- Subject: NPS Morning Report - Wednesday, June 1, 1994
- Date: Wed, 1 Jun 1994
NATIONAL PARK SERVICE
MORNING REPORT
To: All National Park Service Areas and Offices
From: Division of Ranger Activities, Washington Office
Day/Date: Wednesday, June 1, 1994
Broadcast: By 0930 ET
INCIDENTS
94-256 - Sequoia/Kings Canyon (California) - Larceny Arrest
Rangers brought an extended investigation of pipe safe thefts to a
successful conclusion on May 27th with the arrest of M.L.H., 34, of
Lennox, California. There have been multiple thefts from campground pipe
safes over the last year in which the thief employed some sort of "fishing"
device to withdraw fee envelopes back through the deposit slot. Recently,
M.L.H. and a female companion, C.L.G., 19, had been identified
as suspects in a pipe safe theft in Cedar Grove. Nightly surveillance of
the Potwisha campground was begun and paid off when M.L.H. was observed
working for an hour and a half on a pipe safe there at 3:30 a.m. on a recent
morning. M.L.H. and C.L.G. were subsequently arrested as they attempted to
leave the area. The U.S. attorney declined to press charges against
C.L.G., but M.L.H. was charged with theft of public monies, possession of a
loaded weapon, possession of a firearm with an obliterated serial number,
being a felon in possession of a firearm, and tampering. The investigation
is continuing. The couple is believed to have visited other parks, and may
have committed similar offenses in campgrounds both in national parks and
other jurisdictions. Parks who have had similar losses or rangers who may
have contacted M.L.H. or C.L.G. are asked to call Pete Allen or Randy Larson
at 209-565-3341 or contact them via cc:Mail. [Pete Allen, SEKI, 5/27]
94-257 - Yellowstone (Wyoming) - Serious Geothermal Burns
Around 4:30 p.m. on May 30th, J.B., 23, of Livingston, Montana,
received first and second degree burns over approximately 13 percent of her
body after being sprayed during a geyser eruption near Midway Geyser Basin.
J.B. was visiting the park with two companions when they noticed activity
starting at Flood Geyser. They hiked off-trail to the site and were
standing on its rim when it erupted. J.B., who was wearing shorts, was
burned on her legs. One of her companions was not splashed; the other, who
had been fishing and was wearing waders, was splashed but not injured. The
group drove to Madison for assistance. Rangers there transported J.B. by
ambulance to the Old Faithful Clinic, where she was treated and released.
[CRO, YELL, 5/31]
94-258 - Canyon de Chelly (Arizona) - ARPA Arrest
On May 27th, a jewelry vendor at Antelope House Ruin reported that a Navajo
from the area and a white male had crossed the fence and entered the ruins;
when they left, the latter was carrying a fiber sandal. Ranger William
Yazzie located the vehicle and the two suspects in the visitor center
parking lot the next day and recovered the sandal from the truck. The two
were cited by Navajo rangers for collecting petrified wood without a permit.
ARPA charges are pending with the U.S. attorney's office. [CRO, CACH, 5/31]
94-259 - Chickamauga/Chattanooga (Georgia) - Serious Falling Injury
On the afternoon of May 30th, a six-year-old girl and another child were
climbing on high rocks adjacent to a trail near Point Park when the girl
fell approximately 15 feet back onto the trail surface and suffered severe
head injuries. She was flown by helicopter to a hospital in Chattanooga for
surgery and is currently in serious condition. An investigating into the
exact cause of the fall is underway. The children were on a hike with their
family at the time of the incident. [Sam Weddle, CR, CHCH, 6/1]
94-260 - Lake Mead (Nevada) - Parasailing Fatality
M.D., 18, was killed on the afternoon of May 29th when he fell from a
collapsed parasail while he and his family were testing their new
parasailing equipment in the 33 Hole area near Las Vegas Bay. M.D. was about
50 to 75 feet in the air behind a ski boat when the parasail collapsed and
he fell into the water, landing on his left side. M.D. was transported by
boat to the Las Vegas Bay launch ramp, then airlifted by helicopter to a
local hospital, where he died shortly thereafter. [Bud Inman, LAME, 5/31]
FIRE ACTIVITY
1) NATIONAL PREPAREDNESS LEVEL - Level I
2) LARGE FIRE SUMMARY
State Agency Area Fire 5/31 6/1 Status
NC USFS - Fish Day - T1 24,600 24,600 CN 6/2
NV NPS Lake Mead * Spirit - 100 NEC
BLM Las Vegas * Jumbo - 500 CN 6/1
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 - Containment strategy NEC - No estimate of containment
CND - Contained CN (date) - Expected date of containment
3) FIRES YESTERDAY (BY AGENCY) -
NPS BIA BLM FWS States USFS Total
Number 3 1 15 1 54 26 100
Acres Burned 100 14 594 100 169 30 1,007
4) COMMITTED RESOURCES -
Crews Engines Helicopters Airtankers Overhead
Federal 9 27 14 5 256
Non-federal 0 9 0 6 61
5) CURRENT SITUATION - Initial attack activity continued yesterday in
Alaska, California, the Southwest and North Carolina and Florida in the
Southeast; new activity was reported in the Great Basin and Rockies.
6) OUTLOOK - The Southeastern seaboard from North Carolina to Florida will
be partly cloudy with scattered afternoon and evening thundershowers. Fire
activity should accordingly moderate in the area - except in Florida, which
continues to have potential for fire activity. Southern California and
Arizona will be mostly sunny and hot. New Mexico will be partly cloudy with
widely scattered afternoon and evening thunderstorms. Fire activity may
increase in southern California, Arizona and southern Nevada.
[NIFCC Incident Management Situation Report, 6/1]
RESOURCE MANAGEMENT
No field reports today.
OPERATIONAL NOTES
No notes.
MEMORANDA
No memoranda.
Prepared by WASO Division of Ranger Activities
Telephone: 202-208-4874
Telefax: 202-208-6756
cc:Mail: WASO Ranger Activities
SkyPager: Emergencies ONLY: 1-800-759-7243, PIN 2404843