West
Colorado ski resort gondola malfunctions, 174 rescued: 'Once-in-a-lifetime-experience'
More than 170 people were rescued from dangling gondolas at a Colorado ski resort after being trapped for hours due to a malfunction.
A crack detected in a metal support structure prompted one of the lifts at Winter Park Resort outside of Denver to automatically shut down Saturday afternoon for safety precautions, according to media reports. It then took rescuers five hours to lower 174 people to the ground, a resort spokesperson told KDVR.
“We were going up to do our first run, my wife and I, and we stopped. Stopped for about 15 minutes and we started kind of thinking, maybe it’s unusual,” skier Aleksey Dmitriyev said to the station. “I called the line, and the line saying if it’s less than 20 minutes don’t worry, call us back… Then we waited a bit longer and we started seeing ski patrol coming down and talking to people from the ground to the cabin, like saying how many of you in the cabin, all that.”
“Everybody was pretty calm, ski patrol was calm and professional and assured us,” he added. “It was kind of interesting because he kind of knew what he was doing, but we were a little bit concerned.”
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“We skied a few runs after that, we used a different lift, of course, and it was still an OK day but once-in-a-lifetime experience,” Dmitriyev also told KDVR.
Dmitriyev captured video showing a rescuer lowering himself into his stranded gondola’s cabin.
“We are going to send a seat up, we are each going to get in a seat individually and slowly lower everyone down,” the man says.
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The footage then shows multiple people – including a child – being brought down to safety.
Winter Park Resort said the lift remained closed Sunday for repairs and inspections and the gondola manufacturer was on-site, according to KDVR.
As of late Sunday, a new part had been installed and testing is underway in preparation to reopen the lift, the station adds.
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Alaska
Santa catches a ride with troops to bring Christmas to Alaska village
YAKUTAT, Alaska — Forget the open-air sleigh overloaded with gifts and powered by flying reindeer.
Santa and Mrs. Claus this week took supersized rides to southeast Alaska in a C-17 military cargo plane and a camouflaged Humvee, as they delivered toys to the Tlingit village of Yakutat, northwest of Juneau.
The visit was part of this year’s Operation Santa Claus, an outreach program of the Alaska National Guard to largely Indigenous communities in the nation’s largest state. Each year, the Guard picks a village that has suffered recent hardship — in Yakutat’s case, a massive snowfall that threatened to buckle buildings in 2022.
“This is one of the funnest things we get to do, and this is a proud moment for the National Guard,” Maj. Gen. Torrence Saxe, adjutant general of the Alaska National Guard, said Wednesday.
Saxe wore a Guard uniform and a Santa hat that stretched his unit’s dress regulations.
The Humvee caused a stir when it entered the school parking lot, and a buzz of “It’s Santa! It’s Santa!” pierced the cold air as dozens of elementary school children gathered outside.
In the school, Mrs. Claus read a Christmas story about the reindeer Dasher. The couple in red then sat for photos with nearly all of the 75 or so students and handed out new backpacks filled with gifts, books, snacks and school supplies donated by the Salvation Army. The school provided lunch, and a local restaurant provided the ice cream and toppings for a sundae bar.
Student Thomas Henry, 10, said while the contents of the backpack were “pretty good,” his favorite item was a plastic dinosaur.
Another, 9-year-old Mackenzie Ross, held her new plush seal toy as she walked around the school gym.
“I think it’s special that I have this opportunity to be here today because I’ve never experienced this before,” she said.
Yakutat, a Tlingit village of about 600 residents, is in the lowlands of the Gulf of Alaska, at the top of Alaska’s panhandle. Nearby is the Hubbard Glacier, a frequent stop for cruise ships.
Some of the National Guard members who visited Yakutat on Wednesday were also there in January 2022, when storms dumped about 6 feet of snow in a matter of days, damaging buildings.
Operation Santa started in 1956 when flooding severely curtailed subsistence hunting for residents of St. Mary’s, in western Alaska. Having to spend their money on food, they had little left for Christmas presents, so the military stepped in.
This year, visits were planned to two other communities hit by flooding. Santa’s visit to Circle, in northeastern Alaska, went off without a hitch. Severe weather prevented a visit to Crooked Creek, in the southwestern part of the state, but Christmas was saved when the gifts were delivered there Nov. 16.
