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Subject: NPS Morning Report - Thursday, June 10, 1999
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Date: Thu, 10 Jun 1999 04:41:57 -0400
NATIONAL PARK SERVICE
MORNING REPORT
To: All National Park Service Areas and Offices
From: Division of Ranger Activities, Washington Office
Day/Date: Thursday, June 10, 1999
INCIDENTS
99-254 - National Capital Parks (DC/MD/VA) - Multiple Incidents
Park Police officers responded to a spate of incidents and events in area
parks over Memorial Day weekend and subsequent days:
o The Rolling Thunder motorcycle rally took place on May 30th. The
event, which is held annually to bring attention to POW/MIA issues,
attracted 40,000 motorcyclists this year. They assembled in the
Pentagon parking lot, rode by a number of monuments, and ended at the
Vietnam Veterans Memorial for a concert and rally. There were several
minor motor vehicle accidents among rally participants, but no
significant criminal incidents.
o On May 31st, Park Police officers assisted with security for the annual
wreath-laying ceremony at the Tomb of the Unknown Soldier, an event
attended by the president and a number of other dignitaries.
o A Park Police operation targeting prostitution in the NPS-managed area
of Logan Circle in the District of Columbia resulted in a female USPP
undercover officer making five arrests on June 2nd for soliciting for
lewd and immoral purposes. One of those arrested was a White House
pass holder.
o During the morning hours of June 5th, this year's National Race for the
Cure took place in and around the Mall, the Ellipse and several
monuments. Over 66,000 people participated, including the vice
president and his wife and other celebrities. The event required a
significant commitment from the USPP for security purposes, traffic
control and road closures, but there were no noteworthy incidents.
o On June 5th, demonstrators in opposition to the NATO action in
Yugoslavia gathered in the vicinity of the Lincoln Memorial for a rally
sponsored by the International Action Center. The group, numbering
between 4,000 and 5,000 protestors, marched to the Pentagon for another
rally after they wrapped-up at the Lincoln Memorial. The march
required the closing of Memorial Bridge and Washington Boulevard to
traffic for two hours.
o USPP officer Marguritte Levine spotted a woman brandishing a knife near
a drug store on Pennsylvania Avenue on the afternoon of June 5th. The
woman gave up her knife upon Levine's orders and was placed under
arrest for assault with a deadly weapon. The woman had become
disorderly in the store and waved the knife at employees and patrons.
o USPP dispatch received a call just after midnight on June 6th reporting
that one Jeremy Akers was at the Lincoln Memorial and might be armed
with a handgun. Akers' vehicle was found on Constitution Avenue.
Shortly thereafter, officer Vincent Gaudioso saw a figure on the grass
near the east side of the Vietnam Veterans' Memorial. When he
illuminated the man with a flashlight, Gaudioso saw that he had a
shotgun with him, aimed at his head. Gaudioso also saw three visitors
nearby and quickly moved them out of the area. As he did so, he heard
the shotgun's report. The victim turned out to be Akers.
Investigation revealed that he'd shot and killed his estranged wife
earlier that evening. A semi-automatic believed to have been used in
the murder was found in a holster in the small of Akers' back.
o Late on the afternoon of June 6th, two juveniles who were rock-hopping
along the Potomac became stranded on rocks in swift water near Great
Falls. A USPP helicopter was summoned and retrieved the 16-year-old
male and 15-year-old female via hoist, bringing them to safety.
o An ultralight aircraft crashed into a tree along the Baltimore-
Washington Parkway just before 6 p.m. on June 6th. Responding officers
rendered assistance to the pilot and sole occupant, who was not
injured. USPP and FAA are investigating.
o Two vehicles were traveling along the Baltimore-Washington Parkway at
midnight on June 7th when the lone occupant of one vehicle displayed a
handgun and fired six rounds at the second vehicle, which was occupied
by five high school students returning from a graduation party. Three
of them were hit. The uninjured operator got them to a hospital; two
were released, the third was transferred to a shock trauma unit in
Baltimore and is in stable condition. Descriptions of the vehicle and
driver have been disseminated.
o Officers arrested two members of People for the Ethical Treatment of
Animals for demonstration violations in Constitution Gardens on June
7th.
