NPS Morning Report - Tuesday, October 16, 2001
- Subject: NPS Morning Report - Tuesday, October 16, 2001
- Date: Tue, 16 Oct 2001 05:58:12 -0400
NATIONAL PARK SERVICE
MORNING REPORT
To: All National Park Service Areas and Offices
From: Division of Ranger Activities, Washington Office
Day/Date: Tuesday, October 16, 2001
INCIDENTS
01-557 - Olympic NP (WA) - Rescue
Four local kayakers with less than a year's boating experience decided
to float an advanced section of the Elwha River a mile upstream from
Lake Mills on October 6th. This highly technical section of river runs
through a deep canyon with thousand-foot vertical walls of crumbling
rock and numerous waterfalls and narrow squeezes. Even for advanced
boaters, there is little margin for error. The foursome decided to try
it due to the low river level. On the third drop, kayaker R.F.
27, broached his boat in a narrow squeeze. He sustained a hip
injury and torn abdominal muscles as he was slung by the water's force
against an underwater rock face. R.F. was held there by the force of
the river for about 30 seconds until he was able to wrestle himself
out of his kayak. He was pulled from the river by his companions, who
positioned him on a narrow rock ledge a foot above the river. Two of
them then scrambled out of the canyon, located a hiker with a cell
phone, and called 911 to report the accident. Ranger Daniel Pontbriand
and park VIP Dr. Sam Baker scrambled down the steep canyon walls to
R.F.'s location. Baker, a retired orthopedic surgeon, examined
R.F. and could not rule out the possibility of a fractured pelvis or
trochanter. A Coast Guard helicopter was summoned to evaluate the site
for a possible hoist extraction. The skillful pilots of the Dauphin
helicopter determined that they could safely hover above R.F. while
bucking up-canyon winds and maintaining a rotor clearance of about 75
feet on either side. A Coast Guard swimmer was lowered 150 feet to
R.F.'s location, followed by a stokes litter. R.F. was then
hoisted to safety. Had it not been for the skill of the Coast Guard
pilots, flight mechanic and rescue swimmer, rangers would have been
faced with a lengthy and hazardous litter raising. [Dee Renee Ericks,
DR, OLYM, 10/13]
01-558 - Biscayne NP (FL) - Operation SWAMP
On October 6th and 7th, a unified law enforcement operation
coordinated by the park called Operation SWAMP (Safer Waterways
Alcohol Monitoring Patrols) took place in park waters and nearby
marinas. Participating agencies included the Federal Aviation
Administration, the Miami-Dade Police Department, the Homestead Police
Department, the Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission, the
United States Attorney's Office, and the Coast Guard. Rangers from
Everglades NP and Gulf Islands NS also provided assistance. The
purpose of this operation was to increase marine safety through
proactive and intensified enforcement of boating and other regulations
and to target persons operating their vessels while under the
influence of alcohol and or drugs. The operation was conducted over
the Columbus Day holiday because the long weekend and the Columbus Day
Regatta traditionally attract thousands of boaters to the area to
watch the event and/or party. Four intoxilyzers were set up at three
locations, and the park's 45-foot landing craft with a USCG van and
drug detection dogs on board was anchored near the intra-coastal
waterway. Sobriety checkpoints were established at two choke points in
the area of the park. Personnel involved in this effort, called
Operation Waterblock, conducted random stops of vessels traveling
south form Miami to south Biscayne Bay and made three drug cases. One
of them involved an 80-foot vessel which had marijuana packaged for
sale on board; also found were scales, four switchblade knives, and
seven guns, including an assault rifle. Over the course of Operation
SWAMP, rangers and officers made thirteen arrests for boating under
the influence, recovered a stolen boat, responded to two serious
boating accidents and three minor accidents, and made four more drug
cases. They also dealt with six assaults, eight weapons incidents, a
sunken vessel, numerous groundings causing damage to park resources,
four medical incidents (two requiring basic life support, two
