[Date Prev][Date Next][Thread Prev][Thread Next][Date Index][Thread Index]

Re: [at-l] National Parks Danger Index



Walt Daniels wrote:
> 
> It is a pay for article.
> 


ok.  then here it is


How Safe Is That National Park?

By LISA GUBERNICK 
Staff Reporter of THE WALL STREET JOURNAL

Vacationing at the Grand Canyon last summer, John Mori and his
12-year-old son,
Brian, set out on one of the national park's most popular tourist
attractions:
a mule ride to the bottom. 

During a rest stop, they asked their guide for directions to a nearby
swimming
hole. At first, the trail seemed easy. But a few minutes later, Mr.
Mori's feet
hit a slippery patch, and he suddenly plunged 20 feet down a ravine.
His son
ran to see what happened; then he, too, fell in. It took five hours
and three
helicopters to get them out. 

"I call it the 'Disneyland effect,'" says the elder Mr. Mori, who just
finished
physical therapy after suffering head injuries and several broken
bones. "It
doesn't look sinister. But you don't realize what in nature can reach
out and
grab you." 

Most people think of national parks the way they're depicted in
brochures:
natural wonders, hiking trails, friendly rangers on hand. But there's
one thing
the parks don't readily advertise: their safety records. So with a
record 289
million visitors expected this year and several recent highly
publicized safety
problems, Weekend Journal set out to find out just how safe the
nation's
largest parks, seashores and recreation areas are. We compiled our own
index,
ranking almost 50 places based on the frequency of two types of
incidents:
serious crimes, such as homicides, theft and assault; and the searches
and
rescues that parks conduct to find and aid patrons. 

Our results: Not only are there wide variations in safety records, but
the
biggest risks are problems you'd hardly expect in such idyllic
settings. While
incidents such as the recent bear mauling in the Smoky Mountains grab
headlines, the most common dangers stem from classically urban issues,
such as
drugs and alcohol, traffic accidents and theft. In addition, rangers
say that
two modern innovations generally thought of as safety enhancers, cell
phones
and sport-utility vehicles, may actually be enhancing risk by giving
tourists a
false sense of security. 

"Too often people with cell phones end up doing things that they
wouldn't have
tried 10 years ago," says Charles Farabee Jr., a recently retired
official at
Glacier National Park in Montana and author of "Death, Daring and
Disaster:
Search and Rescue in the National Parks." (Searches and rescues
include not
just high-drama helicopter saves but also routine hunts for boaters
and hikers
who miss their planned return times.) 

Of course, visiting a national park is still safer than a trip to most
cities.
Orlando, for example, had about 65 serious crimes for every 100,000 of
its
residents and tourists in 1998, at least eight times the most recent
rate at
Nevada's Lake Mead. Indeed, crime at parks has been dropping, just as
in much
of the rest of the country. Last year, the government recorded 5,169
serious
crimes at national parks, a 14% drop from 1995, though some rangers
believe
many incidents go unreported because of cutbacks in park staffing. 

Big Disparities 

But there are big disparities in safety records even at seemingly
similar
places. For example, two relatively remote parks with major
terrain-related
hazards wound up near the top of our index: the Grand Canyon, which
had the
third-highest rate of incidents with 11.3 per 100,000 visitors, and
Yosemite,
which came in at No. 5 with a rate of about 10.3 incidents for the
same number
of visitors. By contrast, canyon-filled Bryce National Park landed
about
halfway down our index, with a danger rating of 2.2. (One big problem
there
actually has its own name: "Bryce ankle," a bone injury that results
from
wearing city shoes on park trails.) 

The so-called recreation areas ranked first and second tend to have
more local
traffic than the tourist-heavy national parks: Lake Mead, with 13.6
incidents
per 100,000 visitors, and Glen Canyon in Arizona, with a danger rating
of 11.5.
But comparable places came in much lower: Sleeping Bear Dunes National
Lakeshore, a more than 50,000-acre park in Michigan, had just 1.4
incidents per
100,000 visitors. 

