[californiadisasters] Americans May Have Lost Respect for Nature's Risks

Yosemite deaths: Americans may have lost respect for nature's risks

By Matt Weiser - Sacramento Bee

Published: Saturday, Aug. 13, 2011 - 12:00 am | Page 1A

YOSEMITE NATIONAL PARK – Just three weeks after death laid a heavy hand on the Merced River, sweeping three tourists to their deaths over Vernal Fall, life went on for a new crop of visitors, some of them oblivious to the danger before them.

On Wednesday, children waded in a small eddy just 50 yards from the edge. Some playfully teetered on a log that separated the eddy from the river's torrent. Upstream, a man swam across Emerald Pool and back, crossing the Merced River current and ignoring warnings and prohibitions posted nearby.

It was just another summer day at Yosemite, one of many natural wonders in California that routinely tempt people to toy with danger.

The park has seen 14 deaths this year. That is about double the average for the season, but not record-setting.

There have been dozens of other deaths across the state, including ski and snowboarding fatalities during the winter, and numerous drownings in the months since, including two professional kayakers killed separately on remote Sierra Nevada creeks in recent weeks.

It is the kind of year that causes experts and casual hikers alike to question their relationship with nature. Are we underestimating the risks of commonplace outdoor recreation? Have modern Americans – taskmasters behind a steering wheel and in front of a computer – simply lost respect for nature's whims?

The children playing so close to the edge of Vernal Fall were among a group of 15 Parisians visiting the park. One of the parents, Bertrand Pierre, said he told another parent not to let his children play there.

"I was worried for his kids because I think he was not too worried, but he should be," said Pierre. "I didn't allow my kid to get in."

A park ranger who happened on the scene told the group to leave the water.

But that was just one group on one day. The Bee observed numerous people, young and old, wading in the same location before and after.

David Rolloff, associate professor of recreation, parks and tourism at Sacramento State, compared natural hazards to the "third rail" of a subway system – the one that will electrocute you if you touch it. Many of today's urban- and Internet-focused Americans, he said, forget that nature is full of third rails, too.

"Unfortunately, nature hurts people sometimes," said Rolloff, a former U.S. Forest Service wilderness ranger.

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View entire article here: http://www.sacbee.com/2011/08/13/3835136/yosemite-deaths-americans-may.html#ixzz1Uw2rXN7U


Photo gallery relating to recent Yosemite Deaths: http://www.sacbee.com/2011/08/12/3834246/yosemite-breaks-a-record-for-deaths.html

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