Latest news with #Williston
The Drive
3 days ago
- Automotive
- The Drive
This Cursed Road Near a North Dakota Oil Field Swallows Up Any Truck That Tries It
The latest car news, reviews, and features. There's a seemingly ordinary dirt road in North Dakota's Bakken oil fields that's nigh impossible to traverse when wet. Despite looking like a normal route most of the time, Williston's 'Road of Shame' is made from some of the softest, loosest soil I've ever seen, and it swallows up even the most capable off-road vehicles like they're nothing. Tacomas and Jeeps are no match for it—and heck, not even the equipment they deploy to rescue stuck trucks is safe. The old-fashioned wagon trail is a local legend of sorts, with a Facebook group dedicated to the brave but ultimately foolish souls who attempt to take on the Road of Shame, officially known as 135th Ave NW. Few of them make it out without a rescue of some sort. Admittedly, when the road is bone dry, it's not so bad; however, when it seems to be even a little bit wet, all vehicles just sink into the mud with no hope of getting out. It's tough for me to say exactly why the dirt is so soft, but it's proven that soil near oil extraction sites is subject to worsened erosion due to increased runoff. Either way, it's like quicksand when wet. Devin Davis Like with so many other obstacles featuring tough terrain, off-roaders want to take it on just because. There's a shocking number of social media and YouTube videos of this road, despite it being remotely located in the middle of North Dakota, since optimistic enthusiasts can't help but try to earn legendary status for slaying the muddy dragon. Other people just sit back, watch, and record all of the attempts, waiting for others to get stuck for some Internet gold. Unfortunately—or fortunately, depending on how you look at it—that gold mine is deep and plentiful. One local, Devin Davis, has been watching people get stuck on the Road of Shame for about 10 years. He told The Drive that he's seen over 300 cars stuck in the infamous road's mud during that time. Part of the problem is that Google and Apple Maps direct people through the road, and they follow their navigation instructions, unaware of the danger. It's hard to blame them, as it seems odd that Google would lead anyone down a random dirt road. Apple Maps even shows vehicles stuck on the road, and yet it still directs people through it. With what Davis calls the 'oil boom,' and countless newcomers driving through for work, it's a never-ending parade of stuck vehicles. @ Something blew and it wasnt good #mudding #vortexoptics #muddin #fyp #chevy #greatoutdoors #environment #great #letsgo ♬ original sound – ROAD OF SHAME However, the most common vehicles found stuck in the mud are necessary ones: UPS and FedEx trucks, semi trucks, and various other work vehicles that use the road because they have to, not because they want to. Davis has even seen tractors stuck and flipped on their sides. Although it's a dead-end road, it leads to a number of homes and businesses, so some trucks do need to use it. Another big part of the problem is how the road slopes off into sneakily deep ditches on either side. So when drivers try to avoid the deep mud puddles in the middle of the path, they slide off and either get stuck or tip over. 'Even people who know how to drive in the mud, as soon as it gets a little wet, it gets so slippery [that] people slide off the side,' Davis told me. So, whether you live in North Dakota or you're just passing through, make sure to avoid the Road of Shame at all costs. And if you think you have a rig that can handle anything, well, maybe think again. Got tips? Send 'em to tips@
Yahoo
13-05-2025
- Business
- Yahoo
Pythian's Vanessa Simmons and Donna Williston Again Named to CRN's 2025 Women of the Channel List
This is the seventh consecutive year for Simmons, and second year for Williston, to achieve the honor of being recognized for their leadership and innovation OTTAWA, Ontario, May 13, 2025 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Pythian Services Inc. ('Pythian'), a leading global services company specializing in data, analytics, and AI solutions, is proud to announce today that CRN®, a brand of The Channel Company, has recognized Vanessa Simmons, Senior Vice President of Business Development, and Donna Williston, Director of Alliances, on the Women of the Channel list for 2025. Simmons and Williston were similarly recognized last year by CRN. Simmons has been recognized on the Women of the Channel list for seven consecutive years, and also was named on the CRN Women of the Channel Power 80 Solution Provider list for 2025—a prestigious list that celebrates industry leaders who contribute to impactful business outcomes through innovation. CRN's annual Women of the Channel list recognizes women whose leadership, vision, and advocacy within the IT channel significantly contribute to business growth and innovation. The honorees are chosen for their inventive strategies and leadership, showing a steadfast commitment to the channel's advancement. 