Thanksgiving in Glamis - News Articles

[Crowdog]

"Turkey in the sand: It's a family affair" (Imperial Valley Press, 11/28/0
"For Joe Schoneman of Chino, the Imperial Sand Dunes are all about family. ‘Every group of trailers you see is a bunch of family and friends …Holiday weekends you see the entire array. You see everything,' Schoneman said, from people camping in the brush in pup tents to million-dollar RVs. Thanksgiving in the dunes ... was about riding during the day, and then coming back and eating turkey once it gets dark. People build fires, hop from camp to camp, and spend the evening visiting."

http://ivpressonline.com/articles/2008/11/28/local_news/news01.txt

"Crews ready for dunes mishaps" (Imperial Valley Press, 11/26/0
"Get about 150,000 tourists. Give them off-road vehicles, alcohol and free range of a 40-mile stretch of sand dunes. It would be strange to not have an accident happen ...
Thanksgiving weekend is historically one of the biggest weekends for the Imperial Sand Dunes ... Neil Hamada, dunes manager with the Bureau of Land Management, said that last year there were about 120 calls for medical assistance just over Thanksgiving weekend... This is why, for the fourth year now, El Centro Regional [partnered] with the Bureau of Land Management to provide medical assistance for the dunes."

http://ivpressonline.com/articles/2008/11/27/local_news/news02.txt

"Our Opinion: Trash collection coming to an end" (Imperial Valley Press, 12/2/0
Editorial: "Over the Thanksgiving holiday ... 290,000 pounds of trash were deposited by visitors at the Imperial Sand Dunes Recreation Area ... Come the end of January ... the U.S. Bureau of Land Management will stop paying for trash service at the dunes ... It’s a staggering amount, one that will leave a staggering effect on the dunes and Imperial County in general if some sort of service is not provided. The idea of increasing dunes fees to cover trash collection has been thrown around, and at the moment that sounds like the most feasible solution. If that is in fact the worst-case scenario, we would hope duners, local and otherwise, would be willing to foot the bill for keeping their playground clean."

http://ivpressonline.com/articles/2008/12/03/our_opinion/ed02_12-03-08.txt

RELATED: "3 die during Thanksgiving" (Imperial Valley Press, 12/2/0
"Three people died during last week’s Thanksgiving Day break that brought more than 172,000 revelers to the dunes, but alcohol-related arrests have dramatically sunk ... David Briery, associate BLM public affairs officer, said this year’s decrease in DUI-related arrests could mean that people finally are learning about the hazards of impaired driving. 'We hope this decrease (means) that people are getting the message,' Briery said. 'We have extensive outreach programs about driving under the influence.'"

http://ivpressonline.com/articles/2008/12/03/local_news/news01.txt

"Weekend is quiet overall at dunes" (Imperial Valley Press, 11/30/0
"Lower attendance has led to a quieter Thanksgiving weekend at the dunes compared to previous years." Neil Hamada, dunes manager with the Bureau of Land Management said ... while official attendance figures for this year won’t be tallied until later in the week ... last year had lower attendance than two years ago, and this year seems to follow that trend."

http://ivpressonline.com/articles/2008/12/01/local_news/news01.txt