A search call causes horror on social media. The wanted men damaged a historic rock formation in a US national park.
Nevada - It took millions of years for today's rock formation in Lake Mead National Recreation Area in the US state of Nevada to form - and it only took a few seconds for it to be destroyed by two men. At the beginning of April, a video was distributed on social networks. Now the local rangers of the national park have started the investigation. They are asking the public to help identify the perpetrators.
Vandalism of a million-year-old rock formation – tourists face charges
The video of the crime is also being distributed on X (formerly Twitter). Two tourists can be seen, one wearing a red shirt, the other a black one. Together they climb the rock formation on the Redstone Trail, one of the preserve's most popular hiking trails. The duo dislodges and pushes rocks over an edge, while a frightened girl accompanying the two begs her father not to fall. The falling pieces of sandstone crumble with a crash.
Park rangers at Lake Mead National Recreation Area are now looking for information about the two men. Specifically, they are suspected of vandalism. John Haynes, media spokesman for the national park, told
Fox 5 KVVU-TV
that the suspects could face prison time, a large fine or even federal charges. “Why would you even do something like that, why on earth would you do something like that?” asked Haynes.
Tourists destroy rock formation in national park – video causes violent reactions
Users on social networks are horrified by the actions of the two men. For example, an “Lock her up,” was his appeal. The child's reaction is also an issue. “What a terrible father,” one user remarked. Another felt sorry that the “poor little girl” had to grow up with such a role model.
Haynes said it's difficult to be everywhere at once with her staffing levels. “The area is 1.5 million hectares. We have two large lakes, part of the Colorado River,” the media spokesman explained. Accordingly, he stressed the need for the public to keep their eyes open as well. If tourists or visitors to the national park observe any unusual activity, they should contact rangers immediately, if possible.
Geologists explain the damage tourists have caused to the rock formation
The damage caused by the men cannot be repaired. Elizabeth Cottrell, a geologist at the Smithsonian National Museum of Natural History, confirmed this to the
Post
. The fallen rocks cannot therefore simply be brought back to their place of origin and stuck there. “If you restore it, it becomes anthropogenic. It’s more art than something natural,” Cottrell explained. This does not inspire awe for nature.
University of Nevada geologist Matthew Lachniet told the newspaper that the rock formations are a few million years old. He is convinced that they would not have broken without human intervention. “They would have slowly decayed, sand grain by sand grain, over the course of hundreds of thousands to millions of years,” says Lachniet.
The vast recreation area in the USA includes breathtaking mountain views, canyon trails and two important reservoirs on the Colorado River, which straddles the border between the states of Nevada and Arizona. The water sports at Lake Mead are a major draw for the park's six million annual visitors.
Yellowstone National Park also suffers from external influences. It is now being discussed that the tourists may have destroyed a natural wonder with their waste. In other cases, visitors do not harm protected areas or ecosystems, but rather themselves: for example, an influencer fell into a ravine while filming in Italy.
(cln)