06-81   11-2-06   Biker Down   Rim above Golden Spike Trail   The Blue Trail
   Up on Gold Bar Rim the mountain bikers have established the Blue Trail, a rugged single track that goes along the rim above the jeep trail. If you get injured on this trail we can’t get our ATVs right to you.
   So this guy went over his handlebars sustaining leg and abdominal injuries. Part way up the Poison Spider Trail it was decided to hail St Mary’s CareFlight cuz of time of day and bumpiness of the ride out for the subject. It would be cold
and well after dark by the time we would get him to the ambulance.
   We arrived on scene just as the helo did and he landed in the only LZ around. He would not have landed there if we had not been there to make sure his skids were on proper ground. Good thing no wind.
   The subject’s friends were encouraged to get on their bikes and head out cuz of impending darkness. The EMTs gave them their headlamps. They left and so did we. Just as we dropped off the west end of High Speed Mesa dispatch radioed that those guys had just phoned that they were lost in the dark. Said they could hear us but not see us. Rex and Mike went
back up to the first flat spot on the mesa. By phone and radio we learned they would blow their whistles. They weren’t
far away.
Responders: Rex, Bego, Mike, James, Barbara

06-82   11-4-06   Biker Down   Amasa Back
   Reported by 3rd party as a biker with a separated shoulder about 1 hour in.
   We sent in 2 Rangers and a 6 wheeler with EMTs aboard. Located subject 10 minutes in. She refused all help and wanted
to walk out.
Responders: Frank, Rex, John, Jim, Barbara, Matt, Duckie, Steve, Melissa, Shawn

06-83   11-5-06   Biker Down   SRBT
   Where are you? "Half way around the main loop on the southern end." No help there.
   Two Rangers with EMTs found the Pt in an hour. Transported this broken ankle out.
Responders: Frank, Barbara, Matt, Cody, Duckie, Shawn

06-84   11-5-06   Boating Accident   White’s Rapid
   Canoe and kyak floating down river, no persons seen, found paddle and bag..........
   We mobilized jet skis and rescue boat. OIC met subjects at Red Cliffs Ranch. 10-22.
Responders: Frank, John, Barbara, Margy, Matt, Melissa, Duckie

06-85   11-5-06   Overdue Bikers   Klondike Bluffs
   Reported as an overdue biker, her party had been looking for her for an hour.
   1 T 8 went to trailhead. Shortly, the missing subject showed up. 10- 22.
Responders: Frank, Rex, John, Margy, Matt, Duckie, Melissa, Nancy

06-86   11-5-06   Fallen Climber   Big Bend
   Apparently a climber did take a leader fall up on a climbing route above Big Bend. This was seen from below by a 3rd party who reported it.
   OIC talked to descending climbers who reported no problems. 10-22.
Responders: Frank, John, Margy, Matt, Cody, Melissa, Nancy

06-87   11-18-06   Possible Parachute Accident   Castle Rock
   Reported by a 3rd party from Castle Valley. Said a parachutist was hung up on the side of the Rectory, the mesa just north of Castle Rock. Incident was actually closer to Castle Rock.
   Frank went to see. Located subject with binoculars, he was on the ground and moving around. He then talked to some
folks in the climbers campground and talked on the radio to climbers who could shout down to the subject. The subject
was angry that search and rescue had been called.
Responders: Nancy, Frank, Dave, Barbara

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A very different point of view" from SARBC Rope Rescue Forum