Park officials say the main variables are terrain and proximity to
urban
centers. In the case of Lake Mead, for example, Superintendent Alan
O'Neill
blames many problems on traffic from Las Vegas and the gambling town
of
Loughlin, Nevada, both a short distance away. One vaguely consoling
caveat: Mr.
O'Neill notes that virtually all homicides recorded by the park in the
last
several years were bodies dropped off there rather than killings
taking place
inside its boundaries. 

At the Grand Canyon, the main peril is heat. About a third of last
year's 325
searches and rescues were heat-related, typically hikers who wound up
dehydrated. "People tend to push themselves beyond their limits," says
Ken
Phillips, search-and-rescue coordinator there. 

Indeed, unlike cities, uncharted wilderness and even ski resorts,
where people
naturally have their guards up, tourists at national parks often don't
see
potential hazards. "People think this is an amusement park, and we can
mitigate
all danger," says Mr. Phillips. 

Take Mr. Mori and his son. On the mule ride they took last July, they
thought
nothing of wandering off to take a quick swim. In fact, the rest stop
they
ventured from rivaled a highway welcome center for amenities: picnic
tables,
water fountains, even fully functioning restrooms. As soon as the path
started
to get steep, Mr. Mori decided they should turn back. But it was too
late. In
addition to the elder Mr. Mori's injuries, his son wound up with a
ruptured
spleen. Mule-company operator Paul Mangum says tourists are warned
about going
out on their own, noting that the Moris aren't the only ones who have
slipped
on that trail. 

If you do get injured or find your campsite vandalized these days,
it's getting
harder to find a ranger to tell. While visitation at national parks
has climbed
over 6% since 1995, the number of park rangers has declined by nearly
5%. (Many
parks get extra help during the high season, though there have been
some
cutbacks there, too.) Paul Stevens, an official at Cape Hatteras
National
Seashore in North Carolina, says staffing cuts have made isolated
beaches more
vulnerable to car break-ins. 

And unlike amusement parks, which plaster warning signs around rides,
the
information that national parks provide is often no more than a map
and a
description of landmarks. That's what New York book editor Joe Wood
had with
him when he vanished last July at Mount Rainier in Washington state.
At the
time, some trails were still covered with snow bridges, patches of ice
that
camouflage streams below the path. But there was no mention of any
other
weather-related perils in the maps. Rangers believe he may have fallen
through
a snow bridge and into a ravine. 

How Safe Is Your Favorite National Park? 

Below is a sampling of parks at the top of our list, which offer a
range of
potential hazards and danger ratings. 


Lake Mead/Boulder City, Nev. 
Attendance: 9.4 million 
Danger Rating: 13.6 

Safety Watch: Lake Mead had 540 search-and-rescue missions last year,
a
relatively high rate due largely to searches for overdue boaters. It
also had
the highest rate of serious crime of the parks we looked at. Park
officials
hope to stem these problems by opening four entrance stations this
summer.
Until now, Lake Mead was the only major park without them. "Those
people with
trouble on their mind are less likely to come through a controlled
station,"
says Superintendent Mr. O'Neill. 

Glen Canyon National Recreation Area/Page, Ariz.
Attendance: 2.7 million
Danger Rating: 11.5

Safety Watch: Unlike at Yosemite and Yellowstone, the number of
seasonal
rangers has increased -- from five to eight in the last three years.
Those
rangers are being primarily deployed in the park's biggest problem
area: Lone
Rock Beach, a renowned Memorial Day party spot, according to park
officials.
Rangers believe that if more citations are issued for minor offenses
such as
public intoxication, they may be able to deter more serious crimes. 

Grand Canyon/Grand Canyon, Ariz.
Attendance: 4.9 million
Danger Rating: 11.3

Safety Watch: Some visitors fail to appreciate that the steep drops
that give
the canyon its vistas aren't simply photo-ops. Last summer, a man in
his 20s
asked another tourist to take his picture against the backdrop of the
canyon.
To get the perfect shot, he clambered over the short wall blocking the
promontory. Walking back, he tripped; the other travelers watched
horrified as
he fell over 300 feet to his death. 

In 1997, the park introduced a program called "Heat Kills," posting
personnel
on the trails to urge hikers to shorten their outings. Since then,
search-and-rescues have dropped by more than 50%. 

