NPS Morning Report - Monday, July 2, 2001



                        NATIONAL PARK SERVICE
                           MORNING REPORT


To:         All National Park Service Areas and Offices

From:       Division of Ranger Activities, Washington Office

Day/Date:   Monday, July 2, 2001

INCIDENTS

01-328 - Glen Canyon NRA (UT/AZ) - Drowning

C.E., 18, of Centerville, Utah, is missing and presumed 
drowned following a "teak surfing" accident in Bullfrog Bay on the 
morning of June 27th. C.E. was last seen by members of his party 
while body surfing behind a 20-foot ski boat travelling between 10 and 
15 mph. Preliminary investigations have revealed that carbon monoxide 
poisoning may have been a contributing factor to this fatality. 
C.E. was not wearing a life jacket at the time of the accident. 
This is the first known incident of this particular activity on Lake 
Powell. Members of C.E.'s party reported that "teak surfing" is 
done behind the back of a boat - participants hang on to the (teak) 
swim platform, then let go to body surf the displacement wave created 
by the boat. The search area is approximately 10 acres in size, with 
water depths from 50 to 80 feet. The park dive team completed 57 dives 
into zero visibility water by the end of the second operational 
period, but without success. The park has requested relief divers from 
Maricopa County and a side-scan sonar device. Search efforts have been 
complicated by the proximity of the search area to a developed marina 
and breakwater that are anchored by many underwater cables and lines. 
The search IC is ranger Steve Luckesen. The park offers an additional 
note on this new and dangerous activity: "The sport of 'teak surfing,' 
as described to GLCA investigators, is extremely dangerous due to the 
proximity to the rear of the boat and direct contact with the exhaust 
fumes from the boat. This accident involved a modern ski boat with a 
center prop drive. The boat was weighted in the stern with bladder 
bags of water and the occupants of the boat were standing at the back. 
This creates a very low stern and large wake from the rear. With this 
configuration, a slow-moving  boat creates a large center displacement 
wave. Teak surfers hang off the end of the small wooden swim platform 
until the wake gets large enough to let go and begin surfing on the 
wake.  Surfers can move around on the standing wake by body surfing 
and can move forward and backward and even re-catch the swim platform. 
This activity is done without a life jacket (life jackets inhibit body 
surfing) and at relative slow speed within a few feet of the boat, 
making the potential for carbon monoxide poisoning very high. Glen 
Canyon has already received information that teak surfing is becoming 
popular in other areas of the country. Teak surfing is an incredibly 
dangerous and deadly sport." [Mike Mayer, GLCA, 6/29]

01-329 - Cape Hatteras NS (NC) - Airplane Crash

Pilot M.C. of Ashburn, Virginia, was landing his twin engine 
Cessna 421B at First Flight Airstrip around noon on June 29th when his 
right main landing gear collapsed.  The plane veered off the west side 
of the runway and came to rest about ten feet from the tree line.  
There were no injuries and the plane suffered only minor damage. There 
was no fuel leakage.  Due to the minor damage and lack of injuries, 
the FAA has released the plane and salvage operations have begun. 
[Paul Stevens, LES, CAHA, 6/29]

01-330 - Big Thicket NP (TX) - Rescue; Drowning

While on patrol on June 17th, ranger Jared St. Clair was contacted by 
an ATV rider about a possible drowning on a sandbar approximately 500 
yards upstream from a park boat ramp. St. Clair responded with a 
personal flotation device (PFD), rescue throw-rope, and an EMS bag. 
St. Clair arrived on scene within a few minutes and found J.B. 
and L.W., with an 11-month old infant between them, 
hanging onto a rope swing approximately 20 feet from the opposite 
bank. The infant was in a pool float. The current was very strong due 
to the run-off from Tropical Storm Allison. They shouted they could 
not hold on much longer, so St. Clair donned his PFD and swam across 
the creek to them. He secured the rescue throw-rope to a tree and 
managed to get it to them. While still clinging to the rope swing, St. 
Clair pulled the group within four feet of the steep bank, then 
re-entered the water to assist everyone onto the bank. Three lives 
were saved through St. Clair's efforts. Rangers then determined that 
another member of the party had been swept away by the river. B.W., 
23, and his sister, A.W., were standing in waist-deep water 
on a sandbar in the creek with L.W. and J.B. and the child, 
B.W.'s daughter. One of the members of the group was swept 
away by the water; as others tried to help, they too were swept into 
the current. A.W. was able to swim to shore and seek 
assistance. B.W. was last seen near the rope swing. On June 
19th, ranger Jeff Hancock located W.'s body and assisted in the 
recovery. Numerous county, state, and federal officials and local VFDs 
assisted in the search. [David McHugh, Acting CR, BITH, 6/20]

