- Subject: NPS Morning Report - Monday, June 27, 1994
- Date: Mon, 27 Jun 1994
NATIONAL PARK SERVICE
MORNING REPORT
To: All National Park Service Areas and Offices
From: Division of Ranger Activities, Washington Office
Day/Date: Monday, June 27, 1994
Broadcast: By 0930 ET
INCIDENTS
94-330 - Jefferson National Expansion (Missouri) - Armed Robbery of Employee
A park maintenance employee reporting for duty was robbed at gunpoint in the
rear entrance of the Arch complex a few minutes past midnight on June 22nd.
The victim lost a diamond and gold wedding band, a diamond earring and a
small amount of cash. The suspect fled up the steep vegetated bank nearby,
then scaled a six-foot-high chain link fence to escape. Initial
investigation of the scene and a search of adjoining areas proved fruitless.
The investigation continues. [CRO, JEFF, 6/24]
94-331 - Yellowstone (Wyoming) - Visitor Injured by Bison
Twelve-year-old C.J. of Salt Lake City was injured on the morning of
June 24th when she was butted by a bison at Bridge Bay campground. The
large bull, whose weight was estimated at about a ton, was grazing
peacefully near the campground's G loop when C.J. approached to within less
than ten feet to take a photograph. In doing so, she inadvertently
"cornered" the bison; as she moved to change the angle of light for the
photograph, the bison began to move toward her. She turned to move away,
but he followed, accelerating as she did until her overtook her, butted her
from behind, and lifted her into the air. Rangers responded, immobilized
her, and transported her by ambulance to Lake Hospital. C.J. was treated
for abrasions and bruises, observed for indications of internal injuries,
then released. Rangers will monitor the bison, who, along with many other
bulls, is displaying early signs of rutting behavior. [Mike Murray, ACR,
YELL, 6/25]
94-332 - Rocky Mountain (Colorado) - Special Event
Emperor Akihito and Empress Michiko of Japan visited the park on Sunday,
June 19th. The royal family spent approximately two hours in the park
enjoying the vistas, learning about the wildlife, and viewing wildflowers.
The visit was managed without incident by park staff in cooperation with the
Secret Service. [David Holmes, ROMO, 6/21]
94-333 - Boston (Massachusetts) - Assist on Major Fire
A nine-alarm fire broke out in a warehouse on a pier located nearby the park
and the Freedom Trail just after midnight on June 24th. Both pedestrian and
vehicle traffic was diverted from Washington Bridge, a major access route
into the city, and rangers were called upon to provide assistance to the
many commuters who became lost due to detours. At its peak, over 200
firefighters were involved in firefighting efforts, and countless police
officers diverted and directed traffic. Two firefighters were seriously
injured and a third is missing and probably dead. Only minimal disruption
of park activities is expected, however. [CRO, BOST, 6/24]
94-334 - New River Gorge (West Virginia) - Rescue
While attempting a 5.13 climb in the Amphitheater area of Kaymoor on the
afternoon of June 19th, J.B., 18, of Free Union, Virginia, fell about
20 feet when a rock he was using as a handhold pulled loose. J.B. had not
clipped his belay rope into the first protection sling when he fell. He was
treated at the scene and evacuated to a hospital by rangers. [Rick Brown,
DR, NERI, 6/22]
FIRE ACTIVITY
1) PREPAREDNESS LEVEL - III
2) LARGE FIRE SUMMARY
State Agency Area Fire 6/23 6/27 Status
WY BLM Rawlins Dis. * Powder - 350 CND
CO State - * Mexican Ridge - 300 NEC
BLM Grand Jct. Dis. * Buniger Canyon - 100 NEC
Craig Dis. * Fletcher 2 - 200 NEC
NM USFS Cibola NF Ryan Comp. - T2 - 24,800 CN 6/29
Gila NF Pigeon - T1 3,290 3,290 CND
BLM Las Cruces Dis. Organ 4,800 4,995 CND
UT BLM Moab Dis. * Wheat Field - 500 CN 6/26
AZ USFS Tonto NF * Camp - 1,200 CND
* Crossing - 500 CND
* Highline - 85 CND
NV BLM Elko Dis. * Hoppie Canyon - 800 CND
Ely Dis. * Board - 600 CND
OR BLM Prineville Dis. * Box Elder - 1,140 CN 6/28
* Ferry - 1,500 CN 6/27
CA State - * Sargents - 1,140 CND
* Ridge - 725 CND
* Hunter - 600 NEC
* Bailey - 1,200 CN 6/28
* Second - T1 - 2,000 NEC
USFS Angeles NF * Shooting - T2 - 3,000 NEC
* Scout - T2 - 1,800 NEC
Modoc NF * Corporation - T2 - 200 CN 6/27
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/CS (date) - Expected date of containment
3) FIRE HIGHLIGHTS -
Scout, Angeles NF and State - The fire has burned 22 structures, 10 of them
homes. About 80 homes were evacuated in Wrightwood yesterday, and another
3,400 homes, a lab and a radio facility are threatened.
