- Subject: NPS Morning Report - Thursday, August 17, 1989
- Date: Thurs, 17 Aug 1989
RANGER ACTIVITIES DIVISION
MORNING REPORT
Attention: Directorate
Regional and Park Chief Rangers, USPP, BIFC, FLETC
CC: RAD Information Net
Day/date: Thursday, August 17, 1989
INCIDENTS
89-230 - Yellowstone - Bear Incident
Around 6 p.m on the evening of the 16th, M.A.E., 19, a Hamilton
Stores concession employee from Wilkes-Barre, Pennsylvania, was descending
from the summit of Mount Holmes when he surprised a bear with her three
cubs. The bear, thought to have been a grizzly, was about 20 yards away;
she quickly shooed her cubs away, then charged M.A.E.. M.A.E. put up a brief
fight, then decided to curl up in a ball and play dead. The bear pummeled
and mauled him briefly, then left with her cubs. M.A.E. was able to hike out,
and received medical assistance from another hiker on the trail. He arrived
at the park clinic late last night, where he was treated for superficial
wounds, abrasions, minor puncture wounds, claw scratches on his chest and a
bite on one of his feet. (Telephone report from Dan Sholly, CR, YELL).
89-231 - Hopewell Furnace - Employee Suicide
Yesterday afternoon at 5 p.m., the body of D.W., 19, of Cochranton,
Pennsylvania, was found in the basement room he was renting in the park
residence of Hopewell's administrative tech. D.W. was off on Tuesday and
Wednesday, and had not been seen since late Tuesday evening. D.W. was in
his first year as a fee collector at the park's visitor center. Death was
by hanging, and foul play has been ruled out. The Pennsylvania State Police
are investigating. (Telephone report from Lee Boyle, Chief, I&RM, HOFU).
FIRE ACTIVITY
1) FIRE SITUATION - Planning level IV.
2) FIRE SUMMARY
State Agency Area Fire Acres Contain
ID USFS Boise NF Lowman Comp. - T1: 45,614 8/16
USFS Payette NF Foolhen Comp. - T2
Dollar 13,400 8/17
USFS Payette NF Wilderness Comp.
Game Creek 2,454 None
Sheepeater 353 None
UT BLM Salt Lake City Lakeside 1,500 8/16
CA CDF Tehama-Glen RU *Beegum 700+ None
CDF Tehama-Glen RU *Highway 26 400 8/16
OR State - Bear 325 None
3) FIRE NARRATIVES
a) National Park Service
Fire danger readings in the parks on August 16th were as follows:
- Extreme: Zion NP (Utah), Lava Beds KM (California).
- Very High: Sequoia and Kings Canyon NP (California), Whiskeytown-
Shasta-Trinity NRA (California).
- High: Great Basin NP (Nevada), Redwood NP (California), Lassen
Volcanic NP (California), Hawaii Volcanoes NP (Hawaii), Scotts
Bluff NM (Nebraska).
* Grand Canyon:
Extensive lightning activity continued in the park on the 15th, and
several new starts were reported. All fires are less than an acre.
* Carlsbad Caverns:
The park reports a 75-acre, lightning-caused fire which started on the
14th and is now under control.
b) Other Agency
* Payette NF:
The newly-formed Wilderness Complex is composed of fires located in the
Frank Church - River Of No Return Wilderness. Suppression action began
yesterday on the Game Creek and Sheepeater fires. The Payette also has
three other large fires in the wilderness - the Hand Creek, Routson Peak
and Two Point fires - which have been confined by natural barriers and
favorable weather conditions. Monitoring is underway, with additional
suppression action to be taken if necessary.
* Tehama-Glen Resource Unit:
Scattered rural dwellings are threatened by the Beegum fire, and the
Highway 26 fire has destroyed two homes and five other buildings.
4) FIRE ACTIVITY - 180 fires for 2,551 acres in last 24 hours.
5) ANALYSIS - Demobilization continues from fires in the Northwest and
Great Basin. Very high to extreme conditions are developing in
most of northern California.
6) PROGNOSIS - Demobilization and rotation of resources will continue.
(NIFCC Intelligence Section, 0530 MDT, 8/17/89; NPS National Wildland Fire
Summary, 0430 MDT, 8/17/89).
OTHER NEWS...
Virgin Islands: A charter boat operator whose business was grounded when the
NPS rejected his reapplication for a charter permit has filed suit claiming
that the government unlawfully deprived him of his livelihood. Wilfred E.
Allick Jr., the 42-year-old owner of Junie Eomba's Charters Inc., of St.
Croix, filed suit Monday in federal court in Washington to get DOT to
reissue his permit. The lawsuit also seeks to have the department's
licensing and price-regulating policy declared an unconstitutional violation
of his rights to due process and equal protection under the Fifth Amendment.
(Wall Street Journal, 8/16/89).
STAFF STATUS
Dabney, Healy and Hodapp on AL. Andy Ringgold is acting chief of Ranger
Activities.
Prepared by WASO Division of Ranger Activities
Telephone: FTS 343-4874/6039 or 202-343-4874/6039
Telefax: FTS 343-5977 or 202-343-5977
CompuServe: WASO-RANGER
SEAdog: 1/650 (Phone:343-6014; BAUD:2400)