NATIONAL PARK SERVICE
                           MORNING REPORT

To:        All National Park Service Areas and Offices

From:      Division of Ranger Activities, Washington Office

Day/Date:  Tuesday, August 30, 1994

Broadcast: By 0930 ET

INCIDENTS

94-507 - Lake Chelan (Washington) - Boating Accident with Fatalities

A seventeen-foot motorboat struck a rock wall on the shoreline of Lake
Chelan at a high rate of speed around noon on August 28th, killing two of
its three occupants - B.B., 43, a UCLA professor and
anesthesiologist, and his father, M.B., 73, a retired brain surgeon
who was living in the area.  B.B.'s six-year-old daughter, who was in
a rear facing seat at the time of the accident, survived and suffered only
minor injuries.  The accident was reported by a local cabin owner who heard
the screams of the young girl from the damaged Boston whaler.  The girl
subsequently told rangers that the boat hit the rocks and turned around
several times before the engine stopped.  Rangers helped recover the bodies. 
The accident occurred in the vicinity of Riddle Creek, which is near the
boundary of Lake Chelan NRA; the exact location of the accident is unknown
at this time.  The Chelan county sheriff is the conducting the investigation
with assistance from the NPS.  [David Spirtes, CR, NOCA, 8/29]

94-508 - Yosemite (California) - Discovery of Aircraft Accident Wreckage

On August 17th, park investigators examined the wreckage of a downed Piper
single engine aircraft discovered in a remote section of Stubblefield
Canyon, which is located in the northern section of the park.  The wreckage
was discovered by a trail crew member hiking cross-country on his days off. 
Working with the FAA and NTSB officials, park investigators discovered the
aircraft was reported missing on July 20, 1962, by the families of the four
men reported to be on board.  The flight reportedly left Fresno on July 19,
1962, at about 11 p.m. after the conclusion of a Billy Graham concert
attended by the four men, one of whom was to become an ordained minister the
following week.  The location of the wreck was outside the area of the
normal return flight path between Fresno and Sacramento, and the intensive
air and ground search for the aircraft that was subsequently conducted did
not include the park.  The wreckage was discovered at about 9,000 feet on a
south-facing granite slope of between 35 and 50 degrees.  The condition and
location of the wreckage was such that the park's contract helicopter pilot
was unable to locate the wreckage while examining the mountainside on his
initial examination of the site.  Trail crew members hiked and climbed for
over an hour, covering extremely rugged terrain, to reach the crash site
from their base camp, a distance of about 1,000 yards.  They directed the
helicopter with investigators to the site.  Investigators enlisted the
assistance of two park archaeologists to construct a map of the crash site
as a part of the investigation.  A grid search of the 100 by 200 yard wide
debris field resulted in the location and collection of several identifying
articles, human remains, and aircraft parts bearing serial numbers.  The
quantity and condition of the recovered human remains makes it unlikely the
identification of any of the four men reported to be on board will be
conclusive, according to county officials.  [Greg Jablonski, YOSE, 8/29]

94-509 - Boston (Massachusetts) - Assists on Armed Robberies

On the afternoon of August 24th, a man about 30 years old held up the New
World Bank, took a money bag which contained a hidden dye bomb, fled on a
bicycle, then took off on foot after a near accident with two motor vehicles
at Building 107, the park's maintenance facility.  Rangers and Boston police
officers were searching the area when maintenance employee Henry Beavis
spotted him in Building 107.  The man ran towards one the building's exits,
saw two officers outside, then ran into the autoshop section of the building
and attempted to hide in an NPS Bobcat loader.  He was found and arrested
shortly thereafter.  Rangers and police subsequently searched the building
for weapons, but were unable to find any.  A week earlier, on the afternoon
of August 18th, five men attempted to holdup two Wells Fargo bank guards at
gunpoint while they were resupplying a bank teller machine in the
Charlestown Navy Yard about a block from the vehicle entrance gate into the
park.  Rangers heard three shots and saw the suspects and vehicle as it left
the scene.  Rangers assisted Boston police officers and FBI agents in
gathering information and evidence at the scene.  One guard was slightly
injured in that incident.  Investigations in both cases continue.  [Jon
Dick, CR, BOST, 8/26]

FIRE ACTIVITY

The national fire report is not available this morning.  The NPS situation
report is as follows:

Predicted fire dangers in several key locations are still a matter of
concern during this summer's fire season.  Sequoia-Kings Canyon, Yosemite
and Lava Beds all reported extreme fire dangers on Monday, while Grand
Teton, Yellowstone, Agate Fossil Beds and Lassen Volcanic reported very high
fire dangers.

* Glacier - To date, 20 lightning-caused fire starts have been confirmed
this year in the park.  No new lightning starts have been detected since
ignition of the Adair II fire on August 12th.  Higher temperatures and clear
skies will increase spread rates through the week on active fires.  The
Howling fire's incident management team has taken over the management of
activities on both the Starvation Creek and Adair II fires.  Fire activity
was moderate within the perimeter of the Howling prescribed natural fire. 
The overall perimeter acreage is estimated at 300 acres.  Growth is
primarily by ground fire with occasional flare ups.  Major spread direction
is to the north and east.  The Starvation Creek fire is currently estimated
to have burned 2,250 acres on NPS land in the U.S.  The fire is continuing
to spread with no present threat to values at risk or life.  One spot fire
has occurred southeast of Starvation Creek and will require suppression
action and additional resources have been ordered. The Adair II is estimated
at 1,000 acres.  The fire is located three and a half miles northeast of the
Howling PNF.  The fire is being managed under containment strategy.  The
activity now is in the ground fuels but there is some torching.  Fire is
continuing to progress at a steady rate, with no present threat to values at
risk or life.  Structures on Logging Lake will be protected when the fire
reaches management action trigger points.  As a precautionary measure, the
entire Kintla drainage within the park is closed.  The inside North Fork
Road has been closed today and the Starvation Ridge and Kishenehn Creek
Trails remain closed due to suppression activity or proximity to the fire. 
The Logging, Anaconda, and Dutch Creek drainages are also still temporarily
closed.

