NPS Morning Report - Thursday, June 21, 2001
- Subject: NPS Morning Report - Thursday, June 21, 2001
- Date: Thu, 21 Jun 2001 10:15:21 -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 21, 2001
INCIDENTS
01-286 - Minuteman Missile NHS (SD) - Special Event: ICBM Installation
On Thursday, June 14th, a Minuteman II missile was restored to Delta
Nine, a deactivated missile silo in western South Dakota. Under the
supervision of the U.S. Air Force, the 55.8-foot-tall intercontinental
ballistic missile was transported from Hill Air Force Base in Utah and
brought to the site for the seven-hour operation. Local, regional, and
national media attended portions of the event. Sayre Hutchison
(architect, IMR) and Jo Wilkins (historical architect, MWR) were
on-site to observe the process and work with the Air Force maintenance
staff to begin recording standard procedures for maintaining a
thermonuclear warhead for display purposes. Under the Strategic Arms
Reduction Treaty of 1993, a "static display" of a missile was to be
developed by the U.S. Air Force. Delta Nine fulfills that
international treaty commitment. Through the coming summer, the Air
Force will be constructing a viewing enclosure over the silo/missile
complex. This action is one of the final activities required before
the Air Force transfers ownership of Delta Nine and Delta One (a
launch control facility and support features) to the National Park
Service as Minuteman Missile National Historic Site (MIMI). The site
was established on December 2, 1999. The NPS will begin the general
management planning process in July. Anyone desiring to be on the
mailing list should send their mailing address to
mimi_information@nps.gov. MIMI will be operated as a separate unit
under the supervision of the superintendent of Badlands National Park.
(M. Mills, Acting Site Manager, MIMI, 6/15)
01-287 - Grand Canyon NP (AZ) - Homicide
South Rim rangers responding to a report of a non-responsive person in
AMFAC concession housing on June 12th discovered the body of Kim
Quanimptewa, 30, of Hotevilla on the Hopi Reservation. The location
and position of the body made it evident that the death was a possible
homicide, and a joint investigation was begun with Coconino County SO.
An autopsy completed by the state confirmed that Quanimptewa died from
multiple stab wounds. Quanimptewa was an AMFAC employee and has
relatives working for both AMFAC at Grand Canyon and for SPMA at
Hubbell Trading Post NHS. Park special agents and county detectives
are pursuing several investigative leads. [Patrick Hattaway, DR, South
Rim District, GRCA, 6/19]
01-288 - Sequoia and Kings Canyon NP's (CA) - Structural Fire
On the night of June 9th, a structural fire was accidentally started
by a homeowner in Wilsonia, a private inholding in the Grant Grove
area of Kings Canyon NP. Nearby residents heard the owner's cries for
help and notified the park around 9 p.m. By the time the Grant Grove
structural fire brigade arrived on scene, the building was engulfed in
flames. Units from CDF, Sequoia NF and the Lodgepole fire brigade also
responded; a total of eight engine units, three crews of wildland
firefighters and the Arrowhead hotshots assisted in the firefighting
effort. Grant Grove residents were evacuated as a precautionary
measure. A propane tank adjacent to the structure vented and caught
fire, spreading flames to and destroying a neighboring house. A sport
utility vehicle parked in front of the burning building also caught
fire from radiant heat and was destroyed. The fire was declared
controlled at 8 a.m. the next morning. The fire was started when the
homeowner spilled lamp oil on a pot-bellied wood stove that was in
use. The flames quickly spread when he attempted to extinguish the
fire with water from a hose. Ranger John Stobinski was IC. [Bob
Wilson, LES, SEKI, 6/20]
[Additional reports pending....]
FIRE MANAGEMENT
National Fire Situation - Preparedness Level II
Two new large fires were reported in Florida; three large fires in
Florida and another in California were contained. Initial attack was
moderate in California, the Southwest and the South and light
elsewhere. Very high to extreme indices were reported in Arizona,
California, Colorado, Oklahoma, Oregon, Nevada, New Mexico, Texas and
Utah.
No fire watches or warnings have been issued for today.
The full NICC situation report for today can be found at
http://www.nifc.gov/news/sitreprt.pdf.
National Resource Status (Five Day Trend)
Sun Mon Tue Wed Thu
Date 6/17 6/18 6/19 6/20 6/21
Crews 99 114 137 184 133
Engines 125 246 305 298 220
Helicopters 30 49 52 63 50
Air Tankers 3 1 5 9 1
Overhead 420 425 509 444 465
Park Fire Situation
Big Cypress NP (FL) - The park conducted a 2,500-acre prescribed burn
in Airplane Prairie, where there is standing water in the prairies and
cypress areas. Other areas of the park remain dry and are threatened
by lightning strikes.
