- Subject: NPS Morning Report - Thursday, August 7, 1997
- Date: Thurs, 7 Aug 1997
NATIONAL PARK SERVICE
MORNING REPORT
To: All National Park Service Areas and Offices
From: Division of Ranger Activities, Washington Office
Day/Date: Thursday, August 7, 1997
Broadcast: By 1000 ET
INCIDENTS
96-492 - Buffalo (Arkansas) - Follow-up on Accidental Fatal Shooting
On August 22, 1996, local residents D.L., 55, and C.J., 36, were
partying with others at the Cedar Creek access to the buffalo River when
C.J. pointed an SKS assault rifle at D.L. from the window of his vehicle.
The weapon discharged a single round, which struck D.L. in the face, killing
him instantly. Witnesses stated that C.J. and D.L. were good friends and
that the shooting was an accident. Local authorities, state police, FBI
agents and rangers conducted an investigation which led to charges of second
degree murder being filed against C.J. On August 5th, he was tried in
county circuit court. C.J. was found guilty of negligent homicide, a lesser
charge, and was sentenced to a year in the county jail and a $1,000 fine.
[Bob Howard, LES, BUFF, 8/6]
97-434 - Yellowstone NP (WY) - Follow-up on Accidental Death of Employee
A memorial service for Rory Perkins will be held at 2 p.m. on Sunday, August
10th, at the chapel at Mammoth Hot Springs. Cards or donations in Rory's
memory may be sent directly to S.P., P.O. Box 6, Yellowstone
National Park, Wyoming 82190. S.P. plans to distribute any donations
received to the park and Lander (Wyoming) fire departments in memory of
Rory's active participation in both departments. [Mike Murray, ACR, YELL,
8/6]
97-438 - Lake Mead NRA (NV/AZ) - Armed Robbery and Burglary Arrests
On August 4th, rangers at Katherine Landing responded to a report of shots
fired and a burglary in progress. When ranger Todd Austin arrived, the
suspects had already left the area. Austin subsequently located the get-away
vehicle, which had been stolen in Kingman, Arizona. The vehicle and
occupants were also wanted in connection with several burglaries in the
Kingman area, including theft of beer and cigarettes from a convenience
store. Austin followed a trail left by the subjects toward a cabin area.
While following the trail, he received a report of a burglary in progress at
cabin #37. Austin and ranger Lopez arrested J.L. and two juveniles.
Felony charges were filed on all three for armed robbery, burglary, theft,
and theft while armed. A 12 gauge shotgun was recovered at the scene.
[Maria Mackie, Dispatch, LAME, 8/6]
97-439 - Indiana Dunes NL (IN) - Assault
J.P., 19, was returning to her car from Central Beach on July 22nd
when she was grabbed from behind by an unidentified male. A short struggle
ensued, during which J.P. was stuck in the buttocks with an 18 gauge, inch-
and-a-half long surgical needle. J.P. then struck the man in the head with
the camera she was carrying, causing him to release her. The man never said
a word during the assault. J.P. reported the attack to local officers, who
notified the park. J.P. had seen the man on the beach prior to the attack,
and he was seen by two witnesses who were behind J.P. as she returned to
the parking lot. J.P. worked with a forensic illustrator from the state
police to produce a sketch of her attacker, and also received appropriate
medical treatment. This appears to be an isolated incident, as local law
enforcement agencies were alerted to the attack and have not yet reported any
similar cases. Several leads were pursued, but have not produced any
information on the assailant. It's hoped that public dissemination of the
sketch of the suspect will produce further leads. [Joe Wieszczyk, CI, INDU,
8/6]
97-440 - Indiana Dunes NL (IN) - Car Clouting Arrest
On August 3rd, seasonal ranger Michelle Gilbert was alerted to three males in
a car in the West Beach parking lot who were acting suspiciously. Gilbert
concealed herself behind a tree, and, using binoculars, observed one of the
males walk around the area looking into cars. A second male appeared to be
acting as a lookout, while the third remained behind the wheel of their
vehicle. Gilbert saw one of the men reach into the back of an open Geo
Tracker and remove items. The man ran back to the suspect vehicle, which
