OURAY COUNTY

February 14, 1974 – Tuesday morning, the long-awaited dispatching system was begun by the Ouray Police Department in cooperation with the Montrose Office of the Colorado State Patrol. The system, which has been planned for some time, will provide ‘round the clock dispatching for Ouray. From 8 a.m. until 5 p.m., the Ouray police will answer the phones, and from 5 p.m. until 8 a.m., the State Patrol will answer when the Ouray police number is dialed. Mountain Bell has hooked up a special phone line to Ouray so the State Patrol will be able to immediately reach the Ouray police during the night hours if they are needed. The Patrol will also answer the police phone during the day if the officers here are out of their cars or away from the phones, and by previous arrangement, will be able to reach the officers anywhere here in town.

40 YEARS AGO

February 16, 1984 – A burning wreck discovered early Tuesday morning about a mile south of Ouray on Highway 550 on Red Mountain Pass may have been the result of murder, according to Ouray County Sheriff Arthur Dougherty and other authorities who have been investigating the fatal incident and who released information about it on Wednesday. The burning vehicle was reported to Dougherty about 3:30 a.m. by some miners going home to Montrose from Silverton. A 1992 Toyota bearing Arizona plates was still burning when Dougherty arrived at the scene. The burning vehicle was 200 feet downhill from the highway and contained the remains of a single occupant. The remains, which were brought back up to the highway about 7 a.m. by members of the Ouray Mountain Rescue squad, have since been tentatively identified as those of Linda June Greene of Olathe. Raymond Greene, 34, of Scottsdale, Arizona, is being held in the Montrose County Jail without bond for investigation of first degree murder. Kathie Ann Cologgi, 34 also of Scottsdale, is being held on a bond of $25,000 for investigation on a charge of being an accessory to crime.

30 YEARS AGO

February 17, 1994 – Over the last decades, Ouray County Sheriff Jerry Wakefield has watched growth come to Ouray County and he’s determined that the sheriff’s department will be ready. “Five hundred folks a year are coming in now,” he says. “We need to get ahead before it’s here totally.” He’s watched ski areas get overrun and wants to avoid that in Ouray County. The keys are good communication, good patrol vehicles, and deputies properly equipped and trained, Wakefield says, adding, “We soon are going to have to have another deputy or two to keep up with the growth.” Wakefield, in his first term as sheriff, is seeking re-election in November. “I have always been a cop. I like my work,” he explains. Born in Fruita, Wakefield grew up there and in Montrose.

20 YEARS AGO

February 13, 2004 – Each winter for about four months, backcountry guide Andy Petefish leads clients into the nearly 14,000-foot backcountry in Yankee Boy Basin to ski, hike, climb and snowshoe and take in the breathtaking scenery. Petefish divides his year between Ouray and Wyoming where he has a rock-climbing guide business. He is generally guiding people in the mountainside near Ouray from Dec. 1 to April 1. Clients who come to his Above Ouray Ice business voyage off the beaten path. Groups cover “the whole ridgeline of ultra-spectacular mountains there, all of which are almost 14,000 feet high,” Petefish said. Petefish said he avoids taking clients to the Ouray Ice Park, which he compares to a gymnasium. The ice found in the backcountry, Petefish said, “feels like you’re out in the mountains. It’s a lot more relaxed environment when you don’t have a ton of people around.”

10 YEARS AGO

February 13, 2014 – Citations continue to stack up for Revenue-Virginius contractor Star Mine Operations. The Denver-based company was recently hit with $5,776 in fines from the Occupational Safety and Health Administration for a handful of workplace safety violations at its warehouse in Ouray. According to copies of the citations provided by OSHA’s Regional Director of Public Affairs Diane Petterson, an inspection of the warehouse was conducted on Dec. 18, just over a month following the fatal accident that claimed the lives of two miners. The inspection was prompted by a referral alleging improper storage of flammable and corrosive liquids at the facility, Petterson said. As a result, a total of five citations were tagged to the company on Jan. 24, two of which were named “serious” violations and resulted in the hefty fines. Since December, Star Mine has been served with over 130 citations from the administration, most of which were a result of spot inspections. So far this year, another 13 citations were added to the company’s collection.