* Yellowstone - The following fires are all part of the Yellowstone Complex. 
The Tern fire is currently 4,463 acres.  Favorable weather conditions are
assisting crews in making good progress along the west flank confinement
line.  Even though the west flank is bordered by a 1981 burn, the fuels were
such that the old burn wasn't helping hold back spread of the fire.  A 1988
burn along the north, east and southern flanks is providing assistance to
crews in holding those perimeters.  The Raven fire is currently 2,230 acres. 
The park received considerable dry lightning yesterday and last night and as
a result are involved in suppression of three new fire starts.  Dry
lightning occurring late Monday afternoon may result in additional starts. 
All new fires are being aggressively suppressed with available resources.

* Grand Teton - The Row fire, a lightning-caused wildfire, was discovered
Sunday afternoon and is currently reported to be 600 acres in size.  The
fire burned rapidly through decadent sage and grass fuels in the Antelope
Flats area of the park.  Four historic structures were destroyed, including
the Pheiffer homestead, and the wildfire threatened residences, old
homesteads, the Teton Science School, powerlines and the state highway. 
Numerous hot spots along the perimeter and interior were cause for concern
even as the fire was reportedly 100% contained.  Late Monday afternoon three
spot fires escaped containment lines and were being managed aggressively. 
Residences on Shadow Mountain are considered threatened and evacuation was
underway.

* Yosemite - The Poopenaut fire, a 50-acre, accidental, human-caused fire,
started at 6 a.m. Saturday and was successfully contained by 9 p.m. as a
result of quick actions by the park and outstanding support provided by the
U.S. Forest Service and California Department of Forestry.   The fire was
located approximately two miles southwest of the Hetch Hetchy Dam in rugged,
steep terrain with highly volatile fuel conditions.  Precautionary
evacuations were conducted in one campground, a ranger station, and for day-
hikers and backpackers in the area.

[Dean Berg, NPS Branch of Fire and Aviation Management, 8/29]

RESOURCE MANAGEMENT

No field reports today.

OPERATIONAL NOTES

No notes.

MEMORANDA

"NPS National Environmental Policy Act Compliance (NEPA) Procedures", signed
on August 23rd by Acting Director John Reynolds and sent to all Regional
Directors.  The text follows:

"National Park Service procedures for implementing the procedural provisions
of NEPA are found in NPS-12.  That guideline specifies approval procedures
requiring Washington Office involvement in the review and approval of all
Environmental Impact Statements.

"Under current procedures for processing draft and final Environmental 
Impact Statements, a five step process exists requiring the Environmental
Quality Division's review and approval to print all Environmental Impact
Statements.  Effective immediately, the procedures for approving
Environmental Impact Statements are as follows:

1. The  regional office determines when draft and final Environmental
Impact Statements are adequate for public review and are responsible
and accountable for their content.  This may be redelegated as
determined appropriate by regional offices.

2. The regional office is responsible for obtaining appropriate
Departmental control numbers and filing Environmental Impact
Statements with the Environmental Protection Agency as indicated in
the attached guidance [see original memoranda for attachments].  This
responsibility may also be redelegated.

3. For tracking purposes, regional offices will provide information to
the Environmental Quality Division concerning the status of 
Environmental Impact Statements for use by the Department's Office of
Environmental Policy and Compliance.  An information copy of draft and
final documents must be sent to the Environmental Quality Division
when documents are transmitted to the Department for control numbers.

"The special procedures specified in NPS-12 and the Departmental Manual for
Secretarial Proposals are unaffected by this change.

"Please contact the Environmental Quality Division at 202-208-3163
concerning policy questions regarding this change in procedure."

IN CONGRESS

The following activities have occurred recently or will be taking place in
Congress during coming weeks on matters of interest or consequence to the
National Park Service.  If you would like further information on any of
these hearings or bills, please contact Mary in WASO Legislation at 202-208-
3636.

Upcoming Hearings

No hearings scheduled in either the House or the Senate.

Recent Actions

House -- By a recorded vote of 245 ayes to 168 noes, the House passed
H.R. 3433, to provide for the management of portions of the
Presidio under the jurisdiction of the Secretary of the
Interior.  The House also voted to suspend rules and concur in
the Senate amendments to H.R. 2815, to designate a portion of
the Farmington River in Connecticut as a component of the
National Wild and Scenic Rivers System, and H.R. 2947, to extend
for an additional two years the authorization of the Black
Revolutionary War Patriots Foundation to establish a memorial. 
Representative Evans introduced H.R. 4974, to amend the
Mississippi River Corridor Study Commission Act of 1989;
Representative Glickman introduced H.R. 5000, to provide for the
establishment of the Tallgrass Prairie National Preserve in
Kansas.

Senate -- Senator Kassebaum introduced S. 2412, to provide for the
establishment of the Tallgrass Prairie National Preserve in
Kansas.

Prepared by the Division of Ranger Activities, WASO, with the cooperation
and support of Delaware Water Gap NRA.

Telephone: 202-208-4874
Telefax:   202-208-6756
cc:Mail:   WASO Ranger Activities
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