This is where things can get a little confusing to those outside the UK. I am sorry if my reply is a little long but an explanation of how UK cave rescue is organised might help explain. Life On a Line (LOL) is not the standard of UK cave rescue techniques. It describes many of the techniques used, some which are very uncommon,some which are thought
provoking. <p>There is no national UK cave rescue standard in techniques or equipment - but there is a lot of commonality.<p>The major fault of LOL is that,in my opinion, there appears to be a deliberate attempt to make it seem
that industrial health and safety standards and the European PPE standards apply to cave rescue when indeed the PPE standards exclude equipment used for rescue. Industrial health and safety standards do not apply to unpaid volunteers. There may be in future 'rescue equipment standards' but fortunately the EU grinds exceedingly slowly. Therefore if a
team decides that the Nano belay is suitable for their type of rescue techniques then there is nothing to stop them using it. They just have to be happy that they can justify it's use. Several teams use the GriGri as a belay device on hauling and security ropes altough the manufacturer does not rate them for 'rescue loads'. There have been several reports, by
well respected equipment specialists, of tests on the GriGri which led teams to test them for themselves and be satisfied that the device is safe
to use as we do. And they make an incredibly easy to learn and use Z rig.I think it is sometimes difficult for others to grasp the fact that there are no UK national standards in cave rescue. Each team has developed its own standards and techniques to suit their area. Yes we have a national body, talk, have conferences, demo equipment and techniques, bench mark ideas and techniques and maybe adapt and/or adopt them but we have no regulatory mechanism by which there can be a prescribed standard. We do not accept 'expert' opinions unless we have thrased them out ourselves and are happy with them.Cave rescuers are cavers first and the UK caver is generally very technically competant. It follows that if you explore caves by SRT techniques you are happy with ropes and belays. <p>Prussiks are almost totally unknown in UK caving and indeed the use of prussiks is something I have never seen promoted by any UK team. UK teams do some 30-40 technical rescues,those involving hauling and lowering, yearly, and about the closest you get to a rope on rope friction is the occasional use of the Italian hitch in an emergency as it tends to wreck a rope when used under a rescue load.I believe most UK cavers and cave rescuers will agree that the wet muddy norm of UK caves, and likewise the ropes used, renders the prussik usless. This is sure to start the prussik v mechanical argument all over but the fact is that in mainstream UK
cave rescue the prussik knot died a long time ago and believe me tradition dies hard in the UK. I am afraid that the champions of prussik knots could talk themselves blue but the answer from a UK cave rescuer would be - we tried them and
in the conditions we work in they suck.The same goes for load releasing hitches. In 36 years of cave rescue I have never seen my team in the situation where a LRH was needed - so why use them? Usually we have so little room at the head of a pitch that having anything in the system which reduced the gap would mean that we would have to struggle even harder to
get the stretcher over the head. And on stretchers - which I think all would agree are a fundamentally vital bit of kit - have no EU standard. I know because I make stretchers commercially.<p>Coloured rope has been available in the UK for at least 30 years. Edelrid - originally at the request of a Welsh cave rescue team - produce three colours of SuperStatic. I think David meant that different colours of the same rope type. Most UK teams use 11mm static ropes, some like mine, use red blue and white 11 mm SuperStatic. Indeed my team,the WBCRT, was using three different coloured Marlow ropes some 30 years ago. UK caves are often wet. Shouting the likes of 'Haul on Red' - 'Slack on Blue' is by far the easiest way of communicating haul instructions on a noisy wet pitch at three o'clock in the morning. Dynamic rope and especially the mixing of dynamic and static in hauling and lifelining is almost totally unknown ( which means I do not know a team that mixes them) Teams follow the best practice distilled from hundreds of cave rescues and use gear which will include PPE rated equipment. It would be churlish not to but we are not fettered because regulation - thank whatever God you believe
in - has not reached UK cave rescue yet.Perhaps the biggest difference between UK and other countries cave rescue teams
is that there are no professional cave rescuers in the UK. HM Goverment has vested the rescue of persons in caves and abandoned metalliferous mines to the 14 voluntary cave rescue teams in the UK. I hope the practice outlives me. A UK team has never killed - or to the very best of my knowledge - injured a casualty by equipment or technique failure. So I think we are the 'experts' - in our caves of course!<p>Brian

