- Subject: NPS Morning Report - Friday, July 2, 1993
- Date: Fri, 2 Jul 1993
RANGER ACTIVITIES DIVISION
MORNING REPORT
Attention: Directorate
Regional and Park Chief Rangers, USPP, BIFC, FLETC
Ranger Activities Division Information Network
Day/Date: Friday, July 2, 1993
Broadcast: By 0830 ET
INCIDENTS
92-264 - El Malpais (New Mexico) - Follow-up on ARPA Arrest
On June 25th, R.P., a member of the Hoskins "treasure recovery"
expedition to El Malpais, was charged with possession of archeological
resources (36 CFR 2.1) in magistrates court in Denver. R.P. discovered
and removed an Anasazi black-on-white ladle dated at about 1050 A.D. while
on the expedition. Rangers recovered the ladle at the scene during a search
of the backpacks of the expedition's participants. Of significance was the
use of Rule 58(C)(2) of the Rules of Criminal Procedures (under Procedure
for Misdemeanors and Other Petty Offenses) to move the venue from New Mexico
to Colorado for R.P.'s appearance before the magistrate. R.P. is a
resident of Denver. This aspect of the Hoskins case was also covered by the
media. [Erny Kuncl, RAD/RMRO, 6/28]
93-431 - Colonial (Virginia) - ARPA Indictments
Three North Carolina men were arraigned in federal district court in Newport
News, Virginia, on July 1st after a grand jury returned felony indictments
for ARPA violations, conspiracy, theft and destruction of government
property. R.G., 45, and S.T., 46, both of New
Bern, and M.R. of Morehead City were apprehended in the Yorktown
unit of the park last November 20th by ranger Bob Whiteman. A lengthy
investigation coordinated by park detective Clyde Yee culminated in today's
arraignment. Trial is set for September 10th in Newport News. [Jim
Burnett, CR, COLO, 7/1]
93-432 - Grand Canyon (Arizona) - Assist: Rape/Kidnapping Investigation
Rangers David Brennan and Nancy Mecham responded to a park concession
employee dormitory on June 26th to investigate a reported rape of a 21-year-
old female concession employee. The victim told rangers that she had been
kidnapped and raped at knifepoint shortly after midnight in Flagstaff,
Arizona. Through extensive interviews with the victim, Mecham was able to
assist Flagstaff police detectives in creating a composite drawing of the
suspect, locating the crime scene, and developing numerous investigative
leads. Coconino County deputies also assisted in processing the victim's
vehicle for evidence. On June 27th, Flagstaff detectives learned that a
person matching the suspect's description boarded an eastbound Greyhound bus
in Flagstaff several hours after the rape. The suspect forced the bus
driver to stop west of Amarillo, Texas, where the suspect got off the bus
and fled. Amarillo investigators are now involved in the investigation.
[David Brennan, GRCA, 6/29]
93-433 - Lake Mead (Nevada) - Drowning
Park VIPs discovered the body of 23-year-old E.M. of Las Vegas in
about twelve feet of water at Box Car Cove just after 1 p.m. on June 30th.
E.M. was fully dressed in T-shirt, shorts and sneakers, and had
apparently been submerged for six to eight hours. It's believed that he may
have been boldering, lost his footing and fell into the lake.
