NATIONAL PARK SERVICE
                               MORNING REPORT

To:         All National Park Service Areas and Offices

From:       Division of Ranger Activities, Washington Office

Day/Date:   Thursday, September 2, 1999

INCIDENTS

99-520 - Cape Hatteras NS (NC) Follow-up: Hurricane Dennis

Dare County continues to be buffeted by full gale force winds, which are now
expected to last for the next 24 to 36 hours.  The storm continues to move
slowly westward toward the North Carolina coast.  Heavy rains and winds of
from 30 to 50 mph are expected across the area.  Overwash continues, with
tides running three to five feet above normal.  Impacts have been numerous:

o     NC Highway 12, the main transportation link along the Outer Banks,
      remains breached in several places from the Currituck Beach lighthouse
      to Ocracoke Village, a stretch of 80 to 90 miles.  Several sections of
      road have been washed away, including a segment just north of Buxton. 
      The highway will remain closed south of Oregon Inlet at least until the
      weekend.  Rangers and state and county officers are controlling entry
      onto Hatteras Island.  A North Carolina Army National Guard convoy made
      a trip down the island as far as Rodanthe to deliver supplies and food
      to island communities.  
o     Hatteras Island is flooded in low areas and ocean overwash is occurring
      at high tide along many sections of NC 12.  Some structural damage is
      reported to facilities at Cape Hatteras.
o     Ocracoke Island is still without phones.  Electricity is being provided
      by on-site generators.  Ocracoke has lost about a mile of fencing at
      the pony pens.  Ocracoke Village is still under one to two feet of
      water, with more flooding expected at high tides for the next 24 hours.
o     Fort Raleigh NHS and Wright Brothers NM appear to have fared well. 
      Cleanup of the latter areas may begin tomorrow.
o     Cape Hatteras lighthouse sustained only superficial damage from the
      hurricane.  A temporary weather station at the top of the light was
      destroyed after recording a top wind gust of 128 mph.  The foundation
      was flooded by ocean overwash and heavy rains and is currently being
      pumped dry.  The relighting ceremony set for Saturday has been
      postponed.

[William Fischer, Alternate IC, CAHA, 9/1]

99-530 - Great Smoky Mountains NP (NC/TN) - Contractor Fatality

J.I., 37, of Sevierville, Tennessee, was killed on the morning of
September 1st when a backhoe he was driving overturned and crushed him.  J.I.
was employed by a subcontractor working for PCL Construction, the prime
contractor on an FHWA contract to construct a portion of the Foothills
Parkway.  The cause of the accident is under investigation by the park, FHWA,
and Tennessee OSHA officials.  The victim's brother, D.I., is a forestry
technician in the park's fire management office.  [Bob Miller, PIO, GRSM,
9/1]

99-531 - Colorado NM (CO) - Attempted Suicide; Rescue

Rangers received a report of a body in Columbus Canyon on the afternoon of
August 26th.  Ranger Bill Row contacted a witness who said that the person in
the canyon was a friend of his and was still alive.  The victim - a 20-year-
old male from Grand Junction - had called the witness to tell him where he
was and that he had taken 16 sleeping pills.  Row found the man about 400
feet down a very steep and exposed route into the canyon.  Row and local
firefighters rappelled to his location, put a harness on him, and belayed him
as he climbed out under his own power.  He was unhurt but incoherent and told
rescuers that he was attempting to kill himself.  He was taken to a local
hospital and put on a 72-hour hold for psychological evaluation.  Further
investigation revealed that there was a felony warrant out against him for
exploitation of a minor.  Sheriff's deputies are dealing with that aspect of
the incident.  [Ron Young, CR, COLM, 9/1]

99-532 - Colorado NM (CO) - Probable Suicide

A lunch cooler with an apparent suicide note inside was found along Rim Rock
Drive at the head of Columbus Canyon on the morning of August 29th.  Ranger
Bill Row responded along with other rangers and sheriff's deputies.  They
searched Columbus Canyon, but found nothing.  On the morning of the 30th, Row
hiked to vantage point and saw a vehicle in Red Canyon, about a mile from the
point where the note had been found.  A body was visible near the vehicle. 
Row and two members of the county technical rescue team rappelled about 400
feet to the site.  A raising system was set up and the body was extricated. 
The victim was identified as R.M., 26, of Grand Junction. 
Investigation revealed that R.M. had written the note found in the cooler
and that his vehicle went over the cliff sometime during the night of August
28th-29th.  The investigation is continuing; vehicle removal is pending. 
[Ron Young, CR, COLM, 9/1]