"interesting rescue/ need thoughts" from SARBC Rope Rescue Forum

I was involved in an interesting rescue and it bothers me as to why it took us so long to get this fella to safety. Here goes: 76 year old man flying his glider plane over the mountain and for some reason wind flips his plane and he lands in top of approx. 60 ft. tree upside down. Man is secured by safety belt and had a parachute set-up on him as well. This
tree was overhanging about a 150ft. bluff and the wind was approx. 15-20 miles an hour whipping across the bluff line.
It took us several hours to find the fella as another glider circled him from high above and we found him by going to center of glider planes circling above. When we got there we realized quickly that we know nothing about glider planes except that people put them toghter and take them apart to travel to different sites. We immediatley became concern
about the upside down glider getting ripped out of tree and off the bluff so we got a safety line around tail section
of glider to maybe help stabilize. We called the glider port for someone to come on scene and instruct us a little
about how to secure the glider. On the radio the fella told us not to secure with a rope around the tail section, whoops
to late we already did. So we opted not to put stress on this. It was quit a bit off a backroad where we found the gentleman and had already begun a secondary plan to get forrestry there to start cutting and knocking trees down in
order to get "cherry Picker" truck there from power board to reach up and simply open hatch to glider and get fella in bucket. Whoops the electric power board truck couldn't get that high! Also had to un stick his truck to get out of the
way for third plan in wich we already called for fire truck ladder co. to come from out of town as we knew his bucket
would reach. Meanwhile cardiologist arrived on scene from airport and this so happened to be the fella circling to show
us where he was and was also this mans heart doctor and was concerned with him being upside down for so long.The ground crew was working hard to make a wider road for ladder truck whom we instructed to dump water on paved road before
entering the woods. The chief then instructed us to get to the man however we could. So we had fellas with tree climbing gear get up into opposite trees and help us rig a line from tree to tree that would come under that hatch. Airport instructed us to use his parachute harness to hook too and let him swing out onto line after we released his safety
belts. This sounded good but quit a distance from hatch and one rescuer was able to get hold of dangling glider and get close to man for conversation. The fella said he felt fine but more dizzy as time passed. Then airport instructs not to
get near wings as they can detach from main section of glider. Whoops to late, our rescuer already held on to tip of one wing and this is how he got momentum to get to hatch on rope. Ladder truck arrives on road and says no way about coming down road even without water. we tell him it will be fine and he proceeds. Lader truck easily gets to hatch and fella is gotten into the bucket. He was a little shaken and felt some chest pain but said he enjoyed talking about his family
with us for the past 2 hours! He went to hospital via ambulance with his cardiologist and checked out later that day.
We now had a fire truck to get out of woods and yes it was really stuck. Their officer not happy about us lying and
saying okay to come down as we knew he would have to be pulled out by bull dozer just like the electric co. truck.
Thats the story. Now any ideas or thoughts as to how we could have improved this little rescue! I realize not being
there it is hard to provide ideas but since the season is upon us again for some major amounts of hang gliding, glider planes and little lawnmower engine planes zooming over the mountain any ideas or thoughts would be accepted!! I'm not
sure this other co. will mutual aid with us again but then again they might since they saved the fella. Thanks again
for imput as I'm sure we will have something happen again soon! Pat

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06-88   11-23-06   Broken Leg   Stairway to Heaven Trail
   Paged at 13:15 as a subject with a broken leg near the top of Stairway to Heaven Trail in Castle Valley. Obvious
break, several people heard it snap and the bone obviously pushing against the skin. Shawn, the IC.
   Cody went with the EMTs to show them the trail. EMTs requested CareFlight and they launched. Paged again, need
more folks for this one.
   Sent two Polaris Rangers with most of the rock rescue gear in the Porcupine / Mat Martin Point road cuz there were
not enuff people to carry it up the trail but some could be brought down the trail from the top.
   Communication between command and the subject himself was on FRS radios. Subject said if he was going to be
transported down the trail he would have to be unconscious. It was decided to carry him up to the top as there were
half a dozen strong people up there with him to aid SAR members carrying the litter.
   CareFlight transported some SAR and equipment to the top.
   Using Cody as a belay anchor on the steep, loose talus, the litter was carried up the narrow trail. The wheel
couldn’t be used for most of the trip up. After dark, the subject was put in the helo and off he went. Incident was
cleared at 22:30 hrs, over 9 hours to get this one.
   Of note: St Mary’s personnel said that they respond to a lot of rescues but we always seem to get the hardest ones
and they can’t figure out how we are going to pull them off sometimes.
Responders: Nancy, Frank, Sam, Dave, John, Barbara, Cody, Duckie, Shawn, Scott Ryan, Brent Pace

Arches NP had a long carry out on Thanksgiving Day also.

06-89   11-24-06   Moab Rim Trail
   After dark, this guy fell 20 feet, hit his head and was unconscious for a bit. This was way out at the south end of
the jeep road, near the top of the Hidden Valley hiking trail.
   A Ranger started up the steep, dangerous Moab Rim Trail and a 3rd party jeep gave the EMTs a ride up. CareFlight was summoned and an LZ was lighted up by jeepers headlights. The subject was transported to the helo by Ranger.
   This was paged out after dark and was completed by midnight. It was more difficult than it sounds.
Responders: Nancy, Dave, John, Barbara, Jon, Cody, Melissa

06-90   12-9-06   Jeep Nosedives Off Lion’s Back
   That’s the report. Ambulance, SAR and Fire Rescue were paged.
   Moments later we were all 10-22d cuz there were no injuries. Jeep did indeed nosedive into the sand.
Responders: John, Nancy S, Bego and more