'Both Vanessa and Donna are highly deserving of this prestigious recognition from CRN,' said Brooks Borcherding, CEO of Pythian. 'Their unwavering commitment to excellence and forward-thinking approaches have been instrumental in Pythian's growth, propelling our organization toward the accomplishment of great achievements—such as being named Google Cloud Databases Partner of the Year for North America.' The strong state of Pythian's partnership ecosystem is due to Vanessa Simmons' ambitiously innovative leadership and steadfast focus on making Pythian a premier service provider that stays on the cutting edge of advantage-driving platform solutions. Donna Williston's innate ability to foster cross-collaboration and inspire the best in others as they work together toward a common goal has allowed her to continually enhance key strategic partnerships that enrich Pythian's capabilities and benefit its customers. The Women of the Channel list will be featured in CRN Magazine in June, which will be published in print and online at To learn more about the impactful solutions Simmons, Williston and the entire Pythian team guide their customers toward, register for one of our Google Cloud Workshops to determine the business value you could uncover for your organization. About The Channel Company The Channel Company enables breakthrough IT channel performance with our dominant media, engaging events, expert consulting and education, and innovative marketing services and platforms. As the channel catalyst, we connect and empower technology suppliers, solution providers, and end-users. Backed by over 40 years of unequaled channel experience, we draw from our deep knowledge to envision innovative solutions for ever-evolving challenges in the technology marketplace. For more information, visit or follow The Channel Company on X and LinkedIn. About Pythian Founded in 1997, Pythian is a leading data and AI services provider specializing in digital transformation and operational excellence for enterprise customers. We help organizations optimize their data estates, helping them to drive AI enablement, innovation, and growth. Through strategic consulting, managed services and cloud migrations, we enable cost savings, risk reduction and seamless operations while preparing businesses to adopt AI and for the future of data management. A Google Cloud Premier Partner with multiple Specializations, including Data Analytics, Marketing Analytics, Machine Learning and a certified Google Cloud MSP, we've delivered thousands of professional and managed services projects for leading enterprises. For more information, visit or follow us on X, LinkedIn, and our Blog. Pythian Media Contacts Matt MalangaSenior Vice President, Marketingmmalanga@ Elisabeth GrantBranch Out Public Relationsegrant@ 612-599-7797
Daily Mail
10-05-2025
- Health
- Daily Mail
Nearly 200 students forced into quarantine after outbreak of measles on campus
Nearly 200 students have been rushed into quarantine in North Dakota over fears they have been exposed to measles. The under-18s had all been in school buses or on campus at elementary, middle and high schools at the same time as four others who have the ultra-infectious disease. All 180 students are unvaccinated, with officials saying they must now quarantine for 21 days - the time taken for symptoms of the virus to emerge. Vaccinated students are not required to quarantine as they are considered to be protected, with two doses slashing the risk of infection by 97 per cent. The students will not leave quarantine until after term ends on May 23, but school principals say if they aren't infected they will be able to attend graduation ceremonies. Williston Middle School and Williston High School are affected, as well as Missouri Ridge Elementary. Together, they have a total of around 5,300 students. It comes after the U.S. crossed another grim milestone, with the CDC today confirmed that more than 1,000 measles cases have been diagnosed in the country. This puts the tally at 1,001 infections. This marks only the second time the country has seen this many cases since the disease was declared eradicated nationwide in 2000, with some doctors now worried the country could lose its measles elimination status. Measles is a highly infectious disease that patients can pass on to around nine out of ten unvaccinated people that they expose to the virus. Symptoms start as a fever, cough, runny nose and red, watery eyes and progress to a rash that starts on the head before spreading over the body. The disease is particularly dangerous to young children, with the CDC saying one in 20 unvaccinated children who are infected develop pneumonia while one in 1,000 suffer from encephalitis - swelling of the brain that can cause permanent damage. One to three in every 1,000 unvaccinated children who are infected die from the disease. Officials in North Dakota said that some of the students asked to quarantine had not attended the schools but shared a school bus with infected students. Paula Lankford, spokeswoman for the Williston Basin School District, said teachers would provide materials for quarantined children to use at home. Speaking to North Dakota Monitor she said: 'Each of the schools is going to work with those families that are excluded to ensure that they have educational opportunities for their kids and connections with teachers through digital means. 