Emergency Services by Joey Stocking (SAR)

 In 2009 I was thoroughly impressed by the men & women of the Utah County Search and Rescue (SAR) and it was what first gave me the desire to get involved in emergency services. 

On the day before Thanksgiving I had joined my college roommate, Josh, and his family on a caving trip into Nutty Putty Cave. Josh’s brother became stuck upside down in the cave and we could not help him on our own. Utah County SAR was called to assist and they worked tirelessly to help him. Unfortunately they were unable to free him from the cave’s grasp. 

At the funeral I spent a long time talking to the rescuers, who I could tell were hurting, but who were dealing with it the best they could.

While talking to them that day I learned that SAR teams are staffed by volunteers. They carry pagers and when they go off they leave work and family at all times of the day or night. They miss birthday parties, lose sleep, and clock out at work. The calls always come when the weather is miserable or the circumstances are horrific. They show up to help people on what is likely the worst day of their life. They help those who are unable to help themselves. Sometimes the outcomes are good, but sometimes they aren’t as blessed. All of this blew my mind!

When I asked why these responders did what they did, some of them joked about being adrenaline junkies, but none of them could give me a straight answer. Profound respect doesn’t even begin to explain how I felt about these people. I remember being so hurt hearing my roommate’s brother didn’t make it, but then after meeting the SAR team members and seeing the pain in their eyes, I was absolutely crushed with what they too were feeling. It still brings tears to my eyes to think of that moment even now.

I’ve since met these Utah County rescuers on a couple of occasions and they were doing well. They talked about coping and things they do to honor those that didn’t make it. I’ll be forever grateful for the interest they gave me in emergency services and for the understanding of what these responders deal with.

Now for the education bit about Rich County Emergency Services.

In the state of Utah (and most other states) SAR is organized under the county sheriff’s office. For Rich County our SAR organization seems to be in constant flux. The number of active team members seems to range from 8 to 14 and includes people across the whole county, while number of “callouts” can range from 2 to 12 a year. 

Rescues can involve everything from helping snowmobilers caught in avalanches to helping missing individuals in the backcountry in the summer to assisting search efforts on Bear Lake. 

They meet and train monthly on the evening of the 2nd Tuesday. Training revolves around GPS use, rope rescue, ice rescue, drones, search patterns, backcountry tracking technique, avalanche beacons, and more.

Unlike many other counties, Rich County does not have specialty teams, such as “cave rescue teams” or “swift water rescue teams”, but instead all members learn everything.

Team members often volunteer the use of personal UTVs, snowmachines, and watercraft, and occasionally horses, but most often they are just volunteering their time and their boots for walking in.

For my Public Service Announcement portion the following  are what I would recommend to avoid needing search and rescue:

• When going into the backcountry or out on the lake, always let someone know where you plan to go and when the latest you should be back. (Shout out to my wife who is awesome at doing this.)

• Always have a heat source (such as a lighter) and a light source (preferably not your cellphone as the batteries do not last.)

• If you are in the backcountry and become lost or disoriented and know you’ll need to be rescued, attempt to get on a main trail/road, but if you cannot find one just stay in one spot, preferably with an open view of the sky so a drone can find you.

Be safe everyone!

Interested in learning more about Rich County SAR or in volunteering? Fill out this form and I’ll help you be in touch with someone who can help: https://forms.gle/BD6osqVo1Npfe9hs5

Tree Lighting in Garden City

Monday 28th of November 6:30pm, 

Raspberry Square

donuts, hot chocolate 

Lighting of lights at 7pm

Bear Lake State Park Info by Terri Wahlberg

 BEAR LAKE and BEAR LAKE STATE PARK Conditions, 11/14/2022:

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WATER (LAKE) TEMPERATURE:

Lake Temperature: @ 40.5 degrees as measured in the Bear Lake State Park Marina.

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LAKE ELEVATION:

Current Lake Elevation: @ 5909.80'.

Full elevation: 5923.65'.

2022/23 low elevation: 5909.70'.

2022 high elevation: 5913.65'.

2021/22 low elevation: 5912.10'.

2021 high elevation: 5916.85'.

2020/21 low elevation: 5916.05'.

2020 high elevation: 5919.45'.

