FALL ON ROCK

Wisconsin, Devil’s Lake State Park

On November 7, 1981, about 11:30 a.m., Jeff Oimoen (25) came to Park Headquarters and asked for help. He said he was climbing on the South Shore and fell. He had severe burns on all of his fingers and his hands. His hands were bandaged and he was transported to the hospital. (Source: J. Buchholz, Devil’s Lake State Park)

Analysis

There are not enough details to know whether Oimoen was ascending or rappelling. Devil’s Lake State Park has only been reporting accidents for the past few years, as it is a fairly recently “discovered” climbing area. The Superintendent reports the following:

“For some reason—we wish we knew what it was—1981 was a quiet year for climbing accidents at Devil’s Lake State Park. I have attached reports of the only three accidents that occurred in which we were involved in a rescue.

“We had made conscious efforts to hold down the accident rate this year. We met with several climbing groups, we provided rescue equipment in the climbing areas, and we attempted to stress safety in the minds of climbers. Perhaps these efforts caused the low accident rate.” (Source: J. Williamson and Craig Karr, Superintendent, Devil’s Lake State Park)