06-91   12-15-06   A Dog and His Injured Human   The Art of Suffering
   Danelle and dog Taz were all over the news in the days after.
   Danelle, a world class multi-athlete who has won many of the top hard core multi-day races, went for an afternoon
jog with her dog Taz. She left her home, on Wednesday afternoon, as if to b e gone an hour.
   On Thursday, people who knew her in Colorado were getting worried when Danelle didn’t return Emails and phone calls. They said she always returns messages same day.
   Thursday evening, her neighbor called Danelle’s parents cuz her house was "on" but no one was home. Her parents then called Moab city Police for a welfare check.
   Friday morning, Detective Shumway went looking for Danelle’s truck. Found it. Her truck was located near the Amasa
Back (Cliffhanger) trailhead.
   GCSAR was paged at 1:30 pm. We assembled at the Rescue Shed along with several law enforcement for a briefing. She
could have gone any of several directions from where her car was parked but the primary search area became Amasa Back.
   As we were unloading the ATVs, a dog (her dog we thot) came cruising by, headed toward town. The dog looked pretty hammered and didn’t want anything to do with us. Mike, Barbara and Bego started uphill in two Rangers while Melissa
went to hike the single track Jackson Trail. Jim went to hike up to the bottom of the cliff to clear some petroglyph
sites not visible from below and Nancy S went to Poison Spider with binoculars to view across the river to Amasa Back. Search dog Shalla was busy.
   As we were cruising up the jeep rail we were looking in the sandy places for footprints. I had sorted out what I
thought to be the correct prints, of runner with dog, maybe. A short time later, the same dog came trotting by Mike.
He radioed up to me that the dog was coming. The dog caught up to me, looked over, and trotted up to the left, out of sight. Follow the dog.
   I picked up the dog tracks which soon got on to an old jeep track. There in the sand were new dog prints, 2 day old
dog prints and 2 day old footprints of the same type I was suspecting to be Danelle’s. I walked the jeep track road to
the jeep trail the ATV was on, looking at the print sets in the dirt, feeling pretty sure I was on to something.
   Mike and Barb showed up, Barb took digital pix of the tracks and they continued on to meet with Melissa. I continued
on the old jeep track which shows only on the Moab West map.
   The track lead up over a saddle and into a drainage headed west into some uplands. The wash bottom was narrowing.
Then I heard a noise. Stop, turn engine off. It was Danelle, screaming for help. Emotion. Big emotion. I radioed "voice
contact" and proceeded onward. Oh my.
   There was Danelle, lying on rock in the wash bottom next to a small pool of water. More, bigger emotion. She said,
"I’m glad to see you" and tears appeared in her eyes. Her dog was lying next to her. With a huge lump in my throat I
said the same thing.
   Danelle had slipped on something (wet lichen on the steep slickrock??) and slid/fell 50’ down a cliff about a
quarter mile up canyon. Then she dragged herself on hands, butt and feet backwards down thru the rugged wash bottom to
this place when just couldn’t move at all. That was Wednesday afternoon. This was Friday afternoon. In jogging clothes,
she laid there for 48 hours. Her dog had been with her the first night but not the second. The nights were cold, right
near freezing and the days weren’t very much warmer. I thot, as I was following tracks up the canyon, that I would come across someone in advanced stages of hypothermia.
   Her core temp was no doubt down some but she was alert and oriented. As I was wrapping her up in down blanket and she told the story of a bleak and cold 48 hours. She said she thot her gluteus muscle had separated from her pelvis and her feet were frostbitten too. I was way beyond astonished. I radioed back to base for a helicopter and EMTs.
   After awhile, Jim hiked in. I was relieved to have someone else there. He took over patient care while I went to
look for a helo LZ. Luckily, there was a nice one on some slickrock up out of the wash bottom not so far away. The
helo arrived in fading light. As we were packaging Danelle, the EMTs came roaring in on ATVs. Off went the helo and we
were all talking at once.
   Next day, Nancy, Margy and their dogs hiked to the scene and up to the cliff in question. They could see the clues
and put the scene together. They also recovered her iPOD and glasses.
   Turns out, Danelle had broken her pelvis in several places and her toes were indeed frostbitten. She has had major surgery on her pelvis and the frostbite problems are slowly going away. Much media attention. Google.
Responders: John, Rex, Bego, Sam, Nancy, Dave, Jim, Melissa, Barbara, Margy, TBerry, Jeff
Interesting note: It was an hour and 10 minutes from the time Bego arrived to the helicopter arrival.

