The highway was temporarily closed as his body was retrieved, which was complete around 5:30 p.m. Hollenbeck said the crash remains under investigation, but last Wednesday, the day Drake drove over Red Mountain Pass, it was snowing heavily. Later, their visits to members of their congregation over, they met and retraded their respective autos.”. They’d been separated after his parents died in an automobile accident on Red Mountain Pass when he was 3. In 2011, Eric Petranek, a Bayfield resident, drove off Red Mountain Pass, escaping his 330-foot plunge and flaming car with only second-degree burns. In 1999, an avalanche buried four people – three highway workers and one motorist – alive beneath 40 feet of snow; they survived through the night, and rescuers retrieved them the next day. Drake was located around 2 p.m. Tuesday, Hollenbeck said. The work was completed just after 4 p.m., and the highway reopened about 5 p.m. Approaching from opposite directions, (they) found their paths blocked by an avalanche. Though such attacks may sound like highway workers waging a futile, “Braveheart”-style rebellion against the cruel if indifferent tyranny of snow, the idea was to prompt avalanches in controlled circumstances so no people would be hurt. In 1978, Caroni Adams McCallum praised the bravery of the men who maintain Red Mountain Pass in a letter to the Herald: “I am always surprised that the state highway department can even find people to apply for the job of clearing Red Mountain Pass. He was last seen around 4:30 p.m. that day, driving his red Chevy Equinox LT. For the past week, authorities had been searching the region for Drake, Hollenbeck said. When the state of Colorado took over the road at the request of the counties in about 1920, the road was reconstructed on its present grade, well above the river and out of reach of flooding. But on Red Mountain Pass, miracles aren’t for everyone. The lore of Red Mountain Pass is full of mortal tragedy, flecked with divine comedy. This month, USA Today named the Million Dollar Highway one of the “Top Ten Bucket List Road Trips” – a compliment to the beauty of Red Mountain Pass and an underhanded homage to its deadly track record. Updated: Thursday, Dec. 20, 2018 10:33 PM, After 30 days on job, Durango city manager takes stock, A starring role for Southwest Colorado on ‘Sunday Morning with Jane Pauley’, Durango Police Department to host Drug Take Back Day on Saturday, Wildfire burning west of Silverton grows to 320 acres, Following GPS route, 30-foot box truck becomes stuck on Engineer Pass, Another Durango restaurant dealing with novel coronavirus, Fire danger increases as New Mexico faces hot, dry weather, Pandemic air travel milestone: 1 million passengers screened, Report a paper delivery issue/suspend delivery. J.H. Other sections were rebuilt, and the road was widened and graveled to accommodate motor vehicles. In 1985, an avalanche swept two people down a 400-foot embankment. There is no shortage of curves on the north side of Red Mountain Pass on U.S. Highway 550. Although the speed limit is 15 mph for much of Red Mountain Pass, Shanks said more than 300 accidents took place there between 1995 and 2010. Retired Fort Lewis College professor and historian Duane Smith said in the early 19th century, wagons, cargo, horses and humans tumbled over the pass and into the ravine. They take huge personal risk just so we can pass safely.”. Railroads reached Silverton and Ouray, but transportation of ore to the railheads required a wagon road. The section of highway where Drake’s car dropped off is a steep and narrow stretch of mountainous road. Into the late 20th century, anti-avalanche strategies involved highway workers bombarding the snowpack above Red Mountain Pass with bullets, rockets and bombs. Another says the road cost $1 million to build per mile (an astounding total even as late as 1922). The highway to hell also is responsible for a lot of “miracles,” according to the Herald. Click here. In 1993, Fort Lewis College’s assistant basketball coach George LeSaltz skid off Red Mountain Pass. Red Mountain Pass was closed or partially blocked for about three hours Monday for a rollover truck crash north of the summit. In an editorial, MSN Autos, an online car site, calls it a “highway to hell.”. “It took three months to recover his body. “It’s scary,” said Nancy Shanks, the Colorado Department of Transportation’s spokeswoman for Region 5. Nancy Shanks and Dennis VanPatter, with the Colorado Department of Transportation, provided this information about Red Mountain Pass:When was the pass built?The first wagon road over the pass was built in 1883 by a private toll road company.When did the first automobile cross the pass?The first vehicle to drive from Ouray to Red Mountain Town was a Ford Model T in 1911 – taking a doctor from Ouray to a house call in Ironton, and then the group went on to the top of Red Mountain Pass. Colorado’s highway engineers have struggled to make Red Mountain Pass safer for decades; recently, they’ve had more success. Why is it called the “Million Dollar Highway?”Only theories exist on this topic. Animas Valley Balloon Rally lifts off Friday morning north of Durango. His truck was smashed like a toy,” Barry told the Herald. Updated: Wednesday, June 25, 2014 4:00 AM, After 30 days on job, Durango city manager takes stock, A starring role for Southwest Colorado on ‘Sunday Morning with Jane Pauley’, Durango Police Department to host Drug Take Back Day on Saturday, Wildfire burning west of Silverton grows to 320 acres, Following GPS route, 30-foot box truck becomes stuck on Engineer Pass, Another Durango restaurant dealing with novel coronavirus, Fire danger increases as New Mexico faces hot, dry weather, Pandemic air travel milestone: 1 million passengers screened, Report a paper delivery issue/suspend delivery. When drivers enter the Uncompahgre Gorge on the north side of Red Mountain Pass on U.S. Highway 550 near Ouray, there is danger above with falling rocks and ice, and the road narrows with no guardrails or shoulder in some sections to help keep vehicles from plunging 1,000 feet over the side of the road. Eight accidents killed nine people, including five highway workers. | Terms of Use | Privacy Policy. Animas Valley Balloon Rally lifts off Friday morning north of Durango. The highway is open year-round and is used daily by commuters, local residents, trucking companies and visitors.Why was it deemed necessary to build the road?Extensive mining in the area of Ouray, Red Mountain, Silverton and Telluride provided the impetus for the original construction of the toll road.
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