Board issues report on ranger death

TACOMA – The National Park Service review board determined park officials could not have stopped a “disturbed and determined” man, who came to Mount Rainier National Park “well-armed and prepared to hurt people,” from killing Ranger Margaret Anderson on Jan. 1.

Her actions in trying to stop Benjamin Barnes after he sped through a mandatory chain-up checkpoint kept Barnes from reaching the crowded Paradise area “and likely saved the lives of many park visitors and staff,” the review board said.

Barnes was found dead the next day in a creek, where he had drowned.