left the area before Gilbert could get back to her car. She caught up with
the vehicle near the West Beach entrance, but the driver refused to yield to
lights and siren. A short pursuit ensued before the driver was forced to
pull over. Inside the vehicle were stereo speakers and 55 CDs later found to
have been stolen from the Tracker and another vehicle. The total value of
all the stolen items was placed at $2,000. E.M., 18, W.F.,
18, and a 16-year-old juvenile, all residents of Hammond, Indiana, were
arrested on theft charges (18 USC 661). The two adults will be prosecuted in
federal court. The case against the juvenile was referred to the local
juvenile authority. [Joe Wieszczyk, CI, INDU, 8/6]
97-441 - Grand Teton NP (WY) - Climbing Fatality
J.H., 48, of Collinsville, Utah, fell to his death while descending
Symmetry Spire on the evening of July 23rd. J.H. and his partners, who were
climbing the Southwest Ridge, were one pitch from the summit when an
afternoon storm prompted them to retreat by rappelling down the route. As
J.H. started the first rappel, he said to his stepson "I hope this anchor
holds." J.H. put his weight on the ropes, the anchor failed, and he fell
about 500 feet. Rangers confirmed the fatality and recovered the body via
helicopter sling the next morning. Hypothermia may have contributed to the
accident. The anchor failure was attributed to slings around a loose block
or flake. [Colin Campbell, CR, GRTE, 8/6]
97-442 - Grand Teton NP (WY) - Multiple Rescues
On July 31st, rangers responded to a report of a critically injured climber
near the base of Symmetry Spire. D.S., 46, of Woodlands, Texas, had
fallen about 100 feet down a snow couloir while approaching the climb. He
came to rest in a moat and was partially submerged in running melt water.
D.S.'s son and other climbers in the area were able to raise him up out of
the water, an action which likely saved his life. Six rangers were inserted
on the mountain via helicopter short haul, then descended several hundred
feet to the accident site. Advanced life support measures were employed to
stabilize D.S.. He was then lowered several hundred feet down the couloir
to a location suitable for a short haul extraction. D.S. was taken to a
Jackson hospital, where he was treated for a head injury, hypothermia, a
fractured femur, fractured vertebrae, and a fracture-dislocation of the
ankle. While descending Symmetry Couloir to assist D.S., climber S.M.
of Lake Stevens, Washington, fell and fractured his right leg.
S.M. was evacuated in a screamer suit via helicopter short haul. [Colin
Campbell, CR, GRTE, 8/6]
97-443 - Grand Teton NP (WY) - Climbing Fatality
A 21-year-old Austrian woman died on August 3rd of multiple injuries
sustained in a fall on Disappointment Peak. B.P. and two
climbing partners, also Austrian, had climbed the peak via the Lake Ledges
route and were descending when the accident occurred. B.P. was
traversing the top of the east couloir when she slipped on snow and fell
about 600 feet, landing in a moat half way down the couloir. The park
received the report via cellular phone at 2:15 p.m. Rangers were to the
Amphitheatre Lake cirque by helicopter, then climbed to the accident scene,
arriving around 3:30 p.m. B.P. was extracted from the moat by
helicopter short haul and taken to a Jackson hospital, where she died of
severe head and chest trauma. The party was not equipped with ice axes,
crampons or helmets. [Colin Campbell, CR, GRTE, 8/6]
97-444 - Grand Teton NP (WY) - Rescue
On the afternoon of August 5th, 49-year-old G.S. of Austin,
Texas, was struck in the lower leg by a 50-pound boulder which had been
dislodged somewhere above the cliffs above Hidden Falls, where he was
participating in an Exum Mountain Guides climbing course. The guides on
scene had trouble stopping the bleeding and were unable to move G.S.
Rangers and eight Exum guides performed a technical litter lowering of
several hundred feet, then transported G.S. to the west shore of Jenny
Lake via wheeled litter. He was taken across the lake by boat, then on to a
Jackson hospital, where he was treated for a deep laceration and possible
fracture. [Colin Campbell, CR, GRTE, 8/6]
[Additional reports pending...]