Alaskan Parks - As of yesterday, there were seven uncontained fires in
national parks in Alaska. They ranger in size from seven to 6,071 acres for
a total of 12,208 acres. None of the NPS fires are staffed; in fact, the
cool, wet weather now prevailing over much of the state has made it
difficult to conduct aerial observations of most of the fires, which were
last flown on June 16th. The weather forecast indicates that a drying trend
will begin today.
4) FIRES TODAY (BY AGENCY) -
NPS BIA BLM FWS States USFS Total
Number 2 7 21 0 27 55 112
Acres Burned 2 225 2,415 0 531 2,696 5,869
5) COMMITTED RESOURCES -
Crews Engines Helicopters Airtankers Overhead
Federal 105 107 34 21 407
Non-federal 57 110 4 6 84
6) CURRENT SITUATION - Fire activity increased throughout the West
yesterday. Numerous areas in the Great Basin, Rockies, Southwest and
California are reporting very high to extreme fire indices.
7) OUTLOOK - Hot and dry conditions and low relative humidities will prevail
throughout the Southwest. Afternoon thunderstorms are expected over
portions of Utah and New Mexico. Extreme fire behavior is expected to
continue on large fires. Initial attack activity will probably escalate
with continued hot and dry weather conditions. Competition for resources
may occur if fire activity persists.
[NIFCC Incident Management Situation Report, Thursday, 6/27; ARO Wildland
Fire Update, 6/26]
RESOURCE MANAGEMENT
Pacific Northwest Region - Northern Spotted Owl
On June 6th, U.S. District Judge William Dwyer of the Western District of
Washington released the July 2, 1992 injunction against the auctioning or
awarding of additional timber sales from northern spotted owl habitat in the
Pacific Northwest. This action follows the release of the record of
decision by the Secretaries of Agriculture and Interior on the EIS for the
President's forest plan, which was developed by the President's forest
conference in Portland, Oregon, in April of 1993. The plan, among other
things, establishes an interagency regional ecosystem office (REO) to help
implement the plan, which is made up of representatives from each of seven
federal agencies. PNRO and WRO are active players in aspects of ecosystem
management reflected in the forest plan, with PNRO having a permanent
position on the REO. An interagency policy group made up of the Pacific
Northwest regional directors of the key federal agencies was also
established by the plan; the NPS is a member of this group as well. Several
parks in PNR - North Cascades, Olympic, Crater Lake and Oregon Caves - are
surrounded by national forests that are within the range of the forest plan.
Redwoods in WR is actively involved because of its leading role over the
past decade in watershed analysis and restoration, both of which play a
significant part in the forest plan, and because of the extensive acreage of
old growth forest the park has within its boundaries. As such, all of these
parks have a significant stake in cooperative interagency whole systems
management. Judge Dwyer's release of the injunction does not constitute a
ruling one way or the other on the legality of the forest plan. All parties
remain free to challenge it; at least six lawsuits have currently been
filed, with oral arguments scheduled for September. [Tony Sisto, NPS, REO,
Portland]
OPERATIONAL NOTES
1) Operation Opportunity - Operation Opportunity is now fully operational.
There are 24 park vacancies within the system that will be announced today,
and notices on cc:Mail will be sent to the nearly 600 interested central
office employees who have indicated a desire to be considered for these
jobs. Persons should follow the procedure guidelines announced in the
Morning Report on Friday, June 24th, to indicate their interest in a
particular position.
