Yosemite Ahwahnee Hotel Evacuated
YOSEMITE AHWAHNEE HOTEL EVACUATED
The Fresno Bee
August 26, 2009
Yosemite National Park’s majestic Ahwahnee Hotel will remain closed until at least noon Friday after tumbling boulders from the Royal Arches formation forced the evacuation of all 300 guests Wednesday.
Park spokesman Scott Gediman said a series of falling rocks, some as large as microwave ovens, tumbled at least 100 feet from the base of the cliff and into the valet parking lot about 1:30 p.m., damaging several cars. No injuries were reported.
The rocks fell from the Royal Arches area, a granite cliff about 200 feet from the Ahwahnee.
Dust from the avalanche, which started about noon, obscured views of Half Dome.
About 300 guests were staying at the historic 125-room hotel, but only about 70 were at the hotel when the rock falls happened. The guests were directed to the south lawn behind the hotel while geologists checked the stability and assessed the likelihood that more rocks would fall.
Guests were later taken by bus to other lodging facilities in the park and surrounding communities.
In October, park officials permanently closed one-third of Curry Village under Glacier Point after the equivalent of 570 dump trucks of rock hit 17 cabins and forced the evacuation of more than 150 youngsters on a field trip. No one was seriously injured.
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