- Subject: NPS Morning Report - Wednesday, August 9, 1995
- Date: Wed, 9 Aug 1995
NATIONAL PARK SERVICE
MORNING REPORT
To: All National Park Service Areas and Offices
From: Division of Ranger Activities, Washington Office
Day/Date: Wednesday, August 9, 1995
Broadcast: By 1000 ET
INCIDENTS
94-455 - Canyon de Chelly (Arizona) - Follow-up on Assault on Ranger
On August 10, 1994, ranger William Yazzie was assaulted at Ledge Ruins overlook
by local residents C.C., Pa.C. and Ph.C. Pa.C. subsequently
pleaded guilty to assaulting a federal officer with a deadly weapon and was
sentenced to prison. C.P. and Ph.C. pleaded not guilty; after being
found guilty in federal court, they changed attorneys and were granted a
continuance prior to sentencing while their lawyers became familiar with the
case. During this period, they were ordered to reside in separate minimum
security detention facilities in Phoenix. On June 26th, Ph.C. was
issued a pass to visit his sister. When he failed to return the following day,
a warrant was issued for his arrest. Ph.C. has reportedly been sighted in the
park on several occasions, and allegedly assaulted his aunt at Ledge Ruins
overlook. Rangers and Navajo police officers have been searching for him, but
have not yet been able to locate him. On July 17th, C.c.x was sentenced
to just over seven years' imprisonment in a federal prison, followed by three
years' supervised release. [Scot McElveen, Acting CR, CACH]
95-497 - Yosemite (California) - Kidnapping
On the morning of August 3rd, investigators received a call from Utah from a
Boulder, Colorado, man who said that he'd been assaulted and abducted from the
Valley the previous morning. He said that he was approached by a man in
civilian clothes who said he was a ranger and was placing him under arrest.
The victim said that he believed the man really was a ranger because he had
handcuffs and because he walked off into the bushes for a minute and appeared
to call dispatch on a portable radio. In any case, the "ranger" threatened him
with violence if he refused to cooperate, so the victim allowed himself to be
handcuffed. The man then beat him severely about the head, neck and chest with
a large flashlight, forced the victim to drive him from the park in his (the
victim's) pickup truck, and made him withdraw cash from an ATM in Mariposa.
The victim was able to escape when they stopped for gas in Merced, but did not
call the park until he reached Utah. A search of the crime scene produced a
backpack which the assailant had left behind. He is described as a white male
adult, 26 or 27 years old, about 6'3" tall, and weighing around 200 pounds. He
has a "white wall" hair cut with short, light brown curls on top; his eyes are
hazel or blue with flecks in the iris. Investigators have determined that the
suspect used three different names while staying in the park, and believe that
he may be AWOL from the Army. A joint investigation involving the park, FBI,
Army and several local agencies is now underway. [CRO, YOSE]
95-498 - Sequoia/Kings Canyon (California) - Search in Progress
K.D., 27, of Oakland, began a solo, week-long hike into the park's
backcountry on July 24th. He was not reported missing until Monday, August
7th, when he was a week overdue. A major search effort was initiated at that
time. A search team of about 30 park staff and other personnel are now in the
process of checking a very large area for clues as to his location. Paige
Ritterbusch is incident commander. Because of the very late spring, there are
large amounts of snow and high water levels throughout the area. These would
have presented hazards to K.D. - as they are to searchers. [Pete Allen, Acting
CR, SEKI]
95-499 - Capitol Reef (Utah) - Fall; Serious Injury
On the afternoon of July 30th, 19-year-old J.W. of Bountiful slipped at
the top of a 15-foot waterfall on the Fremont River, struck his head, plunged
over the falls into the pool below, and sank beneath its surface. J.W. was
pulled from the pool about a minute later; he had no pulse or respirations, but
his companions were able to revive him with CPR. Rangers arrived about ten
minutes later, provided additional medical treatment, and arranged helicopter
evacuation to Salt Lake City. J.W. suffered a broken neck, but his condition
proved to be correctable through surgery. Alcohol was a factor in the
accident. [Rick Nolan, CR, CARE]
95-500 - Big Bend (Texas) - Drug Arrest
A Border Patrol agent stopped a suspicious van near the Boquillas Canyon area
of the park on the evening of July 30th. Ranger Brian Lakes immediately
responded as backup. The van had been under surveillance earlier in the day by
both agents and rangers. A cursory customs search of the van led to the
discovery of some marijuana, so the driver, J.G., of Fort Stockton,
Texas, was placed under arrest and taken to park headquarters. A further
search of the vehicle led to the discovery of more than 460 pounds of
marijuana. [DR, East District, BIBE]
95-501 - Delaware Water Gap (New Jersey/Pennsylvania) - Drug Arrest
On July 31st, rangers Randy Seese and Kevin Tillman stopped a vehicle which
lacked a state safety inspection sticker. The operator, J.S., was
