>>House Fires Displace 13 Across SLC

(Salt Lake City, UT) -- More than a dozen people around Salt Lake City are homeless today following separate Christmas Day fires. Thankfully none of the seven people living at a home on North Morton Drive were home as flames ignited in the living room. Six more people living on South State Street are also displaced after a tree branch weighed-down by heavy snow snapped a power line and set their home ablaze yesterday morning. The Red Cross is providing temporary housing for the families.

>>Utahns Swap Christmas Craziness For Helping Homeless

(Salt Lake City, UT) -- Folks around Salt Lake City are taking this Christmas season as the time to begin a brand new family tradition. Community outreach groups like Volunteers of America are seeing an influx of people looking to swap trivial things like buying gifts and going to the movies on Christmas for efforts to help other locals. Pamela Atkinson tells the "Tribune" she adjusted her holiday schedule to include time for helping needy Salt Lake City families. At Christian Life Center in Rose Park about 300 volunteers helped feed more than 25-hundred needy Utahns yesterday. Atkinson says the volunteerism is what she's "meant to do."

>>Next Round Of Weather Brings Avalanche Warning

(Salt Lake City, UT) -- Another round of potentially-dangerous winter weather is heading for Utah's mountain areas. On the heels of the snow that fell over Salt Lake City on Christmas, the National Weather Service has issued a backcountry avalanche warning for parts of central Utah today. Heavy snow and strong winds are creating a "high avalanche danger" in the Manti-Skyline Plateau. Utah's Uinta Mountains and Logan and Salt Lake mountain areas are under a "considerable" threat for dangerous snow slides while mountains in Provo and Ogden are at "moderate" risk for avalanches.

>>Winter Storm To Affect Travel

(Salt Lake City, UT) -- A winter storm is bringing snow to Utah on one of the busiest travel days of the year. The wintry mix could hamper afternoon travel with up to six inches in the valleys and up to a foot on the benches. The Utah Department of Transportation says crews will work hard to clear snow from the major interstates.
>>A Seven-Night Celebration, Kwanzaa Begins Today

(Salt Lake City, UT) -- Starting today, African-Americans living in Salt Lake City begin their end-of-year celebration called Kwanzaa. Although not an official holiday in the religious mold like Hanukkah and Christmas, experts say Kwanzaa is best described as a community celebration. The holiday lasting seven nights began in the late 1960s and features a nightly candle-lighting ceremony with each one symbolizing a holiday principal such as unity, self-determination, faith and responsibility.
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>>Ogden Police Look For Hit-And-Run Driver

(Ogden, UT) -- Ogden police are looking for the driver who hit a man outside a local homeless shelter and then fled the scene. The 56-year-old victim was reportedly crossing Wall Avenue around 6:45 Christmas Eve when he was struck by a car and tossed about 100 feet. Police say he later died at the hospital. The suspect's vehicle is described as a dark-colored, four-door sedan with possible front-end or windshield damage.

>>Utah Soldier Returns Home In Time For Christmas

(Salt Lake City, UT) -- It's a homecoming one Utah soldier will likely never forget. Sergeant First Class Al Beyer was welcomed by family and friends when he arrived at Salt Lake City International Airport on Sunday. Beyer spent most of the year in the Middle East and Fort Dix in New Jersey. The newlywed wasn't expected to return home until next February.

>>Expert Says Be Prepared When Shopping Today In Salt Lake

(Salt Lake City, UT) -- If you're planning to exchange your Christmas presents at Salt Lake stores today, you'd better be patient and prepared. Linda Wardell of City Creek Center in downtown Salt Lake says today is popular to catch sales and redeem gift cards. The general manager adds not all stores require receipts but it's good to have them in case they do. The mall opens today at 8 a.m., earlier than normal, and stays open until 10 tonight, later than usual.

>>Healthcare Industry Vulnerable To Hackers, Researchers Say

(Undated) -- The healthcare industry is one of the most vulnerable to hackers, a year-long research project found. A big part of the problem, according to researchers for the "Washington Post," is that healthcare is very slow to address known problems. Computer security experts found that a wide array of hospital computers and medical devices are and have been easily breached. Researchers warn that intruders could take advantage of known gaps to steal patients' records for identity theft, and launch disruptive attacks that could shut down critical hospital systems.

　
　
　
　
MIDVALE — A Utah Highway Patrol trooper was sent to the hospital Monday evening after being struck by a motorist.
According to UHP, at 6:38 p.m. Monday, the trooper had just finished setting out a flare pattern of a previous crash scene on the left shoulder of I-15 Southbound near 7600 South when a Jeep slid out of control and struck the trooper after slamming into the wall nearby.
The trooper was able to walk, UHP reported, but he was transported to the hospital by ground with non-life threatening injuries. He had complained of neck, head, leg and back pains.
UHP Cpl. Todd Johnson cautioned motorists to keep to posted speeds and slow down further during inclement weather. He also reminded drivers to slow down and move over for emergency vehicles or personnel.
　
　SALT LAKE CITY — A pair of environmental groups have launched a protest to a proposal by the Bureau of Land Management to offer oil and gas leases on land they say is too close to Dinosaur National Monument in eastern Utah and Colorado.
The parcels under protest are three tracts that contain 5,145 acres on the eastern boundary of the monument near the Deer Lodge entrance road that are proposed for lease and sale on Feb. 14 in Colorado.
The National Parks Conservation Association and The Wilderness Society, in their joint protest filed this week, say any leasing for commercial oil or gas development that close to the monument would cause "unacceptable impacts," and impacts the federal agency failed to adequately consider.