This next piece was written by Jim Gostlin -->

   Recently I took part in a search and rescue operation for a young lady missing for 2 days in the Amasa Back area. By
now everyone knows the story, but it was a personal experience which I will remember for a long time.
   All I had heard about Danelle was that she was a professional athlete who had done the triathlon. Bego located her
with the help of her dog Taz. Mike Coronella found me hiking up the trail and drove me up to the scene. Then Mike headed down to the trailhead to get more help. Bego had done the initial assessment and managed to get Danelle into a "hypo
bag". I stayed with Danelle and Taz for the next hour while Bego arranged for helicopter transport and we waited for additional support.
   Danelle was obviously badly shaken and in a lot of pain. Not knowing her background, I thought she appeared frail
and very small. Only her face and shaking gloved hands were visible through all the clothing which was now helping her
to get warm. I kept her attention and asked many questions to try to keep her mind off of her ordeal and to assure her
that a helicopter and additional help would arrive soon. I was amazed by her willpower and determination. She had been lying on the bare slickrock next to a half frozen pothole for over 48 hours. Her emotion seemed to drain as she realized she was going to make it out alive. She considered her injuries and hoped they would not prevent her from competing
again. As I talked with Danelle, I wondered if she would have found the strenth to survive yet another night.
   Taz was a different story of a true "wonder dog." He had covered countless miles in two days of searching to find
help for Danelle. Once we arrived, Taz never left again. He hungrily but politely ate 3 of my power bars (no chocolate)
and a large hunk of cheese which he uncovered in Bego’s pack. When additional help arrived, Taz personally greeted each one.
   For weeks now I have been hearing of Danelle’s numerous achievements. I hear and read news reports, then relate them
to my personal experience with this amazing person and great athlete. Many friends from other parts of the country have asked if I know anything about Danelle’s rescue.
   It feels good to look back upon the rescue of a "celebrity" and know that I would not have done one thing different
if I had known her history ahead of time. She was another person in need of our help.
   Grand County Search and Rescue. This is what we do.

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Commentary:
We need another, and a wiser, and perhaps a more mystical concept of animals. Remote from universal nature, and living
by complicated artifice man in civilization surveys the creature through the glass of his own knowledge and he sees
thereby a feather magnified and the whole image in distortion. We patronise them for their incompleteness, for their
tragic fate of having taken form so far below ourselves. And therein we err, and greatly we err, for the animal cannot
be measured by man.

In a world older and more complete than ours they move finished and complete, gifted with extensions of senses that we
have either lost or never attained, living by voices that we shall never hear. They are not underlings, they are not bretheren. They are other nations, trapped with ourselves in this net of life and time, fellow prisoners of the
spendour and travail of the earth.

Henry Beston, The Outermost House

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Notes on Avalanches- lecture by Max Forgensi and Dave Madera, LSAFC

YOU are the rescue party
An avalanche beacon is like the key to the club house. Have one, practice or go home.
Chances of survival if you are caught in an avalanche are 90% if you are dug up in 15 minutes
60% of avalanches involve multiple subjects. Scary. Stay spread ut in avalanche terrain
YOU probably triggered the avalanche you are caught in

5 Red Flags:
-- big snow in last 24 hours
-- recent natural avalanche activity
-- wind blown and drifting snow creates slab conditions
-- collapsing (whooomp) and cracking snow
-- rapid temperature rise

Preparedness:
-- Temperature: clothing, food, water, hand warmers...
-- Access: car chains, snowmobiles, skiing only
-- Hazards: avalanches above your search area or on the route to it
-- Equipment: snowmobile trailers on snowy roads, snowmobile trained?, toboggans
-- Responder skills and tools
-- Response Time: No "golden hour," event carries into darkness (colder)

Ready Pack: what is in your ready pack?? A well equipped winter ready pack could weight more than 12 lbs.
-- Beacon, shovel, probe pole, water, food, extra layers of warmth ...
-- Navigational tools, ski binding repair, wire, tape, cord, light, first aid, fire starter, space blanket ...

Group Management is the key to a quick response when a rescue begins
-- verify Point Last Scene with everybody
-- switch Beacons to receive
-- who has beacon / rescue skills and tools, who does not
-- check all trees in the path
-- look for gear: check to see if the skier is attached to it !
-- Do not leave your gear strewn about to confuse things

The Beacon Search
-- Everyone with a beacon slowly skis down avalanche path no more than 10 meters apart
-- Primary: acquire signal, leave a marker where first acquired
-- Secondary: getting close.
      -- At this point have all but the most experienced beacon searcher get ready to probe and dig.
-- Pinpoint: Done by most experienced beaconer.
      -- Beacon is held down at snow level and oriented same direction all the time
      -- Probe first, then dig (because of how signals propagate from a beacon, the sending beacon
         may not be directly "below" the receiving beacon)

Multiple Burials are difficult to detect and sort out. Modern beacons help sort things out.
-- Dig up first subject, get him breathing, move on (dig him OUT later)
-- Check for medical concerns, keep subjects warm (the adrenaline rush will go away at some point)

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Stranded Hiker Uses PLB To Summon Help By Mark Spier, Chief Ranger January 03, 2007

