Thanks, Florida Razer driver...
San Miguel County Sheriff's Office
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE Search and Rescue Assists with Rescue of Injured Patient in Black Bear Pass Accident --Sheriff calls for Closure of Pass to Motor Vehicles
Contact: San Miguel County Sheriff Bill Masters 970-729-2025, Reserve PIO Susan Lilly 970-369-8622
August 1, 2015-- (Telluride, CO) – San Miguel County Sheriff Deputies and Search and Rescue personnel assisted in the rescue of a patient injured in a single vehicle accident on Black Bear Pass near Telluride Saturday afternoon.
The amount of resources required for the incident has Sheriff Bill Masters calling for the closure of Black Bear Pass to all motor vehicle traffic. “At this time of year we are seeing hundreds of vehicles traveling on this extremely hazardous terrain. It’s not safe, and it’s not safe for our community when all of our resources are tied up for an incident like this,” Sheriff Masters said.
Sheriff Bill Masters, five Sheriff Deputies, 10 Search and Rescue volunteers and Telluride EMS and Fire personnel participated in the 90 minute rescue operation near the “stairs” of Black Bear Pass Road.
An elderly couple from Polk City, Florida were traveling with their dog in a recreational “off-highway vehicle” from Silverton to Telluride. They told Deputies they decided not to go all the way down Black Bear Road, turned around and tried to go around a large rock in the road. The driver, 70 year-old Timothy Vehnekamp, said the embankment gave out and the vehicle started sliding. Vehnekamp was unable return the vehicle to the road, it continued to slide and flipped 3 or 4 times before stopping, upside-down, an estimated 75 yards down a canyon, with the passengers strapped in their seats.
The driver claimed no injury, but his wife, 70-year old Sue Ellen Vehnekamp suffered what are believed to be non-life-threatening injuries. Telluride EMS was paged at approximately 1300, and it was determined Search and Rescue assistance was needed to reach the patient.
EMS personnel were transported by SAR personnel and equipment to the incident location where the patient was treated, packaged and transported in another recreational vehicle to a Telluride EMS vehicle, which then transported the patient to an awaiting Telluride ambulance.
Black Bear Pass was closed from Silverton to Telluride during the rescue operation with more than 100 vehicles on the Pass. Black Bear Pass was reopened at approximately 1545 after the patient was safely loaded in the ambulance. The patient was taken to the Telluride Medical Center for further evaluation.