2019/20 low elevation: 5917.85'.

2019 high elevation: 5920.30'.

2018/19 low elevation: 5916.35'.

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LAUNCH RAMP CONDITIONS:

State Marina - OPEN. Good water depth.

Rendezvous Beach - CLOSED.

First Point - OPEN. USE CAUTION. ADVISORY: LOW WATER LEVELS.

There is approximately 27 inches of water depth at the end of the concrete launch ramp. There is also @ 8 inch drop at the end of the concrete.

Cisco Beach - OPEN. Good water depth. We recommend the use of a 4wd vehicle to launch and retrieve boats.

Rainbow Cove - ADVISORY: LOW WATER LEVELS. WE DO NOT RECCOMEND THE USE OF THIS LAUNCH RAMP.

There is approximately 14 inches of water depth at the end of the concrete launch ramp. There is also @ 6 inch drop at the end of the concrete.

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AIR TEMPERATURES this past week:

The daytime high temperatures have ranged from the MID 30s to the HIGH 20s.

The nighttime low temperatures have ranged from the MID 20s to the HIGH SINGLE DIGITs.

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FACILITIES:

The State Marina, First Point, and Cisco Beach facilities are open.

At the Marina the north restroom, vessel pump out dock, and water to the docks have been winterized.

The Rendezvous Beach and South Eden facilities have been closed for the winter months. We plan to open them on May 1, 2023.

The North Eden facility is CLOSED for construction.

The Rainbow Cove launch ramp is currently open, however, access may be restricted due to construction. The campground is closed for construction.

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PARK INFORMATION:

https://stateparks.utah.gov/parks/bear-lake/

Rich County School District Meeting

 Nov. 15, at Randolph, UT 12:00 PM

Bear River Basin Adjudication

 The Idaho Department of Water Resources (IDWR) has scheduled two public meetings to present information and background about the Bear River Basin Adjudication.

The meetings will be held in Montpelier at the National Oregon/California Trail Museum, 320 N 4th Street, on:

• Wednesday, November 16, 2022, at 6:00 P.M

On June 2021, Idaho Adjudication Judge Eric Wildman signed a commencement order directing IDWR to proceed with the Bear River Basin Adjudication. An adjudication is a court proceeding that inventories and catalogs water rights. The Idaho Legislature has allocated funding to support the adjudication of water rights in the Bear River Basin.

The Bear River Basin is divided into four separate subbasins, 11, 13, 15, and 17 (See attached map.) Beginning in early 2023, IDWR will send notices to surface and groundwater users in Basin 11. IDWR invites water users and interested citizens in Basin 11 (Montpelier, Soda Springs, Grace, and Bear Lake areas) to attend the upcoming public meetings in Montpelier.

By the end of 2023, IDWR anticipates sending notices to water users in sub-basins 13, 15, and 17. IDWR will hold additional public meetings in Preston and Malad for water users in Basins 13, 15, and 17.

IDWR estimates that approximately 13,000 water rights claims will be filed in the Bear River Basin. With some exceptions, all water users will be required to file claims. People who have small domestic wells and/or stockwater facilities may choose to file a claim now or wait until later in the process.

A water rights claim is NOT required to be filed in instances where the individual property owner or water user is not the owner of the water right.

Following the water rights filings, IDWR staff will catalog and confirm all water rights as part of the adjudication process. IDWR will eventually file a Director’s Report detailing IDWR’s recommendations to District Court regarding the elements of each water right. Ultimately, the court will issue a decree confirming the elements of each water right. IDWR has opened a new field office in Preston to assist water users in processing their respective water rights claims.

IDWR has conducted many water rights adjudications across the state, including the Snake River Basin Adjudication, which decreed 160,000 water rights throughout Southern Idaho in the state’s largest river basin.

For more information, go to the IDWR Bear River Basin Adjudication web page: https://idwr.idaho.gov/water-rights/adjudication/brba/

Garden City Town Report Nov. 10, 2022

 The General Plan was updated and reviewed by the Council. An open house will be held later. You may review the plan at the City Office.

Public Comment: Bess asked if it were possible to keep some of the sidewalks open during the snow days. The Council will work with the Chamber to have businesses to keep their part of the sidewalk open. Glen will talk with the snowplow group to not pile the snow in front of the sidewalks and bike path.

