By Myrna Trauntvein
Times-News Correspondent
There were 10,000 people at the Little Sahara Sand
Dunes during the Labor Day Weekend but there were few
problems with the crowd and few injuries.
At the canyon campgrounds and at other recreation
sites in Juab County, the areas were full but no problems
were reported.
Yuba Reservoir is empty and so had no visitors.
"We had one Lifeflight on Sunday afternoon and three
other minor injuries at the Sand Dunes during the weekend,"
said Alden Orme, Juab County Sheriff.
There were also 25 illegal alcohol consumption or
possession of alcohol by a minor tickets issued for the
weekend, he said. One arrest for marijuana possession and
illegal possession of drug paraphernalia was made.
One vehicle was stolen but was quickly recovered.
"It was, pretty much, a calm holiday and the Sand
Dunes was a family oriented holiday and consisted of a good
group of people who were there to enjoy a weekend with their
families," he said.
The holiday began with a windy and rainy Friday which
kept the crowd confined to camps. The rest of the weekend
brought good weather and sand enthusiasts enjoyed 4-wheeling
activities.
Orme said the campgrounds were full and Sand Mountain
also drew a capacity crowd.
"Our only serious injury occurred when a young female
flipped her ATV vehicle at the bottom of Sand Mountain,"
said Orme.
A witness rushed to the accident and began CPR on the
victim who, he reported, had quit breathing.
Orme said West Juab County Ambulance responded to the
scene and took over the CPR effort. The young woman was then
transported to Salt Lake City by medical helicopter.
The other injuries were minor and consisted of a foot
injury, a leg injury and a broken collarbone.
The car theft suspect was reportedly to be picked up
at the Little Sahara Sand Dunes office by friends. For some
reason, the young male determined he had waited there long
enough and went outside to the back of the building and took
a BLM vehicle.
As he drove away, the theft was reported over the air
by radio. Orme and a deputy saw the individual and began
pursuit. Other law enforcement officers also responded and
it was arranged to cut all possible escape routes.
The suspect, most likely, heard radio communications
over the BLM vehicle two-way radio, said Orme. When he
realized hat he was boxed in, the car thief abandoned the
BLM vehicle and took off on foot.
He escaped. However, his identity was soon discovered
and an arrest is pending, said Orme.
Traffic on Interstate-15 was heavy, said Orme, but the
UHP kept problems at a minimum.
Eight Juab County Sheriff's Office Road Deputies, one
UHP trooper, Sheriff Orme, and two Bureau of Land Management
agents were on duty at the Dunes.
"We had 11 law enforcement people to manage 10,000
people and we had no problems which shows that the crowd was
a good one and was made up of families who just wanted to
have fun," said Orme.
He said that was a lot different than the Easter
holiday. At that time there were 35,000 people which always
included a group of people who were out for an
adventure.
"This group was there for good, clean fun," he said.
"All in all, it went really well."
The Sheriff's Posse members were on duty at other
recreation sites and patrolled the canyons, Burraston Ponds,
and all recreation areas except the Dunes.
The next big holiday in Juab County will be UEA which,
in many areas, is scheduled as the same time as the deer
hunt.
"We expect to see a lot of visitors again on that
weekend," said Orme.
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