requiring advanced life support), three search and rescue operations,
five instances of lewd and lascivious behavior, five violations of
restricted air space, one incident of commercial pornography filming,
and 1200 incidents of boating safety and violations of park
regulations. Numerous arrests, charges and investigations are expected
to result from the many incidents that took place during these special
operations. Arrests were down this year from the 20 recorded in 2000,
but more would likely have occurred if there had been more staff on
duty. The shortage of rangers was exacerbated by the withdrawal of 40
Coast Guard personnel on Sunday to deal with post-September 11th
operations. During the operation, new technology made it possible for
all participating agencies to patch their separate radio systems
together into one communications net. [David Pharo, LES, BISC, 10/12]
01-559 - Fort McHenry NM&HS (MD) - Access Road Closure
A Baltimore city engineer discovered structural damage to a bridge
over East Fort Avenue, the main access road to the park, on Friday,
October 12th. The road was closed to vehicular traffic that night. On
Saturday, the park was accessible only by informal detours through
adjacent train yards and marine terminals and by pedestrian access
over the bridge. By Sunday, a preliminary detour around Interstate 95
and through the marine terminals and CSX train yards had been
constructed by the city. Pedestrian traffic was closed until the
bridge could be shored up. Park staff have been attending meetings
with the city and local landowners to negotiate a permanent detour,
which will probably be in place for up to six months while repairs are
completed. [Charles Strickfaden, CR, FOMC, 10/15]
01-560 - Natchez Trace Parkway (MS/AL/TN) - MVA with Fatality
On the evening of October 12th, 18-year-old L.V.K. of
Saltillo, Mississippi, was fatally injured in a single-vehicle
accident at milepost 165 on the parkway. According to a witness, L.V.K.
was travelling southbound but had veered into the northbound
lane. He apparently overcorrected upon seeing an oncoming vehicle and
began skidding sideways on the wet road. His vehicle left the
pavement, went down an embankment, and struck a tree. A witness
reported that the interior dome light was on in L.V.K.'s vehicle.
Ranger Larry Brown is the primary investigating ranger; ranger Mark
Mageles is assisting. [Jackie Henman, ACR, NATR, 10/15]
[Additional reports pending....]
FIRE MANAGEMENT
National Fire Situation - Preparedness Level 2
Two Type 1 teams are assigned to FEMA to support operations in New
York City. Lohrey's team is managing warehouse operations at Pier 36
and four distribution centers in New York City. Stam's team is
providing incident planning support to FDNY and fourteen other
cooperating agencies at the Duane Street Fire Station.
Initial attack was light nationwide on Sunday. Very high to extreme
fire indices were reported in California and Texas.
Park Fire Situation
No new fires reported.
[NICC Incident Management Situation Report, 10/15]
PARKS AND PEOPLE
Gulf Islands NS (MS/FL) - The park is advertising for a GS-5/7/9
ranger (interpretation) for the Mississippi District. The announcement
is GUIS PO2-01 and it closes on November 2nd. It can be obtained on
USA Jobs or by calling 850-934-2601. [Kitty Lewis, GUIS]
UPCOMING IN CONGRESS
The following activities will be taking place in Congress during
coming weeks on matters pertaining to the National Park Service or
kindred agencies.
For inquiries regarding legislation pertaining to the NPS, please
contact the Office of Congressional and Legislative Affairs at
202-208-5883/5656 and ask to be forwarded to the appropriate
legislative specialist. For additional information on specific bills
(full text, status, etc.), please check Congress's web site at
http://thomas.loc.gov/.
HEARINGS/MARK-UPS
Tuesday, October 16
House Resources Subcommittee on National Parks, Recreation, and Public
Lands (Radanovich): Hearing on:
o H.R. 1963, a bill to amend the National Trails System Act to
designate the route taken by American soldier and frontiersman
George Rogers Clark and his men during the Revolutionary War
to capture the British forts at Kaskaskia and Cahokia,
Illinois, and Vincennes, Indiana, for study for potential
addition to the National Trails System.