On the evening of December 30th, the U.S. Air Force notified the park that a personal locator beacon (PLB) signal had
been received from a backcountry location within the park. Rangers headed to a backcountry campsite about six miles from the coordinates given by the PLB and found a vehicle registered to a visitor who had a solo hiker permit for that zone
of the park. Two rangers then hiked to the approximate PLB coordinates, but were unable to find anyone in that area.
They were joined by another team of searchers and a Texas Department of Public Safety (DPS) helicopter the following morning. The crew of the helicopter homed in on the 121.5 MHz distress transmission from the PLB within minutes of
arriving on scene and soon spotted the hiker, who was waving a space blanket at them. He had "cliffed out" on the side
of Elephant Tusk peak, but gave the helicopter crew a thumbs-up signal indicating that he was okay. Although the
helicopter was unable to land, the crew directed searchers to the man’s location, then ferried rope and climbing
equipment to the rangers on scene. They climbed to his location and helped him down. The man told rangers that he’d attempted to climb to the top of Elephant Tusk the day before. He’d cached his backpack, tent and sleeping bag and had
made the ascent carrying only a space blanket, food, water, a whistle, an LED light, and a PLB. After topping a 40-foot chimney, he decided to turn back – only to find he couldn’t climb down from his location. He spent the night on a 6-foot
by 50-foot ledge wrapped in the space blanket, with his PLB tied to a bush to keep it from being blown away by high
winds. Overnight temperatures were just below freezing. This incident marks the first time in Big Bend that a PLB has
been used by a hiker to call in rescuers. Without the PLB and assistance from the DPS helicopter, it would have been extremely difficult to find and rescue the man in a timely fashion. The PLB probably saved his life.
( From Steve Swanke up ta Yellowstone NP. )

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Upper Colorado River Basin Hydrology

Water year 2007 (which began on October 1, 2006) started out "wet," but shifted in November and December. Precipitation
in the Upper Colorado River Basin in October 2006 was over 200 percent of average. Unfortunately, this trend did not continue. Basinwide precipitation above Lake Powell in November and December was about 65 percent of average.

Inflow to Lake Powell increased dramatically in October in response to heavy precipitation. Unregulated inflow to Lake Powell in October 2006 was 184 percent of average and Lake Powell increased by 6.2 feet in elevation during the month. Inflow to Lake Powell returned to near average levels in November and December 2006. Unregulated inflow was 103 percent
and 93 percent of average in these two months, respectively.

Basinwide snowpack above Lake Powell is currently 84 percent of normal (January 5, 2007). The current elevation of Lake Powell (January 5, 2007) is 3,602.9 feet. Reservoir storage is currently 12.03 million acre-feet, 49 percent of capacity.

Upper Colorado River Basin Drought

The Upper Colorado River Basin experienced five consecutive years of extreme drought from September 1999 through
September 2004. In the summer of 1999, Lake Powell was essentially full with reservoir storage at 97 percent of
capacity. Inflow volumes for five consecutive water years were significantly below average. Total unregulated inflow
in water years 2000, 2001, 2002, 2003, and 2004 was 62, 59, 25, 51, and 49 percent of average, respectively. Lake Powell storage decreased through this five-year period, with reservoir storage reaching a low of 8.0 million acre-feet (33
percent of capacity) on April 8, 2005.

Hydrologic conditions improved in water year 2005 in the Upper Colorado River Basin. Lake Powell increased by 2.77
million acre-feet (31 feet in elevation) during water year 2005. Unregulated inflow to Lake Powell in water year 2005
was 105 percent of average.

Unfortunately, in 2006, there was a return to drier condition in the Colorado River Basin. Unregulated inflow to Lake Powell in water year 2006 was 73 percent of average. Over the past 7 years (2000 through 2006, inclusive) inflow to Lake Powell has been below average in all but one year (2005).

The drought in the Colorado River Basin may not be over.

Cold Weather Injuries:

Frostbite  or Cryopathy

Factors influencing cold injuries:
      Low ambient temp, wind chill (increases rate of freezing dramatically), moisture (wet skin freezes at higher
temp than dryskin), insulation, conduction, exposed skin vasodilation, vasoconstriction, previous cold injuries, 
constricting garments, body type dehydration, women do better in cold than men due to subcutaneous fat, caloric 
intake, alcohol, caffeine, nicotine......

Pathophysiology of Tissue Freezing
      	As tissue begins to freeze, ice crystals form within cells.  As intracellular fluids freeze, extracellular fluid 
enters the cell and there is an increase in the levels of extracellular salts due to water transfer.  Cells may rupture 
due to increased water and/or from tearing by ice crystals.  DO NOT RUB TISSUE.  As the ice melts there is an influx 
of salts into the tissue further damaging the cell membrane. Cell destruction results in tissue death and loss of 
tissue.  Tissue freezes below 28ºF (not 32ºF) cuz of the salt content in body fluids.  Ears, nose, fingers, toes are 
most susceptible.
      	Surface frostbite involves destruction of skin layers resulting in blistering and minor tissue loss.  
Blisters form from the cellular fluid released when cells rupture.  Deep frostbite can involve muscle and bone.

