A
rock slide killed five hikers and seriously injured another in south-central
Colorado on September 30, 2013. According to Chaffee County Undersheriff, John
Speeze, the boulders from the rock slide were reported as exceeding over 100
tons. The falling rock crashed into a viewing area on a popular day-hike site,
which left a 100 yard gash below Mount Princeton. Rescuers located the five
bodies and the injured13 year-old with a broken leg within the crash site. The
girl was immediately flown to a Denver hospital. According to Speeze "It
was totally unexpected. It caught everybody by surprise." Monica Broaddus,
the sheriff's department spokeswoman, said rescuers left the mountain Monday
afternoon and that the recovery effort would continue only after an engineer
could survey the slide area to insure that it was safe to remove the bodies.
The slide occurred at approximately 11 a.m. on a San Isabel National Forest
trail that led to Agnes Vaille Falls. According to Margaret Dean, a regular
hiker in the area, the trail was a highly recommended tourist location for
hikers. The rock slides will most likely lead to a decrease in tourism in the
area until the rocks can be removed from the trail and safety measures can be
introduced to protect future hikers from vulnerability to the natural hazard.
Image of the aftermath of the rockslide below Mount Princeton, a 14,197- foot mountain.
News Report of the aftermath of the rockslide with images of the affected area and emergency response teams.
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