Everglades/Homestead, Fla.
Attendance: 1.1 million
Danger Rating: 10.8

Safety Watch: It's not the notorious gators that pose the biggest
hazards here
-- there has been only one unprovoked attack in the last 53 years --
it's car
break-ins. Indeed, the park has an unusually high number of larcenies
per
visitor. The biggest trouble spot? The parking lot closest to the
Visitors'
Center, though thefts there have dropped dramatically this year thanks
to a
prominently posted surveillance camera. 

The search-and-rescues are primarily for boaters who've failed to
return on
time. "People take boats out for 60-mile trips that haven't been fully
checked
out in months," says Philip Selleck, acting chief ranger. 

Yosemite National Park/Yosemite, Calif.
Attendance: 3.6 million
Danger Rating: 10.3

Safety Watch: Yosemite has a problem known inside the park as
"B.A.S.E.," an
acronym for what people jump from (buildings, antennas, spans and
earth). These
daredevils plunge from high peaks, opening their parachutes midjump.
The park
banned the jumps a decade ago, but to little avail. Last year, a
63-year-old
jumper was killed when her chute failed to open. Another landed safely
-- then
drowned in one of Yosemite's fast-flowing rivers while trying to elude
the
rangers chasing him. 

There has been a 50% reduction in ranger staff over the past 10 years,
which
officials believe has resulted in the reporting of fewer crimes. While
the
three women hikers murdered outside park boundaries last year made
headlines,
theft from park hotel rooms is more common. 

Indiana Dunes National Lakeshore/ Porter, Ind.
Attendance: 1.9 million
Danger Rating: 6.2

Safety Watch: To cut back on car thefts, closing times at two parking
lots have
been pushed back two hours to 9 p.m. Officials have also installed
after-dark
lighting at other lots. The park is about 50 miles from Chicago, and
part of it
also extends into Gary, Ind. Those cities are the sources of much of
its crime.

New River Gorge National River/ Glen Jean, W.Va.
Attendance: 1.2 million
Danger Index: 5

Safety Watch: With exceptionally fierce rapids, this park's rivers are
considered among the world's pre-eminent white-water rafting sites.
Rafting
accounted for half of last year's 22 search-and-rescues and all four
fatalities. With its steep cliffs, New River is also a premier
rock-climbing
center, the cause of other search-and-rescues. 

Death Valley National Park/Death Valley, Calif.
Attendance: 1.3 million
Danger Rating: 4.6

Safety Watch: It didn't get its name for nothing. Officials say the
park gets
two or three suicides a year, partly because of landmarks such as
"Funeral
Mountain" and "Devil's Golf Course." 

Search-and-rescue coordinator Dan Dellinges says rented SUVs are a
growing
problem, since they encourage inexperienced drivers to tackle roads
they can't
handle. He cites the example of two Belgians who recently abandoned
their
Suzuki after it got stuck on a small rock. They were rescued after a
plane
spotted a large note they had left on the car that said, "Please
help." 

Yellowstone National Park/Yellowstone National Park, WY
Attendance: 4.1 million
Danger Rating: 3.7

Safety Watch: Forget being steamed to death in a geyser. One of the
biggest
problems here is as mundane as it gets: traffic. Last year, there were
a record
616 accidents. The park has 450 miles of roads, and some of the most
widely
traveled haven't been upgraded in more than 30 years. Unlike Yosemite,
which
plans to start restricting auto traffic and bus some tourists from
satellite
parking lots, Yellowstone is simply trying to step up enforcement of
traffic
regulations. 

The park has also added new barriers to one danger spot, a trail along
Yellowstone's Grand Canyon. Officials hope it will keep visitors from
straying
close to the edge. 

Ranking the Risks 

Here are 46 parks ranked by danger rating, which reflects the number
of serious
crimes and search-and-rescues per 100,000 visitors. 

