RANGER ACTIVITIES DIVISION
                           MORNING REPORT

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

Day/Date:  Wednesday, August 11, 1993

Broadcast: By 0900 EDT

INCIDENTS

93-472 - Midwest Parks - Follow-up on Flood Impacts

* Herbert Hoover (Iowa) - The park suffered flood damage for the second time
within a month when an intense thunderstorm struck the area on the evening
of Monday, August 9th.  Although the park has an early warning high water
sensor on Wapsinonoc Creek, flash flooding brought the creek out of its
banks before park crews could remove all equipment from the maintenance
building.  Several pieces of mechanized equipment were damaged along with a
number of other items.  Two buildings incurred some structural damage, and
raw sewage backed up into the basement of the superintendent's office.  One
tree was blown down, and several others were damaged.  One employee suffered
a back strain and a knee injury during the equipment removal and cleanup
activities.  Although the amount of damage is still being assessed, costs
are expected to top $100,000, a sum which will be in addition to the $50,000
in costs from the last flood.  [Jerry Chilton, HEHO, 8/10]

93-574 - War in the Pacific (Guam) - Follow-up on Earthquake

Since the earthquake of August 8th, the island of Guam has been struck by
over 200 aftershocks, with five tremors in excess of 5.1 on the Richter
scale.  The minor cracks in the walls of the visitor center have expanded,
and many additional cracks have appeared.  The superintendent closed the
building to all visitors as of 7 a.m. (Guam time) on August 11th.  Visitor
center personnel have been reassigned to duties in the maintenance building
and all administrative personnel have been moved to that location.  This
change will remain in effect until a structural analysis of the visitor
center can be completed and the building can be certified as sound.  GSA is
sending a structural engineer from Honolulu who will arrive late on August
12th.  Park maintenance crews are concentrating on the removal and
stabilization of debris and rocks at the numerous earth slides throughout
the park.  All other park facilities are open and operational.  [Edward
Wood, Superintendent, 8/11]

93-586 - Olympic (Washington) - Animal Incident

On Friday, August 6th, a young male cougar was killed by rangers near
Kalaloch Lodge after the animal became an unacceptable public hazard.  The
cougar had frequented the area around the lodge and Kalaloch and South Beach
campgrounds during the last week of July; it had hung around in full view of
rangers and the public, chased lodge employees' pets, and showed little
apparent fear (although no overt aggression) toward people.  The animal was
monitored very closely by rangers during this period in hopes that it would
move on without a need for more active intervention, as other young cougars
in the park have shown similar tendencies for brief periods before
relocating.  The cat then disappeared for a week and a half.  At 6:30 a.m.
on August 6th, it reappeared at Kalaloch Lodge and chased a cat, then
attacked and attempted to carry off a young dog several hours later. 
Rangers also learned that certain lodge employees had been feeding the
cougar meat.  Attempts to drive the animal out of the area with rocks and
firecrackers were unsuccessful, so local hunters were brought in.  They
found and killed the animal at 5:30 that afternoon.  During the process, the
cougar killed one of the hunters' chase dogs.  A post mortem indicated that
the cat was a healthy young male between 18 months and three years old and
that it weighed 91 pounds.  Remains of a domestic house cat were found in
its stomach and were identified as those of a missing cat which belonged to
a lodge employee.  The concentration of inadequately controlled pets owned
by concessioners and employees at this location is considered to be the
prime reason why the cat was attracted to the area and had to be destroyed. 
Translocation elsewhere was no longer a prudent option because of the
cougar's attraction to pets and lack of fear of people.  Appropriate actions
are now being taken locally to correct the situation and prevent or lower
the likelihood of such incidents in the future.  [Bruce Moorhead, Wildlife
Biologist, OLYM, 8/10]

93-587 - Lassen Volcanic (California) - Search

J.J. and T.F., both members of a Green Tortoise bus tour,
missed a trail junction while hiking on the Bumpass Hell trail, became
disoriented due to snow on the trail, and became lost in the park.  A hasty
search was begun for them on the evening of August 7th, then escalated into
a full search the following day.  A search dog found J.J. and T.F. on
the morning of the 8th.  Both were in good condition.  Rangers were assisted
by a California Highway Patrol helicopter and by search teams from the
Forest Service, California Department of Forestry, Tehama and Shasta
counties, and CARDA.  [CRO, LAVO, 8/10]

