- Subject: NPS Morning Report - Friday, September 30, 1994
- Date: Fri, 30 Sep 1994
NATIONAL PARK SERVICE
MORNING REPORT
To: All National Park Service Areas and Offices
From: Division of Ranger Activities, Washington Office
Day/Date: Friday, September 30, 1994
Broadcast: By 1000 ET
INCIDENTS
94-578 - Crater Lake (Oregon) - Illegal Mushroom Harvesting
Over the course of the four-day period from September 18th to the 21st, rangers
wrote eleven citations for commercial harvesting in the park and confiscated 44
pounds of mushrooms and numerous harvesting tools. During an associated
consent search, they also discovered and seized an AR-15 A2 semi-automatic
rifle with four 30-round magazines filled with live rounds. The weapon,
however, was unloaded. Observations by rangers and Forest Service reports
indicate that the mushroom collectors are well-organized and have heavily
picked over the north side of the park. Picking crews are being dropped off,
then picked up along the boundary. Forest Service officials advise that the
peak harvest season has not yet arrived, and that many more pickers will be
arriving with the onset of cooler weather and increased precipitation. [Uwe
Nehring, CRLA, 9/23]
94-579 - Cuyahoga Valley (Ohio) - Falling Fatality
R.S., 85, fell between 15 and 20 feet while hiking on an
unauthorized trail on September 13th; when ranger Matt Bland arrived moments
later, he found that R.S. was not breathing. Bland and a visitor began CPR,
and were assisted by ranger-paramedic Cheryl Hess. R.S. had a pulse and
blood pressure when he was medevaced by helicopter to Akron City Hospital and
admitted with a fractured cervical vertebra and abrasions to the head and knee.
On September 20th, the hospital reported that R.S. had died of his injuries.
[Dave Dornfeld, Safety Officer, CUVA, 9/23]
94-580 - Glen Canyon (Utah/Arizona) - Drowning
On the afternoon of September 24th, J.S., 46, of Sandy, Utah, went jet
skiing on the lake. After returning and tying up his jet ski in about two feet
of water, he began walking to shore, then fell face down in the water. Members
of his family found him there a few minutes later. Ranger-park medics arrived
and administered advanced life measures. J.S. was taken to the Bullfrog
Clinic shortly thereafter, where he was pronounced dead. The state medical
examiner has ruled that he died of drowning. [LES, GLCA, 9/26]
FIRE ACTIVITY
1) PREPAREDNESS LEVEL - III
2) LARGE FIRE SUMMARY
Wed Fri % Est
State Area Fire IMT 9/28 9/30 Cont Cont
WY Yellowstone NP Robinson T2 5,000 7,600 55 10/4
MT Bitterroot NF Ward Mountain T1 600 750 70 9/30
Kootenai NF Koocanusa Cx T2 14,320 15,590 90 10/8
Cabinet Cx T2 3,972 5,246 90 NEC
Libby Cx T2 13,220 13,220 90 NEC
State Peter's Ridge T2 135 141 100 CND
OR W.-Whitman NF Fox Point T2 1,800 2,075 60 10/1
Malheur NF Reed T2 1,987 2,420 90 9/29
ID Boise NF Thunderbolt T2 25,777 27,142 78 10/15
Payette NF Corral Creek -
Blackwell Cx T1 156,813 166,518 67 10/12
Chicken Cx T1 98,620 102,130 52 NEC
Clearwater NF Siam T2 1,646 1,441 35 10/5
CA Klamath NF Specimen T2 5,915 6,463 60 10/1
HEADING NOTES:
Fire * = newly reported fire (on this report). Cx = complex.
IMT T1 = Type 1; T2 = Type II; ST = State Team.
% Con Percent of fire contained.
Est Con Estimated containment date. NEC = no estimated date of
containment; CND = fully contained; NR = no report.
3) FIRES -
NPS BIA BLM FWS States USFS Total
Number 1 2 14 0 66 227 310
Acres Burned 0 451 1,206 0 155 1,142 2,954
4) COMMITTED RESOURCES -
Crews Engines Helicopters Airtankers Overhead
Federal 267 189 88 11 1,574
Non-federal 96 110 24 3 895
5) COMPARATIVE SUMMARY -
CY 1994 Five Year Average
Year-to-Date Year-to-Date
Number of Fires 64,838 59,529
Acres Burned 3,797,109 2,357,032
6) SITUATION - Initial attack activity in the Northwest and northern California
continued to be high, but acreages were minimal. Higher humidities and lower
temperatures aided suppression efforts on most large fires, and acreage
increases here limited.