Park     
Attendance (in millions) 
Search & Rescues 
Serious Crimes 
Danger Rating 

Lake Mead National Recreation Area, Boulder City, NV 
9.4    540    732    13.6 

Glen Canyon National Recreation Area, Page, AZ 
2.7    150    156    11.5 

Grand Canyon National Park, Grand Canyon, AZ 
4.9    325    234    11.3 

Everglades National Park, Homestead, FL 
1.1     72     51    10.8 

Yosemite National Park, Yosemite, CA 
3.6    164    211    10.3 

Indiana Dunes National Lakeshore, Porter, IN 
1.9     18     98     6.2 

New River Gorge National River, Glen Jean, WV 
1.2     22     37       5 

Death Valley National Park, Death Valley, CA 
1.3     10     49     4.6 

Lake Meredith National Recreation Area, Fritch, TX 
1.8     14     58       4 

Assateague Island National Seashore, Lane Berlin, MD 
1.9     59     15     3.9 

Rocky Mountain National Park, Estes, CO 
3.4     89     42     3.9 

Amistad National Recreation Area, Del Rio, TX 
1.2     16     28     3.8 

Yellowstone National Park, Yellowstone National Park, WY 
4.1     35    119     3.7 

Mount Ranier National Park, Ashford, WA 
1.8     28     35     3.6 

Grand Teton National Park, Moose, WY 
4.2    111     36     3.5 

Cape Cod National Seashore, Wellfleet, MA 
4.9    155     13     3.4 

Golden Gate National Recreation Area, San Francisco, CA 
14     115    354     3.4 

Chesapeake & Ohio Canal, Sharpsburg, MD 
2.1     25     45     3.3 

Joshua Tree National Park, 29 Palms, CA 
1.3     19     20       3 

Cape Hatteras National Seashore, Manteo, NC 
2.8     45     35     2.9 

Glacier National Park, West Glacier, MT 
1.7     41      7     2.8 

Olympic National Park, Port Angeles, WA 
4.2     30     85     2.7 

Gulf Islands National Seashore, Breeze, FL 
4.7     35     91     2.7 

Delaware Water Gap National Recreation Area, Bushkill, PA 
5.1     49     79     2.5 

Mammoth Cave National Park, Mammoth Cave, KY 
1.8     17     25     2.3 

Bryce Canyon National Park, Bryce Canyon, UT 
1.6     28      8     2.2 

Haleakala National Park, Makawao, HI 
2       17     22       2 

Chattahoochee River National Recreation Area, Atlanta, GA 
2.9      6     47     1.8 

Ozark National Scenic Riverways, Van Buren, MO 
1.5      4     24     1.8 

Cuyahoga Valley National Recreation Area, Brecksville, OH 
3.3     20     36     1.7 

Acadia National Park, Bar Harbor, ME 
2.9     33     13     1.6 

Hawaii Volcanoes National Park, Hawaii National Park, HI 
2.8     17     26     1.6 

Zion National Park, Springdale, UT 
2.5     25      9      1.4 

Hot Springs National Park, Hot Springs, AK 
3.3     23     18      1.2 

Point Reyes National Seashore, Point Reyes Station, CA 
2.3     18     10      1.2 

Sleeping Bear Dunes National Lakeshore, Empire, MH 
1.4     13      3      1.2 

Chickasaw National Recreation Area, Sulphur, OK 
3.4      6     30      1.1 

Gateway National Recreation Area, Brooklyn, NY 
8.2      0     82      1 

Shenandoah National Park, Luray, VA 
1.4      9      3      0.9 

Lake Roosevelt National Recreation Area, Coulee Dam, WA 
1.4      6      6      0.8 

Great Smoky Mountains National Park, Gatlinburg, TN 
21.3    49    115      0.8 

Valley Forge National Historic Park, Valley Forge, PA 
7.1      0     24      0.3 

Cumberland Gap National Historic Park, Middlesboro, KY 
8.4      6     21      0.3 

Mount Rushmore National Memorial, Keystone, SD 
2.7      2      6      0.3 

Blue Ridge Parkway, Asheville, NC 
21.8     0     60      0.3 

Natchez Trace Parkway, Tupelo, MS 
14.7     1     29      0.2 

Methodology -- Our index combines each park's total search and rescue
incidents
with the number of so-called part one crimes, which include serious
infractions
such as homicide, robbery, larceny, arson. We then divided that total
by the
number of annual visitors to derive the rate of incidents per 100,000
visitors.
Data were collected from individual parks, as well as from the
National Park
Service. While parks are supposed to use the same reporting standards
in
compiling this data, officials say the quality and precision vary.
* From the AT-L |  Need help? http://www.backcountry.net/faq.html  *

==============================================================================