The person who toppled a 113-year-old aerial tram tower inside California’s Death Valley National Park last month came forward, park officials said Thursday.
The tram tower was once part of an aerial system to transport salt that, at 7,000 feet high with grades of up to 40 degrees, was the steepest aerial tramway in the U.S. It’s included in the National Register of Historic Places along with other towers, three of which are also in Death Valley National Park, the rest on Bureau of Land Management property.
Sometime between April 1-24, the unnamed culprit got a vehicle stuck in mud. Park officials say the tower was used as a winch to provide leverage in order to get the vehicle unstuck.
After initially publicizing the incident and providing a tip line, the person responsible came forward, park officials said in an update. They did not name the person, who told park officials that he or she hitched the tower out of desperation and did not intend to harm the structure.
“Although we would certainly prefer that this damage hadn’t happened, we are glad that the person who did this ultimately took responsibility for their actions and came forward,” Death Valley National Park Acting Superintendent Elizabeth Ibanez said.
Park officials didn’t say if the person responsible would be fined or charged.
Officials urged visitors not to attempt to repair the damage to the tower and issued a reminder that having a satellite-based way of communicating is key when traveling in remote areas lacking cellphone coverage.
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