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AMERICAN FORK CANYON, Utah (AP) — An emergency phone system is in place near the site of an avalanche that killed 21-year-old Brigham Young University student Ashleigh Cox.
Family members of the Colorado Springs native and the crew that responded to the avalanche dedicated the system at Tibble Fork Reservoir in American Fork Canyon on Saturday, the Deseret News reported (http://bit.ly/1PjhuCR ).
Her father, Dennis Cox, said efforts to improve response times are appreciated by the family and "would have been appreciated by Ashleigh."
"Even though it can't help our daughter, she would have liked to know that the result of what happened to cause her death will have an impact for good," he said.
This was the first time he'd returned to the area since his daughter's death.
"I never thought we would actually come here," he said. "For this, we'd come."
Firefighters solicited donations for the system after Ashleigh's death. Live View Technologies provided equipment and technology for the phone system, which uses a satellite connection to call 911 with the push of a button.
The emergency phone is equipped with a camera that allows emergency officials to see the area if they need to. It also runs on a 10-day solar battery.
Lone Peak Fire Battalion Chief Joe McRae said this was not the first time responders wished they could have gotten up the canyon sooner.
"Her death was not in vain," McRae said.
Ashleigh was snowshoeing with friends in February 2014 when an avalanche buried her beneath the snow. Friends had to travel 15 minutes away to get cell service.
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Information from: Deseret News, http://www.deseretnews.com
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