PID discussion. This is a Public Infrastructure District which allows extra mills on projects which of course is passed onto the buyer. The City has the ability to limit the mills per project. The City needs to make a decision about what to allow.

PUD discussion on the final for Phase 1, Bear Lake Vista. The Council asked for a letter of approval for the use of the Rich County Historical Road. Blue Vista will upgrade the road along their project. Some discussion was held on the possibility of a traffic light in the area or at least a yellow flashing light. Another requirement was for a letter from UDOT asking if the City needed curb and gutter at the entrance of the project. The final was approved.

The PUD for the Final for Phase 2 on 2nd North was approved.

Resolution and discussion for updating the Garden City Building permit plan review fee. The problem is that some are well-prepared and some have to come back many times which is a cost to the City. Glen will find out how much each additional visit will cost the City and present that next month.

Ordinance discussing adding commercial parking lots as a conditional use permit to the c-2 and c-3 zones. This was approved.

Other discussion talking points was allowing 12% road grades in special exceptions; an ordinance on Filming Restrictions; resolutin to fine for occupying before a certificate of occupancy was given; and resolution changing how to pay the building inspector and his fees.

Short term rentals approved

Miscellaneous: Discussion of roads in Garden City.

by Trudy Smuin

 

Informational Meeting on the Bear Lake Marina by Rod Boam from Cache Valley Daily

 

The Bear Lake Marina Expansion Team will host a public open house to present concepts and locations under evaluation for making the marina larger to accommodate the boats using the lake.

The open house will be held on Wednesday, Nov. 16, at the Garden City Municipal Building at 69 North Paradise Parkway (Building A, Lake View Room).

The meeting will begin at 5:00 p.m. and go until 7:00 p.m. and the team will have informational boards on display and will answer questions about the proposed project.

Terri Wahlberg a Bear Lake State Park Marina employee, said it is not an official presentation, the public is just going to be able to look over the proposal of what they are going to try and do and where they are going to do it.

“People can go to the Bear Lake State Park’s Facebook page, and they should be able to find the information about the meeting,” she said. “We would like anyone who uses the Bear Lake Marina to attend the meeting.”

Even with the expanded marina they will still have a waiting list for slips because there are more people that want to put their boats there than there are places for them.

“We have been waiting for hours in line to launch their boats,” Wahlberg said. “The Department of Transportation increased the number of lanes coming into the marina, but the lines still stretch out into the highway.”

Bear Lake Watch, a conservation group that watches over the lake, knows there are people excited for the expansion, but there are others who are not. There are some concerns about the location being proposed and if it will have a negative impact on some of the residents and businesses in the area of the marina.

This open house will give those people struggling with the proposal a chance to ask questions about such things as traffic, safety, disruption, the economic impact and other issues associated with the expansion.

For those unable to attend, all materials will be posted on the website, bearlakemarinaexpansion.com.

Formal Obituary for Dennis Shane Rasmussen

 Dennis Shane Rasmussen, 46, an extraordinary man, passed away on November 2, 2022, as a result of an auto accident.

Shane was born in Ogden, Utah, and raised in North Ogden.  He was a much-anticipated child to his parents, Dennis and Arlene Rasmussen, as they had previously lost his triplet siblings in infancy.

He was a curious child, and from an early age was eager to help repair a neighbor’s lawnmower or fiddle with things to learn how they worked.  At the age of 10, he was piecing together old radios, CB antennas, and car batteries to call the truckers down on I-15.  If an electric toy or remote went missing, Shane usually got the blame.

Shane graduated from Weber High School and received further education from Ogden/Weber Applied Technology in the trade of welding and sheet metal work.  He also attended Western Wyoming Community College later in his life for further work-related education.

