News briefs for June 13, 2003

Friday, June 13, 2003 | 9:29 a.m.

Crackdown planned on drinking boaters

Nevada Division of Wildlife game wardens are teaming up with National Park Service and Arizona Game & Fish Department rangers to put a damper on the spirits of drunken boaters.

Officers from these agencies have scheduled two OUI checkpoints, one each at Lakes Mead and Mohave, during June.

OUI stands for Operation Under the Influence, the boating equivalent of DUI, driving under the influence.

Boat operators with a breath or blood alcohol concentration of 0.10 percent will be arrested and booked into the Clark County Detention Center. In addition, boaters can expect citations for safety equipment violations such as failure to carry the proper number of life jackets.

Two other checkpoints operating in May checked 390 boats, contacted 1,454 boaters and found 33 percent of the operators had consumed alcohol. There were eight OUI arrests and 96 citations for equipment violations.

Woman killed in riding accident

A 44-year-old Henderson woman was killed Thursday morning when she fell from a horse at a Tucson ranch, according to reports.

Pima County sheriff's deputies said Cynthia A. Mraz lost her balance and fell from a horse when it began to gallop during a trail ride, the Arizona Daily Star reported today.

Mraz's foot became caught in a stirrup after she slipped from the saddle, and she was dragged an unknown distance, the newspaper said. She suffered injuries to her face and was unresponsive at the scene. Mraz was flown to a hospital, where she was later pronounced dead.

Road work affects Rainbow Boulevard

The intersection of Washington Avenue and Rainbow Boulevard will be affected by road work from Monday through June 30.

Washington Avenue will be closed to traffic and Rainbow will narrow to one travel lane in each direction at the intersection.

The closure is a result of continued work on the $5.4 million Rainbow improvement project.

Through traffic on Washington will be routed north to Vegas Drive by way of Torrey Pines Drive and Tenaya Way. Business access will remain open.

The entire project is slated for completion by October.