FIRE ACTIVITY

NATIONAL PREPAREDNESS LEVEL - Level IV

LARGE FIRE/INCIDENT SUMMARY 

                                                     Tue       Wed   %  Est
State      Unit              Fire/Incident   IMT     8/31      9/1  Con Con
 
CA    Angeles NF             Bridge           T1    3,000    7,000   30 UNK
      San Bernadino NF       Willow           T1   55,000   60,100   30 UNK
                             Mixing           T2    3,000    3,000   70 UNK
      Plumas NF              MHRD Cx          T1   12,342   14,482   30 UNK
                             FRRD Cx          T1    3,755    3,805   85 UNK
      Shasta-Trinity NF      High Cx          T1   18,500   21,100   80 9/4
                             Big Bar Cx       T2    5,235    5,476   16 UNK

MT    Crow Agency            Ash Creek        --      500      500   80 UNK 
      State                  Briney           --      850      850  100 CND
                             Wessel           --    1,000    1,000  100 CND

UT    Salt Lake District     Parker           --      800      800  100 CND

ID    Lower Snake District   East Slick       T2   34,000   35,118   90 9/2 
      Salmon/Challis NF    * Norton Creek     --        -    1,900  UNK RBF

TX    State                  Darby Springs    --    2,000    2,000   45 9/2

LA    Kisatchie NF         * IAU 083199       --        -      356  100 CND

                                  Heading Notes

Unit        Agency or Area Office = BIA area; NF = national forest; RU = CA
            state resource or ranger unit; RD = state ranger district; FO =
            BLM field office; District = BLM district; NWR = USFWS wildlife
            refuge
Fire        * = newly reported fire (on this report); Cx = complex 
IMT         T1 = Type I Team; T2 = Type II Team; T3 = Type III Team; ST =
            State Team; FUM = Fire Use Management 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; UNK = unknown; NR = no
            report; RBF = resource benefit fire, no containment action being
            taken; LR = last report unless significant activity occurs

FIRE NARRATIVES (as of 9/1)

Yosemite NP - The North Park fire had burned 9,232 acres as of August 31st. 
The South Park fire had burned 958 acres.

Great Smoky Mountains NP - The Blacksmith fire burned an additional 77 acres
on August 31st for a total of 260 acres.  The fire is being monitored around
the clock.  Although the fire is producing quite a bit of smoke, it is not
causing visibility problems along Highway 129.  

Glacier NP - Activity on the Anaconda fire was expected to be minimal.  About
half of the perimeter is active.  A slow drying trend is forecast for the
area.  

NUMBER OF NEW FIRES (FOUR DAY TREND)

                    NPS    BIA      BLM     FWS    States   USFS     Total

Sunday, 8/29         0      8        15       1       74     45       143
Monday, 8/30         3      5        18       1      230     31       288
Tuesday, 8/31        2      3         8       1      193     29       236
Wednesday, 9/1       1      0         9       0      162     27       199

TOTAL COMMITTED RESOURCES (FOUR DAY TREND) 

                  Crews     Engines    Helicopters    Airtankers   Overhead

Sunday, 8/29       419        756         103             6         2,196
Monday, 8/30       441        849         102             5         2,059
Tuesday, 8/31      403        643          89            15         1,387
Wednesday, 9/1     407        573         102            14         1,578

CURRENT SITUATION

Initial attack activity was moderate in the South yesterday and minimal in
most other areas.  New large fires were reported in the Great Basin and in
the South.  

Very high to extreme fire indices were reported on Sunday in Oregon,
California, Montana, Idaho, Utah, Nevada, New Mexico, South Dakota, Wyoming,
Kentucky, Alabama, Mississippi, Indiana, Tennessee and Texas.

[NICC Incident Management Situation Report, 9/2; Mike Warren, NPS FMPC, 9/1]

RESOURCE MANAGEMENT, PROTECTION AND EDUCATION 

Reports pending.

OPERATIONAL NOTES

Reports pending.

MEMORANDA

Reports pending.

INTERCHANGE

Reports pending.

PARKS AND PEOPLE

Reports pending.

                                *  *  *  *  *

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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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