                   [Additional reports pending....]

OPERATIONAL NOTES

Recreation Fee Deposit Changes - Federal Reserve Bank (FRB) branches 
will continue to accept over-the-counter or mailed cash fee deposits 
through September 30th - a change from the original date of June 30th. 
If you mail your cash to an FRB, you will have to change your deposit 
procedures. Cash will have to be converted to a cashier's check or 
postal money order and mailed with other checks to the FRB. 
Alternatively, you may make over the counter deposits at a commercial 
bank that maintains a Treasury general account (TGA). The following 
FRB locations have CLOSED their cashier windows as of June 5th: 
Atlanta, GA; Birmingham, AL; and Helena, MT. In addition, the 
following FRB locations now have special deposit restrictions: San 
Antonio, TX (cash deposits will be accepted through September 30th, 
but ONLY by armored car or registered mail delivery); Charlotte, NC; 
and Columbia, SC (all federal agency deposits currently delivered to 
these two locations MUST be delivered or mailed directly to the FRB in 
Richmond, VA). If you have any questions, contact your administrative 
officer or regional fee program manager. [Marge Koehler, CCSO)

PARKS AND PEOPLE

FLETC (GA) - Class 104 graduated from FLETC on June 27th. As always, 
the NPS-specific class distinguished itself with superior individual 
and group achievements. Erik Larson (HALE) was top driver with a 
perfect 300 score; seven other rangers were also recognized for their 
driving skills. Lee Buschkowsky (MORU), Michael Grate (HALE), Kathleen 
Kowalewski (PIRO) and David A. Smith (ACAD) tied with perfect 500 
scores on the PEB, while two scored above 95% on the PEB (Four 500 
scores on the PEB in a class of 24 students is a FLETC record). 
William Raften (EVER) was high firearms expert with a 296 out of a 
possible 300 points; he was joined by six other rangers who qualified 
as expert shooters. Jeff Trudrung (WHSA) was the class scholar with a 
outstanding 98.09 academic average. He was joined by seven other 
rangers who scored above 95% in the academic portion of the training. 
Jeff was also the class honor graduate, having attained a 95 % average 
or better in firearms, physical techniques and academics, and is now 
eligible to win the FLETC honor graduate of the year award.  The 
overall class average was an outstanding 93.356. John J. Stewart 
(FIIS) received the class nomination for the director's award as the 
outstanding ranger of the class. This class also set a new record by 
having completed the entire program without a single remediation by 
any student. Congratulations to LMTP-104 - the bar has been raised 
ever higher.  NPRITP 101 is set to begin on July 17th. [Don Usher, 
FLETC)

NATIONAL PARK SERVICE MEETING AND EVENTS CALENDAR

This calendar appears every other Monday as an addendum to the Morning 
Report. Please note:

o Entries are listed no sooner than FOUR months before an event, 
  except in cases in which registration dates close much earlier. 
o Brevity in submissions is required and appreciated.
o Please send along web sites for additional information where 
  possible.
o Asterisks (*) indicate new entries. 