Other incidents during this period, previously reported, included a search
for a missing aircraft, the Pax Christi demonstration, and the discovery of a
body on the Baltimore-Washington Parkway. [Rich Murphy, Assistant Commander,
Criminal Investigations Branch, USPP, 6/8]
99-255 - Gateway NRA (NY/NJ) - Boating Accident with Fatality
Park Police officers on boat patrol on the morning of May 31st came upon an
unoccupied 14-foot open boat with an outboard motor circling in the waters of
Jamaica Bay. While investigating, they were flagged down by another vessel,
whose occupants were assisting the operator and passenger of the 14-foot
boat, both of whom had been thrown into the water. They were taken aboard
the USPP boat. J.P., 21, was okay, but his father, L.P.,
51, had no vital signs. CPR was begun on L.P. and the two men were brought
to shore and transferred to NYFD paramedic units. The elder L.P. was
pronounced dead at Peninsula General Hospital. J.P. sustained minor
injuries. The two men had rented the vessel from a nearby marina. They were
traveling on the bay when they were struck by several large wakes, causing
L.P. to fall into the water. He weighed about 250 pounds and did
not know how to swim. J.P. jumped into the water in an effort to
save his father. Neither P. was wearing a life jacker, though two were
available in the rented boat. [John Lauro, USPP, 6/8]
FIRE ACTIVITY
NATIONAL PREPAREDNESS LEVEL - Level II
LARGE FIRE/INCIDENT SUMMARY
Mon Tue % Est
State Unit Fire/Incident IMT 6/7 6/8 Con Con
FL Osceola NF Friendly T1 69,060 69,060 80 6/15
Ocala NF Richard -- 191 191 100 CND
GA Chattahoochee-
Oconee NF * Rice Cabin -- - 120 80 6/9
NM Cibola NF La Jara T2 3,382 3,382 95 6/9
State Water Canyon T2 540 540 100 CND
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; UNK = unknown; NR = no report
Est Con Estimated containment date; NEC = no estimated date of
containment; CND = fully contained; NR = no report
NUMBER OF NEW FIRES (FOUR DAY TREND)
NPS BIA BLM FWS States USFS Total
Saturday, 6/5 0 1 0 0 60 8 69
Sunday, 6/6 0 0 0 1 0 5 6
Monday, 6/7 3 18 3 0 138 28 190
Tuesday, 6/8 0 14 2 0 97 12 125
TOTAL COMMITTED RESOURCES (FOUR DAY TREND)
Crews Engines Helicopters Airtankers Overhead
Saturday, 6/5 115 138 38 5 462
Sunday, 6/6 95 127 42 5 570
Monday, 6/7 79 110 35 0 558
Tuesday, 6/8 71 88 35 0 519
CURRENT SITUATION
There was little fire activity on Tuesday. Very high to extreme fire indices
were reported in Louisiana, Georgia, New Mexico, Arizona, and Texas. [NICC
Incident Management Situation Report, 6/9]
RESOURCE MANAGEMENT AND PROTECTION
No entries.
OPERATIONAL NOTES
No entries.
MEMORANDA
No entries.
INTERCHANGE
No entries.
PARKS AND PEOPLE
FLETC Graduation - The U.S. Park Police graduated 46 recruits from FLETC on
May 20th. Guests at the ceremony included Florie Takaki, wife of ranger Joe
Kolodski, who was memorialized by both the USPP graduating class and by FLETC
at a ceremony following the graduation. The overall grade point average for
the class was 95.5%. Several members of the class received outstanding
scores in specialized skills:
o Officers Robert Link and McMorrow scored 500 out of a possible 500 on
the physical efficiency battery (PEB); other recruits scored above 95%
on the test.
o Officer David Mayeski scored 299 out of 300 at the range; 16 other
recruits scored above 95%.
o Officer Kimberli Duncan scored 300 out of 300 in driver training; 12
other members of the class scored above 95% in this category.
o Officer Robert Louden had a 97.03% GPA in academics, followed by
officer Keaton Wright with 95.61% and officer Mark Varanelli with
95.09%.
The graduates, who have now moved from the ranks of recruits to rookies, will
continue their training in the Park Police's 11-week field training program.
Congratulations and best wishes for a safe and rewarding career to all.
[Sgt. Robert McLean, USPP]
* * * * *
Distribution of the Morning Report is through a mailing list managed by park,
office and/or field area cc:Mail hub coordinators. Please address requests
pertaining to receipt of the Morning Report to your servicing hub
coordinator.
Prepared by the Division of Ranger Activities, WASO, with the cooperation and
support of Delaware Water Gap NRA.
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