found to have numerous outstanding park violation notices against him and was
on probation for possession of dangerous weapons. J.S. gave verbal consent
for a search of his vehicle. The rangers found 11 individually-wrapped packets
quarter-ounce packets of marijuana under the driver's seat, and arrested
J.S. for possession with intent to deliver a controlled substance. Under a
plea agreement with the U.S. Attorney's office, J.S. pled guilty to simple
possession and traffic offenses. [Bob Wilson, Acting CR, DEWA]
FIRE ACTIVITY
1) NATIONAL PREPAREDNESS LEVEL - Level III
2) LARGE FIRE SUMMARY
% Est
State Area Fire IMT 8/8 8/9 Con Con
ID Boise NF Lakes T1 1,100 1,000 60 CN 8/11
Shoshone Dis. Bear Trap -- 4,000 20,500 100 CND
UT State Camp William -- 2,000 3,200 70 NEC
S.L. City Dis. Puddle/Lake -- 8,000 18,000 0 NEC
CA Klamath NF Pony T2 1,099 1,673 90 CN 8/10
Riverside RU Verbenia ST 23,500 23,455 75 NEC
AZ State Monks Draw -- NR 500 60 CN 8/8
* Black Hill -- - 1,200 25 CN 8/9
Phoenix Dis. * Old Baldy -- - 1,100 5 CN 8/10
NV Humboldt NF Battle Creek T2 7,500 8,810 - CN 8/11
State South Fork Cx T1 800 1,103 60 CN 8/9
WY Rock Spr. Dis. Johnson Draw -- 350 350 NR NR
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 4 21 7 0 209 75 316
Acres Burned 7 549 19,467 0 6,542 1,457 28,022
4) COMMITTED RESOURCES -
Crews Engines Helicopters Airtankers Overhead
Federal 105 157 48 4 334
Non-federal 29 14 0 0 29
5) COMPARATIVE SUMMARY -
CY 1995 Five Year Average
Year-to-Date Year-to-Date
Number of Fires - U.S. 56,855 51,262
Acres Burned - U.S. 1,337,101 1,996,681
Number of Fires - Canada 6,557 -
Acres Burned - Canada 14,419,882 -
6) FIRE NARRATIVES -
* Battle Creek, Humboldt NF - The historic Tobar railroad station was destroyed
yesterday. Numerous ranches and the small town of Ruby Valley are threatened.
Strong winds caused extreme fire behavior.
* Puddle Valley, Salt Lake District, BLM - The fire, which is in sage and
cheatgrass, was burning up to 400 chains per hour yesterday. A major burnout
operation is in progress to control the forward movement of the fire.
7) SITUATION - There was an increase in initial attack in the Southwest
yesterday, but only moderate activity elsewhere in the West. Cooler
temperatures, higher humidity and decreased winds have assisted suppression
efforts on large fires in the Great Basin area.
8) OUTLOOK - There should be a decrease in initial attack operations in the
Southwest today due to the onset of monsoon rains. Moderate fire activity is
expected elsewhere in the West.
[NICC Incident Management Situation Report, 8/9]
RESOURCE MANAGEMENT
Theodore Roosevelt (North Dakota) - Exotic Plant Management
Infestations of leafy spurge in the park's South Unit increased from 32 acres
in 1972 to an estimated 1,800 to 4,000 acres today - nearly 10% of the park's
land base. Significant ecological disruption of plant communities continues to
occur as monocultures of spurge replace native species and threaten wildlife
habitat. The park's biological control program was greatly expanded this
summer with the assistance of numerous partners. The park's staff distributed
1.18 million insects on 717 sites in just 15 days during June and July. These
biocontrol agents were released to establish new insectaries for later
redistribution into the park and as experimental control plots. Since 1987,
the park has released 1.26 million insects from eight species to 853 park
sites. Biocontrol sites take several years to establish, but initial results
are encouraging. The park also employed two specially-equipped, micro-foil
boom helicopters to spray 365 acres - the third year they've been used
successfully to contain spurge growth. A GIS spurge map has been completed and
is helping shape IPM control techniques. Partners helping the park included
the Rocky Mountain Elk Foundation; DowElanco; the Billings and Golden Valley
County weed boards; DOA's Agricultural Research Service; APHIS; the Forest
Service; North Dakota State University; and local ranchers and land owners. A
publication entitled "Proceedings - Leafy Spurge Strategic Planning Workshop
and Advisory Panel" (March, 1994) is now available, including a CD-ROM version.
[Roger Andrascik, RMS; Nancy Ohlsen, NRS; Steve Hager, GIS - THRO]
OPERATIONAL NOTES
No notes.
OBSERVATIONS
Although the following quote pertains to larger issues than national parks or
even protection of our natural and cultural heritage, it has bearing on our
mandate to preserve for future generations:
"Preservation of the future may be the most important instinct in the fabric of
life on earth. It is certainly the most beautiful. Somehow we must nurture
the diminishing instinct to protect the generations to come, bringing it to the
conference rooms of power and politics and industry. For if we thoughtlessly
barter away the lives and futures of our children and grandchildren for more
convenience, we will have made the most shameful bargain in the history of
man."
Jacques Cousteau,
1977
[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
that have appeared to date, send a note to this address]
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
SkyPager: Emergencies ONLY: 1-800-759-7243, PIN 2404843