Page 25 - Flathead Beacon // 3.5.14

FLATHEADBEACON.COM NEWS MARCH 5, 2014 | 25

The Roundup

From Beacon wire and news services

architectural characteristics of the his-
FLATHEAD
toric district.

Public comments can be made di-
BODY OF LIBBY MAN MISSING rectly online, or written comments may
SINCE DECEMBER FOUND
be mailed to superintendent, Glacier Na-
The body of a 76-year-old Libby man tional Park, Attn: Swiftcurrent Bridge
St. Patrick’s who was reported missing in December EA, PO Box 128, West Glacier, Montana
was found in a crashed vehicle on Mon- 59936.
Weekend Party tana Highway 56 southwest of Libby last

week.
MONTANA
March 15, 16 & 17
Lincoln County authorities say
Vernon Thomen was reported miss-
ing on Dec. 19. Montana Department of WOMAN BURIED IN
Transportation workers discovered his DESTRUCTIVE MISSOULA
crashed car on Thursday.
AVALANCHE DIES
The patrol reported the man’s car A 68-year-old woman who was res-
went of the road in December and cued about three hours after her house

struck a large tree, causing fatal injuries.
was destroyed by an avalanche in Mis-
soula died at a hospital.
GLACIER PARK PROPOSES Missoula police say Michel Colville
REPLACEMENT OF died Sunday night at St. Patrick Hos-
SWIFTCURRENT BRIDGE
pital. Her husband, Fred Allendorf, re-
Park oicials are proposing to re- mains hospitalized in serious condition.
place the historic Swiftcurrent Bridge He was buried for about two hours

near the Many Glacier Hotel in Glacier before rescuers found him Friday night
National Park.
in an air pocket created by a fallen chim-
Public comments are encouraged ney in their house at the base of Mount
on a recently completed environmen- Jumbo.
tal assessment proposing to replace the Eight-year-old Phoenix Scoles-Co-
3 Day Tent Party
bridge, which is losing its structural in- burn was buried in the snow for about an
tegrity, according to the park. Public hour. He was released from the hospital
comments are due by March 17. The as- Sunday.

sessment report is available online.
Phoenix’s 10-year-old sister, Coral,
Music 2pm - 10pm Daily
Park oicials looked at two alterna- also was outside playing when the slide
tives in the environmental assessment, hit at 4 p.m. Friday, but she was able to
either to replace the bridge or leave it dig herself out of the snow.
as is. Through the analysis and previ- The avalanche slid down Mount
Sunday:
ous public comments, the preferred al- Jumbo into the northeast Missoula
ternative is to replace the bridge with a neighborhood at about 4 p.m., Feb. 28.
80’s Dance Party with
longer, single-span bridge, according to Authorities say avalanche conditions
“1985”
the park.
around the city remained dangerous af-
The deck on the existing bridge is ter a storm brought blizzard conditions
severely damaged, and the abutments to much of the region.
and piers are in disrepair, park oicials
said. The bridge has limited capacity to RESEARCHERS: YELLOWSTONE
handle high water due to the four inte- GRIZZLIES NOT IN DECLINE
Drawing for rior piers. Other concerns include the A government-sponsored research

severely deteriorated concrete curb and team has concluded there are no signs
“Growler a week for a year” sidewalks, loose or missing stone ma- of decline among Yellowstone’s griz-
sonry, and the non-code compliant sus- zly bears as oicials consider lifting the
promotion sponsored by
pension of utility lines on the bridge.
animals’ federal protections — despite
The Swiftcurrent Bridge provides warnings from outside scientists that
Great Northern Brewery
the only vehicular and pedestrian access such a move would be premature.
to the Many Glacier Hotel Historic Dis- Members of the Interagency Grizzly
trict and the Many Glacier Hotel, a Na- Bear Study team say in a new study that

tional Historic Landmark. If the bridge data collected on the threatened bruins
is not replaced, visitor access to the hotel over the past several decades contradict
and associated Many Glacier developed claims that the animals could be in seri-
[email protected] area would become severely limited and ous trouble.
facebook/branniganspub kalispell
may eventually be prohibited, park oi- Researchers on the team re-exam-
cials say.
ined how bears are counted after wild-
The Swiftcurrent Bridge is a con- life advocates and a prominent Universi-

tributing feature to the Many Glacier ty of Colorado professor questioned the
Hotel Historic District and has been de- government’s methods.
termined to be eligible for listing in the The results conirm the validity of
National Register of Historic Places. De- past assertions that more than 700 bears
molition of the bridge would result in an live in the Yellowstone region of Mon-
adverse efect to historic properties. The tana, Idaho and Wyoming, lead author
replacement bridge would be designed Frank van Manen said.
to be compatible with the historic and
101 East Center Street • Kalispell, MT. • 406.393.2418

For up-to-the-minute news, visit latheadbeacon.com