NATIONAL PARK SERVICE
                           MORNING REPORT

To:        All National Park Service Areas and Offices

From:      Division of Ranger Activities, Washington Office

Day/Date:  Thursday, January 12, 1995

Broadcast: By 1000 ET

INCIDENTS

95-06 - California Parks - Follow-up on Winter Storm Impacts

More reports have been received from California parks regarding the storms that
have been buffeting that state:

* Channel Islands - The park received more than 15 inches of rain - 130% of
its normal yearly amount - during the past week.  Over 10 inches fell
during one period of less than 24 hours.  Stream flow totals on the
islands may eventually equal that of a 500-year flood.  On January 10th,
the headquarters and visitor center in Ventura Marina became near islands
due to flash flooding.  Only a third of the park's staff was able to make
it to work that morning; all were sent home by 10 a.m., and the
facilities were closed for the balance of the day.  Everyone was back to
work the next day, but the facilities remained plagued by power outages. 
Extensive natural erosion and soil slump occurred on all islands, but
damage to facilities has been less than expected.  The trail systems on
San Miguel, Santa Barbara and Anacapa Islands are still passable, but
will require slide clearance, placement of fill behind retaining walls,
and extensive filling of gullies to prevent further erosion and ensure
visitor and employee safety.  Damage is limited to about five miles of
trails.  The airstrip on east Santa Cruz Island will require grading to
remove minor gullying, but the San Miguel and Santa Rosa strips only need
to dry out to be usable.  The Santa Barbara and Santa Cruz Island docks
received only minor, easily repairable, wave damage.  All 50+ miles of
road on Santa Rosa Island are impassable due to eroded stream crossings,
gullies, slides and sink holes.  Eight to ten weeks of work with heavy
equipment will be required to repair these roads.  Utility lines (water,
sewer and electric) were uncovered in the main ranch area on the island,
but were otherwise undamaged and continued to function.  They will be
reburied as the roads are repaired.  Building damage was mostly limited
to that caused by rain water leaks in roofs and walls of the trailers on
Santa Rosa and to a flooded but empty basement in a restored historic
ex-Coast Guard building on Anacapa Island.  Basement walls will have to
be sealed in the latter.  Historic ranch buildings on east Santa Cruz
Island had flood waters enter the lower floors, but damage appears to be
minor.

* Santa Monica Mountains - All park sites and trails have been closed and
will remain closed for at least 72 hours following the cessation of rain. 
Major arteries through the mountains suffered rock and mud slides,
cutting off entry to some park sites.  Eighty CBS crew members and
staffers were evacuated yesterday morning from the Paramount Ranch; a
residence at the site has been cut off and flooded by the overflowing
Medea Creek.  The Rancho Sierra Vista/Satwiwa Pinehill Road dam was a
half-foot from overflowing at the time of the report.  Two staff members
were evacuated from the area.   All roads to Rocky Oaks and its park
housing are closed and water is accumulating at the site.  The access
road to the Zuma Canyon site off the Pacific Coast Highway has been cut
off and the ranger there is unable to leave.  The section of that highway
within the park is closed.  Kanan Road (Mulholland to Cornell), Malibu
Canyon to Mulholland, Topanga Canyon, and Route 23 South are closed; the
Ventura Freeway along the park is open to Camarillo, but is closed over
the Santa Clarita River.  Various other roads are closed, making it
impossible for staff to reach work and for those at work to get home. 
The park continues to monitor all levels of flooding and has set up an
incident command system for dealing with the emergency.

* Redwoods - The storms have had little impact on the park.  Although over
21 inches of rain fell on the park during the past ten days, major
waterways have remained at or below flood stage.  Some park roads have
flooded, causing temporary closures, and there have been lengthy power
outages in Orick and Klamath.  High coastal winds, gusting to 95 mph,
have been recorded along the coast, but have caused little damage.  Blow
downs have been slight compared with other areas in California.

[C. Mack Shaver, Superintendent, CHIS; Craig Johnson, CR, REDW; PAO, SAMO; all
reports, 1/11]

95-09 - Hot Springs (Arkansas) - Aircraft Accident with Three Fatalities

A twin-engine Beech aircraft crashed into West Mountain just before noon on
January 10th, killing all three occupants.  Two were local businessmen; the
third was the pilot.  Names are being withheld pending notification of next of
kin.  Hot Springs police, rangers, and FAA representatives were at the scene at
the time of the report, and NTSB representatives were on the way.  The aircraft
was on an instrument flight from Natchez, Mississippi, to Hot Springs.  It
descended below radar coverage on its approach to Hot Springs and disappeared. 
Fog was obscuring the mountain tops at the time of the accident.  [Rod Harris,
HOSP, 1/10]

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:

1/7-1/29 -- 186th Anniversary, Edgar Allan Poe's Birth, Philadelphia, PA.
Special tours highlighting the many facets of Poe's work, including
poetry, satire and science fiction. Saturdays and Sundays in
January, and on his actual birthday, Thursday, January 19th. 
Contact: EDAL, 215-597-8780.  [INDE]

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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