Park Fire Danger
Extreme Hawaii Volcanoes NP
Very High Sequoia/Kings Canyon NP, Everglades NP, Zion NP, Big
Bend NP
High Great Basin NP, Joshua Tree NP, Santa Monica Mountains
NRA, Dinosaur NM, Guadalupe Mountains NP
[NPS Situation Summary Report, 6/20; NICC Incident Management
Situation Report, 6/21]
OPERATIONAL NOTES
Medical Standards Program Update (Second Notice) - In an effort to
reduce impacts to park staffing during the busy summer season, the
medical standards program manager will be identifying pending medical
cases that involve similar issues over the course of the coming week.
Cases to be reviewed will be primarily those that center on vision and
hearing. Once the cases are identified, a medical review board will
make decisions on the issues and information will be sent to
supervisors and regional office points of contact via cc:Mail. Each
case will be reviewed individually and will have to stand on its own
merits. These interim notices will permit those receiving waivers to
expeditiously return to work, and will provide notice to employees who
are not granted waivers so that they can begin the appeals process.
Formal written notification will still be issued following established
procedures; due to the backlog of cases with complex issues, however,
this notification may take several weeks. Rangers who have received
notification of "significant medical findings" from the reviewing
medical officer in Atlanta are asked to send a cc:Mail to acting
program manger Pat Buccello. Please provide your current contact phone
number and fax number and those for your supervisor. Questions on this
procedure should be also sent to Pat via cc:Mail. By limiting less
urgent phone calls over the next two weeks, it will be possible to
concentrate on processing the backlog of cases. [Dennis Burnett,
RAD/WASO]
MEMORANDA
"Staff Support for 2001 Wildland Fire Season," signed on June 18th by
acting director Deny Galvin and sent to all regional directors and
superintendents. The full text follows:
"The 2000 fire season was the most challenging we have faced since
1910 in terms of numbers of acres burned and firefighting resources
committed. This year, many parts of the country are experiencing
moisture deficits, some already worse than last year at this same
time. It is evident that a chain of weather events has now set in
place conditions for another potentially severe fire season that could
place significant demands on our resource capability.
"Successful and safe responses to the rigorous demands of an
above-average fire season require a concerted effort by National Park
Service employees at all levels of the organization and all
disciplines. If the current trend in conditions continues, requests
will be made for above average numbers of employees from Parks, for
assistance both within and outside home units. Initial preparations
and long-term planning can - and should - be done now. I am asking
regional directors and park superintendents to ensure that our
employees and equipment are ready for another potentially difficult
fire season.
"The following sections clarify areas where most questions occur
related to support of wildland fire activities. Please review these
sections and disseminate to appropriate staff members.
"Park Operations - As preparedness levels change and the call for
assistance broadens, base park operations and visitor services may
have to change due to the need to shift staff and equipment to fire
suppression efforts. Plan for this before it becomes a crisis. Each
superintendent should consider how park operations may be changed at
each preparedness level. Following are some considerations:
o Some services may be reduced, such as visitor center hours.
o Some facilities must operate regardless of the preparedness
level, such as wastewater treatment plants.
o Adequate staff must be present in the park to provide
essential and critical services.
"Resource Availability - National preparedness levels established by
the National Multi-Agency Coordinating (MAC) Group are dictated by
burning conditions, fire activity and resource availability, and guide
continual preparations for worsening situations. Resource
availability is the area of greatest concern.
"Preparedness Levels I - V are described in the National Interagency
Mobilization Guide (NMG) available on the web at
www.nifc.gov/news/2001nmg.pdf. (Descriptions of these various
preparedness levels, with I being the lowest and V the most severe,
are found in NMG Chapter 20, section 26, pages 49-54, and may be
helpful to you in your long-range planning.) All offices are to
assess their need for qualified fire personnel and make available
those not essential to initial attack or critical park operations.
Permanent employees should be assigned to overhead assignments,
wherever possible, while seasonal employees should generally fill our
commitments for crew assignments. Those personnel that have received
additional training since their last assignment should be identified
for a qualifying trainee assignment into that newly acquired skill.
All regions are to expedite their mobilization efforts in concert with
their cooperators.
"Information Dissemination - As services are reduced to address
national firefighting priorities, we will increase the information
program to assure that park visitors are aware of and understand the
need for reductions in hours of operation or suspension of programs.
