Re: third death
Posted by Cactus Jack on August 19, 2004 at 15:07:24:
In Reply to: Re: third death posted by Farmer Dean on August 19, 2004 at 11:56:03:
I must take exception. You said, 'As soon as it started dumping, a Ranger should have gotten his lazy a-- up the hill and blocked the road.'
I know most of those people who do that job and am at least acquainted with the rest. It goes with the territory. The ones that I'm personal friends with, I've known for over ten years. These brave men and women are not out here patrolling the office. They are out in the field... Oftentimes for 10 and 12 hours at a time Oftentimes for 7 days at a stretch. Don't bark at these brave people out in the field, bark at their boss for spreading them so thin and working them for so long. Cut 'em a break. Boy, I'm really gonna catch hell for this post.
It was Xanterra's responsibility to take care of those people who lived in the wash. Xanterra (Amfac before that and Fred Harvey before that) owns that stuff, not NPS. It is known as a 'private inholding'. Xanterra management had ample warning by midmorning on that day from NPS. NPS did their job. Xanterra did not do their's.
My personal take is that Xanterra should have done something for those people before that wall of water struck. A guy who prefers to be called 'Denny' was in charge at the resort at the time and he didn't do anything to protect those people. Some of the standard measures were to sandbag the cabins, sandbag the 800 building, & warn and evac those people up in the wash. None of that happened.
He was here in '99 when the last big flood came through. He knew what it could be like and, as far as I know, he took no precautions. Well, that reflects my own personal bias as that bonehead has lied to me and about me so many times that I've lost count. Regardless, he was in charge of the resort property and I've heard no reports from any of the annex residents of prior warning.
Yes, there should be a wakeup call. But not just to the govt. I believe these govt people out here are doing their part. Start jumping on Xanterra. They don't give a rat's **** about our desert or the people who live in it or the people who visit it. They only care about their money.
Still, there is that thing about the 3rd death. I heard that 2 days ago. It seemed like rumor control gone nuts, at the time. I'm still trying to track that one down. Sorry, mental pics is the best I can do at the time. tx mor ltr