Frostnip:  Freezing of top layers of skin tissue, generally reversible.
           White, waxy skin, top layer feels hard, rubbery but deep tissue still soft.
	   Numbness.  Typically seen on ears, nose, fingers, toes
    Treatment:  Rewarm with warm air or direct contact on partner’s stomach

Surface Frostbite:  Superficial frostbite is yellowish-grey, waxy or leathery, microscopic ice crystals
 	forming in cells. Severe pain upon rewarming.

Deep Frostbite:  Sets in at around 14ºF and is very serious, risk of permanent damage including blood clots, 
	gangrene, amputation.  Can freeze blood vessels, muscles, bone and tendons. You may not know it 
  	cuz the nerves have frozen also and all feeling is lost.  Skin is white and wooden feel (frozen chicken) 
	all the way thru.  Includes all layers of skin, numbness. Deep frostbite is difficult to rewarm 
        without some damage occurring.

Rewarming of Frostbite:
      	Rewarming is accomplished by immersion of the affected part into a water bath 105º to 110º F. No hotter, 
monitor the temperature. The temp will drop so additional water will be constantly added. Immerse appendage 
for 25-40 minutes. Thawing is complete when the part is pliable and color and sensation have returned. 
Once the area has been rewarmed there can be considerable pain. DO NOT USE DRY HEAT. Once the part has be rewarmed 
it cannot be used for anything and must be kept from refreezing. If you cannot guarantee that the tissue will stay 
warm, do NOT rewarm it. Once the tissue is frozen the major harm has been done. Keeping it frozen will not cause 
significant additional damage.
      	During recovery, the frostbite site will swell and huge blisters will form.  Leave these alone.  
They will shrink leaving discolored tissue and signs of gangrene may arise. If it was deep frostbite, the 
affected part will simply fall off.
      	If a person is hypothermic and frostbitten, the first concern is rewarming.  Do not rewarm the frostbitten 
part until the core temp is 96ºF or better.  No alcohol or smoking.
      	Gasoline can "supercool"(drop below their freezing point but not freeze) and evaporates quickly. 
Spilling gas on the skin causes instant frostbite from evaporative cooling.  Wear gloves.
	
If at any time you discover a cold injury, STOP and warm it up.	

Always carry matches and light

Cold Weather Injuries:

Hypothermia

      The lowering of the body core temperature.  Humans are considered to be homeothermic endotherms more suited to 
the tropics and need to keep the core temp at 98.6º (37ºC) plus or minus 1º.  Hypothermia is defined as a core 
temp less than 96º F.  Once hypothermia develops, the heat deficit is shared by two body compartments.  The shell is 
the  outer 1.65 mm of skin, average area of 1.8 sq meters or about 10% of a 70 kg mass.  The remainder of the body is 
the core.  However, in hypothermia, the core refers to the heart, lungs and brain.

Many variables contribute:  Age, health, nutrition, body size, exhaustion, exposure, duration of exposure, wind, 
	temperature, wetness, medications, intoxicants and more.  These may increase heat loss, decrease heat 
	production, interfere with thermostability.

A healthy person’s compensatory responses to heat loss via conduction, convection, radiation, evaporation and
	respiration  may be overwhelmed by exposure.

How the body looses heat:
	2 evaporative ways- Important to recognize connection between fluid levels, fluid loss and heat loss.  As
 		body moisture is lost thru evaporative processes the overall circulating volume is reduced leading 
		to dehydration.  This decrease in fluid levels makes the body more susceptible to hypothermia and 
 		other cold injuries.
	-- Respiration: Inspired air raised to body temp and then exhaled with high moisture content.
	-- Evaporation: The loss of heat by converting water from a liquid to a gas.
		-- Sweating: body response to remove excess heat.
		-- Insensible perspiration: Body sweats to maintain humidity level of 70% next to skin.
 			-Particularly in a cold, dry environment you can lose a  lot of moisture this way.

	3 non evaporative ways
	-- Conduction: Direct molecular transfer of heat by contact with a cooler object.
	    Water conducts heat away 25 times faster (greater heat capacity). Steel conducts faster than water.
	    Conductive heat loss accounts for 2% of overall loss.  Wet clothes increases loss by 5 times
	-- Convection: Heat that is transferred to cool air moving across the surface of the body. The rate of
 	    convective heat loss depends on the density of the moving substance and its velocity. Wind chill.
	-- Radiation: Heat radiated outward from the body to cooler air. Important factors are surface area and 
 	    temperature gradient.