'What's obviously on our side is that there is not that much school left. We are done here on May 23rd.' Williams County, which is home to the schools, had a measles vaccination rate of 71 per cent in the 2024 to 2025 school year. This is well below the 95 per cent that scientists say is needed to prevent an outbreak of the disease. The CDC says that vaccines are the best way to prevent an infection, with two doses providing 97 per cent immunity against the disease. The Upper Missouri District Health Unit, which serves Williams County, is holding a walk-in vaccination clinic Friday from 8.30am to 6pm at 110 W Broadway, Williston. Nine cases of measles have been detected in North Dakota since the start of this year. Of the confirmed cases, two are in children under ten years old while five are in children aged between 10 and 19 years. There is also a case in a 30 to 39-year-old and in a 40 to 49-year-old. The first case reported this year was in a Williams County child who is believed to have contracted measles from an out-of-state visitor.
Daily Mail
09-05-2025
- Health
- Daily Mail
Nearly 200 students under quarantine after outbreak of world's most infectious disease on campus
Nearly 200 students have been rushed into quarantine in North Dakota over fears they were exposed to measles. The under-18s had all been in school buses or on campus at elementary, middle and high schools at the same time as four patients infected with the ultra-infectious disease. All 180 students are unvaccinated, with officials saying they must now quarantine for 21 days — the time taken for symptoms of the virus to emerge. Vaccinated students are not required to quarantine because they are considered to be protected, with two doses slashing the risk of infection by 97 percent. The students will not leave quarantine until after term ends on May 23, but school principals say that if they aren't infected they will be able to attend graduation ceremonies. Williston Middle School and Williston High School are affected, as well as Missouri Ridge Elementary. Together, they have about 5,300 students. It comes after the US crossed another grim milestone, with the CDC today confirmed that more than 1,000 measles cases have been diagnosed in the country. It puts the tally at 1,001 infections. This marks only the second time the country has seen this many cases since the disease was declared eradicated nationwide in 2000, with some doctors now worried the country could lose its measles elimination status. Measles is a highly infectious disease that patients can pass on to about nine out of ten unvaccinated people that they expose to the virus. Symptoms start as a fever, cough, runny nose and red, watery eyes — but then progress to a rash that starts on the head before spreading over the body. The disease is particularly dangerous to young children, with the CDC saying one in 20 unvaccinated children who are infected develop pneumonia while one in 1,000 suffer from encephalitis — swelling of the brain that can cause permanent damage. One to three in every 1,000 unvaccinated children who are infected die from the disease. Officials in North Dakota said that some of the students asked to quarantine had not attended the schools but shared a school bus with the infected patients. Paula Lankford, spokeswoman for the Williston Basin School District, said teachers would provide materials for quarantined children to use at home. 'Each of the schools is going to work with those families that are excluded to ensure that they have educational opportunities for their kids and connections with teachers through digital means,' she told the North Dakota Monitor. 'What's obviously on our side is that there is not that much school left. We are done here on May 23rd.' Williams County, which is home to the schools, had a measles vaccination rate of 71 percent in the 2024 to 2025 school year. This is well below the 95 percent that scientsits say is needed to prevent an outbreak of the disease. The CDC says that vaccines are the best way to prevent an infection, with two doses providing 97 percent immunity against the disease. The Upper Missouri District Health Unit, which serves Williams County, is holding a walk-in vaccination clinic Friday from 8.30am to 6pm. It is at 110 W Broadway, Williston. Nine cases of measles have been detected in North Dakota overall since the start of this year. Of the confirmed cases, two are in children under ten years old while five are in children aged between 10 and 19 years. There is also a case in a 30 to 39-year-old and in a 40 to 49-year-old. The first case reported this year was in a Williams County child who is believed to have contracted measles from an out-of-state visitor.
