NATIONAL PARK SERVICE
                           MORNING REPORT


To:         All National Park Service Areas and Offices

From:       Division of Ranger Activities, Washington Office

Day/Date:   Friday, November 3, 2000

ALMANAC

On this date in 1840, President Martin Van Buren was defeated for 
reelection by William Henry Harrison.  He returned to Kinderhook, New 
York, and took up residence at Lindenwald, an estate near his 
birthplace.  It is now Martin Van Buren National Historic Site.

INCIDENTS

00-681 - Indiana Dunes NL (IN) - Homicide 

On the morning of October 29th, D.B., 21, of Gary, Indiana, 
was found stabbed and shot to death on Maple Avenue east of County 
Line Road in the park.  According to investigators, D.B., who was 
blind, apparently had been a passenger in a car and became involved in 
a dispute with the driver over drugs. The argument began in Gary, but 
continued in the park. D.B. shot the driver, a 20-year-old Gary man, 
around 8 a.m. on Saturday morning.  The wounded driver apparently 
stabbed D.B. several times, then used D.B.'s own gun to shoot him. 
D.B.'s body was then left in the park on a dead end street. Later 
that morning, a Gary police officer saw a man driving a car and 
stopped it because it had blood visible inside and on the windows. The 
driver was taken to the hospital for treatment, then taken to the Gary 
city jail. The driver reported that he had received his wounds in an 
argument with D.B. Police looked for D.B. in several wooded areas 
based on information provided during the investigation. On Sunday, a 
park resident found D.B.'s body within the right-of-way of a city 
road within the park.  While the road is within the park's boundary, 
the NPS does not have jurisdiction on the road itself. The case will 
be handled by local jurisdictions with assistance from the FBI. [Rich 
Littlefield, CR, INDU, 10/31]

00-682 - Hawaii Volcanoes NP (HI) - Storm Impacts

The park received over 20 inches of rain during a twelve-hour period 
on the night of Wednesday, November 1st. Heavy rains, flash flood 
warnings, and lightning were predicted to subside by 2 a.m. Thursday 
morning, but persisted until 3 p.m., giving an overall rainfall total 
of between 25 and 30 inches.  Highway 11 through the park was shut 
down due to flooded areas east and west of the park. Only 35 of the 
park's 120 employees were able to make it into work due to the 
condition of the highway and other flooding.  The park went into a 
24-hour ICS operation. Park roads and facilities were closed, but the 
visitor center was staffed throughout the day for visitors who had 
stayed in the park overnight. Eight people who were at numerous 
locations in the backcountry between the ocean and the top of Mauna 
Loa (13,677 feet) have been accounted for. The park will likely be 
back to normal by this evening. [Paul Ducasse, CR/IC, HAVO, 11/2]

                  [Additional reports pending....]

FIRE SITUATION

Shenandoah NP (VA) - The Shenandoah Complex consists of the Pinnacles 
Fire and the Old Rag Fire. On Thursday, the Type I team met with the 
county sheriffs, county fire departments, county emergency management 
coordinators and the state police to develop contingency plans, 
including evacuations if needed.  The incident is now being managed 
under a unified command, with the Page and Madison County emergency 
services coordinators serving as the  commanders. Both fires exhibited 
fire behavior and spread similar to Wednesday. Dozer and hand line was 
built along both the west boundary of the Pinnacles Fire and the east 
boundary of the Old Rag Fire.  The line has held and structures were 
successfully defended.  Although line is being built above Jewel 
Hollow, it is close enough that the Page County Sheriff's Department, 
in concert with incident managers, is issuing a precautionary 
evacuation for that area. Crew, engine and overhead counts remained 
the same as reported yesterday. Additional aircraft (helicopters, air 
tankers, lead planes and an air attack observation platform) and 
dozers were assigned to the fire, and additional resources are on 
order. The following closures are currently in effect:  Skyline Drive 
from Thornton Gap to the north entrance at Skyland; all trails in an 
area bounded by Route 211 to the north, the park boundary to the east 
and west, and the Old Rag and Berry Hollow fire roads to the south; 
all trails on Old Rag Mountain; state secondary roads 646 and 717 in 
Madison County, and state secondary road 669 from Pass Run Creek to 
the park boundary in Page County. There is now an incident web site - 
www.shenandoahfires.com - which includes maps, evacuation information 
and other information. [Greg Stiles, SHEN, 11/2]

Big South Fork NRRA (KY/TN) - The Big South Fork Complex currently 
consists of three fires - the School House Fire, Poplar Springs Branch 
Fire and Camp Branch Fire:
 
o       The School House Fire, which was reported on October 30th, 
        started on the Laurel Ridge Road, along the western boundary 
        of the park. The fire threatened several private residences 
        located on the opposite side of Laurel Ridge Road. A dozer was 
        used to remove downed timber along existing backcountry roads 
        and hand lines were dug within the gorge area, where motorized 
        accesses is prohibited.  Following a successful series of 
        backfires to strengthen these fire lines, the fire was 
        declared contained at 11:30 p.m. on November 1st.  The fire 
        area is in excess of 2,000 acres.  Fire suppression efforts 
        continue, with the burn area closed to visitors.
o       The Poplar Springs Branch Fire  was reported by park staff on 
        October 30th.  The fire was located on adjacent Tennessee 
        State Forest land and threatened to burn into the park.   Four 
        NPS employees worked with Tennessee State Park and Forest 
        crews to control the fire and prevent it from entering Big 
        South Fork. State crews used dozers to establish a line on the 
        upper portions of the fire, while the NPS and state forest 
        crews built a hand line in the lower drainage.   The fire line 
        along the park boundaries was completed on November 1st, and 
        the fire was stopped 300 yards from the park boundary.  The 
        fire is now being managed solely by state personnel.  No 
        estimates of fire size are currently available.
o       The Camp Branch Fire was reported on the evening of November 
        1st.  The fire originated outside park boundaries and has now 
        burned into the park.  Park personnel and a 20-person crew 
        from the West are attacking the fire.  Of particular concern 
        are a number of active and abandoned gas wells currently being 
        threatened by the fire.  As of early Wednesday morning, the 
        fire was estimated at 75 acres.  The area has been temporarily 
        closed to visitors.

Due to the high fire danger along the entire Cumberland Plateau and 
based on action by the states of Kentucky and Tennessee, Big South 
Fork has imposed a ban on all open fires in the park's backcountry.  
Fires will now only be permitted within existing grates at developed 
campgrounds with campers present.   Due to the extreme fire conditions 
and the number of existing fires in the area, a Type I team and three 
Western crews will likely be committed to the complex today.  [Steven 
Seven, BISO, 11/2]

CULTURAL/NATURAL RESOURCE MANAGEMENT

No submissions.

INTERPRETATION AND VISITOR SERVICES

No submissions.

OPERATIONAL NOTES

No submissions.

MEMORANDA

No submissions.

INTERCHANGE

No submissions.

PARKS AND PEOPLE

Submissions pending.

                            *  *  *  *  *

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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