US News Historic Death Valley tower topples over as driver uses it to free vehicle, rangers say

[The Helper]

A historic Death Valley tower toppled as a driver used it to free their stuck vehicle, rangers say.

Sometime between April 1 and April 23, the tower, part of the Saline Valley Salt Tram, “was pulled over while a person used a winch to extract their vehicle out of deep mud,” the National Park Service said in a May 13 news release.

“I hope the person responsible for this damage will contact us so we can discuss restitution,” Superintendent Mike Reynolds said in the release.

Tracks showed that a vehicle drove off the legal roadway shortly before getting stuck, rangers said.

Historic Death Valley tower topples over as driver uses it to free vehicle, rangers say

The 13-mile long aerial tram was constructed in 1911 “to transport salt from Saline Valley to Owens Valley,” rangers said.

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[The Helper]

Death Valley visitor admits to damaging 113-year-old tower in an act of 'desperation'

A Death Valley National Park visitor has come forward and claimed responsibility for pulling down and damaging a 113-year-old historic salt tram tower last month.

National Parks Service, in a news release Thursday, said that the visitor came forward and claimed responsibility and said that they took the action "during a time of desperation while being deeply stuck in mud, and that it wasn't their intent to cause harm to the historic structure." Park authorities said that they will not be naming the person involved in the incident and it is not immediately clear if they will be pressing charges.

NPS, in an earlier news release, had said that it appeared that the historic tower was pulled over when a visitor "used a winch to extract their vehicle out of deep mud."

"Nearby tracks show that a vehicle drove a short distance off the legal roadway and got stuck in mud," NPS had said. "Park rangers believe that someone used the nearby tower as an anchor to pull their vehicle out of the mud. The tower toppled over, pulling its concrete footings out of the ground."

Death Valley visitor admits to damaging 113-year-old tower in an act of 'desperation'

A Death Valley National Park visitor has claimed responsibility for damaging a 113-year-old historic tower, park officials say.

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