As of Thursday, July 8, 2021, Montana reports 114,189 confirmed COVID-19 cases, with 89 new cases reported in the last day: 29 new cases in Flathead County, 14 new cases in Yellowstone County, 13 new cases in Cascade County, 5 new cases in each of Gallatin, Missoula, and Powder River Counties, and more new cases in 14 more Montana counties. The number of active coronavirus cases in Montana is 441. Currently, 47 people are being treated in Montana hospitals for COVID-19. The most active cases are in Yellowstone, Cascade, Flathead, and Missoula Counties. 1,672 people have died in Montana of COVID-19. Nationwide, more than 606,000 Americans have died of COVID-19. There have been 33,700,000 cases of coronavirus in the US, and counting.

The Olympics in Tokyo now will ban all spectators at Olympic events as Tokyo is under a new state of emergency. The ban of spectators at the Olympics is the latest blow to the troubled Games, already delayed by a year because of the pandemic.

The Crazy Mountain Ranch, near Clyde Park, has been sold to a subsidiary of the company that owns the private and exclusive Yellowstone Club. The Lone Mountain Land Company bought the 18,000-acre Crazy Mountain Ranch last week. The Crazy Mountain Ranch, which is known locally as the Marlboro Ranch, was previously owned by the tobacco company Phillip Morris.

A man from Bridger, Montana, has been charged with causing a wildland fire north of Yellowstone National Park that burned seven homes and 46 square miles of land. John Lightburn, 55, pleaded not guilty to felony and misdemeanor charges of negligent arson and a felony criminal mischief charge for the fire that started June 13 on U.S. Forest Service land about 7 miles south of Red Lodge.