Current:Home > ScamsVisitors are seen on camera damaging rock formations at a Nevada recreation site -TrueNorth Finance Path
Visitors are seen on camera damaging rock formations at a Nevada recreation site
View
Date:2025-04-12 16:33:27
LAS VEGAS (AP) — Federal authorities are asking for the public’s help in tracking down two men seen damaging rock formations at a national recreation site in Nevada.
Officials at Lake Mead National Recreation Area said the damage happened during a recent weekend near the Redstone Dune Trail on the north side of the lake. The petrified red dunes found there make it one of the most popular hiking spots in the park.
A video shows two men shoving chunks of sandstone off the edge of an outcropping as a girl screams. Park officials called the behavior appalling, saying the damage can’t be fixed.
“It’s one of my favorite places in the park and they’re up there just destroying it. I don’t understand that,” John Haynes, public information officer at Lake Mead National Recreation Area, told television station KVVU.
Destruction like this at federally protected sites can result in felony charges that come along with potential fines and jail time, Haynes said.
Spanning 2,344 square miles (6,071 square kilometers) of mountains and desert canyons, the Lake Mead National Recreation Area just outside of Las Vegas draws around 6 million visitors every year. Officials said staffing levels mean park officials often rely on the public to also keep watch over resources within park boundaries.
Authorities said visitors can use their cellphones to capture any video or photos of suspicious activity if it’s safe to do so and to collect any information, such as a license plate, that might help to identify offenders. The National Park Service operates a tipline that receives thousands of submissions each year.
“It’s really important to let us know,” Haynes said.
There also have been others cases of vandalism on federal land across the West over the past decade, with visitors defacing petroglyphs, toppling rock features and pounding climbing bolts into centuries-old rock art.
veryGood! (9)
Related
- Don't let hackers fool you with a 'scam
- Doctors who want to defy abortion laws say it's too risky
- Florida's 'Dr. Deep' resurfaces after a record 100 days living underwater
- Trump’s Science Adviser Pick: Extreme Weather Expert With Climate Credentials
- Have Dry, Sensitive Skin? You Need To Add These Gentle Skincare Products to Your Routine
- Letters offer a rare look at the thoughts of The Dexter Killer: It's what it is and I'm what I am.
- Author and Mom Blogger Heather Dooce Armstrong Dead at 47
- Thousands of Jobs Riding on Extension of Clean Energy Cash Grant Program
- Alex Murdaugh’s murder appeal cites biased clerk and prejudicial evidence
- Mother’s Day Last-Minute Gifts: Coach, Sephora, Nordstrom & More With Buy Now, Pick Up In Store
Ranking
- Angelina Jolie nearly fainted making Maria Callas movie: 'My body wasn’t strong enough'
- Mpox will not be renewed as a public health emergency next year
- With one dose, new drug may cure sleeping sickness. Could it also wipe it out?
- How monoclonal antibodies lost the fight with new COVID variants
- Woman dies after Singapore family of 3 gets into accident in Taiwan
- Meadow Walker Honors Late Dad Paul Walker With Fast X Cameo
- Vanderpump Rules Reunion Trailer Sees Ariana Madix & Cast Obliterate Tom Sandoval & Raquel Leviss
- States differ on how best to spend $26B from settlement in opioid cases
Recommendation
A Mississippi company is sentenced for mislabeling cheap seafood as premium local fish
Huge Second Quarter Losses for #1 Wind Turbine Maker, Shares Plummet
Selling Sunset’s Chrishell Stause Marries Singer G Flip After a Year of Dating
Too Hot to Handle's Francesca Farago Shares Plans to Freeze Eggs After Jesse Sullivan Engagement
The FTC says 'gamified' online job scams by WhatsApp and text on the rise. What to know.
Colorado Fracking Study Blames Faulty Wells for Water Contamination
Science, Health Leaders Lay Out Evidence Against EPA’s ‘Secret Science’ Rule
Today’s Climate: September 7, 2010