Rockfall Injures 4, Damages Buildings

Rangers move about 100 Yosemite visitors to safer quarters.

by Charles McCarthy
The Fresno Bee - December 27, 2003

A rockfall hit Curry Village early Friday, but continuing snow and fog in the Yosemite Valley delayed a helicopter survey to determine the danger of another one.

Four people were treated for minor injuries after the rocks fell shortly before 1 a.m., apparently from a ridge above the west end of Curry Village.

Six buildings were damaged.

National Park Service rangers relocated an estimated 100 visitors from 33 duplex units in Curry Village as a safety precaution until the release point of the rocks can be evaluated.

Visibility of the ridges around Glacier Point above the valley floor remained limited Friday afternoon.

"Until we get a good look at it ... we don't really know," Ranger Deb Schweizer said about the extent of the rockfall and the possibility of another.

Schweizer said rangers didn't hear any more rocks tumbling down the slopes.

"We are watching and waiting and hoping for a window," she said about a survey flight.

She described the injuries from falling rocks as "not bad" -- cuts and scrapes.

Damage to the buildings was mostly broken windows and cracked roofs.

Park facilities were reported filled with the usual holiday visitors, Schweizer said.

Curry Village has 266 winter housing units.

Rangers say rockfall is a natural process in Yosemite National Park.

When and where it will occur cannot be predicted.

Visitors and employees are advised to be especially watchful during storms, freeze-thaw cycles and earthquakes.

Another rockfall was reported shortly after 5 a.m. Friday on Highway 140, one of the routes into the Yosemite Valley.

The California Highway Patrol reported that two boulders blocked the eastbound lane of the two-lane roadway near Savage's Trading Post, between Briceburg and El Portal.

Caltrans crews removed the boulders, and the eastbound lane was cleared by 7 a.m.