MEMORANDA
"Reprogramming Delay of Ranger Careers Implementation", signed on June 24th
by the Acting Associate Director, Operations, and sent to all Regional
Directors and Superintendents. The full text follows:
"As a matter of courtesy and complying with the rules of Congress,
reprogramming requests over a certain dollar amount are routinely submitted
for advance review to the Congressional Appropriations Committees. Rules
require the committees be afforded a reasonable (30 days) period to
thoroughly review reprogramming requests and indicate their approval.
"On June 14, 1994 our reprogramming request for Ranger Careers was
transmitted to the committees. It was our intent to begin the
implementation with pay period 16, on July 10, 1994. However, to allow the
committees the appropriate amount of time, we will need to delay
implementation at least one pay period.
"As you know, Ranger Careers is the implementation of Ranger Futures, our
program to insure that the National Park Service interpretation and
protection functions are performed to high professional standards. Ranger
Careers will greatly benefit the Service, resource education, resource
protection, and visitor services, thus we feel confident that the committees
will concur in our reprogramming proposal.
"If negotiations with the committees go well, we may be able to implement
the program beginning on pay period 17, (on July 24, 1994) but obviously we
cannot make a firm commitment to that date. We will provide you with
specific advice on when to begin the program.
"Please inform affected supervisors and employees that this delay is both
reasonable and necessary."
MEETINGS/TRAINING CALENDAR
Calendar appears in the morning report every other Monday. If you know of a
conference, meeting or training session with Servicewide interest and
implications, please forward the listing to WASO Ranger Activities. Entries
are listed no earlier than FOUR months before the event. Asterisks indicate
new entries; brackets at end of entry indicate source of information:
7/5-6 -- Third Mammoth Cave Science Conference, Mammoth Cave NP, KY. The
conference will focus on current cultural, ecological and
hydrological research in and around the park. Twenty-four
research papers will be presented. Contact: Joe Meiman,
conference coordinator, 502-749-2508. [MACA]
7/6-8 -- Watershed Restoration Techniques, Redwood National Park, CA.
This three-day course provides an introduction to watershed
rehab techniques, concentrating on erosion control, road removal
and watershed restoration. It is intended for professionals
working in land management agencies who have knowledge of basic
geomorphic principles. $100 fee. For registration of further
information, contact Loretta Farley at 707-465-4113 or 5668, or
via cc:Mail by name. [Loretta Farley, REDW]
7/11-13* -- "Soft Footprints for the 90s: Rocky Mountain Symposium on
Environmental Issues in Oil and Gas Operations". The symposium
will address environmentally sound oil and gas operations, site
remediation, regulatory trends, ecosystem management and water
quality. Jointly sponsored by the Colorado School of Mines and
BLM; NPS Mining and Minerals is chairing a session and serving
on the organizing committee. Contact: Bruce Heise at 303-969-
2017, or via cc:Mail by name. [Bruce Heise, MMB/WASO]
7/12-15 -- "Sustaining the Ecological Integrity of Large Floodplain Rivers:
Application of Ecological Knowledge to River Management,"
LaCrosse, WI. Contact: Penny Tiedt, University of Wisconsin -
LaCrosse, 608-785-6503. [Kathy Jope, RAD/PNRO]
7/26-28 -- Southeast Region Chief Ranger/Chief Interpreter Conference,
Ponte Vedra Beach, FL. [Bill Springer, RAD/SERO]
7/28-30 -- Watershed Restoration Techniques, Redwood National Park, CA.
This three-day course provides an introduction to watershed
rehab techniques, concentrating on erosion control, road removal
and watershed restoration. It is intended for professionals
working in land management agencies who have knowledge of basic
geomorphic principles. $100 fee. For registration of further
information, contact Loretta Farley at 707-465-4113 or 5668, or
via cc:Mail by name. [Loretta Farley, REDW]
8/3-6 -- Little Bighorn Legacy Program, Billings, MT. Some two dozen of
the most noted scholars on westward expansion and the Indian
Wars will make presentations from new social, historical and
cultural perspectives. Presenters will include members of
various Indian tribes involved in the battle, historians Paul
Hutton and Alvin Josephy, authors Jerome Greene, John McDermott,
Joe Porter, Paul Hedren, Joe Marshall and Rick Williams.
Contact: Doug McChristian, Little Bighorn, 406-638-2621.
