NATIONAL PARK SERVICE
                           MORNING REPORT


To:         All National Park Service Areas and Offices

From:       Division of Ranger Activities, Washington Office

Day/Date:   Monday, June 19, 2000

ALMANAC

On this date in 1934, President Franklin D. Roosevelt approved an 
appropriation to begin construction of the Natchez Trace Parkway, a 
scenic road following a historic trail between Nashville, Tennessee, 
and Natchez, Mississippi.

INCIDENTS

00-297 - Gulf Islands NS (MS/FL) - Shark Attack 

On the afternoon of June 13th, three people in a 22-foot pleasure 
craft in shallow water  in the Gulf of Mexico 20 yards off Langdon 
Beach saw a gray object in the water and determined that it was an 
eight-foot-long shark that was moving toward the beach, where a number 
of families were swimming. The operator maneuvered the boat in an 
attempt to force the shark into deeper waters and away from the 
swimmers. The shark appeared agitated and bit the swimming platform on 
the rear of the vessel - two bolts were pulled from the platform and a 
rubber mat sustained a bite mark. Nobody in the boat was injured. The 
shark eventually changed direction and moved into deeper waters. The 
boaters could not tell what species of shark it was, but believe it 
might have been a bull shark after reviewing pictures of a variety of 
species. [John Bandurski, DR, Florida District, 6/15]

00-298 - Wright Brothers NM (NC) - Breaking and Entering

The intrusion alarm went off at the park's visitor center at 1:37 a.m. 
on Wednesday, June 14th. Ranger Paul Stevens and a Kill Devil Hills PD 
officer were on scene shortly, with the officer arriving almost 
immediately. They found that the vent on a utility room door had been 
pried and kicked in. The building was searched, but nobody was found 
inside and nothing appeared to have been taken. The alarm company 
reported that the only sensor activated was in the building's office. 
Activation of the alarm and the officer's quick response have been 
credited with causing the burglar or burglars to flee. There was also 
a B&E at the park's entrance station. A screen had been removed from a 
window on the back of the building and the lock had been pried open. 
An open, empty safe under a counter was pulled out on the floor, but 
no items were removed from the building. The window had been closed 
and the screen replaced after the building was entered. There are no 
suspects at this time. [Paul Stevens, LES, Outer Bank Group, 6/15]

                [Additional reports pending....]

FIRE SITUATION

NATIONAL PREPAREDNESS LEVEL - Level III

CURRENT SITUATION

New large fires were reported yesterday in the Great Basin and in the 
South. Initial attack was moderate in the Great Basin, California and 
the South and Southwest. Containment goals were reached on three large 
fires in the Southwest.

The following resources were committed nationwide as of yesterday 
(changes from yesterday's numbers in parentheses): 176 crews (- 29), 
967 overhead (- 97), 208 engines (- 59), 55 helicopters (+ 4), and 6 
air tankers (- 8).

Very high to extreme fire indices were reported in Arizona, 
California, Colorado, Florida, Georgia, Kansas, Mississippi, Nevada, 
New Mexico, and Utah.

NPS FIRES

Bandelier NP (NM) - Rehabilitation of Cerro Grande Fire impacts 
continue. Concerns have been expressed regarding the working 
environment because of the proximity of the Los Alamos Laboratory. 
Based on monitoring and information provided by the lab, the area 
command team believes that there's no reason current assignments 
should not continue.

SIGNIFICANT NON-NPS FIRES 

Colorado State - The High Meadow Fire (35 miles southwest of Denver) 
has burned 10,500 acres and 58 structures. Large areas of unburned 
fuels still remain inside the fire perimeter, presenting the threat of 
long-range spotting if they begin burning actively. High winds and low 
relative humidity are forecast for today. A Type I team is assigned; 
744 firefighters and overhead are committed.

Arapaho-Roosevelt NF (CO) - The Bobcat Fire (12 miles west of 
Loveland) is burning in grass, brush and timber. Strong winds are 
expected today. If lines hold, containment goals should be met by the 
end of the shift.

