NPS Morning Report - Wednesday, November 7, 2001



                        NATIONAL PARK SERVICE
                           MORNING REPORT


To:         All National Park Service Areas and Offices

From:       Division of Ranger Activities, Washington Office

Day/Date:   Wednesday, November 7, 2001

INCIDENTS

01-591 - Yosemite NP (CA) - Illegal Air Delivery

On the afternoon of November 3rd, rangers received a report of a BASE 
jumper hitting the wall near the East Buttress of El Capitan. The 
reporting persons said that they had seen a white parachute and a 
person clad in a red jumpsuit hit the wall four times before 
disappearing from sight. Rangers investigated and just before 
nightfall were able to spot a white parachute attached to a red 
climbing haul bag stuck on a ledge on the cliff about 500 feet above 
the base of the wall. Rangers contacted two climbers at the base of 
the route who had just retreated off the wall. The climbers initially 
denied any knowledge of the incident, but one of them eventually 
admitted to pitching the haul bag with a parachute made from a 
porta-ledge rainfly before they rappelled off. One of them was 
arrested for making a false report, illegal air delivery and creating 
a hazardous condition. The other was cited for creating a hazardous 
condition and released to appear in court at a later date. The 
following day rangers climbed up to the stuck equipment and seized it 
as evidence. [Jim Tucker, DR, YOSE, 11/5]

01-592 - Gulf Islands NS (MS/FL) - Suicide

On the morning of November 4th, the body of a 52-year-old man from the 
Marietta, Georgia, area was discovered on a bench at the end of a 
boardwalk which leads to one of the park's beaches. The man had been 
staying in the campground at Fort Pickens and was last seen the 
previous evening.  No indications of the cause of the suicide have yet 
been found; a determination will be made once the autopsy and 
toxicology reports are completed. A suicide note was found in the 
victim's vehicle. The next of kin has been notified. The case is being 
jointly investigated by the park and the Florida Department of Law 
Enforcement. [Kaye Pittman, GUIS, 11/5]

HOMELAND SECURITY

Wilson's Creek NB (MO) - While engaged in morning custodial duties 
around 6 a.m. on November 4th, maintenance worker Carla Stark found a 
white powdery substance near a stall in the men's rest room at the 
park's visitor center. She notified ranger Robert Randall, who in turn 
notified the Greene County Sheriff's Office and secured the building. 
Brookline Fire and Rescue, Greene County Sheriff's Office deputies, 
and Greene County Health Department personnel responded. The substance 
was collected for evaluation; indications are that it may be talcum 
powder. The residue was cleaned up with a bleach solution. Stark 
changed clothes and showered. At the recommendation of the county 
health officials, the visitor center was opened as usual. Results from 
the samples will be available on Monday afternoon. [John Sutton, CR, 
WICR, 11/5]

FIRE MANAGEMENT

National Fire Situation - Preparedness Level 2

Initial attack was heavy in the South and in the East on Monday but 
light elsewhere. Very high to extreme fire indices were reported in 
California, Georgia, North Carolina, Virginia and West Virginia.

Stam's Type 1 team is assigned to FEMA to support operations in New 
York City. The team is still in the process of transitioning, with 
planning operations being turned over to the Fire Department of New 
York (FDNY) and logistical operations being turned over to the New 
York Office of Emergency Management.

Park Fire Situation

Point Reyes NS (CA) - The park successfully completed the 187-acre 
McDonald Omnibus Rx burn on Monday. They were assisted by local 
agencies and a crew from Yosemite NP. Plans called for burning another 
121 acres on Tuesday.

Fire Management Notes

No reports.

[NICC Incident Management Situation Report, 11/6]

OPERATIONAL NOTES

Update on Veterans Day Weekend for Unity, Hope, and Healing - The 
weekend is fast approaching. Please remember to visit the intranet web 
site (www.nps.gov/unityweekend) to access all of the downloadable 
tools for further distribution in your parks and to your visitors over 
the weekend.  Please refer to the "Help Desk" feature if you have any 
problems and/or questions. A big "thank you" to all of you who have 
already visited the web site - we've had approximately 1,500 hits so 
far. This worthwhile effort has spread far and wide both inside and 
outside of the Department of Interior. ALL of the land management 
agencies are on board and many state parks and municipalities continue 
to join in along with other organizations from across the country. As 
a follow-up to this major effort, please send images (digital prints 
in .tiff or .jpeg files) and/or brief (two to three sentences) 
anecdotal snippets to David Gilbert at HFC no later than Tuesday, 
November 13th for posting on the web site and sharing with others. 
[Carol Anthony, Office of Communications, WASO]
 
PARKS AND PEOPLE

Biscayne NP (FL) - The park has an opening for a visitor protection 
ranger. The position is covered by 6c. Duties include a wide range of 
law enforcement operations, including BUI enforcement, boating 
accidents, drug smuggling and illegal immigrants.  Operations are 
heavily resource-based, with a focus on numerous boat groundings, 
poaching incidents, and Lacey Act violations. Occupancy is required; 
housing is on the island keys, about 15 to 25 minutes from the 
mainland in an area that is remote yet close to a major cultural area 
in a tropical climate. Biscayne is looking for a highly motivated 
person who would be assigned a boat to operate.  The position is 
announced in USAJobs as BISC-01-6.  [Holly Rife, BISC]

                            *  *  *  *  *

Prepared by the Division of Ranger Activities, WASO, with the 
cooperation and support of Delaware Water Gap NRA.

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