* Yellowstone - The Type II team on the Robinson fire reported extreme fire
behavior and a 1,500-acre increase in size on Wednesday. Crown fires
accompanied by spotting necessitated the withdrawal of fire personnel from the
fire line. Three structures (two with historical significance) and the Iris
campground were threatened by the fire at that time. The fire moved into the
Bechler drainage and now has the potential to become a very large fire by any
definition. Three hotshot crew members were injured on Wednesday when a
retardant plane dropped its load directly on them. One individual reportedly
suffered a broken arm and another a broken leg. Conditions improved yesterday,
however, with cooler temps and a high chance of precipitation.
On Friday, September 23rd, a National Guard CH-47 Chinook helicopter
experienced mechanical failure upon landing while working on the Chicken
Complex fires. The rear of the helicopter rose, causing it to flip. One
National Guardsman was killed; Jack Finley of Big Cypress, the on-board
helicopter manager, helped an injured crewman and the uninjured pilot and co-
pilot reach safety, then extinguished two fires single-handedly. The
helicopter was a total loss. The cause of the crash is under investigation by
the military and the Forest Service. The next scheduled mission for that
aircraft was to transport 30 firefighters to the line.
7) OUTLOOK - Little fire activity is expected today.
[NIFCC Incident Management Situation Report, 9/30; Paul Broyles and Dean Berg,
NPS/NIFC, 9/29]
RESOURCE MANAGEMENT
No field reports today.
OPERATIONAL NOTES
No notes.
MEMORANDA
No memoranda.
COMING EVENTS CALENDAR
The Coming Events calendar appears in the morning report every other Thursday.
If you know of a significant event of Servicewide interest, 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:
8/13-14 -- Rendezvous Days, Grand Portage, MN. A combination of activities on
park grounds and a traditional pow-wow on adjacent lands. Events
include historic voyageur contests, voyageur encampment exhibit,
voyageur canoe race, musket firing demonstrations, voyageur pack
race, and tomahawk and knife throw. Contact: GRPO.
8/20-21 -- Archeology Day, Hopewell Culture, Chillicothe, OH. Demonstrations
of various Eastern Woodland Indian crafts and identification of
Indian artifacts by professional archeologists. Contact: HOCU.
8/25 -- Celebration of 78th Anniversary of the National Park Service,
Officers Club, Bolling AFB, Washington, DC. The event will also
honor the almost 500 "buyout" employees who retired in early May.
All employees, alumni and friends of the NPS are welcome to attend
the reception, buffet and program, which begins at 6 p.m. Cost:
$27 per person. Reservations and checks should be sent to E&AA
(78th), PO Box 1490, Falls Church, VA 22041. Make checks out to
E&AA. Contact: Terry Wood, 202-208-4481 or 703-931-5608. [Terry
Wood, E&AA]
9/10-11 -- 181st Anniversary of Battle of Lake Erie, Perry's Victory, Put-in-
Bay, OH. The event will include a historic military camp,
reenactor and musket firing demonstrations, a memorial ceremony to
honor those who fell in the battle and to reenforce the lessons of
international peace, and a concert by the Toledo Symphony.
Contact: PEVI, 419-285-2184. [Marty O'Toole, PEVI]
10/8* -- Ninth Annual Commemorative Sea Trials, U.S.S. Cassin Young, Boston
NHP, Charlestown Navy Yard, Boston, MA. The day's activities will
focus on the annual cruise in Boston Harbor of the decommissioned
World War II destroyer, which is permanently berthed in the Navy
Yard, a park district. Many veterans and parkBvolunteers who
maintain the ship will be on hand for the commemorative cruise and
a memorial service on board while the ship is underway. Contact:
Bill Foley, BOST, 617-242-5629. [John Benjamin, BOST]
10/8-9* -- TAFFY Festival, Peter Strauss Ranch, Santa Monica Mountains, CA.
This event includes theater, music, puppetry, dance, mime and
crafts. Contact: SAMO, 818-597-1036 ext. 232 [Jean Bray, SAMO]
10/15 -- "Forge and Furnace: An Exhibition of the Arts and Industries of
Metal Working", Saugus Iron Works, Saugus, MA. Exhibit of the
unique and diverse uses of metal in today's world. Co-sponsored by
New England Blacksmith Association and area schools. Contact: Phil
Lupsiewicz, SAIR, 617-233-0050. [Reed Johnson]
10/23* -- Calabasas Pumpkin Festival, Santa Monica Mountains, CA. Contact:
SAMO, 818-597-1036 ext. 232 [Jean Bray, SAMO]
11/6* -- "Caring for Kids" trail run, Santa Monica Mountains, CA. Co-
sponsored by the park, the Landon Pediatric Foundation and the
Children's Lifesaving Foundation. 5K, 10K, and one mile fun
run/walk. Contact: SAMO, 818-597-1036 ext. 232 [Jean Bray, SAMO]
11/10* -- Dedication of Backbone Trail, Santa Monica Mountains, CA. Marks
the completion of the 65-mile-long trail. Contact: SAMO, 818-597-
1036 ext. 232 [Jean Bray, SAMO]
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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