SEARCH CONTINUES NEAR THE BELLS FOR NEW MEXICO MAN
Aspen—The man who disappeared last fall while climbing the Maroon Bells hasn’t been forgotten. Yesterday, members of Mountain Rescue Aspen went back out to look for 49 year old David Cook of Albuquerque, New Mexico. The elite rescue team searched around the Bells and Pyramid Peak but didn’t find a trace. Cook set out last September 19th and was last seen by a U.S. Forest Service employee the next day near Maroon Lake. Maps found in Cook’s car indicate possible routes he may have taken to the peaks. Searchers spent eight days looking for Cook last fall. Yesterday’s effort was the first in a series of aerial searches of the area to find Cook.
RIVER BRIDGE CENTER EXPANSION PLANS
Glenwood Springs—The River Bridge Center in Glenwood Springs has helped hundreds of abused children since opening it’s doors in 2007. Unfortunately, the societal blight has only worsened and the center needs to expand to keep up. River Bridge Mental Health Therapist Meghan Hurley says when there are therapy sessions and forensic interviews going on under one roof, it can be overwhelming at times. Hurley and other staff members from the River Bridge Center went before the Garfield County Board of Commissioners to discuss plans to build a new center. District Attorney Jeff Cheney says the center serves several counties on the Western Slope and is especially important for the Sexual Assault Nurse Examiner or “SANE” program. Hurley says the preference is to keep the River Bridge Center in Glenwood Spings. County Commissioner Tom Jankovsky says Valley View Hospital’s decision to drop the SANE program was a “disservice to the community.” He says the county should do all it can to help with the cost of building the new River Bridge Center and keeping it in Glenwood Springs. Early estimates show the new center would cost between 674 thousand and 970 thousand dollars to build with or without an unfinished basement.
MORE BEARS BEING PUT DOWN
DURANGO— Colorado Parks and Wildlife Spokesman Joe Lewandowski says four bears were killed in the Durango area on Wednesday. Two bears were shot by homeowners after the bears entered their homes and two were tracked by Wildlife Services and euthanized. A fifth bear was caught in a bear trap north of Durango but will be released. One of the two bears that were euthanized killed a llama in Cortez and the other one killed pigs and chickens in Pagosa Springs. In the past week, Park and Wildlife officials have received more than 100 calls about bear sightings that qualify as conflict situations. Lewandowski says his crew hates to euthanize bears, but human safety comes first.
BRECK FIRE ONLY 7% CONTAINED
DENVER— Hundreds of people spent another night away from their homes as firefighters kept a close eye on a wildfire near the Breckenridge Ski Area and the town. The fire reported Wednesday by a mountain biker has burned less than 100 acres but forced the evacuation of nearly 500 homes, many of which are expensive ski properties. No homes have burned. Crews spent Thursday dropping slurry and building containment lines on the ground about 2 miles north of town to prevent the fire from reaching the Farmer’s Corner subdivision as well as the base of the ski area and the town. The fire is among several burning in Colorado and elsewhere around the West, including Nevada, New Mexico, Montana and Wyoming.
