NATIONAL PARK SERVICE
                           MORNING REPORT


To:         All National Park Service Areas and Offices

From:       Division of Ranger Activities, Washington Office

Day/Date:   Monday, March 19, 2001

INCIDENTS

01-092 - Grand Teton NP (WY) - Employee-Bear Encounter

Park employee Jim "Ole" Olson was attacked and injured by a grizzly 
bear around 9:30 p.m. on the evening of March 7th. Olson was skiing 
alone in Berry Creek Canyon en route to the Upper Berry Creek patrol 
cabin when he encountered the bear in an open meadow. Olson had seen 
grizzly tracks earlier in the trip. He first became aware of the bear 
when it was approximately 20 meters to his right and behind him. Olson 
turned toward the bear, illuminating it with his head lamp, and 
changed position by crouching down. At the same time, the bear charged 
him and bit him on the right shoulder and buttocks. The bear was on 
Olson for a few seconds, then  calmly retreated in the same direction 
from which it had come. Olson lay still for about five minutes before 
continuing to ski to the cabin. When he arrived, he was provided first 
aid and treatment by ranger Mike Nicklas, who was already at the 
cabin. Olson was evacuated the next morning, and rangers and a park 
wildlife biologist conducted an investigation of the incident.  
Preliminary results of the investigation indicate that the bear was an 
adult grizzly with no cubs present, and that it had been traversing 
the base of the ridge to the north of the meadow, about a mile 
southeast of Hechtman Lake at the edge of the woods. The bear had been 
headed west, but changed direction and walked to the southwest to a 
spot near the point where the incident occurred. When Olson appeared, 
the bear turned directly toward him and approached quickly. Olson 
underwent surgery to clean the wounds and repair a torn tricep at St. 
John's Hospital in Jackson and was released the following day. He is 
very sore but recovering nicely and back at work. The Berry Creek 
drainage will be closed to public entry for approximately a week to 
ten days. No action will be taken against the bear. [Colin Campbell, 
CR, GRTE, 3/15]

01-093 - Jean Lafitte NHP&P (LA) - Assist to Agency; Drug Seizure

On the afternoon of March 13th, several men in diving gear were seen 
removing packages wrapped in black rubber from the ship Kopalnia 
Borynia, which was docked in the Chalmette boat slip near Chalmette 
National Battlefield. Responding federal agents saw a man flee from 
the battlefield into the woods near the park. Coast Guardsmen, St. 
Bernard Parish deputies, and Louisiana National Guard soldiers setup a 
containment perimeter around the area. The park was contacted and 
asked to evacuate all visitors and non-essential personnel. Rangers 
participated in a ground search of the woods with U.S. marshals and 
Customs agents, supported by two helicopters. They didn't find anyone, 
but seized about 150 pounds of marijuana and some diving equipment. 
Ranger Leigh Zahm served as the park's liaison officer.
[Jim Carson, CR, JELA, 3/15]

                   [Additional reports pending....]

FIRE MANAGEMENT

National Fire Plan

The National Park Service and other land management agencies are in 
the process of hiring people in order to meet the goals of the 
National Fire Plan. The service has engaged a contractor - Employment 
Network, Inc. (ENI) - to help make this happen. One method being 
employed to recruit staff is a toll free number (1-866-NPS-FIRE, or 
1-866-677-3473). The recording at that number directs the caller to 
www.nps.gov/fire/jobs, but the caller can also leave a name, address 
and call back number if there are additional questions or if he/she 
does not have access to the Internet. Other methods are also being 
utilized:

o       Representatives from ENI and NPS attend college job fairs. 
o       ENI has placed ads on the Internet and in college newspapers, 
        alternative western newspapers, and forestry and firefighting 
        magazines.  
o       ENI is working closely with the military to identify and 
        recruit firefighters who are leaving the armed services, 
        especially those who worked on wildfires last year. 
o       An S-130/190 pilot program has begun in which NPS staff are 
        teaching these entry-level fire courses at several locations. 
        Particular focus is being placed on universities with 
        traditionally underrepresented student bodies.  Students 
        passing the training can be hired non-competitively through 
        student hiring authorities.

Park Fires

No fires reported.

[Barb Stewart, NPS Fire Information, WASO, 3/16]

CULTURAL/NATURAL RESOURCE MANAGEMENT

No submissions.

INTERPRETATION AND VISITOR SERVICES

No submissions.

OPERATIONAL NOTES

Comprehensive Condition Assessment Follow-up - The Service's national 
Type I IMT is developing a system to validate and verify deferred 
maintenance cost estimates in response to President Bush's commitment 
to reduce the National Park Service maintenance backlog. The following 
provides some background on the issues that the team is focusing on:

The NPS has frequently been criticized for its inability to provide 
accurate information on its inventory and infrastructure and for the 
inaccuracy of cost estimates that have been developed to correct 
deficiencies and improve the condition of these facilities. Part of 
the problem is the sheer breadth and complexity of the national park 
system. The physical inventory of the NPS is extensive and diverse. 
Facilities include numerous cultural and historic buildings and 
structures, complex utility systems and a wide-ranging network of 
roads and trails. These must be maintained at an operational level 
that ensures continued protection, preservation, and serviceability. A 
key component to more effective management of these facilities is a 
comprehensive inventory, condition, and needs assessment, which will 
provide the necessary Servicewide information for determining what 
resources and activities are necessary to maintain facilities and 
infrastructure in good operating condition. Scheduled condition 
assessments are necessary to make it possible for the Service to 
determine whether progress is being made in reducing maintenance 
backlogs and to provide managers a means for early detection of 
potential problems. Public Law 98-540 requires the implementation of 
an inventory and condition assessment system into the maintenance and 
operations programs of the National Park Service. Federal Accounting 
Standards Advisory Board Release Number 6, "Accounting for Plant, 
Property, and Equipment," sets specific requirements for reporting 
inventory and condition of federal facilities. 

The National Park Service is establishing a process and an automated 
system to collect detailed information on park assets. This inventory 
condition assessment information will provide an accurate, verifiable 
backlog of deferred maintenance cost estimates and will establish a 
baseline against which progress in remediation of problems can be 
measured.  This information will provide performance indicators for 
future management planning and decision-making, and will fulfill 
reporting requirements set by the Department and Congress. Thirty park 
units were selected in 1999 to pilot a new facility management 
software system. Six of these parks - Big Cypress NP, Effigy Mounds 
NM, Fort Caroline NM, Redwood N&SP, Santa Monica Mountains NRA, and 
Timucuan E&HR - have been selected as pilot parks to complete an 
initial comprehensive condition assessment (CCA) by September 30th. A 
team of subject matter experts from the NPS and the private sector is 
developing criteria for the CCA process. The support and participation 
of the pilot parks is integral to completing the initial assessments 
for baseline information. 

[Dale Wilking, Chief, PFMD/WASO]

MEMORANDA

No submissions.

INTERCHANGE

No submissions.

PARKS AND PEOPLE

Submissions pending.

                            *  *  *  *  *

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address requests pertaining to receipt of the Morning Report to your 
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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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