Edward F. O'Brien
General Assignment ReporterEdward O’Brien first landed at Montana Public Radio three decades ago as a news intern while attending the University of Montana School of Journalism. His first career job out of school was covering the 1995 Montana Legislature. When the session wrapped up, O’Brien was fortunate enough to land a full-time position at the station as a general assignment reporter.
Feel free to drop him a line at edward.obrien@umt.edu.
(406) 243-4065
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Crews are making progress in restoring power to customers affected by Wednesday’s storm-related outages. Utility companies say they've restored power to tens of thousands of customers. Thousands remain without power. -
How do cabbage and spices become ingredients for community building? In Korea, the answer is kimjang, the fall tradition of making and sharing kimchi. This week on The Big Why, we visit a farm in the Bitterroot Valley where a group of Montanans came together to keep a food custom alive and find comfort and connection among the cabbage. -
A powerful storm system is expected to crash into a wide swath of Montana this week. Another round of heavy precipitation, destructive wind and widespread power outages are possible, if not likely, according to the National Weather Service. -
To grizzlies, they're unbearable. To wildlife managers they're a game changer. Drones mounted with thermal cameras are increasingly being used to help reduce conflicts between people and bears. Managers say drones provide them a safer option for hazing bears, and see more technological advances on the horizon. -
Western Montana’s drought conditions have improved significantly since late summer. North-central Montana’s drought status is changing too, but for the worse. -
Weather officials are keeping a close eye on the next installment of wet and windy weather expected to batter the Northern Rockies this week. Another 2 to 5 inches of liquid precipitation could be added to the already saturated terrain of northwest and west-central Montana. -
A handful of Montana trucking schools may lose federal certification. A review found thousands of programs across the country may not comply with minimum requirements. -
A flag's primary purpose is to be recognized from a distance. That means few colors, no lettering and a clear distinction from other flags. Ideally, it should be simple enough for a child to draw it from memory. So, how did Montana end up with such a complicated flag? Learn more in this episode of The Big Why. -
The state will reimburse Anaconda-Deer Lodge County about half a million dollars for its part in a manhunt in August. Taxpayers will also chip in. The First People’s Buffalo Jump State Park outside of Great Falls will offer guided tours this month of rock art found in the park. A second case of Chronic Wasting Disease is suspected on the Flathead Indian Reservation. -
Great Falls fire officials responded to two back-to-back grass fires this week. Thursday’s weather forecast in north-central Montana is calling for another round of wind and warmer-than-normal conditions.