8/9-14 -- "Saving All The Pieces", Society for Ecological Restoration
Conference, Lansing, MI. Contact: Robert Welch, 517-483-9675.
[Kathy Jope, PNRO]
8/22-25* -- "Thirty Years' Committment to Wilderness: Planning for the
Future", 1994 Region One Wilderness Ranger Rendezvous, Spotted
Bear Ranger District, Flathead NF, MT. The goal is to "create a
welcome environment for wilderness rangers, frontliners and
field managers to learn and share in the continuing stewardship
of wilderness." Information forwarded from USFS; no contact
number provided.
8/18-21 -- 67th Pecos Conference, Mesa Verde, CO. Contact: Linda Towle at
Mesa Verde at 303-529-4510.
8/24-26 -- Watershed Restoration Techniques, Redwood National Park, CA.
This three-day course provides an introduction to watershed
rehab techniques, concentrating on erosion control, road removal
and watershed restoration. It is intended for professionals
working in land management agencies who have knowledge of basic
geomorphic principles. $100 fee. For registration of further
information, contact Loretta Farley at 707-465-4113 or 5668, or
via cc:Mail by name. [Loretta Farley, REDW]
8/28-9/3* -- "Cultures Connected: Automating Museums in the Americas and
Beyond", Renaissance Hotel, Washington, DC. Joint meeting of
the International Council of Museums Documentation Committee and
the and the Museum Computer Network; hosted by the NPS,
Smithsonian Institution and National Gallery of Art.
Discussions and workshops will include information sharing, data
structure and terminology, multimedia, imaging, Internet, public
policy, technology and culture, and more. Contact: Joan
Bacharach, 202-343-8140. [Joan Bacharach, CSD/WASO]
8/29-31 -- Sustaining Rangeland Ecosystems, La Grande, OR. Contact: John
Tanaka, 503-963-7122. [Kathy Jope, PNRO]
8/30-9/1* -- Universal Access to Backcountry/Primitive Recreation Areas. The
training course will employ St. Croix NSR as the classroom to
train employees on ways to better meet the needs of disabled
visitors in outdoor recreation areas. Look for the current NPS
training announcement. Contact: Kay Ellis, 202-343-3674. [Kay
Ellis, Office of Accessibility, WASO]
9/10-12 -- Second Annual Meeting, Central Division Working Group, Declining
Amphibian Populations Task Force, Bailly Training Center,
Indiana Dunes NL, IN. Papers given on the first two days will
include a wide range of topics related to amphibians; a
discussion on methods for establishing amphibian censuses will
take place during the session on the 12th. Contact: Registration
- Dr. Michael J. Lannoo, 712-337-3669; information - Dr. Ralph
Grundel, INDU, 219-926-7561. [Gary Sullivan, MWRO]-
/11-16 -- Managerial Grid, Phase I, and Managerial Grid Instructor
Preparation Seminar, Richmond, VA. Sponsored by ANPR. An NPS
course announcement will be out shortly. Contact: Debbie
Gorman, 518-793-3140. [Bill Wade, SHEN]
9/19-23* -- "Retrofitting for Accessibility: A Course for Maintenance
Personnel", Bradford Woods, Martinsville, IN. This course,
which is directed toward facility managers and maintenance
personnel, will focus on physical access and on making our
facilities accessible to disabled visitors. Look for the
current NPS training announcement. Contact: Kay Ellis, 202-343-
3674. [Kay Ellis, Office of Accessibility, WASO]
9/21-25 -- First Annual Conference of the Wildlife Society, Albuquerque,
NM. Contact: Doug Slack, Department of Wildlife and Fisheries
Science, Texas A&M University, College Station, TX 77843-2258.
[Steve Cinnamon, MWRO]
9/22-24 -- Watershed Restoration Techniques, Redwood National Park, CA.
This three-day course provides an introduction to watershed
rehab techniques, concentrating on erosion control, road removal
and watershed restoration. It is intended for professionals
working in land management agencies who have knowledge of basic
geomorphic principles. $100 fee. For registration of further
information, contact Loretta Farley at 707-465-4113 or 5668, or
via cc:Mail by name. [Loretta Farley, REDW]
Prepared by WASO Division of Ranger Activities
Telephone: 202-208-4874
Telefax: 202-208-6756
cc:Mail: WASO Ranger Activities
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