Monday, July 03, 2006
Independence Day--July 4
Tomorrow is the anniversary of the signing of the Declaration of Independence in 1776. If you would like to learn more about the history of the holiday, check out the Library of Congress's Today in History. When you are setting off or watching fireworks tomorrow keep in mind the danger. The Consumer Product Safety Commission published the "Fireworks-Related Deaths, Emergency Department -Treated Injuries, and Enforcement Activities During 2005." This report estimates that 10,800 people were injured in 2005, but only 4 people died. One of them was from Colorado, here is the description: "A 37-year-old Colorado man was standing on his apartment balcony with a friend holding a launching tube that was loaded with an artillery shell type firework. After the fuse was lit, the firework exploded but may not have launched from the tube. After the explosion, the victim dropped to the balcony. According to police there was a bruise on the victim’s chest that matched the base on the launcher tube. The victim died from a torn aorta."
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(My apologies for the rather gruesome lead-in, but Jennie started it with her posting.) Instead of dying of a broken heart on the Fourth, we celebrated by enjoying one of our nation's treasures, Rocky Mountain National Park. We chose the alternate route to the top -- Old Fall River Road. What an exciting ride! It is still a dirt road and one way (thank goodness) all the way up. I can't imagine riding in a Model T and meeting someone on one of those hairpin curves. Mark Anderson has done a nice presentation on how the Fall River Road was built. Check out www.unco.edu/library/gov/westerntrails/romoweb/roads.htm
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