RANGER ACTIVITIES DIVISION
                           MORNING REPORT

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

Day/Date:  Wednesday, July 22, 1992

INCIDENTS

92-363 - Yosemite (California) - Attempted Armed Assault Arrest

Rangers were dispatched to a call of an intoxicated individual threatening
local residents, possibly with a weapon, on the evening of July 20th.  F.S.,
a Yosemite Park and Curry Company employee who had recently been
fired by the concessioner, had apparently locked his roommate in their tent
against his will and threatened to kill him.  He allowed his roommate to
leave after about 15 minutes, then began threatening to kill the housing
area supervisor.  F.S. was brandishing a long piece of wood with a spike
protruding from one end.  When rangers arrived on scene, F.S. had
barricaded himself inside the tent and threatened to kill all of them,
challenging the rangers to come into his tent so he could "take care" of
them.  The rangers evacuated the surrounding area and attempted negotiations
with F.S.; when they proved fruitless, the decision was made to get
F.S. out of the tent by employing the recently-issued Capstun spray. 
About two minutes after the spray was employed, F.S. attempted to escape
through his own barricade.  Rangers eventually broke down the door, then
subdued and arrested him.  F.S. has a long history of violent crimes and
crimes against peace officers.  He had assaulted a ranger a week prior to
this incident.  [Rick Obernesser, YOSE, 7/20]

92-364 - North Cascades (Washington) - Rescue

On the afternoon of July 18th, rangers at the Marblemount ranger station
received word of a climbing accident in the Hourglass area on the west flank
of Mt. Shuksan in which two climbers had fallen into a crevasse.  A
nine-person climbing party was descending when the accident occurred.  The middle
member of a rope team lost her footing in very soft snow and was unable to
arrest herself before sliding into the crevasse.  The lead member of the
team was also pulled in; the third and final member of the group was pulled
off her feet and into the crevasse, but was able to secure herself on its
downhill side.  One of the two women fell 35 feet, and the other fell about
50 feet and became wedged between ice walls.  Remaining members of the
climbing party, assisted by another group of climbers, were able to
extricate the pair after protracted efforts which took, respectively, 45
minutes and two hours.  Park Service personnel were flown to the scene with
SAR equipment by helicopter.  They found that neither woman had severe
injuries, but that both were suffering from advanced stages of hypothermia. 
They were flown to the Concrete airport, then taken to a hospital in
Sedro-Woolley, where they were released the same evening.  Members of the climbing
party believe that the two women would not have survived the night on the
glacier.  The original call for assistance came from a third climbing party
on the mountain.  A marine transceiver was used to call Vancouver Coast
Guard, who forwarded the call to the Vancouver marine operator, who passed
it on to the Forest Service's Glacier Public Service Center, who called the
rangers in Marblemount.  [Kelly Bush, NOCA, 7/21]

92-365 - Rocky Mountain (Colorado) - Rescue

On the afternoon of July 20th, rangers were notified that a 14-year-old boy
who was sliding down a snowfield at the base of Andrew's Glacier had run off
the snowfield and into a small stream.  He suffered a compound leg fracture
in the incident, and was found partially submerged in the stream when nearby
visitors arrived.  A ten-person rescue party climbed to the 11,500-foot
level of the glacier and carried the boy out to an ambulance.  The eight-hour
rescue was hampered by a violent thunderstorm which produced severe
lightning and heavy downpours.  [Joe Evans, CR, ROMO, 7/21]

92-366 - Colorado NM (Colorado) - Theft of Patrol Car

On the night of July 19th, M.N., 22, and a female companion, both
of whom were intoxicated, had a vehicle accident in the park in which their
car sustained significant damage.  Units from the park, BLM and Colorado
Highway Patrol (CHP) responded.  M.N. was arrested by rangers, handcuffed
behind her back and placed in the patrol car.  She slid her handcuffed hands
under her feet, got into the drivers seat, drove the patrol car into the CHP
cruiser, then fled the scene in the NPS vehicle.  The CHP unit followed her
at speeds up to 50 MPH until she ran into a ditch, causing extensive damage
to the park patrol car.  M.N. was then arrested by the CHP officer and
placed in his patrol car, where she tried to kick out the windows.  Because
of her violent behavior, she was taken directly to jail without a hospital
blood alcohol check.  M.N. is now in custody on many charges.  No injuries
were sustained in the incident except for a minor injury to M.N. which she
incurred while doing a voluntary back-flip to prove her sobriety during the
field sobriety check.  M.N.'s intoxicated companion was the owner of the
car.  She had asked M.N. to drive because she believed that M.N. was
soberer than she was.  [Hank Schock, CR, COLM, 7/20]