Cold Challenge: temperature, wind, wetness
Heat Retention:  size/shape (Eskimo vs Masai) insulation (layering, type), fat as insulation,
		  shunt blood to core- shell garment acts as thermal barrier
Heat Production:  exercise and shivering is limited by fitness, fuel stores (glycogen), fluid status. 
		  uel intake:  kindling (carbs), sticks (proteins), logs (fats)

Core Temperature
-- Heat is both required and produced at the cell level
-- Body temp is a measure of metabolism, the general level of chemical activity in the body
-- The hypothalamus is the body thermostat.  It is sensitive to blood temp changes of 0.5 º F and reacts to nerve
   	impulses from the skin
-- Core temp is essential to metabolic rates.  Temp of the periphery is not critical

Core Temperature Regulation
-- Vasodilation:  Increase surface blood flow, increases heat loss when ambient is less and core. Maximal vasodilation 
	can increase cutaneous blood flow from average of 3-500 ml/min to 3000 ml/min
-- Vasoconstriction: Decreases blood flow to periphery, decreases heat  Vasoconstriction can reduce loss. 		
	cutaneous blood flow to 30 ml/min
-- Sweating:  Cools body thru evaporation
-- Shivering: Generates heat by muscle activity.  Visible shivering can increase surface heat by 500%.  This is 	
	limited to a few hours cuz of muscle glucose depletion and onset of fatigue
-- Increasing/Decreasing activity:  Increases or decreases heat production 
-- Behavioral:  Putting on or taking off clothing resulting in heat regulation

Impending hypothermia-  Watch for the "umbles:" stumble, mumble, fumble, grumble
	The initial response to body cooling is shivering, the involuntary expansion and contraction of muscle 	
	tissue occurring on a large scale.  Increase movements to warm up.

Mild H
	98.6º to 95º F.  You are now a victim.  Uncontrolled, intense shivering.  Still alert and able to help self, 
 	however movements become less coordinated. Vasoconstriction to periphery.

Moderate H
	95º to 90 F.  Shivering slows or stops.  Muscles begin to stiffen, can’t zip parka.  Apathy and confusion 	
	set in.  Speech slows, slurs.  Breathing shallow and slow.  Drowsiness and strange behavior.
	Paradoxical Undressing: takes off clothing unaware of the cold.  I don’t care attitude. Flattened affect

Severe H
	90º to 86º F.  Skin cold, blue-grey. Eyes dilated.  No coordination, falls down.  Denies problem, resists 
	help. Gradual loss of consciousness. At 90º body tries to hibernate, shunting peripheral blood flow,
 	reducing breathing and heart rate. At  86º little or no apparent breathing, may appear dead but isn’t.
	Person probably in fetal position. Try to open arm up, if it curls back person is alive. Dead muscles 
	don’t contract.


Treating Hypothermia

Mild H: Reduce heat loss with more clothing, activity, shelter.  Add fuel (carbs for instant heating, proteins, fats) 
	and hot fluids. Add heat such as hand warmers, build a fire, body to body contact in a sleeping bag.

Severe H: Hypothermia wrap providing a shell of total insulation.  Subjects can still internally rewarm themselves 
	more efficiently than any external rewarming. Make sure subject is DRY, polypro next to skin to reduce 
	sweating, NO cotton.  Space blanket to prevent radiant heat loss.  Much insulation from any cold source 
	including ground.  Stomach is shut down so only hot sugar water (hot, dilute Jello) will be absorbed.  
	Urination will have to be done cuz of cold diuresis.  Kidneys pull off excess blood stream fluid to reduce  
	pressure.  A full bladder uses up heat that should go elsewhere.  In the end, urinating will help conserve 
 	heat.  Apply chemical heat packs at the pressure points and hands.

Afterdrop:  When the core temp actually drops during rewarming caused by peripheral blood vessels dilating if they are 
 	rewarmed sending cold, stagnate blood to the core which could lead to death.  Blood is also acetic which can 
	cause cardiac arrythmias.  Warm the core, not the periphery.

Inhalation rewarming: Involves the subject inhaling warm (105ºF) humidified air. This warms the core, neck, head and 
  	hypothalamus, the body’s thermostat.  This can be done with professional equipment or by breathing directly 
	above the subject’s mouth and nostrils but do not cover them. This helps reduce respiratory heat loss which 
	can account for up to 30% of heat loss.

WIND CHILL

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