In the Fall of 2001 (in the middle of hunting season, so you know he thought she might be something special), Shane drove to Montpelier, Idaho, to meet a girl named Cathie.  Little did either know they were meeting the loves of their lives. Within 3 short weeks, she was his “Wonderful,” and he was her “Hunkleberry.”  Seven weeks thereafter, he married Cathie Lynn McMurray of Liberty, Idaho and was sealed to her in the Salt Lake, Utah Temple.  To the marriage he brought a sweet step-daughter and 2 toddler sons.  Together they added a 3^rd son to complete their family and sealed him to them in the Logan, Utah Temple.  Earlier this year, a daughter-in-law joined their family, and he and Cathie were excited to become grandparents to their first grandbaby.  Shane would have been an excellent grandpa, as he’s always been a kid at heart and loved to play and tease.

Shane was a faithful member of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints and served a mission in the London England South Mission.  He held many other callings throughout his life, most recently being the ward Executive Secretary.

Shane worked many jobs in his life.  He developed his welding skills working at Richard’s Sheet Metal, Logan Coach, and Metalwest.  He then started running equipment and enjoyed driving the cement truck for LeGrande Johnsons Ready Mix and the snow-plow for the State of Utah.  He worked at Haliburton in Wyoming for a short time before becoming the Schwan’s man for the Bear Lake area.  He came to call many in Bear Lake a friend through that job.  He then went to work for Kemmerer Operations coal mine in Wyoming as a welder and drove mammoth trucks, tractors, front-end loaders, and bull-dozers.  It was at the mine he began working with the Kemmerer Operations Mine Rescue Team.  He loved the comradery of the team and anticipated be able to go to trainings and competitions.

Shane was patriotic and thrived working in and with the community.  He served with the Rich County Search and Rescue and loved being a Garden City Volunteer Fire Fighter for the past 20 years, serving the last 3 years as a Captain.  He was at home driving the fire engine and in his element working with the crew and mentoring newer volunteers.  He took great pride in being a fire-fighter, and contributed his time and talents in any way he could.  Because of his dedication, he was honored to be the first recipient of the department’s “Fire Fighter of the Year” recognition. 

Shane’s love of the outdoors and hunting were unmatched.  He lived to camp and hunt and if he wasn’t busy with one of his other duties, he was consumed with elk hunting.  He worked especially hard to help his family and friends fill their tags.  He recently took up bow hunting and drew what he said was a once-in-a-lifetime tag this year.  He harvested a 5x6 bull elk with a Boone and Crockett score of 311.

He lived a life of service; dedicated to his family, church, community, fire department, and mine rescue team.  Shane had a big personality and never met a stranger.  He was so strong and gave the best bear hugs.  There are so many things his family will miss him being a part of.  There is comfort in knowing this separation is temporary, and we know we’ll see him again.  We love you, Shane.  Meet ya at mile marker 5.

He is preceded in death by his siblings Dennis, Denae, and Dalene; grandparents Carval and Edna Rasmussen and Joseph and Mary Thorson; father-in-law Chad McMurray; 2 nephews and several cousins.

Shane is survived by his wife Cathie; sons Kyler of North Ogden, UT, Korry (Makenzie) of Paris, ID, and Ryder of Garden City, UT; his step-daughter Jessie Anna Yeoman; parents Dennis and Arlene of North Ogden, UT; siblings Dana (Dan) Olson of Riverdale, UT, Candice of North Ogden, UT, and Clint (Staci) of Hooper, UT; mother-in-law Colleen McMurray of Liberty, ID; sister-in-law Cheri (Eldon) Hale of Loma, CO; brother-in-law Kevin (Tiffany) McMurray of Green River, WY; and many beloved nieces, nephews and extended family.

 

Garden City Fire District Meeting Nov. 9, 2022

 

Chairman Randall Knight and one board member in attendance with one on the phone. There was no quorum but several items were discussed requiring no official vote.

Chief Wahlberg reported that they have secured a storage unit for the UTV that was purchased for back country operations.

Board member, Doug Pincock, is preparing a bid request for the needed cleaning services of the facility. It will be posted at the post office.

There was a discussion concerning upgrades on the phones/communication gear. This is made possible through a county program.

Final preparations were made for the Shane Rasmussen funeral. Formal dress uniforms and many specialty uniforms are being used for celebrating his big part in the fire department for 22 years and as a Captain for many of those years.

The responses for the month were:

1  -  Motor Vehicle Accident with extrication

3  -  Fire alarms

1 -  CO alarm

8 -   Medicals

69-  Short Term Rental Inspections

12-  Business Inspections