals will be approximately 2 minutes but adjusts accordingly depending on traffic volume.
Once traffic is switched over to the new bridge, the joint venture will demolish the existing bridge and begin work on the westbound lane.
Work is behind schedule but expected to be completed by spring 2023.
A view of the westbound traffic signal at the new US 14 Ranchester bridge detour.
Thermoplastic marking operation in northeast Wyoming
SHERIDAN – The Wyoming Department of Transportation and its contractor, Traffic Safety Services, placed thermoplastic markings at various locations around northeast Wyoming.
Work began on Aug. 29, in Sheridan, on I-90 at the Piney Creek Interchange.
This mobile operation moved quickly through Sheridan and moved east to
Briefs continued on page 6
Briefs continued from page 5 Newcastle. Highway portions included I-90, in Sheridan and Gillette; WYO 59; WYO 50; WYO 51; WYO 387, near Wright; US 14 and WYO 585, near Sundance; US 85; US 16; and US 16 BUS near Newcastle.
During the week of Aug. 30-Sept. 6, the contractor moved operations to Gillette on WYO 59 at night. Closures were from 6:00 p.m. to 6:00 a.m.
The project completion date was Sept.
District 5
Signs, other items not allowed on state-owned right-of-way fences
RIVERTON – The Wyoming Department of Transportation reminds citizens that all items, including signs and lights, cannot be placed in the state right-of-way, or on state right-of-way fences.
The state right-of-way is the strip of land next to the roadway that is either owned by the government, or held by the government through a permanent easement so the highway can legally pass through an area. This includes the state right-of-way fence, which in Wyoming is placed a foot inside the private property line to allow the state to perform maintenance on the state-owned fence. State right-of-ways are the property of the state of Wyoming, and are maintained by WYDOT.
“There is a good reason why signs, lights and other items are not allowed inside state right of ways or on state right of way fences,” said Wyoming Department of Transportation maintenance foreman Shane Pugh of Riverton. “Motorists become distracted by these little signs, lights and illegally-placed reflectors, when in fact, their eyes should be focused on the road.”
Wyoming law and WYDOT policy prohibits placement of signs and other items inside the state right-of-way or on fences. WYDOT maintenance crews pick up signs, lights and other items and take them to the area maintenance office. Whomever owns the sign or other items has two weeks to claim the items, or they will be taken to the nearest landfill.
This procedure also applies to people who erect private memorials within the state right of way, or decorate an existing roadside memorial sign.
Business people and citizens who believe their items may have been removed by WYDOT crews may contact the nearest WYDOT maintenance office to make arrangements to pick up the items.
“Our concern is for the safety of motorists,” Pugh said.
Illegally-placed lights, reflectors and other items placed on the state-owned right-of-way fencing west of Riverton.
Photo: Cody Beers
Passing lane pavement improvement project east of Shoshoni underway
THERMOPOLIS – Work is under way on passing lane paving improvements between Moneta and Waltman east of Shoshoni on US 20/26.
The $4.64 million project includes asphalt pavement surfacing, chip sealing, traffic control and other work on the entire width of the highway at seven sets of passing lanes and inside the Waltman Rest Area.
Prime contractor Knife River of Casper began work Sept. 6.
“Motorists should expect traffic delays of up to 20 minutes. Traffic will be moved through the work zones with pilot vehicles,” said Wyoming Department of Transportation resident engineer Kaia Tharp of Thermopolis.
Project completion date is June 30, 2023. Paving crew applies hotmix patching on US 212/ Beartooth highway
CODY – A Wyoming Department of Transportation asphalt paving crew patched sections of US 212 between US 212’s junction with WYO 296 and the Wyoming-Montana state line.
The WYDOT hot-mix asphalt patching work took about two days to complete.
The WYDOT paving operation consists of a paving crew, a roller operator and numerous WYDOT trucks hauling hot asphalt.
WYDOT hot-mix paving crew.
Pavement improvement/ culvert install between Kinnear, Ethete
LANDER – A $1.683 million pavement improvement/culvert installation project is underway on WYO 132 between Kinnear and Ethete through Johnstown Valley.
The project includes replacement of a 36-inch culvert and installation of three additional 36-inch culverts to handle future spring water flows along WYO 132. Other work includes asphalt pavement surfacing, milling, chip sealing, drainage and other work on 2.1 miles of highway between Kinnear and Ethete.
Prime contractor on the project is 71 Construction, of Casper.
“The contractor’s schedule calls for culvert replacement and installation at milepost 15.80, including dirt grading and placement of crushed gravel base,” said Wyoming Department of Transportation resident engineer Erik Smith of Lander.
Contract completion date is Aug. 31, 2023. n
Chain safety
By Eric Garris, District 2 Safety Representative
There is a great deal of information to unpack when discussing chains and the intentional effort to use them safely. Recently, a chain was selected for a task it was not designed, or rated for, and resulted in damage to a light on a loader when it broke. Had a worker been anywhere near the chain when it broke, they would have been severely injured or killed.
Chains are commonly used because of their strength, simplicity, and ability to adapt to the shape of the load being used. Focused attention, and proactive care should be taken when using chains because sudden shocks will damage them. Misuse of chain slings could damage the chain, resulting in failure and possible severe injury to an employee and damage to equipment.
All sling types must be physically and visually inspected prior to use. When inspecting steel chain slings, pay special attention to any stretching, excessive wear, discoloration, deformities, nicks and gouges. These signs indicate that the sling may be unsafe and must be removed from service.
Here are a few fun words from OSHA about chains and their use: 1910.184(d) – Inspections. Each day before being used, the sling and all fastenings and attachments shall be inspected for damage or defects by a competent person designated by the employer. Additional inspections shall be performed during sling use, where service conditions warrant. Damaged or defective slings shall be immediately removed from service. 1910.184(e)(3)(i) – In addition to the inspection required by paragraph (d) of this section, a thorough periodic inspection of alloy steel chain slings in use shall be made on a regular basis, to be determined on the basis of (A) frequency of sling use; (B) severity of service conditions; (C) nature of lifts being made; and (D) experience gained on the service life of slings used in similar circumstances. Such inspections shall in no event be at intervals greater than once every 12 months. 1910.184(e)(3)(iii) – The thorough inspection of alloy steel chain slings shall be performed by a competent person designated by the employer, and shall include a thorough inspection for wear, defective welds, deformation and increase in length. Where such defects or deterioration are present, the sling shall be immediately removed from service. 1910.184(c)(4) – Slings shall not be loaded in excess of their rated capacities.
This chain was chosen for a task that it wasn’t meant to be used for – it failed. Use the correct chain and attachments for the task you are doing. Lifting chains are intended only for lifting and will be inspected before use, monthly, and re-certified annually. If there is a question about the condition of the chain or which chain to use, ask your supervisor. Never use a lifting chain to secure a load for transport. This will compromise the load being transported, endanger the workers handling the load, and expose the traveling public to the hazard during transport. When storing chains, always hang them in a dry place so air can circulate around them to help keep them dry, clean, and from being a hazard otherwise. Lifting chains will be kept separate from other chains and easily distinguished from other chains. Consider other options such as nylon straps and slings, which are in most cases significantly lighter, easier to inspect, and identify defects. Contact Employee Safety or your District Safety Representative for more information and guidance. n