FIRE ACTIVITY
NATIONAL PREPAREDNESS LEVEL - Level II
LARGE FIRE/INCIDENT SUMMARY
Tue Wed % Est
State Unit Fire/Incident IMT 8/5 8/6 Con Con
CA Los Padres NF Logan T1 3,500 21,290 0 NEC
Hopper T1 1,492 10,000 10 NEC
Sequoia NF * Choke T2 - 160 0 NEC
Lassen-Modoc RU Gooch ST1 722 720 100 CND
Humboldt-Del Norte RU * Briceland -- - 100 100 CND
OR Prineville District Fitzgerald -- 200 500 100 CND
WA State Pow Wah Kee -- 8,000 10,000 100 CND
NV Winnemucca District Summit -- 1,000 1,600 60 8/7
Elko District * Twin Springs -- - 600 100 CND
AK# Southwest Area Inowak T2 573,000 573,000 0 NEC
Chiniklik Mt. T2 3,283 3,283 100 CND
Galena District Simels -- 386,000 386,000 0 NEC
Paimiut T2 2,467 2,467 70 8/7
# Alaska has 53 other large fires burning for a total of 1,780,878 acres.
Heading Notes
Unit -- Agency = BIA area; NF = national forest; RU = CA state resource
or ranger unit; RD = state ranger district; District = BLM
district; NWR = USFWS wildlife refuge
Fire -- * = newly reported fire (on this report); Cx = complex; LSS =
limited suppression strategy; CSS = containment suppression
strategy
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; LPS = limited
protection status
NUMBER OF NEW FIRES (FIVE DAY TREND)
NPS BIA BLM FWS States USFS Total
Saturday, 8/2 0 5 11 1 52 79 148
Sunday, 8/3 0 1 9 0 45 67 122
Monday, 8/4 0 4 12 0 232 41 289
Tuesday, 8/5 6 1 5 0 63 64 139
Wednesday, 8/6 7 4 9 2 69 89 180
TOTAL COMMITTED RESOURCES (FIVE DAY TREND)
Crews Engines Helicopters Airtankers Overhead
Saturday, 8/2 68 123 32 7 201
Sunday, 8/3 92 76 27 8 38
Monday, 8/4 84 108 29 28 227
Tuesday, 8/5 159 178 52 20 408
Wednesday, 8/6 198 320 65 27 615
COMPARATIVE ASSESSMENT
1997: YTD Ten Year Average: YTD
Number of fires 42,852 53,426
Acres burned 2,492,196 1,971,247
CURRENT SITUATION
Initial attack and large fire activity continued in southern California
yesterday with the mobilization of a Type I incident management team and an
area command team to the Los Padres NF. A Type II team was sent to Sequoia
NF. Containment objectives were achieved on most other large fires. Fire
indices remain very high to extreme in California, Arizona and Nevada.
Seven CDF engines were burned over on the Logan fire yesterday afternoon, but
there were no injuries and only two engines sustained minor fire damage. CDF
and the USFS are jointly investigating.
NICC has issued a RED FLAG WARNING for strong north winds and low relative
humidity for the northern Sacramento Valley in California.
[NICC Incident Management Situation Report, 8/7]
RESOURCE MANAGEMENT
Southeast Utah Group (UT) - Peregrine Falcon Survey
The resource management staff for the Southeast Utah Group (Arches NP,
Canyonlands NP, Natural Bridges NM) has completed its annual peregrine falcon
survey. Ten aeries - a record number - were occupied in the three parks this
year. Fourteen chicks were fledged in six of them (also a record), giving a
productivity rate of 2.3 young per territory. Due to the demands placed on
staff at this time of year and the remoteness of some locations, it was
impossible to determine the reproductive success of peregrines at four of the
nest sites. A total of seven fledglings were produced in the previous record
years (1995 and 1996). The total number of active aeries in the Southeast
Utah Group has increased steadily from five aeries in 1989 to eleven known
aeries in 1997. Productivity in these aeries has always been high, exceeding
the figure of 1.25 young per aerie believed to be necessary to sustain the
population. The results from the Southeast Utah Group are consistent with
other parks on the Colorado Plateau, which has a robust and expanding
population of peregrine falcons. [Larry Van Slyke, Southeast Utah Group]
OPERATIONAL NOTES
Report pending.
MEMORANDA
No submissions.
EXCHANGE
No submissions.
OBSERVATIONS
This section, which appears intermittently in the Morning Report, contains
observations regarding the National Park Service, the System and the several
professions of park employees. Today's observation has been excerpted from a
collection of quotations entitled "John Muir: In His Own Words," compiled and
edited by Peter Browning (Great West Books, 1988).
"One touch of nature makes the whole world kin..."
John Muir, "Among the Birds of the
Yosemite," from the Atlantic
Monthly, December, 1898
* * * * *
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Prepared by the Division of Ranger Activities, WASO, with the cooperation and
support of Delaware Water Gap NRA.
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