Hello and welcome to News Now, I’m your host Taylor Inman. We’re going over the week’s biggest headlines for northwest Montana.

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A Glacier High School student injured in a lightning strike last month was released from intensive care, according to an online fundraiser for the teenager.

A GoFundMe page created by Maddy Schaefer, the student’s sister, described his improvement in a Sept. 10 update posted to the fundraising page.

She said he continues to make progress every day and that they are truly thankful. And that ongoing prayer and support are …

Hello and welcome to News Now, I’m your host Taylor Inman. We’re going over the week’s biggest headlines for northwest Montana.

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A Glacier High School student injured in a lightning strike last month was released from intensive care, according to an online fundraiser for the teenager.

A GoFundMe page created by Maddy Schaefer, the student’s sister, described his improvement in a Sept. 10 update posted to the fundraising page.

She said he continues to make progress every day and that they are truly thankful. And that ongoing prayer and support are always appreciated. She thanked the community for rallying behind her family.

Community donations have amassed over $70,000 to help defray the student’s medical bills and support his family while they remain out of work.

During an Aug. 19 soccer practice at the Glacier High School athletic fields, a lightning strike injured two students and a coach. While the coach and one of the students were released from Logan Health Medical Center a few days later, the other student, who received CPR on the field, remained in intensive care for weeks.

Glacier High School Activities Director Mark Dennehy has said that coaches present during the strike followed appropriate protocols as the thunderstorm rolled over the valley.

The four coaches present directed students toward shelter after the first sight of lightning and waited 45 minutes before returning to practice. The bolt injuring three struck shortly after, prompting swift response from the Kalispell Police Department and other emergency services.

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The pilot of the Two Bear Air helicopter involved in last week's armed standoff said that while the aircraft and its crew survived unscathed, they were repeatedly targeted by a laser sight as they flew in support of area law enforcement.

Search and Rescue Pilot Rob Cherot said the suspect was pointing the laser at the aircraft and pulling the trigger. He said they tried to stay moving and keep a safe distance outward to lessen the chance of getting hit.

56-year-old Travis Kurt Myers faces multiple felony charges in Flathead County District Court following the Sept. 4 standoff. Cherot, a search and rescue pilot with Two Bear Air with 20 years of experience in the cockpit, said that the three-man team aboard the helicopter received reports of gunfire as they took to the sky that morning. He said they sought to maintain a safe distance while aiding officers on the ground.

Cherot said QUOTE "We didn't think they were going to shoot at us for sure, but we knew the guy was shooting at the cops and the drone. With that in mind we were trying to orbit at a safe distance and keep our camera on them, so we could support the SWAT team and if he fled, we could follow him, just be the eye in the sky for law enforcement guys." END QUOTE

Prosecutors have filed two counts of assault with a weapon and one count of criminal endangerment against Myers, who remains in the county jail with bail set at $150,000. He is expected to appear before Judge Dan Wilson on Sept. 19 for his arraignment on the felony charges.

Myers is accused of threatening a pair of women with a gun at a property on Sullivan Crossroad near Columbia Falls Stage Road about 2 a.m. After pointing a gun at both women, he allegedly shot at the feet of one of them, according to court documents.

Responding Flathead County Sheriff's Office deputies deployed a drone, which also drew fire from Myers, court documents said. Authorities estimate that Myers fired more than 11 rounds during the confrontation with law enforcement. Prosecutors allege two of those were aimed at Two Bear Air.

Officials said that authorities took Myers into custody with a Sheriff’s Office K9 unit.

Cherot said there is no way to know how close the rounds came to the helicopter. He said they filmed the entire incident and got footage of him shining a laser, which was mounted to a rifle, and that they could see the muzzle flashing.

Two Bear Air personnel inspected the helicopter upon its return, finding no evidence of bullet strikes.

The aircraft is unarmored, Cherot said. Doing what he described as "barroom ballistics" after the standoff, the crew suspected that a bullet would have had enough energy to pass through the helicopter had it struck on target, conceding that they do not know what type of ammunition Myers allegedly used. Like the helicopter, the crew was unarmored that morning, he said.

But Cherot said that the laser pointed at the helicopter was as concerning as the gunfire. He said lasers can cause eye damage and temporarily blind pilots, elevating the risk of an accident. It can also bounce around the cockpit, causing a distraction.

He said he’s only been hit by a laser and it “scattered around like a light show in the cockpit.”

That occurred during a mission in Idaho earlier this year. Cherot said Two Bear Air had picked up an individual injured during a plane crash and flown them to a hospital. Someone targeted the helicopter with a laser light as it headed back toward Montana, he said.

As for being shot at, Cherot said last week's incident was the first — as far as he knows.

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If it seemed a little smoky this week, it could be related to multiple prescribed burns that are taking place around the Flathead Valley, including the Flathead, Swan, and Stillwater forests, as the summer season begins to wind down.

Both Forest Service lands and state Department of Natural Resources and Conservation lands will see burns.

The Flathead National Forest is planning on completing prescribed burn projects in various districts, each with their own goals. National Forest officials said each burn is outlined in a Prescribed Fire Burn Plan, where the areas are located and designed to be controlled to reduce the potential for adverse effects, according to the Forest Service.

A few prescribed fires will be visible from Whitefish as fire officials target the divide north of Whitefish Mountain Resort. The Taylor Hell Roaring project include 300 acres of land, located on the uphill side of Forest Road #9790. The objective, according to Forest Service officials, is to reduce the risk and severity of large-scale fires.

There are two other projects in the district. The Dateline project includes 90 acres in the upper Good Creek area to reduce slash and debris caused by harvest. The Whitefish Municipal Watershed project will burn 200 acres of natural fuels to reduce stand density, improve mule deer and elk habitat and prepare for the planting of whitebark pine.

The Spotted Bear Ranger District of the Flathead National Forest will burn to reduce fuel loading, increase winter range forage and reintroduce fire into the ecosystem. Officials said some of the burns aim to reduce conifer encroachment and provide a winter range ecosystem for wildlife.

There are two burn areas in the district, one totaling 515 acres and the other 48 acres. Smoke will be visible from the southern end of the Hungry Hore Reservoir and the Spotted Bear District Office Area.

In the Swan Lake Ranger District, the Forest Service is taking on two burns: the Cold Jim Timber Sale and the Swan Valley Bottom Maintenance Burning. The burns will help reduce fuels and regenerate vegetation, Forest Service officials say. They are 27 and 20 acres, respectively.

The Hungry Horse Ranger District has no broadcast burning planned but may utilize pile burnings when conditions become favorable.

The Spotted Bear Ranger District began some of the burns on Monday.

The Department of Natural Resources and Conservation Northwestern Land office is also planning prescribed burns in the Stillwater and Swan State forests this fall on 18 state trust land units, ranging from 14 to 216 acres in the Main Woodward and South Woodward drainages.

The efforts will reduce dangerous fuels, promote forest regeneration and protect nearby communities, according to the state agency.

Smoke from these fires may also be visible from nearby highways and communities.

To learn more, contact the Swan Unit Office at 406-754-2301, the Stillwater Unit Office at 406-881-2371, the Hungry Horse Ranger District at 406-387-3800, the Spotted Bear Ranger District at 406-758-5376, the Swan Lake Ranger District at 406-837-7500 or the Tally Lake Ranger District at 406-758-5204.

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