92-367 - New River Gorge (West Virginia) - MVA with Two Fatalities

At about 11:00 p.m. on July 11th, a two-vehicle MVA occurred at the entrance
to the park's Grandview Unit which killed two people.  A 16-year-old male
juvenile was operating a Chevy Cavalier with E.B., 19, as a
passenger.  The vehicle crossed the opposing lane in a curve at a high rate
of speed, hit a rock embankment, recrossed the opposing lane, and was hit
head on by a pickup truck with five occupants.  Rangers from Grandview were
the first emergency service responders on scene and provided life support
for an extended period of time before local ambulance and fire department
units arrived.  Both occupants in the Cavalier, neither of whom were wearing
seatbelts, were ejected from the vehicle and suffered severe multiple trauma
injuries.  The occupants of the pickup suffered only minor injuries. 
Because of heavy fog, a lifeflight helicopter which was 20 minutes away in
Charleston could not respond.  E.B. was pronounced dead at a local
hospital, and the juvenile died in the Charleston Area Medical Center on
July 18th.  State troopers' preliminary estimates indicate that the Cavalier
was travelling between 90 and 100 mph when it initially left the road. 
[Bill Blake, CR, NERI, 7/21]

FIRE ACTIVITY

1) FIRE SITUATION - Preparedness Level II

2) FIRE SUMMARY

State  Agency     Area            Fire               7/21    7/22    Status

 AK    State  Upper Yukon        A412                 750     780    CN 7/24

 OR    BLM    Prineville Dist.   Chicken Springs    9,880   9,880    CND    

 CA    USFS   Angeles NF         Devil - T2         1,430   1,430    CND

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            DM - Demob in progress

3) FIRE REPORT HIGHLIGHTS - No significant fire reports.

4) FIRE ACTIVITY - 399 fires for 3,478 acres in the past 24 hours.

5) ANALYSIS - Containment targets have been met on large fires throughout
   the West.  Initial attack activity is increasing in several areas in
   the West.

6) PROGNOSIS - No resource shortages expected.

[NIFCC Intelligence Section, 7/22]

RESOURCE MANAGEMENT

El Malpais (New Mexico) - Bison Reintroduction Proposed

The BLM has proposed that bison be reintroduced into the national
conservation area that surrounds the park.  The herd is presently located 75
miles west of El Malpais at the Fort Wingate Army depot.  The depot is
scheduled for closure at the end of this year, leaving the herd without a
home.  Although bison are not native to the area, BLM would like to add to
their watchable wildlife program by relocating the herd in the conservation
area.  The Service has not taken any official stand on the proposal, but
will express concerns about herd management and BLM's ability to keep the
herd our of the park.  The herd will probably consist of from 50 to 75
mature animals.  [ELMA]

OPERATIONAL NOTES

1) FINAL NOTICE - HEALTH AND FITNESS TRAINING SESSION: The closing date for
applications for the health and fitness coordinators' training session to be
held in Cincinnati, Ohio, between August 31st and September 4th has been
extended to Thursday, July 23rd.  Those who are interested and will be
involved with their park's health and fitness program should consider
applying.  Please have your regional training officer fax a one-page
nomination form to Karen Gustin at Albright.  These forms should arrive in
Albright NO LATER THAN July 24th.  Albright is funding the course.  No
telephone nominations will be accepted.  [Jim Lee, RAD/WASO]

STAFF STATUS

Division Chief: No leave or travel scheduled.

Branch of Resource and Visitor Protection: Marriott at meeting at Lake Mead,
NV (7/20-7/22).

Branch of Fire and Aviation: Spruill at OAS meeting, Boise, ID (7/20-7/24);
Norum conducting fire reviews at Isle Royale, Sleeping Bear Dunes, Pictured
Rocks and Indiana Dunes (7/20-7/25); Clark at fire prevention planning
meeting, Anchorage and Fairbanks, AK (7/20-7/31); Farrel on annual leave
(7/17-7/25).