- Subject: NPS Morning Report - Friday, August 4, 1995
- Date: Fri, 4 Aug 1995
NATIONAL PARK SERVICE
MORNING REPORT
To: All National Park Service Areas and Offices
From: Division of Ranger Activities, Washington Office
Day/Date: Friday, August 4, 1995
Broadcast: By 1000 ET
INCIDENTS
95-471 - Pinnacles (California) - Follow-up on Assault on Employee
An investigation into the July 30th assault on park employee Dave Larabe
conducted by ranger Michael Durfee led to the identification of both the
vehicle and the suspect involved in the assault. The suspect, J.C., a
local rancher, was interviewed at his residence and provided a statement
implicating him in the assault. J.C. has a past criminal record for assault
and mayhem. The case will be presented to the local DA for prosecution. [Bill
Lester, PINN]
95-469 - Florida/Gulf Coast Parks - Follow-up on Hurricane Erin
Parks affected by the passage of Hurricane Erin over the past 48 hours have
submitted the following reports:
* Gulf Islands - The eye of the hurricane passed over the Florida District
at 10:45 a.m. yesterday morning. Winds blew at 85 mph, with gusts
exceeding 110 mph. An estimated four to six inches of rain fell during
the morning and early afternoon and was still falling at the time of the
report yesterday evening. The storm surge was estimated to be up to six
feet above normal, causing concern that much of the roadway along Santa
Rosa Island - site of the park's two largest subdistricts - may be
severely damaged. An enormous number of trees were blown down or broken
off, blocking some roads. Damage to structures has not yet been
determined. Due to downed power lines and poles, all electrical power is
out and is not expected to resume for two to five days. Telephone
service is limited, but does appear to be holding up. The incident
command staff has placed a priority on safety, protection of property and
completion of a damage assessment. The Mississippi District was spared
the storm's wrath. It received very little rain and winds of only 20 to
25 mph, and reopened this morning. Skip Prange is the IC for the Florida
District; Mark Lewis is the IC for the Mississippi District.
* DeSoto - The park reopened yesterday at 7 a.m. Hurricane shutters were
installed over the glass windows of the visitor center, which is located
about 50 feet from the waters of Manatee River and Tampa Bay. The park
was spared from the hurricane's full impact; no structural damage
occurred.
* Biscayne - When the National Hurricane Center issued its first hurricane
warning for south Florida, the park was already three hours into
implementation of its hurricane plan under ICS. Shutdown of the park's
facilities, islands and waters went very smoothly and was completed ahead
of schedule. Employees were released to take care of their homes and
families in preparation for the storm's arrival. Patrols remained in
effect throughout the incident. The park was reopened and fully
functional by noon on Wednesday, August 2nd, again in record time.
[Mark Lewis, IC, Mississippi District, GUIS; Pat Moriyasu, Admin Assistant,
DESO; Administration, BISC]
95-488 - Point Reyes (California) - Rescue
On July 28th, the park received information, including a suicide note,
regarding a man who was thought to have come to the park to commit suicide. A
team led by rangers Cliff Spencer and Paul Sechler began an initial
investigation and located the man's vehicle in the Palomarin area. A combined
helicopter and ground search was conducted that evening in conjunction with the
Sonoma County sheriff's office. The search continued throughout the weekend;
Park Police and WOOF (Wilderness Finders) dog teams joined the effort, and a
WOOF team located him in a remote area of the park on Sunday. A .38 revolver
was confiscated. The man was detained for evaluation for 72 hours. [Don
Neubacher, PORE]
95-489 - Blue Ridge (North Carolina/Tennessee) - Drowning
P.L., a 17-year-old non-swimmer from nearby Salem, Virginia, was playing on
the edge of the Roanoke River on the evening of August 2nd when he slipped into
a pool some 15 feet deep. His father and brother tried to rescue him, but
could not hold him due to the current, which pulled the boy under. A local
dive team recovered his body later that evening. [CRO, BLRI]
95-490 - Canyonlands (Utah) - EMS Rescue
On August 2nd, A.M., 40, of Key West, Florida, was day-hiking in the
backcountry of the Island in the Sky District when he became lost. A.M.
hiked approximately 46 miles in temperatures that at times exceeded 100 degrees
over the next 24 hours. He had an inadequate supply of water and began
suffering from heat exhaustion and dehydration. A.M. was certain he was
going to die and was composing a farewell letter when discovered by a park road
maintenance crew. First responder Jenny Weidensee stabilized A.M. and began
ground transport; ranger-paramedic Lisa Lawrence subsequently took over patient
care. The overland transport took about six hours and involved six park
employees. A.M. responded well to medical treatment and was referred to a
local hospital. [Steve Swanke, IC, CANY]
95-491 - Yosemite (California) - Falling Fatality
On July 31st, H.H., a 70-year-old park visitor, fell down a flight of
stairs in one of the rental cottages at Wawona. Four park EMTs and three
doctors who were guests of one of the EMTs responded with the Wawona ambulance.