93-588 - Gateway (New York/New Jersey) - Structural Fire

An interior portion of the old main bathhouse complex at Great Kills on
Staten Island burned in a fire of unknown origin at approximately 5:30 p.m.
on August 10th.  There were no known injuries.  The structure was condemned
by OSHA following the extensive seashore erosion which resulted from the
"Halloween Storm" in 1991, and the building segment which burned was
currently unused.  A demolition contract is pending, and construction of
replacement facilities is scheduled to begin in the coming fiscal year.  [Ed
Rizzotto, Superintendent, Staten Island Unit, GATE, 8/10]

93-589 - Point Reyes (California) - Drug Arrest

At 12:30 p.m. on August 6th, S.H., 48, was arrested for cultivation of
marijuana in the park.  Rangers had received a report of suspicious activity
in the Thirteen Curves area of the park.  They subsequently arrested S.H.
after obtaining his consent to search the interior of his truck and finding
122 five-leafed clusters in a paper sack on the floor.  S.H. then led
rangers to his plot in the park, where he had 15 plants, two five gallon
watering jugs, a solar plastic shower, and black plastic water tubing. 
S.H. also gave rangers consent to search his home in San Rafael, where they
confiscated a small quantity of drugs.  S.H. stated that the drugs found at
his residence had also been cultivated in the park.  [Paige Ritterbusch,
PORE, 8/10]

FIRE ACTIVITY

1) FIRE SITUATION - Preparedness Level II

2) FIRE SUMMARY

State  Agency     Area            Fire              8/10      8/11   Status

 AK    State   Tanana Zone       B248             36,250    36,250   NEC 

 OR    State   --                Tin Pan Peak        100       600   CND
 AZ    State   --              * Blizzard              -       350   CND

 FL    USFS    Ocala             Juniper           1,155     1,155   CND    
       State   --                Tates Hell          750       800   NEC
       USFWS   Merritt Island  * Nine Point One        -       360   NEC

 LA    USFWS   Sabine            Mitchell            600     1,000   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
  CND - Contained              CN (date) - Expected date of containment

3) PARK FIRE REPORTS - No significant reports today.

4) ANALYSIS - Initial attack activity continued in the South yesterday. 
Moderate fire activity was reported in most of the West.

5) PROGNOSIS - A red flag warning has been posted for northwest Arizona for
increasing winds and low humidity.  Scattered showers and mostly wet
thunderstorms will continue in the Great Basin, the Southwest, the Rockies
and the South.  Containment efforts on large fires should be aided by
moderating weather, and there should be relatively few new starts.  It will
be mostly sunny in the interior of California, but there will be a slight
chance of thunderstorms in the southern mountains and deserts.

[NIFCC Intelligence Section, 8/11; NPS Wildland Fire Report, 8/11]

RESOURCE MANAGEMENT

Yukon-Charley Rivers (Alaska) - Peregrine Falcons

On July 16th, Fish and Wildlife Service and NPS biologists completed the
second half of the annual peregrine falcon survey of major rivers in the
park.  Fifty-six aeries were active (a few nesting pairs located in early
June had failed), and 113 young were observed.  Biologists banded nestlings
and collected addled eggs, adult blood samples, and prey remains.  One adult
female was fitted with a satellite transmitter to monitor her migration over
the next ten months.  Including aeries located by helicopter in previous
years, researchers now believe that between 70 and 80 pairs of peregrines
nest in the park.  The Yukon River population is one of two index sites for
American peregrine falcon recovery in Alaska.  [Penny Knuckles, YUCH, 8/10]

STAFF STATUS

Division Chief: No leave or travel scheduled.

Branch of Resource and Visitor Protection: Martin at Aufhauser shooting
review and on AL (8/10-8/22); Halainen at uniform contract meeting (8/11-
8/12); Dickerhoof on AL (8/12-8/22).

Branch of Fire and Aviation: Spruill at aviation management council work
group meeting (8/8-8/13); Botti at operations evaluation at Grand Canyon
(8/9-8/20); Gale on hurricane plan review at Everglades (8/9-8/13); Broyles
(8/6-8/16) and Clark (8/2-8/13) on annual leave.

Prepared by WASO Division of Ranger Activities

Telephone: Branch of R&VP - 202-208-4874
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