NATIONAL PARK SERVICE
                           MORNING REPORT

Attention: Directorate
           Regional and Park Chief Rangers, USPP, BIFC, FLETC
           Ranger Activities Division Information Network

Day/Date:  Tuesday, May 5, 1992

INCIDENTS

92-151 - Assateague Island (Maryland/Virginia) - Follow-up on Assault

Investigators have determined that the sexual assault which allegedly
occurred in the park's Bayside campground on April 26th was between two
people who indicated that they'd known each other for several years and that
similar assaults have occurred on other occasions.  Since the violation
falls under state law and the park is under proprietary jurisdiction, the
state police presented the case to the both the state attorney's office and
to juvenile service officers.  Both have declined to prosecute the case. 
[Telefax from Brion Fitzgerald, ASIS, 5/4]

92-160 - Martin Luther King (Georgia) - Follow-up on King Verdict Incidents

A rally and prayer vigil sponsored by the Southern Christian Leadership
Conference was held on private property within the park on April 30th as
part of the protest over the Rodney King verdict.  The regional office was
notified of the possible need for support, and a contingency plan was
developed to dispatch enforcement rangers from area parks if needed.  The
rally was attended by about 1,000 persons.  There were no incidents.  A
separate rally in downtown Atlanta was disrupted by sporadic violence. 
[CompuServe message from Johnny Sims, CR, MALU, 5/1]

92-165 - Yosemite (California) - Rescue; Illegal BASE Jumping

At about 6:45 a.m. on April 23rd, rangers Russell Marsh and Cameron Jacobi
responded to cries for help from the east face of El Capitan and found two
uninjured climbers beckoning for help for a person who was apparently at the
base of the cliff near the start of The Nose route.  Jacobi was able to find
the victim, 28-year-old C.H. of Colin, California, and provide
him with medical assistance for a severe head laceration and multiple
fractures.  During his evaluation of C.H., Jacobi determined that he
was probably a BASE jumper, though no parachute was found in the area to
confirm this.  C.H. was transported to El Capitan Meadow by a carry-out
team, then transported by helicopter to Modesto.  C.H. later told Marsh
that he had experienced some type of parachute failure after jumping off El
Capitan.  The park prosecutor is reviewing the possibility of filing
criminal charges against C.H.  [cc:Mail message from Herb Gercke,
RAD/WRO, 5/4]

92-166 - Blue Ridge (North Carolina/Virginia) - MVA with Fatality

M.C., 23, of Blue Ridge, Virginia, was killed on the evening of
May 2nd when his car rolled over at milepost 96 and he was thrown from the
vehicle.  He was taken to a hospital in Roanoke and placed on life support,
but died the following morning.  Preliminary investigation indicates the
accident may be alcohol-related.  [Larry Freeman, BLRI, via telefax from
Marcella Gibson, RAD/SERO, 5/4]

92-167 - Yosemite (California) - MVA with Fatality

V.I. and J.L. were driving in a Ford pickup truck on Highway
120 in the park on May 3rd when V.I. lost control of the vehicle, which
subsequently rolled over.  V.I. was knocked unconscious and pinned inside
the cab; J.L. was able to escape with minor injuries.  As first
responders arrived, the vehicle engine compartment caught fire and spread
rapidly.  Dry chemical fire extinguishers slowed but did not stop the spread
of the fire.  Efforts were made to free V.I., but the fire drove rescuers
back until fire trucks arrived and extinguished the blaze.  V.I. continued
to breath for about ten minutes after rescuers reached him, but CPR efforts
were eventually halted and he was pronounced dead at the scene.  [Dave
Lattimore, YOSE, via cc:Mail message from Herb Gercke, RAD/WRO, 5/4]

92-168 - Yosemite (California) - Rescue

Just before 7:00 p.m. on April 30th, rangers received a report that cries
for help had been heard from a cliff about 2,000 feet above the floor of
Yosemite Valley.  Ranger Eric Gabriel and SAR team member Dan McDevitt
climbed in the dark and reached 24-year-old S.S., a concession
employee, at about 1:30 a.m. S.S. had lost the trail he was following and
had fallen 50 vertical feet and landed on the ledge where he was found. 
S.S. suffered a laceration of his right leg and numerous abrasions and
contusions.  Following a night on the ledge, rangers and Lemoore Naval Air
Station personnel evacuated S.S. by helicopter hoist.  S.S. was treated at
Yosemite's clinic and released.  [Kelly McClosky, YOSE, via cc:Mail message
from Herb Gercke, RAD/WRO, 5/4]

92-169 - Mount Rainier (Washington) - Search in Progress

S.S. and J.R. signed out for a climb of Mount Rainier via
Liberty Ridge on April 23rd and succeeded in attaining the summit.  Late on
the 30th, S.S. became hypothermic, and J.R. decided to leave him on the
Columbia Crest rim and go for help.  S.S., however, was able to make it to
Camp Muir by the following morning; he contacted another climbing party
there, who radioed down that S.S. had lost touch with J.R. and didn't
know where he was or in which direction he'd gone.  Rangers Steve Winslow
and Joe Driemiller left Paradise and headed for Camp Muir to meet S.S.. 
They found him suffering from dehydration and frostbite; after spending a
night in the camp with him, the rangers descended to Paradise with S.S.,
where he was evacuated to a hospital in Puyallup.  A Bell 206-B from
Aerocopters in Seattle was brought in for an initial search of the mountain
and to lift a search team to the peak, and a Chinook from Fort Lewis was en
route for high altitude search and team insertion.  Further information on
the search will follow.  [cc:Mail message from Mark Forbes, RAD/PNRO, 5/4]

92-170 - Shenandoah (Virginia) - Search and Rescue

Just after midnight on April 27th, ranger Clayton Jordan received a report
of a person missing in the park.  D.D. was to have returned home on
the afternoon of the 26th after picking mushrooms in the park, but failed to
return.  Jordan found D.D.'s car in the Loft Mountain Wayside and conducted
a preliminary search of the area.  Formal search efforts were begun shortly
thereafter.  Rangers requested dog teams and a helicopter, and a medical and
evacuation team was put together and placed on standby.  D.D. was located in
good condition near the Loft Mountain campground at 6:35 a.m. that morning. 
[Telefax from Greg Stiles, ACR, SHEN, 4/30]

FIRE ACTIVITY

1) FIRE SITUATION - Preparedness Level 1

No large fire activity nationally.  Most geographic areas have low to
moderate fire danger.  Little or no commitment of national resources.

