- Subject: NPS Morning Report - Friday, July 15, 1994
- Date: Fri, 15 Jul 1994
NATIONAL PARK SERVICE
MORNING REPORT
To: All National Park Service Areas and Offices
From: Division of Ranger Activities, Washington Office
Day/Date: Friday, July 15, 1994
Broadcast: By 0930 ET
*** NOTICE ***
Flags lowered to half staff in tribute to the firefighters who died in
Colorado last week and in New Mexico this week return to full staff today.
INCIDENTS
94-386 - Grand Canyon (Arizona) - Rescue
Early on the morning of Tuesday, July 12th, back country rangers began a
search for 61-year-old W.L. of Chicago, whose family reported
that he'd failed to return from a backcountry trip in the Hermit Creek area
of the park. W.L. had a two-night camping itinerary and was scheduled to
hike out of the canyon on July 10th. He was hiking alone, and, according to
his family, had no prior backpacking experience. Following an intensive 13
hour search involving over 30 NPS employees and two helicopters, rangers
located W.L. just before sunset that evening. He was found in a drainage
off the main Hermit Trail, which he set out upon on the 8th. W.L. had
apparently underestimated the difficulty of the Hermit Creek Trail and the
effects of the desert climate typical during this time of the year. He was
exhausted, nearly out of food, and suffering from the effects of
dehydration, exposure, and fatigue. W.L. was medevaced to the South Rim
and taken to the Grand Canyon Clinic, where he was treated and released. He
returned home with his son and nephew on Wednesday morning. [CRO, GRCA,
7/13]
94-387 - Glen Canyon (Utah/Arizona) - Rescue
Rangers in the Hite Subdistrict responded to two medical incidents requiring
rescues in the Dark Canyon primitive area last week. Both incidents
involved members of The Road Less Traveled, a Chicago-based wilderness
adventure group. At 3 a.m. on July 6th, a 15-year-old female with severe
abdominal pain was evacuated to a hospital in Farmington, New Mexico, where
doctors determined that she had a ruptured ovarian cyst and bladder
infection. At 7 a.m. on the 7th, a 15-year-old male from the same group
became disoriented and unable to walk. Rangers treated him for dehydration
and hypoglycemia at the scene, then had him air evacuated to Farmington. In
both cases, rangers who are also parkmedics administered Ivs and medication
according to established protocols. [Tomie Lee, CR, GLCA, 7/7]
94-388 - Big Thicket (Texas) - Drownings
On Friday, July 7th, the park was advised that H.R., 64, and H.S.,
54, were missing on the Neches River in the park's Beaumont Unit,
and that an abandoned boat had been discovered across from the Lakeview day
use area. Just before 2 p.m., Orange County deputies found their bodies.
They were subsequently recovered by rangers and local volunteer fire
department personnel and taken to the county crime lab for autopsies.
[Robert Kirch, Acting CR, BITH, 7/12]
94-389 - Everglades (Florida) - Felony Dumping Arrest
On June 20th, ranger Jeff West of the park's East Everglades Subdistrict
investigated an illegal dump site just inside the park's legislative
boundary. West inspected nearly a ton of material, consisting of copier
parts, shipping boxes and wooden pallets. Although most serial numbers had
been removed, he was able to obtain them from some machines, and also was
able to recover identifying numbers from shipping crates. West then
employed these to reconstruct equipment shipments and ownership. A serial
number found on a Pitney Bowes copier was traced from the manufacturer to
subsequent owners to the hauling company finally hired to dispose of the
machine. Through numerous telephone interviews, he established probable
cause that the trash had been dumped by M.M., 23, a driver for PAPI
Express of Miami, a company that commercially hauls and disposes of trash.
It appears that M.M. had been selling his unused dump tickets for profit,
then disposed of the trash illegally. Since the lands where the dumping
occurred are not presently in NPS ownership or jurisdiction, West turned the
information over to the Metro Dade dumping task force, which arrested M.M.
on June 21st. M.M. was charged with felony dumping under Florida state law.
[Bob Panko, DR, EVER, 7/8]
FIRE ACTIVITY
1) PREPAREDNESS LEVEL - III
2) LARGE FIRE SUMMARY
State Agency Area Fire 7/14 7/15 Status
CO USFS Grand Mesa -
Uncompahgre NF North Fork - T1 512 512 CN 7/15
Arapaho -
Roosevelt NF Larimer Complex - T1 365 473 CND
White River NF Ute Creek 2,000 2,300 NEC
BLM Craig Dis. Box D 700 980 CND
Blue Gravel 1,400 1,800 CN 7/16
Montrose Dis. Wray 1,000 1,000 CN 7/18
BIA Southern Ute
Agency * Black Ridge - 1,200 NEC
AZ USFS Prescott NF Juniper 1,800 1,800 CN 7/12
Coronado NF Rattlesnake - T1 17,025 19,812 NEC
State - Redington
Complex - T2 17,507 20,262 NEC
Sunset 212 212 NEC
NM USFS Cibola NF Big Rocks
Complex - T2 7,015 7,015 CN 7/15
Gila NF Pigeon 6,250 6,250 CN 7/15
TX NPS Big Bend NP Estufa 2,500 3,774 CN 7/15
UT BLM SL City Dis. Black Mountain 130 130 CND
NV BLM Carson Cty Dis. * Hallelujah - T2 - 6,000 NEC
OR BLM Prineville Dis. Horsehaven 3,000 3,000 CND
State - * Roxey Ann - 160 NEC
CA State - * Browns - 1,650 CND
San Bernadino * Frankish - 200 CN 7/15
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) FIRES YESTERDAY -
NPS BIA BLM FWS States USFS Total
Number 4 9 29 1 80 67 190
Acres Burned 2,756 6,015 74 2 809 2,969 12,625
4) COMMITTED RESOURCES -
Crews Engines Helicopters Airtankers Overhead
Federal 152 62 46 22 803
Non-federal 34 52 2 1 79
5) CURRENT SITUATION - Fire activity increased in several areas of the West
yesterday. Extreme fire behavior persists on fires in the Southwest.
Equipment, aircraft, crews and overhead were mobilized through NICC to the
West, Great Basin, Northwest and Rockies. Crews are being demobilized from
fires in the Southwest.
6) OUTLOOK - Scattered afternoon and evening thunderstorms will concentrate
over eastern Montana and eastern Wyoming; there will be isolated storms over
the remainder of the interior West. Temperatures will show little change
from the past few days. Initial attack activity will continue throughout
the West. The potential exists for escaped fires.
[NIFCC Incident Management Situation Report, 7/15]
RESOURCE MANAGEMENT
No field reports today.
OPERATIONAL NOTES
1) NPS History Publication - The History Division recently circulated an
announcement and order form for "America's National Park System: The
Critical Documents", edited by Lary M. Dilsaver. People making early
efforts to order the book encountered some difficulties. The publisher,
Rowan and Littlefield, was initially unwilling to accept purchase orders
without previously established accounts, but is now willing to accept them
under the following conditions:
* The order should be addressed to the attention of Elisabeth Ashcraft.
* The order should reference a June 29, 1994 telephone agreement between
NPS bureau historian Barry Mackintosh and Ms. Ashcraft.
* The order must include the name of a contact person and a telephone
number.
Third party drafts may of course be used in lieu of purchase orders. If you
have any questions or encounter further difficulties in ordering this book,
contact Barry Mackintosh at 202-343-8169.
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