Death Valley visitor admits to damaging 113-year-old tower in an act of 'desperation'

A Death Valley National Park visitor has come forward and claimed responsibility for pulling down and damaging a 113-year-old historic salt tram tower last month.

National Parks Service, in a news release Thursday, said that the visitor came forward and claimed responsibility and said that they took the action "during a time of desperation while being deeply stuck in mud, and that it wasn't their intent to cause harm to the historic structure." Park authorities said that they will not be naming the person involved in the incident and it is not immediately clear if they will be pressing charges.

NPS, in an earlier news release, had said that it appeared that the historic tower was pulled over when a visitor "used a winch to extract their vehicle out of deep mud."

"Nearby tracks show that a vehicle drove a short distance off the legal roadway and got stuck in mud," NPS had said. "Park rangers believe that someone used the nearby tower as an anchor to pull their vehicle out of the mud. The tower toppled over, pulling its concrete footings out of the ground."

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NPS 'grateful' to those who reached out

Following the incident, NPS had put out a notice and requested members of the public to call a designated tip line and share any information they may have on who damaged the tower. The person responsible for the damage had also reached out to NPS via the tip line.

“We are grateful to the dozens of people who reached out to the park with information and for all the statements of support that we received from people who care about this place and its cultural resources,” said acting Superintendent Elizabeth Ibañez said in a statement. “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.”

NPS said that the park's resource management team is assessing the damages inflicted upon the salt tower and making plans to restore it responsibility. At the same time, the management has also requested the public to be patient as they carry out restoration work and have advised "well-intentioned people who don’t have the proper tools and training," to stay away from restoring or fixing the damaged tower lest they cause additional damage.

Authorities have also requested those traveling in remote wilderness with no cellphone coverage to carry a satellite-based communication device as a safety tool. Visitors have also been asked to stay on paved roads, especially during the upcoming sizzling summer months to avoid any unfortunate incidents.

Saline Valley Salt Tram

The historic 13-mile aerial tram was built by the Saline Valley Salt Company in 1911 to transport salt from Saline Valley to Owens Valley, according to NPS.

It is also listed on the National Register of Historic Places because of its age, length, steepness, preservation, and scenic setting.

The hottest, lowest and driest point in all of America, according to NPS, Death Valley National Park is located in southeastern California and is about two hours west of Las Vegas.

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Saman Shafiq is a trending news reporter for USA TODAY. Reach her at sshafiq@gannett.com and follow her on X @saman_shafiq7.