Utah

Utah Pacific Islanders called on to do more to combat Covid-19

There are about 30,000 Pacific islanders in Utah, and there has so far been about 1,200 cases and 13 deaths from the coronavirus among them.

Jake Fitisemanu, of the Utah Pacific Islander Health Coalition, said his organisation had been working hard to get the community to make use of available resources.

He said it had been working with the media, churches, and Pasifika officials in the governor's office.

COVID cases surge among Pacific Islanders in Utah

The state is home to the largest Pacific Island community on the United States mainland - it is made up mostly of Polynesians but also includes a significant number of Micronesians.

As of the middle of this week there have been 1248 Pacific Islanders in Utah reported as affected by the virus, a rate 2.5 times higher than the state average.

Of those cases, 170 have come in the past week with 20 people hospitalised. Thirteen Pacific Islanders have died of COVID-19 in Utah to date.

Five-year-old caught driving parents' car in Utah

Five-year-old Adrian took the family car, and was only caught when police in Utah state stopped him on the freeway.

A patrolman spotted the SUV weaving across lanes at 30mph (50km/h), and issued a traffic stop, duly obeyed by the driver.

He was shocked to discover the child behind the wheel, who said he was on his way to buy a Lamborghini.

The boy told police that he had left home after his mother refused to buy him the luxury vehicle - lower-priced models cost over $180,000 (£144,000) - which sparked an argument.

Ever heard of ‘clear the air’ challenge?

What it had people doing was clear the air between each other.

To be more specific, this is the only time you allow someone to tell you what they think about you, without responding or reacting, even if it was offensive to you.

Many updated their status on Facebook:

“Anyone who comments their name under my status, I'm going to reply how I honestly feel about you, whether I know you personally or not”.

Originality of this challenge is unknown, although there is another clear the air challenge that existed since 2009.

Zion National Park floods trapped 7 people in narrow canyon

Known as a slot canyon, the passage is as narrow as a window in some spots and several hundred feet deep. Flooding can turn such canyons into deadly channels of fast-moving water and debris in just minutes.

A sudden deluge of rain fueled the flood, which "went from a trickle to a wall" of water, park ranger Therese Picard said.

Utah boy survived night in woods by curling up in warm rocks

     

"It was weird not having anybody with me, but I just kept going. I knew I had to make it back or my family would be really sad," Malachi Bradley said.

Malachi had been learning about wild mushrooms, and he wandered deep into the woods searching for new specimens after a hike with family to a mountain lake.

"I went way too far," he said.

Rescue crews search for 10-year-old boy in Utah forest

The Deseret News reports Malachi Bradley's family last saw him near the Paradise Park Campground in Ashley National Forest.

Uintah County Sheriff's Corporal Brian Fletcher told the Salt Lake Tribune that trained personnel from neighbouring counties as well as the Ute Indian Tribe are traveling the area on ATVs searching for the boy.

A Department of Public Safety helicopter also is assisting in the search.