https://www.telluridenews.com/the_watch/news/article_bee73e64-7a61-11e8-a29a-3721e4919270.htmlAll’s well that ends well, meaning last week was an especially successful one for San Miguel County. But — whew! — there was a boggling amount of stuff to deal with.
A hectic week was punctuated by the final note of Sturgill Simpson’s raucous set to close out the 2018 Telluride Bluegrass Festival. Before that, on June 19, a wildfire broke out near Brown Ranch off Highway 62; it was extinguished later that day, though other conflagrations in southwest Colorado continued to burn.
Later, the San Miguel County Sheriff’s Office issued a warning about three missing Norwood children — ages 1, 3 and 8, respectively — who may have been taken by their mother, who had an active arrest warrant and was identified as a “recognized methamphetamine consumer,” according to officials. Acting on an anonymous tip, authorities intercepted the party at the Family Dollar Store in Montrose; the children then went to child protective services, while the mother went to jail.
Friday, June 22, a bit of good news sprinkled in: According to Telluride Fire Protection District Public Information Officer Susan Lilly, “Quick thinking bystanders and a public access AED (automatic external defibrillator) saved a 62-year-old Kentucky man visiting Telluride with his family.” David Neyer had been standing in line for the gondola at Station Mountain Village when he complained of feeling light-headed and immediately collapsed. He was in cardiac arrest. After one shock from the AED, though, Nayer regained a pulse and started breathing on his own.
Also on Friday, an epic rescue attempt for an injured mountaineer commenced. This was on Mt. Wilson, which — at 14,252 feet above sea level — is the highest peak in the region.
“A call came in to dispatch a little after 11 a.m. for an injured hiker,” Lilly said. (She’s also the public information officer for the San Miguel County Sheriff’s Office.)
The female victim had badly broken her leg well above timberline, at about 12,800 feet. The call went out for helicopter service and help from Search and Rescue volunteers — six of whom embarked on a 10-plus-mile hike at altitude to help.
Before they could contact the victim, however, a “helicopter-inserted team” did, just after 8 p.m. San Miguel Sheriff’s Deputy Todd Rector and several volunteers attended to the victim, put her in a litter, raised her to the chopper, and delivered her to the airport and a waiting ambulance at 8:40 p.m. She was treated at Telluride Regional Medical Center before being transported to Montrose Memorial Hospital.
The remaining members of the heli team were retrieved just before before dark; the ground team hiked back out under a bright moon.
All the while, the 45th annual Telluride Bluegrass Festival — which annually brings some 20,000 people to the box canyon — was raging.
At the post-festival debriefing Tuesday morning at the Telluride Community Room was a Who’s Who of Telluride decision-makers, including Bluegrass Festival director Craig Ferguson, San Miguel County Coroner Emil Sante, Telluride Fire Protection District Deputy Fire Chief Dave Wadley, and the top law-enforcement officials from the Town of Telluride, Town of Mountain Village and San Miguel County.
The debriefing was conducted by Telluride’s Parks & Recreation Director Stephanie Jaquet, who quickly detailed Town Park attendance figures of 11,209 people on Thursday, 11,008 on Friday, 11,677 on Saturday and 11,782 on Sunday.
The 30 attendees then learned that 3,674 campers worried area ball fields and greenspaces this year.
Telluride Marshal Jim Kolar said his deputies “didn’t have many open container contacts and we had more arrests last year (10) than this year (6),” adding that only one detox hold occurred during the festival.
But Wadley’s staff was much more involved this year due to fire concerns. He said the initial fire inspection of vendors and food operators took three hours; it usually takes 30 minutes.
“We seemed to have a miscommunication which caused many vendors to have problems complying with rules for fire-extinguisher size,” he said. “I have no idea why people would rely on (tiny) extinguishers” in crackling-dry 2018, and recommended a more thorough vendor meeting next year.
He also reported three minor campground fires, due to improper propane usage, which resulted in one burned tent.
Designated smoking areas in the festival and campgrounds proved an unabashed hit, as the areas not only protected vegetation but also concentrated butt collections. Many voices argued for their inclusion in 2019, as well.
John Wontrobski, Town Park projects coordinator, said
his main issue with the 2018 festival was “spread.” He explained that more and more people are bringing 40-by-40-foot tarps that are rarely filled yet take up valuable real estate. He mentioned that late arrivals sometimes struggle to find space to sit or dance. John Cohn, security chief for both Telluride Ski & Golf and the Bluegrass festival, also noted materialistic Festivarians, citing a group that erected four large tents in a row and used one just for stroller storage. Cohn theorized that older Bluegrass attendees don’t stop coming — they just bring more family and more stuff until sightlines start disappearing.
But he praised the older crowd for knowing the rules and contributing to a well-run festival with few problems. Looking around at the many other representatives who’d reported smooth sailing, Cohn described the 45-minute debriefing as a “mutual admiration society.”
Just when things appeared to be slowing down, first responders became busy yet again Tuesday afternoon: Two vehicles collided head-on on State Highway 145 at the Applebaugh curves — between Sawpit and Placerville — at approximately 5:15 p.m. Five people were involved, and one required a Careflight helicopter transport to St. Mary’s Hospital in Grand Junction. Three others were transported by Telluride EMS to the Telluride Regional Medical Center. A status on the patients’ conditions was not immediately available before press time Wednesday afternoon. The final person claimed no injury. Both lanes of traffic were closed for approximately 45 minutes, and one lane alternating traffic was in effect for approximately another 90 minutes.
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