“We tend to visit rural communities where it is very isolated,” said Jenni Ragland, service extension director with the Salvation Army Alaska Division. “A lot of kids haven’t traveled to big cities where we typically have Santa and big stores with Christmas gifts and Christmas trees, so we kind of bring the Christmas program on the road.”
After the C-17 Globemaster III landed in Yakutat, it quickly returned to Joint Base Elmendorf-Richardson in Anchorage, an hour away, because there was nowhere to park it at the village’s tiny airport. Later, it returned to pick up the Christmas crew.
Santa and Mrs. Claus, along with their tuckered elves, were seen nodding off on the flight back.
Arizona
Santa and Mrs. Claus deliver adopted Arizona shelter dogs to their new home
MESA, AZ (AZFamily) — It was an exciting Christmas Eve morning for one Mesa girl who received an early (and furry) surprise from Santa and Mrs. Claus.
On Tuesday, Santa and Mrs. Claus teamed up with the Maricopa County Animal Care and Control to deliver adopted dogs to their new homes.
Santa and Mrs. Claus pulled up in a “sleigh” and took out a puppy wearing a cone. They then walked up to a decorated Mesa home, rang the doorbell and gave little Maya her early Christmas gift—a furry four-legged friend named Domino!
“He’s amazing, cute,” Maya said. “I just love holding him.”
Maya said Domino also loves her.
“He has an extra toe, and I think it’s a mistletoe,” she said.
What a sweet surprise from Santa and Mrs. Claus and the team at MCACC!
“It’s a great time to add another family member to join them under their Christmas tree this year,” said Kim Powell, Communications Supervisor for MCACC.
Powell said there are still 650 pets at the shelter looking for their “fur-ever” home. To learn more about adoptable pets at MCACC, click/tap here.
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Copyright 2024 KTVK/KPHO. All rights reserved.
California
California high surf and flood warnings continue after pier collapse
What’s New
California’s coastal residents are facing dangerous conditions this Christmas Eve as high surf and flood warnings continue after heavy waves caused a pier to collapse on Monday.
Why It Matters
Portions of the Pacific coast are currently under hazardous seas warnings, high surf warnings and coastal flood warnings as it is shaping up to deliver some of the most severe surf conditions of the winter season, according to the National Weather Service (NWS) office in Portland.
The NWS issued a high surf warning, with waves reaching up to 35 feet, which can pose significant risks to both property and lives.
“Large waves can sweep across the beach without warning, pulling people into the sea from rocks, jetties, and beaches,” the agency warned in a Christmas Eve bulletin.
The alert remains in effect until Tuesday evening, prompting evacuations and heightened vigilance in several coastal communities.
What To Know
The NWS warnings come after a municipal wharf in Santa Cruz that was under renovation succumbed to a storm’s force. Around 150 feet of the structure collapsed into the Pacific, pulling three engineers inspecting the site into the water. All three individuals survived with two rescued by lifeguards and one swimming to safety.
Shmuel Thaler/The Santa Cruz Sentinel/ AP
Santa Cruz Mayor Fred Keeley said that section of the pier had been damaged over time, and the structure was in the middle of a $4 million renovation following destructive storms last winter.
Tony Elliot, Santa Cruz Parks & Recreation Department head, confirmed that the severed portion of the wharf, which included restrooms and a closed restaurant, drifted nearly half a mile before settling in the San Lorenzo River.
In response, coastal towns including Santa Cruz have evacuated vulnerable homes and hotels as the state braces for more damage.
What People Are Saying
Keeley said Monday: “We are anticipating that what is coming toward us is more serious than what was there this morning.”
The National Weather Service’s Bay Area office said in a post on X (formerly Twitter): “You are risking your life, and those of the people that would need to try and save you by getting in or too close to the water.”
The NWS office in Portland, Oregon, said in a post on X:“It will likely go down as some of the highest surf this winter.”
California Governor Gavin Newsom’s press office posted to X on Monday afternoon, saying that he is aware of the situation with the pier.
“@CAGovernorNewsom has been briefed on a previously damaged section of the Santa Cruz pier that broke off due to heavy surf. @Cal_OES is coordinating with local officials and is ready to provide support,” Newsom’s press office wrote. “Residents and visitors should avoid the area and follow local guidance.”
What Happens Next
As California residents grapple with these dangerous conditions, meteorologists warn that the storm’s high surf may be the most intense of the season.
With more severe weather expected, officials are urging the public to heed warnings and avoid risky coastal areas.
This article includes reporting from The Associated Press.
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