"National Fire Plan Objectives and Wildland Fire Suppression - This
year we are actively engaged in fuel treatment activities as part of
the National Fire Plan (NFP). The NFP represents one of the highest
priority programs for the Department of the Interior. It is
critically important that we continue these activities to the greatest
extent possible or until the wildland fire situation dictates a higher
priority. In support of these objectives, all fire personnel funded
through the 251 and 252 PWEs will remain dedicated to fuel treatment
activities during National Preparedness Levels I, II, and III. At
National Preparedness Levels IV and V, all qualified personnel will be
made available for firefighting or support assignments. Fire Use
Modules will remain dedicated to fuel treatment activities during
Preparedness Levels I, II and III and will be available for wildland
fire assignments (use or suppression) only if priority fuel treatments
have been completed, or fuel treatment work is suspended. If there
are questions about specific situations and circumstances, please
contact your Regional Fire Management Officer.
"Backfill - Program managers are reminded that they have authority to
shift regular hours to fire accounts (Base 8) or they have backfilling
authority for positions assigned to emergency wildland fire
operations. See Shifting Regular Hours to Fire Accounts (Base 8),
page 4, Chapter 19, RM-18 and Backfilling, page 5, Chapter 19, RM-18.
RM-18 is on the web at www.nps.gov/fire/fire/policy/rm18.
"I expect all parks and offices to contribute fully to the effort, as
we remain committed to providing an appropriate level of support to
NPS and interagency wildland fire suppression activities. Any
questions related to this information can be directed to your Regional
Fire Management Officer or Sue Vap, National Fire Management Officer,
at the Fire Management Program Center in Boise, at 208/387-5225."
PARKS AND PEOPLE
Washington Office (DC) - The announcement for the GS-13/14 medical
standards program manager in the Ranger Activities Division has been
posted on USA Jobs. It opened on June 15th and closes on July 6th. The
announcement number is NPSWASO-01-062. The person selected will plan,
develop, implement and communicate the program's policies and
activities to the headquarters directorate, regional directors,
managers and employee of the NPS; she/he serves as the program's
technical expert and oversees day-to-day program operational
activities. There is a mandatory selective factor of prior experience
in a primary law enforcement position. [Sue Masica, Dennis Burnett,
WASO]
LESSONS LEARNED
A Thursday supplement to the Morning Report for new ideas,
innovations, and lessons learned that shouldn't have to be relearned.
In 1996, the Park Police assumed control of all outstanding USPP
warrants in the federal district court system in Maryland. A review
showed that there were numerous extremely old warrants for minor
offenses still in effect. In coordination with the U.S. Magistrates'
Office, all warrants for minor offenses prior to 1993 were purged from
the system. Personnel from USPP's Greenbelt Station then constructed
a database for the outstanding warrants and began entering certain
ones into MILES (Maryland Inter-agency Law Enforcement System). In
November, 1999, a warrant squad was started and the station commander
assigned two officers to staff the unit. At that time, there were over
1300 active USPP warrants in the system. From the beginning of
December, 1999, until mid-February, 2000, personnel began reviewing
and validating each of these warrants. The squad began arresting
subjects for these outstanding warrants at the beginning of April,
2000. At that time, there were 98 active USPP warrants in MILES. Since
April, 2000, the unit has added to and kept an average of over 200
warrants in MILES. Since its inception, the squad has closed 552 of
these warrants by way of arrest by USPP, arrest by other law
enforcement agencies, self-surrender, or recall/dismissal by the
court. The warrant squad receives between 25 and 50 new warrants each
month from court and validates between 100 and 200 warrants a week.
Officer Daniel McClanahan has been a member of the squad since its
inception and has trained many of the officers assigned to the squad.
[Sgt. R. MacLean, USPP, NCR]
* * * * *
The Morning Report solicits entries from the field and central offices
for its daily and weekly sections (below). The general rule is that
submissions, whatever the category, should pertain to operations, be
useful to the field, and have broad significance across the agency.
Additional details on submission criteria are available from the
editor at any time (Bill Halainen at NP-DEWA, or
Bill_Halainen@nps.gov). Ask for either incident reporting criteria
(issued by WASO, June 18, 2000) or general criteria.
Daily and weekly sections are available for news or significant
developments pertaining to:
Field incidents Interpretation and visitor services
Natural resource management Cultural resource management
Operations (WASO only) Memoranda (WASO only)
Requests/offers of assistance Park-related web sites
Parks and employees Media stories on parks
Training, meetings, and events Queries on operational matters
Reports on "lessons learned"
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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