RANGER ACTIVITIES DIVISION
                           MORNING REPORT

Attention: Directorate
           Regional and Park Chief Rangers, USPP, BIFC, FLETC
           CC: RAD Information Net

Day/date:  Monday, March 13, 1989

INCIDENTS

89-37 - Denali - Follow-up on Missing Climbers

The three Japanese climbers who disappeared while ascending Mt. McKinley are
now presumed to be dead, and the search for them was suspended yesterday.
Searchers in a twin-engine aircraft flew over the mountain on Friday and saw
three orange objects, possibly bodies, at the 17,400' level, about 200'
above the Japanese party's camp and just below Denali Pass, an area known
for its high winds. Rangers speculated that the climbers might have been
"blown right out of the pass"; if that happened, the Japanese would have
fallen several hundred vertical feet. On Saturday, two Army Chinooks
attempted to get closer to the area, but were blocked by turbulence and
severe downdrafts - even at full power, the helicopters were losing 2,000'
per minute. A number of Japanese, including the consulate general and
several climbers, were in the party on the Chinooks, and subsequently agreed
that conditions prohibited further search efforts until the climbing weather
improves in April or May. (Rich O'Guin, RAD/ARO, and Associated Press
reports).

89-40 - Delaware Water Gap - Emergency Aircraft Landing

A single-engine Cessna 152 experienced mechanical difficulties and made an
emergency landing in the park just after 3 p.m. on the 9th. There were no
injuries and the plane was not damaged. P.B., the pilot and
instructor, and W.A., a student-passenger, were on a flight
Wilkes-Barre, Pennsylvania, to Morristown, New Jersey, when they were forced
to land in a cornfield about three miles north of Bushkill. FAA
investigators from Allentown are looking into the incident. (Jim Arnott,
CR, DEWA).

89-41 - Grand Canyon - Falling Fatality

On Thursday afternoon, G.E., 34, of Hasbergen, Germany, was
visiting Mohave Point with her husband when she became dizzy and fell over
the canyon rim. Her husband called after her; when she failed to respond,
he went to one of the lodges and sought help. Rangers searched the area
until 9 p.m., but were unable to find her. The search was begun again with
helicopters at 7 a.m. on Friday morning, and G.E.'s body was found just
after 9 a.m. She had fallen 260' and was apparently killed on impact.
(Cindy Wadsworth, GRCA, through Herb Gercke, RAD/WRO).

FIRE ACTIVITY

Big Bend - A man-caused fire was ignited in the Blue Creek drainage of the
Chisos Mountains at 1 p.m. on Saturday and spread to 300 acres within three
hours. An 18-person NPS crew made the initial attack on the fire. On the
12th, an interagency Class II team took over the fire; three helicopters and
four 20-person crews were brought in. The fire is burning in pinion juniper
and desert brush in extremely steep and rugged terrain at about 7,000'.
Burning conditions are extreme, with daytime temperatures in the 90's,
humidity in the teens and winds gusting above 20 mph. As of 8 a.m. this
morning, the fire had burned about 615 acres. There should be ten Type II
crews on the fireline today. Containment is estimated for the 14th. No
park developments are in danger, but the habitat of several endangered
species - including peregrine falcons - is threatened. About 100
backcountry campers were evacuated from the High Chisos when the blaze was
reported by hikers on the 11th. (Phil Koepp, CR, BIBE and Associated Press
reports).

CALENDAR

Asterisks indicate new or revised entries:

March 14 - 16 - (Operations Evaluation Workshop/Training, Denver, Colorado.

March 14 - 17 - "Issues in Cultural Landscape Management", workshop,
Richmond, Virginia. Sponsored by MAR but open to all. Contact Kathy Jope,
FTS 597-5372, or Reed Engle, FTS~ 597-5028.

March 17 - 22 - North American Wildlife and Natural Resources Conference,
Omni Shoreham Hotel, Washington, D.C.

March 19 - "National Park Research and Management Policy into the Next
Century: The Successor to the Leopold Report", symposium, Omni Shoreham
Hotel, Washington, D.C. Sponsored by the National Parks and Conservation
Association (NPCA). Contact Dave Simon, NPCA, 202-944-8530.

** CANCELLED ** The Regional Fire Coordinators Meeting, which was to be
held March 20 - March 24 in Denver, Colorado, has been cancelled. It will
not be rescheduled.

April 3 - 7 - Southwest Region Resource Management Workshop, San Antonio,
Texas. Sponsored by SWRO , but open to all. Contact Deborah Pfenninger,
SWR-ONR, FTS 476-6412 or 505-988-6412.

April 3 - 7 - Midwest Region Chief Rangers' Conference, Pipestone MM,
Minnesota. Contact John Townsend, MWRO, for further information.

April 4 - 6 - "Interpretation in Urban Areas", workshop, Lowell Hilton,
Lowell, Massachusetts. Sponsored by the NPS and local organizations. The
objectives are "to examine the nature and expectations of urban audiences,
techniques necessary to reach these audiences and the particular concerns of
employees in urban areas." For further information, call 617-565-8860. The
registration deadline is February 17th.

April 24 - 28 - Regional Chief Rangers' Conference, El Paso, Texas.
Regional chief rangers' annual meeting, with attention on law enforcement
and resource management issues. Contact Tom Thompson, MWRO, or Reed Jarvis,
PNRO.

May 7 -9 - Northeastern Fish and wildlife Conference, Ellenville, New York.
Contact Frank Panck, Department of Environmental Conservation, State
University of New York, Building 40, Stony Brook, New York 11790.

May 8 - 12 - North Atlantic Region Chief Rangers' Conference, Cape Cod NS,
Massachusetts.

May 8 - 12 - "Practical Approaches to Riparian Resource Management",
educational workshop, Billings Plaza Holiday Inn, Billings, Montana.
Jointly sponsored by several Federal and state land management agencies.
For further information, contact Andrea Darling at 406-652-5197.

May 18 - 70 - "High-Intensity Fire in Wildlands: Management Challenges and
Options", conference, Ramada Inn worth, Tallahassee, Florida. For further
information, contact Tall Timbers Research Stations, Route 1, Box 678,
Tallahassee, FL 82312 (904-893-4153).

May 33 - 26 - "Fire Policy and Strategies in Wilderness and Parks, Past and
Future", symposium, Rozeman, Montana. Sponsored by the NPS and USFS.
Contact Paul Weingart (403-586-8625) or Jim Saveland (912-744-0252).

June 19 - 23 - "Our National Grasslands", forum, Kirkwood Motor Inn,
Bismarck, North Dakota. Topics include review of historical and economic
importance of national grasslands. Keynote speaker will be Dale Robertson,
Chief, NS Forest Service. Conference celebrates the 50th anniversary of
national grasslands. Contact Joe Sainas, Forest Service, 1824 N. 11th
street, Rismark, NC 58501.

July 16 - 70 - "Futureview: The 1990's and Beyond", conference, Sheraton
Washington, Washington, D.C. Sponsored by the World Future Society. Among
other topics, conferees will be discussing future biosphere trends and
issues. For further information, write the World Future Society, 4916 St.
Elmo Avenue, Bethesda, MD 70814 (301-656-8274).

(Calendar appears in each Monday's morning report. If you know of a
conference, meeting or training session with Servicewide interest and
implications, please provide the specifics to Bill Halainen in Ranger
Activities).

STAFF STATUS

Dabney on AL; Andy Ringgold is the acting chief of Ranger Activities. Kreis
on lieu day. Hodapp on travel to Ohio to meet with USAF.

Prepared by WASO Division of Ranger Activities
FTS 343-4874/4875 or 202-343-4874/4875