Sunrise Stories: 24-Year-Old Motorcyclist Declared Dead After Accident near St. George BLVD

KDXU Sunrise Stories: Volume 254 

Statewide News – 07/26/24 

Fentanyl Trafficking is Breaking Records in Utah 

Officials from the United States Drug Enforcement Administration reported a record number of fentanyl pills were seized throughout the state in 2023.  

Fentanyl is the deadliest drug threat in the entire country, and such a threat required several high-ranking officials to meet in Northern Utah on Thursday to discuss the issue. 

More than 660,000 pills containing fentanyl were seized in Utah for 2023, and that number has already been surpassed for 2024 with 770,000 pills seized so far this year. 

Utah Gas Report for July 26 

According to this morning’s AAA gas report, the average price for a gallon of unleaded in Utah remains unchanged. 

Washington County’s average is $3.62 per gallon while Iron County’s average is $3.47 per gallon. The latter is one of the cheapest counties in the state for gas heading into the weekend. 

The cheapest gas found in Utah belongs to Carbon County at $3.42 per gallon. Most expensive gas can be found in Carbon County at $4.03 per gallon. 

Southern Utah/St. George News – 07/26/24 

Motorcycle Rider Dead Following Accident at St. George BLVD Overpass 

A male motorcycle rider was unfortunately declared dead following an accident at the St. George Boulevard overpass of I-15. 

Alec Brown, 24, was declared dead after entering an intersection of I-15 and St. George Boulevard just after 9 p.m. and colliding with another vehicle. 

A female passenger was also with Brown at the time of the accident, but Officer Tiffany Mitchell from the St. George Police Department said she’s expected to pull through. Brown reportedly became distracted while driving due to some sort of argument with the passengers of a vehicle behind him, and he entered the intersection without realizing the light was red. 

Zion Wildfire Grows to 24 Acres 

Utah Fire Info reported growth within a wildfire in Zion National Park that started Wednesday. 

The Kolob Terrace Fire has grown to 24 acres and is still reported at 0% containment. A local resident reported the fire Wednesday afternoon, causing park officials to close the nearby Hop Valley Trail. 

About 40 fire workers are on the scene fighting the blaze, and investigators haven’t confirmed the cause of the wildfire. 

Other 

Fun fact about Stockton Myers, the writer of Sunrise Stories. 

Stockton will begin covering for Andy Griffin on the KDXU morning show for two weeks starting on Monday, July 29. This means Sunrise Stories will be a bit shorter than usual depending on how busy the work is each day, but Stockton is committed to getting Sunrise Stories out in a timely manner each morning. You can also expect to see original articles from Stockton as well. He just wanted to be completely transparent as the busiest two weeks of the year come for Stockton. 

Happy Weekend!