The hearing will be held at 10 a.m. in 1334 Longworth.
Wednesday, October 17
House Resources Committee (Hansen): Markup of:
o H.R. 1491 (Matheson, UT), a bill to assist in the preservation
of archaeological, paleontological, zoological, geological,
and botanical artifacts through construction of a new facility
for the University of Utah Museum of Natural History, Salt
Lake City, Utah.
The hearing will be at 10:30 a.m. in 1324 Longworth.
Thursday, October 18
House Resources Subcommittee on National Parks, Recreation, and Public
Lands (Radanovich): Hearing on:
o H.R. 2388 (Hefley, CO), a bill to establish the criteria and
mechanism for the designation and support of national heritage
areas.
o H.R. 2234 (Pastor, AZ), a bill to revise the boundary of the
Tumacacori National Historical Park in the State of Arizona.
o H.R. 2238 (Rogers, KY), a bill to authorize the Secretary of
the Interior to acquire Fern Lake and the surrounding
watershed in the States of Kentucky and Tennessee for addition
to Cumberland Gap National Historical Park, and for other
purposes.
The hearing will be held at 10 a.m. in 1334 Longworth.
Tuesday, October 23
House Resources Subcommittee on National Parks, Recreation, and Public
Lands (Radanovich): Oversight hearing to examine the effects of the
discharge of sediment and pollutants from the Washington Aqueduct on
C&O Canal National Historic Park and on the habitat and population of
the endangered shortnose sturgeon. The hearing will be held at 10 a.m.
in 1324 Longworth.
Wednesday, October 24
Senate Energy and Natural Resources Subcommittee on Forests and Public
Land Management (Wyden): Oversight hearing on the successes and
shortcomings of the Northwest Forest Plan and its effect on species
restoration and timber availability. The hearing will be at 2:30 p.m.
in 366 Dirksen.
Thursday, November 1
Senate Indian Affairs Committee (Inouye): Hearing on Alaska native
hunting and fishing subsistence rights. The hearing will be at 10 a.m.
in 485 Russell.
LEGISLATION INTRODUCED
The following bills either directly or indirectly pertaining to the
NPS have been introduced since the last Morning Report listing of new
legislation (July 31st):
o H.R. 2974 (McGovern, MA), a bill to provide for the protection
of paleontological resources on Federal lands, to promote the
systematic compilation of baseline paleontological resource
data, science-based decision-making, and accurate public
education, to provide for a unified management policy
regarding paleontological resources on Federal lands, to
promote legitimate public access to fossil resources on
Federal lands, to encourage informed stewardship of the
resources through educational, recreational, and scientific
use of the paleontological resources on Federal lands, and for
other purposes.
o H.R. 2976 (Rahall, WV), a bill to provide for the issuance of
a special entrance pass for free admission to any federally
owned area which is operated and maintained by a Federal
agency and used for outdoor recreation purposes to the
survivors, victims' immediate families, and police, fire,
rescue, recovery, and medical personnel directly affected by
the September 11, 2001, terrorist hijackings and the attacks
on the World Trade Center and the Pentagon, and for other
purposes.
o H.R. 2982 (Turner, TX), a bill to authorize the establishment
of a memorial within the area in the District of Columbia
referred to in the Commemorative Works Act as "Area I" or
"Area II" to the victims of terrorist attacks on the United
States, to provide for the design and construction of such a
memorial, and for other purposes.
o H.R. 3038 (Platts, PA), a bill to authorize the Secretary of
the Interior to study the suitability and feasibility of
designating Camp Security, located in Springettsbury, York
County, Pennsylvania, as a unit of the National Park System.
NEW LAWS
The following bills have passed Congress and been signed into law by
the President:
No new laws.
* * * * *
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