OUTLOOK

NICC has issued a RED FLAG WARNING for strong winds in southeast 
Idaho, and a FIRE WEATHER WATCH for strong winds, low relative 
humidity, and dry lightning in eastern Colorado.

[NICC Incident Management Situation Report, 6/19]

CULTURAL/NATURAL RESOURCE MANAGEMENT

No submissions.

INTERPRETATION AND VISITOR SERVICES

Gettysburg NMP (PA) - National Interactive Curriculum-Based Student    
                      Program

On Monday, May 3rd, interpretive staff at Gettysburg NMP concluded an 
innovative curriculum-based student education program involving 
schools in over 30 states across the country.  The core of the 
program, called "Gettysburg: A Soldiers Story," began on April 3rd 
with a web page designed by park staff that included the biographies 
and photographs of 35 Union and Confederate soldiers from the battle.  
Teachers were asked to assign one of these men to each student, who 
followed the soldier through the entire month-long Gettysburg 
campaign. The web page also included sections on what was happening 
elsewhere in the country during the Gettysburg campaign, soldier life, 
a daily quiz in which students were asked questions to test their 
geography, math and history skills, and reports on what was going on 
in Gettysburg, Pennsylvania, while the two armies marched north. Each 
week, staff updated the web page, allowing students to trace the route 
their soldiers had taken on a map of northern Virginia, Maryland and 
southern Pennsylvania. The web page also contained excerpts from 
letters, diaries and journals of these soldiers describing the 
grueling campaign as it was happening. These included thoughts on what 
was it was like to march 30 miles in one day, carrying 20 to 30 pounds 
of equipment, what the soldiers thought they were fighting for, and 
their thoughts on the battle they knew was coming. On May 3rd, 498,348 
students in 176 institutions (individual schools, school districts, 
cable company sites) in 31 states tuned into a live satellite 
broadcast from the park that allowed them to travel back in time to 
July 2, 1863, the second day of the Battle of Gettysburg. Students 
were introduced to two real soldiers, one Union and one Confederate, 
who were representative of the 170,000 men who fought at Gettysburg. 
They heard these men's stories and visited the very ground they fought 
upon.  There were two broadcasts of one hour each, one to accommodate 
East Coast audiences and one for the West Coast.  The broadcast was a 
collaborative effort between the park's interpretive staff, FEMA's 
Emergency Education Network (EENET), the U.S. Navy (Navy Live) and 
Great Falls Communication.  The Friends of the National Parks at 
Gettysburg and Eastern National provided funding for broadcast. On May 
8th the web page was updated one final time, making it possible for 
students to learn what happened to the soldier they followed through 
the campaign and offering them some sense of the anxiety families felt 
as they waited at home for news of their fate. [Brion FitzGerald, 
GETT]

OPERATIONAL NOTES

No submissions.

MEMORANDA

No submissions.

INTERCHANGE

No submissions.

PARKS AND PEOPLE

Santa Monica Mountains NRA (CA) - The park is recruiting to fill two 
law enforcement park ranger positions - one in Rancho Sierra Vista, 
the other at Paramount Ranch in Agoura Hills. Incumbents are 
responsible for the full range of law enforcement duties via patrols 
by vehicle, horse, bike and foot. Candidates for the former position 
must already be able to ride, train horses and riders, and be able to 
care for horses, tack and equipment. Government housing may be 
available; a wide variety of housing is available for rent or purchase 
in the area. All metropolitan area amenities are available. Both 
announcements are on USA Jobs. 

                            *  *  *  *  *

Distribution of the Morning Report is through a mailing list managed 
by park, office and/or regional cc:Mail hub coordinators.  Please 
address requests pertaining to receipt of the Morning Report to your 
servicing hub coordinator.  The Morning Report is also available on 
the web at http://www.nps.gov/morningreport

Prepared by the Division of Ranger Activities, WASO, with the 
cooperation and support of Delaware Water Gap NRA.

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