U.S. DEPARTMENT OF THE INTERIORBUREAU OF LAND MANAGEMENT
California

News.bytes Extra, issue 222

"Stay on Designated Routes"

Staying on designated routes in remote public land areas of the California Desert became an important lesson for an OHV recreationist and his passenger who fell down a vertical mineshaft last weekend in eastern Imperial County (luckily, a broken arm was the only injury). Traveling off-road in a designated "limited use" area (where travel is restricted to identified safe routes), the two men spent Sunday afternoon and night -- 20 hours total --down the abandoned mineshaft before being rescued.

BLM arranged to have the vehicle extracted. An investigation is underway.

Below: a worker with the crane operating company, in a harness, is lowered into the abandoned mine shaft...
a worker with the crane operating company is lowered into the abandoned mine shaft, to hook up the vehicle

...and emerges with the vehicle, after fastening chains to it.
and emerges with the vehicle, after fastening chains to it.

The rest of the vehicle appears:
The rest of the vehicle appears
The crane and emerging vehicle stand out against the desert sky:
The crane and emerging vehicle stand out against the desert sky.

BLM California News.bytes, issue 222