
                         Roanoke Times
                 Copyright (c) 1995, Landmark Communications, Inc.

DATE: SUNDAY, March 28, 1993                   TAG: 9303280076
SECTION: NATIONAL/INTERNATIONAL                    PAGE: A-5   EDITION: METRO 
SOURCE: The New York Times
DATELINE:                                 LENGTH: Short

PRE-THRILL DEPOSIT SUGGESTED

As more Americans challenge themselves by scaling soaring peaks and hiking through American parks, an increasing number wind up having to be rescued, which can be costly. Now federal officials are considering proposals to make some adventurers pay their own rescue costs.

The proposals are being developed by the National Park Service as federal and state officials alike are dealing with dramatic and expensive rescues. Earlier this month, an extensive air-and-ground search was required to find 115 high school students and other hikers stranded by a blizzard in the Great Smoky Mountains.

The cost of a single rescue operation can exceed $100,000. The federal government spent about $3 million on rescues in national parks in 1991, about half of it coming from the National Park Service and the rest for military helicopters.

The plans the Park Service began drawing up last month could require people involved in risky outdoor activities to post bonds or take out insurance to cover potential rescue expenses. Debate within the Park Service is just beginning.

by CNB