Identification was made by checking the license plate number on an abandoned
vehicle which was found to be his. [Terry Green, LAME, 7/1]
93-434 - Santa Monica Mountains (California) - Helicopter Fire
A Ventura County sheriff and fire Bell 206 helicopter involved in aerial
ignition on an interagency park and county joint management prescribed fire
was totally destroyed in a ground fire in the park on June 30th. There were
no injuries. The helicopter had left the fire area and set down on a small
knoll some distance from the fire. The pilot was in the process of either
going through cool-down procedures or running at flight idle when the
crewman in the back seat directly behind the pilot noticed a fire on the
ground to the right of the copter. The crewman exited the ship with a
gallon of water and a fire extinguisher without notifying the pilot. Once
on the ground, he realized that he couldn't extinguish the fire, as it was
now under the helicopter and also to the ship's left. As the crewman
attempted to notify the pilot, the fire flamed into the machine, which had
no doors, and burned the pilot. Both the pilot and crewman escaped the fire
by running downhill from the knoll and were later picked up by another
county helicopter. The subsequent wildfire was suppressed after burning 18
acres, all on park land. The pilot suffered first and moderate second
degree burns on his face, hands, and possibly his elbow; he's received two
hyperbolic treatments at a local burn center, with two more such treatments
scheduled for yesterday. The crewman was treated for smoke inhalation. The
incident could be seen by personnel on the prescribed burn. Park FMO Ish
Messer said that the copter rotors continued to turn on the burning ship
until it sank to one side and the rotors hit the ground. The helicopter is
a total loss. The estimated replacement cost is $1.6 million. The incident
is under investigation by NTSB, FAA and Ventura County fire investigators,
who were on site Wednesday afternoon. The copter was to be removed
yesterday. [Brian Sutton, SAMO, and Rick Gale, FAM/Boise, 7/1]
FIRE ACTIVITY
1) FIRE SITUATION - Preparedness Level II
2) FIRE SUMMARY
State Agency Area Fire 7/1 7/2 Status
MT BLM Miles City Hay 300 700 CND
Finley 120 300 CND
UT USFS Dixie Yankee Meadow - T2 120 120 CL
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
CND - Contained CN (date) - Expected date of containment
3) PARK FIRE REPORTS -
* Sequoia/Kings Canyon - A recon of the Buck Peak prescribed natural fire
on Wednesday afternoon revealed that it had burned about 300 acres.
Smoke was visible from the Copper Creek PNF, but no open flame was seen.
* Chiricahua - The park crew, with the assistance of firefighters from
Saguaro, began black lining the Faraway 3 burn earlier this week.
4) ANALYSIS - Initial attack operations occurred throughout most of the West
yesterday.
5) PROGNOSIS - A red flag warning is in effect in Colorado for dry
conditions and very warm temperatures. The could be an increase in initial
attack in that state due to forecasted afternoon thunderstorms. A red flag
watch for gusty winds has been posted for western Utah. Initial attack
should continue in the Southwest due to continuing hot weather and a chance
of afternoon thunderstorms. California and Nevada will again be mostly
sunny, with temperatures ranging from the 80s in the mountains to around 100
at lower elevations.
[NIFCC Intelligence Section, 0530, 7/2]
RESOURCE MANAGEMENT
Zion (Utah) - Mountain Lion Relocation
Cooperative efforts by Zion, Lake Mead, the University of Nevada Las Vegas
CPSU, and the Utah Division of Wildlife Resources have resulted in the
relocation of two juvenile mountain lions into the park. The relocation
effort resulted from reported mountain lion predation on domestic stock at a
livery stable in Springdale near the south entrance of the park. On June
28th, an animal control officer from the Animal and Plant Health Inspection
Service (APHIS) used his hounds to locate one of the lions - a year-old
female - after it was spotted under a bunkhouse at the stable. The lion was
fitted with a radio collar, loaded into a helicopter, then flown about ten
air miles into the park's backcountry. The second lion, a male thought to
be a sibling of the female, was captured on June 30th and transported to a
heliport within the park boundary. While team members were attempting to
put a capture noose on the lion so that a radio collar could be affixed, the
animal slipped out of the noose, ran up a steep slope, and disappeared among
rocks. Efforts to locate it by helicopter were unsuccessful. Monitoring of
the radio-collared female will continue via ground and aerial tracking. The
capture effort could not have taken place without the contributions of
several individuals, including Lake Mead RMS Ross Haley and CPSU leader
Chuck Douglas, who provided the radio transmitter collar, and Larry van
Slyke, the park's chief ranger, who flew to Las Vegas to get it. NPS
coordinator for the operation was Vic Vieira, Zion's chief of resource
management. [Sheri Fedorchak, RMS, ZION]
STAFF STATUS
Division Chief: Brady at Branch of Fire and Aviation Management's annual
planning session (6/28-7/2).
Branch of Resource and Visitor Protection: Martin, Sisto and Halainen on AL
(7/1-7/2).
Branch of Fire and Aviation: All staff at branch planning session (6/287/2).
Prepared by WASO Division of Ranger Activities
Telephone: Branch of R&VP - 202-208-4874
Branch of F&A (WASO) - 202-208-5572
Telefax: Branch of R&VP - 202-208-6756
Branch of F&A (WASO) - 202-208-5977
cc:Mail: Branch of R&VP - WASO Ranger Activities
Branch of F&A (WASO) - WASO Fire and Aviation
SkyPager: Emergencies ONLY (numeric message) - 1-800-759-7243, PIN 2404843
SkyTalk: Emergencies ONLY (voice message) - 1-800-759-8255, PIN 2404843