Three deaths in dunes over holiday

Three deaths occurred in the Imperial Sand Dunes over the Thanksgiving holiday, according to a Bureau of Land Management official.

One male drowned in the All America Canal when he was thrown from his vehicle, according to David Briery, BLM spokesman.

The 39-year-old man, who was riding a quad, turned to avoid the canal at the last minute, but was thrown from the vehicle and drowned, Briery said.

A 47-year-old died from apparent renal failure, but the victim was still undergoing an autopsy Monday to confirm the diagnosis, he said.

A 32-year old man on a quad was killed after he went over the slip face at the top of a dune.

His body was discovered at the bottom, Briery said, adding there were no witnesses to the accident and an exact cause of death had yet to be determined Monday.

Briery said he did not know names of victims or dates of their deaths over the holiday period, Thursday through Sunday. The Imperial County Sheriff's Office could provide no details.

During the Thanksgiving weekend, 103 people required medical assistance and most of them were because of accidents, he said.

There 171,773 visitors to the dunes during the Thanksgiving weekend, Briery noted.

There were 1,655 citations issued to dunes visitors for the holiday period, about the same as last year, he said.

He added there were 42 arrests made in the dunes, including 13 people arrested for operating off-roading vehicles while intoxicated, he said. The number of arrests were down from a year ago, he said.

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William Roller can be reached at wroller@yumasun.com or 539-6858.