ALS procedures were employed, along with C-spine precautions. H.H. was
transferred by ambulance and helicopter to the Valley Medical Center in Fresno,
where she died from her injuries. Preliminary findings on scene indicated that
she'd suffered a depressed skull fracture which probably caused a severe
intercranial bleed. [CRO, YOSE]
FIRE ACTIVITY
1) NATIONAL PREPAREDNESS LEVEL - Level III
2) LARGE FIRE SUMMARY
% Est
State Area Fire IMT 8/3 8/4 Con Con
AZ Grand Canyon NP * Matthes T2 - 900 0 NEC
Coronado NF Shovel/Green Cx T2 1,275 1,275 90 CN 8/5
Phoenix Dis. Christmas -- 150 150 90 NR
UT Moab Dis. Triangle T1 5,340 5,343 90 CN 8/4
Cedar City Dis. * Shoal Creek -- - 700 30 CN 8/6
* Bulldog -- - 150 50 CN 8/5
* Granite Peak -- - 100 30 CN 8/4
NV Elko Dis. Pilot -- 500 500 100 CND
Toiyabe NF Mule Springs -- 250 400 100 CND
CA Joshua Tree NP Covington T2 3,500 5,800 100 CND
Klamath NF Pony T2 1,000 725 35 CN 8/6
MT Crow Agency West Pryor -- 1,868 1,868 100 CND
OR Burns Dis. * Warm Spring Crk. -- - 1,200 100 CND
HEADING NOTES:
Fire * = newly reported fire (on this report). Cx = complex.
IMT T1 = Type 1; T2 = Type II; ST1 = state Type 1; ST2 = state Type 2.
% Con Percent of fire contained.
Est Con Estimated containment date. NEC = no estimated date of
containment; CND = fully contained; NR = no report.
3) FIRES YESTERDAY -
NPS BIA BLM FWS States USFS Total
Number 1 13 31 0 68 33 146
Acres Burned 2,304 17 5,686 600 6,067 369 15,043
4) COMMITTED RESOURCES -
Crews Engines Helicopters Airtankers Overhead
Federal 125 188 42 2 11
Non-federal 35 38 0 0 0
5) COMPARATIVE SUMMARY -
CY 1995 Five Year Average
Year-to-Date Year-to-Date
Number of Fires - U.S. 55,698 49,260
Acres Burned - U.S. 1,249,449 1,821,092
Number of Fires - Canada 7,958 -
Acres Burned - Canada 13,762,634 -
6) FIRE NARRATIVES -
* Matthes Fire, Grand Canyon NP - The fire was originally being managed as a
prescribed natural fire, but changes in fire behavior caused it to escape the
prescription perimeter and to be declared a wildfire. Anderson's Type II team
will take command of the fire today.
7) SITUATION - Firefighters continue to make significant progress on fires,
several of which were fully contained yesterday. Resource demands through NICC
are minimal. Many areas in the Southwest, Great Basin, Rockies and California
continue to report very high to extreme fire indices; a few areas in the
Northwest are now reporting high indices as well.
8) OUTLOOK - A fire weather watch has been posted in Utah for dry lightning and
low relative humidities. Fire activity is expected to increase in the
Southwest because of forecast thunderstorms.
[NIFCC Incident Management Situation Report, 8/4]
RESOURCE MANAGEMENT
No field reports today.
OPERATIONAL NOTES
No notes.
OBSERVATIONS
"(The National Park Service) probably will never find a sense of mission as
coherent, with such visionary appeal, or as successful a strategic guide as the
one Mather and Albright fashioned for it. The forces of emerging modern
society in the early twentieth century and the notion of progress which
accompanied it had the power and charm to give the era a uniquely coherent
vision of the good life, and it was on this vision that the agency's original
sense of mission was founded. We are not likely to see such a coherent and
persuasive vision again, but this need not condemn the Park Service to relic
status as an agency which has outlived its usefulness. Exactly the contrary is
the case. A creative Park Service with equal dedication to experimentation in
meeting new social demands, to a tough pragmatism in evaluating these
experiments, and to protecting the integrity of the System entrusted to its
care would remain an important part of the federal government and would ensure
that the national parks remain an important part of American life."
Ronald Foresta, "America's National
Parks and Their Keepers", 1984
[Do you have a favorite quote about the NPS? If so, send it along for possible
inclusion in a future Morning Report. If you'd like a WP5.1 copy of quotes
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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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