FIRE SUMMARY

State  Agency     Area            Fire                 5/4    5/5    Status

 NJ    State   Burlington County  *Woodland              -  3,000    CN
               -                  *Lacey                 -  5,050    CL 5/5
       Army    Fort Dix           *Unnamed               -  6,000    CN

 VA    USFS    Jefferson          *Fox                   -    160    CL 5/8

 HI    NPS     Hawaii Volcanoes    Napau             2,400  3,500    CN 5/6

 CA    BLM     Cal. Desert         Mesa              4,200  4,200    CL
   
 UT    USFS    Manti-Lasal         Rock Creek - T2     150    150    CN

NOTES:

- Fires - Asterisk indicates newly reported fire (on this report). T1 and T2
  indicate assigned Type I and Type II Teams.
- Status - The following abbreviations are employed:

  NR - No report received      MS - Modified suppression strategy
  CL - Controlled              MN - Being monitored
  CS - Confinement strategy    NEC - No estimate of containment
  CN (date) - Expected date    CND - Contained
     of containment

3) ANALYSIS - Initial attack activity continues, and initial attack efforts
continue to be successful.
  
5) PROGNOSIS - No resource shortages anticipated.

[NIFCC Intelligence Section, 0542 MDT, 5/5] 

RESOURCE MANAGEMENT

Yukon-Charley Rivers (Alaska) - Marten Study

An NRPP study to determine the population dynamics of a harvested marten
population in the preserve is off to a good start.  Currently, there is
virtually no information available on marten population dynamics or the
effects of trapping in the eastern interior of Alaska, although the species
is the most important furbearer sought by trappers there.  During a pilot
project in the summer of 1991, 28 martens were live-trapped and fitted with
radio collars.  Nine of those animals were taken by trappers last winter. 
Another part of the study involves reproductive and age analyses of marten
carcasses obtained from trappers, and 600 carcasses collected from in and
near the preserve are now undergoing examination.  [Brad Shults, Wildlife
Biologist, ARO]

OPERATIONAL NOTES

1) Effective today, the Ranger Activities Division will no longer receive
incident or other reports through SEAdog.  Telecommunications will be
conducted via CompuServe and cc:Mail.  Also effective today, you may now
receive the Morning Report via cc:Mail distribution.  If you're interested
in receiving the Morning Report through that system, contact your cc:Mail
post office administrator and ask to be put on the "Ranger Report" list.  We
will continue to employ both systems until the CompuServe contract ends on
September 30, 1992.  [Bill Halainen, RAD/WASO]

2) The Department of Interior will hold its annual Honor Awards Convocation
here in Main Interior this morning.  NPS employees and private citizens
being honored are:

* Valor Awards - Kim Aufhauser, Kristin Bardsley, Steve Brooks, Clayton
  Butler, Christopher Lea, James Mattingly, William Moe, David Niemi,
  Kevin Price and Joseph Sumner.
* Distinguished Service Awards - Robert Barbee, Hobart Cawood, John
  Neckels, Robert Shelley.
* Conservation Service Awards - James Stewart, Leroy Fox, Junior League
  of Springfield, Illinois.
* Public Service Awards - David Condon, Elinor Craven, William Hopkins and
  Barry Tindall.

Full citations for Valor Award recipients will appear in the May/June issue
of the Ranger Activities Division's newsletter.

STAFF STATUS

Division Chief: Brady at MAR chief rangers' conference, Ocean City, MD
(5/4).

Branch of Resource and Visitor Protection: Martin and Henry at conference on
threats to wilderness system, Portland, OR (5/4-5/8); Coffey at meeting in
Richmond, VA (5/4-5/8).

Branch of Fire and Aviation: Gale at site review, Mount Rainier, Ashford, WA
(5/4-5/5); Norum at prescribed fire analyst course cadre meeting, NARTC,
Marana, AZ (5/4-5/8); Botti at training course and meetings on budget, WASO
(5/4-5/8); Broyles representing NPS at NWCG working team meeting, Acadia, ME
(5/4-5/8); Clark at interagency prevention course, San Bernadino, CA (5/4-5/8);
Mattingly coordinating Alpine IHC season start-up, WICA, Hot Springs,
SD (5/7-5/20).

Prepared by WASO Division of Ranger Activities

Telephone:  Branch of R&VP - FTS 268-4874/6039 or 202-208-4874/6039
            Branch of F&A (WASO) - FTS 268-5572/5573 or 202-208-5572/5573

Telefax:    Branch of R&VP - FTS 268-6756 or 202-208-6756
            Branch of F&A (WASO) - FTS 268-5977 or 202-208-5977

CompuServe: Branch of R&VP - WASO-RANGER
            Branch of F&A (WASO) - WASO-FIRE-WO

SEAdog:     Branch of R&VP - 1/650
            Branch of F&A (WASO) - 1/655