The second crisis point occurred when the Ashland County Sheriff's Department went to the blockade site in force, ostensibly to review the situation and determine what, if anything, needed to be done, including the option of removing the protestors from the tracks. Approximately a dozen armed Sheriff's Department members went to the site. The sheriff spoke with protest leaders. While this went on, Stone pulled the undersheriff aside and advised him that there were armed men in the woods protecting the site, including tribal members with military training, and that if the Sheriff's Department tried to forcibly remove the protestors from the site, Stone might not able to prevent gunfire. The Sheriff's Department representatives left without taking action.