Earth fissure calf rescue

AZGS geologists Joe Cook and Mike Mahan rescued a calf today, that had become stuck in thick mud at the bottom of an earth fissure near Elfrida in Cochise County. [right, Joe rinses off face of calf after pulling it out of the fissure. Photo by Mike Mahan] They contacted the rancher who picked up the calf.

Joe and Mike had earlier assessed the damage to Van Ness Road near highway 191, that is being torn up by a pair of giant cracks, one about 225 feet long, and the second about 375 feet in length [left]. Where the cracks are open they can be up to 2 feet across and up to ~6 feet deep (with a narrow crack open at the base and extending deeper). Some areas have a 2-foot wide block slumping into the open space below.