CEDAR CITY – Some recent incidents involving trash dumping and vandalism at the Iron County Shooting Range at the edge of the Three Peaks Recreation Complex have officials concerned, as the problems don’t appear to be going away any time soon.
Security cameras have been installed on site but Iron County Sheriff Mark Gower is asking the public to please report any illegal activity they may witness.
“We have a real problem out there,” Gower said, “and I just would like to see the public help us out here by reporting any suspicious activity they may see. If they’re out there on that range, they’re our eyes and ears and if they can report it to us then we can do something”
As it stands, signs and equipment installed on site are constantly having to be replaced due to the vandalism – all paid for by taxpayers, who fund the range.
“We can’t keep signs out there at all. Every time I install a new sign it gets shot up,” Cedar City Brianhead Tourism Bureau Executive Director Maria Twitchell said. “Then people bring out computers and old TVs to use as target practice and they just leave it for us to clean up.”
The cost of cleanup, repairs and replacement of infrastructure resulting from the vandalism and trash dumping is costly, Twitchell said. It prevents county officials from installing any new range improvements including additional bathrooms, shooting tables and shade structures.
Officials are also concerned about the safety of people shooting outside of the shooting areas as it could be dangerous for everyone.
“People will shoot the signs, the bathrooms, the law enforcement gate,” Gower said, “and when they do that they’re shooting down range and the bullets can ricochet or the sparks could start a fire. It could be a real serious issue so we just need the public to make the range safe for everyone and follow the rules.”
Cedar City resident Steven Barsky recently shared his experience at the range on social media in the local Facebook group, Life in Cedar City and Iron County.
“I am appalled by the poor behavior of some of the people who use our local shooting range,” Barsky said. “It’s bad enough that people bring television sets and computer monitors to shoot up, but when they destroy new signs because they are too lazy or cheap to bring their own targets, it’s truly disgusting.”
While he would hate to see drastic measures taken to stop the activity, Barsky said, he feels it may be the only way to prevent this type of behavior.
Trash dumping and vandalism are both citable offenses, Gower said.
To report illegal or suspicious activity, call the Sheriff’s Office at telephone 435-867-7500 or Twitchell at telephone 435-586-5124. Rewards are offered for severe cases, Gower said.
Gower and Twitchell are also asking the public to share this information via social media to help raise awareness and stop the illegal activity from occurring.
Resources
- Iron County Shooting Range website (includes range rules, map and directions)
- Iron County Sheriff’s Office: Telephone 435-867-7500
- Cedar City Brianhead Tourism Bureau: Telephone 435-586-5124
Click on photo to enlarge it, then use your left-right arrow keys to cycle through the gallery.
This photo shows a sign that has been vandalized at the Iron County Shooting Range. County officials are asking for help in stopping the ongoing problems of trash dumping and vandalism at the range. Three Peaks Recreation Complex, Iron County, Utah, circa June 2016 | Photo courtesy of Iron County Sheriff's Office, St. George News/Cedar City News This photo shows electronics and other items apparently dumped and used for target practice at the Iron County Shooting Range. County officials are asking for help in stopping the ongoing problems of trash dumping and vandalism at the range. Three Peaks Recreation Complex, Iron County, Utah, circa June 2016 | Photo courtesy of Iron County Sheriff's Office, St. George News/Cedar City News This photo shows electronics and other items apparently dumped and used for target practice at the Iron County Shooting Range. County officials are asking for help in stopping the ongoing problems of trash dumping and vandalism at the range. Three Peaks Recreation Complex, Iron County, Utah, circa June 2016 | Photo courtesy of Iron County Sheriff's Office, St. George News/Cedar City News This photo shows a sign that has been vandalized at the Iron County Shooting Range. County officials are asking for help in stopping the ongoing problems of trash dumping and vandalism at the range. Three Peaks Recreation Complex, Iron County, Utah, circa June 2016 | Photo courtesy of Iron County Sheriff's Office, St. George News/Cedar City News
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Copyright St. George News, SaintGeorgeUtah.com LLC, 2016, all rights reserved.
LMAO. ! typical dumbob Cedar crack heads !
Hey can you put up another shot of that sign, and the TV’s? I want to make sure I didn’t miss anything the first four times. I wish we had such through journalism in Washington! Good job guys!
It says “It prevents county officials from installing any new range improvements including additional bathrooms, shooting tables and shade structures.” but there already are no bathrooms, the tables were made as a Boy Scout project (i.e. the people in the article claiming they don’t have the money didn’t pay for it), and there already are no shade structures. I’m sorry to say it but I’ve been out there and it’s not that great of a shooting range. I’m positive if they actually put stuff out to shoot like, I dunno, old signs, the new ones wouldn’t be vandalized and things wouldn’t be left out there. I bet 95% of the things left out there is because other people will have nothing to shoot if they take them. Or maybe leave big dumpsters for people to dump things when their done. Don’t think it’s a community problem when the government needs to do a lot of stuff first. Just saying.