**********************************************************************

July 13 - 20: APPALACHIAN TRAIL CONFERENCE, Shippensburg, PA. Call 
304-535-6331. [Sheila Lee, NCRC/WASO]

July 23 - 27: NATIONAL SPELEOLOGICAL SOCIETY ANNUAL MEETING, 
Rockcastle, KY. Call 256-852-1200, or check http://www.caves.org/~nss. 
[Sheila Lee, NCRC/WASO]

* July 23 - 27: DEVELOPMENT ADVISORY BOARD (DAB) MEETING, Washington, 
DC.

July 30: 2002 FACILITIES MANAGEMENT CONFERENCE, San Diego, CA. The 
conference will be in April, 2002, but the due date for abstracts for 
presentations and posters is July 30th. This DOI conference will 
provide a forum for managers and staff to meet and exchange 
information on facility management issues/topics and training related 
to facilities and infrastructure operation, maintenance, management, 
condition assessment, database management, repair, renovation and 
rehabilitation. Submissions for papers must include the title of the 
paper or poster, each author's name (including who will present the 
paper if selected), author's agency address, phone, fax and email, a 
short biography, and an abstract of fewer than 350 words. Send to Erin 
Quinn, conference coordinator, at equinn@do.usbr.gov; for more 
information, contact her at 303-445-2709. For more on the conference, 
go to www.doi.gov/conference/facilities. [Dale Wilking, FMD/WASO]

July 31 - August 2: NATIONAL LEADERSHIP COUNCIL BI-MONTHLY MEETING, 
Washington, DC. [NLC Journal]

August 3 - 5: 33rd ANNUAL LEWIS AND CLARK TRAIL HERITAGE FOUNDATION 
CONVENTION. Pierre, SD. Contact the foundation at 406-454-1234. 
[Sheila Lee, NCRC/WASO]

August 5 - 9: ANNUAL MEETING: ECOLOGICAL SOCIETY OF AMERICA, Madison, 
WI. Fore more information, go to http://www.esa.sdsc.edu/annual.htm. 
[Sheila Lee, NCRC/WASO]

August 17 - 22: SEVENTH NATIONAL CONFERENCE ON NATIONAL SCENIC AND 
HISTORIC TRAILS, Casper, WY. Contact: Partnership for the National 
Trails System, 608-249-7870. [Sheila Lee, NCRC/WASO]

August 30 - September 1: "TECHNOLOGY FRIENDLY: MUSEUM USE OF MULTIPLE 
MEDIA FOR INFORMATION DISSEMINATION AND COMMUNICATION," ANNUAL 
CONFERENCE, ASSOCIATION OF AFRICAN AMERICAN MUSEUMS. Registration 
deadline: August 10th. For further information, contact William 
Billingsley, 2001 conference committee, 937-376-4944 ext. 123 or 
wbillingsley@ohiohistory.org. [Bill Gwaltney]

August 24: WASO RELOCATION. The Washington Office begins moving from 
the Department of Interior building at 18th and C Streets to its new 
office on 1800 G Street. The current timetable for the move to occur 
in three phases and be completed by Columbus Day. 

* September 19-21: RIVER MANAGEMENT SOCIETY CONFERENCE, Wasilla, AK. 
For more information, go to http://www.river-management.org. [Sheila 
Lee, NCRC/WASO]

* September 25-29: EIGHTH ANNUAL CONFERENCE, WILDLIFE SOCIETY, Reno, 
NV. Call 301-897-9770 or go to http://www.tws.org. [Sheila Lee, 
NCRC/WASO]

* September 29: NATIONAL PUBLIC LANDS DAY. An annual event in which 
volunteers undertake projects to improve the nation's public lands. 
Contact: National Environmental Education and Training, 202-833-2933. 
[Sheila Lee, NCRC/WASO]

* October 15: NINTH ANNUAL LINCOLN SYMPOSIUM, Ford' Theatre NHS, 
Washington, DC. The topic of this year's symposium will be the 
conspirators. The program will feature an in-depth look at those 
people who aided and abetted the assassination of Abraham Lincoln. The 
symposium is free and open to the public. No advanced reservation is 
required. Seating is available on a first-come-first-serve basis. For 
more information, call the park at 202-426-6924. [Donna Birchard, 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.

                             --- ### ---