NPS Morning Report - Tuesday, November 27, 2001


                       NATIONAL PARK SERVICE
                           MORNING REPORT

To:         All National Park Service Areas and Offices

From:       Division of Ranger Activities, Washington Office

Day/Date:   Tuesday, November 27, 2001

*** NOTICE ***

There was no Morning Report on Monday, November 26th. 

INCIDENTS

01-614 - Daniel Boone NF (KY) - Helicopter Crash; Rescue by
NPS Employees

On November 12th, Grand Canyon NP firefighters Michael Flynn and Sean
Cox were on a helitack assignment in the Daniel Boone NF when a Bell 407
helicopter crashed into the helispot where they were working. The
helicopter was making water drops on the 65-acre Great Gulf fire. The
32-year-old pilot, who was the only person on board, was trapped in the
helicopter after it rolled over. Flynn and Cox climbed inside and found
the pilot unconscious and not breathing. Flynn cut the seatbelt and was
able to move the pilot's head enough to reopen his airway, at which
point he resumed breathing on his own. Flynn, Cox and six other
interagency helitack personnel extracted the pilot, administered
emergency first aid, and called in a medevac helicopter from Lexington.
The pilot had numerous abrasions and contusions, a severely broken
wrist, a broken rib, and a badly bruised clavicle. He was airlifted to
the University of Kentucky Medical Center, where he was treated and
released on the following day. Preliminary findings are that the
helicopter's water bucket, which was attached to a cargo hook with an
eleven-foot-long lead line, came into contact with the tail rotor while
in flight, causing a catastrophic failure of the tail rotor system. [Dan
Oltrogge, FMO, GRCA, 11/21]

01-615 - Mount Rainier NP (WA) - Rescue

A 23-year-old woman was hiking on the Chenuis Falls trail with friends
on the afternoon of November 17th when she lost her footing and fell
more than 20 feet into a plunge pool below the falls. She sustained
injuries to her cervical/lumbar vertebrae and broken ribs, and was also
suffering from the early stages of hypothermia when rescuers arrived.
Park volunteers were the first NPS personnel on scene; they were
subsequently joined by rangers and local fire and SAR personnel. The
woman was stabilized and transported across the Carbon River to a
waiting ambulance. She's reported to be in satisfactory condition. [Uwe
Nehring, MORA, 11/21]

01-616 - Grand Canyon NP (AZ) - Falling Fatality

On Friday, November 23rd, park dispatch received a report that a woman
had fallen off the rim at Tuweep Point. F.S., 72, of St. George,
Utah, had been visiting the remote area on the North Rim with her
husband and family. She asked her husband to take her photo near the
edge; as she was walking to the photo point, she fell over the edge.
Another companion drove six miles to the Tuweep Ranger Station and used
the emergency satellite telephone to report the accident. Grand Canyon
SAR personnel responded by helicopter and located the victim
approximately 675 feet below the accident site. SAR personnel hiked to
the location the next day. F.S.'s body was lifted to Tuweep Point by
helicopter long line and transferred to the Mohave County medical
examiner's office in Kingman by an Arizona DPS helicopter. An
investigation will be conducted. [Bil Vandergraff, Operations Chief,
GRCA, 11/26]

HOMELAND SECURITY

Lake Mead NRA (AZ/NV) - The park has received several pieces of
mail regarding alleged future terrorist acts at the park from a Miami
man named David Goldman. The first letter was received during the height
of the anthrax scare. The envelope fit the profile of a suspicious
letter, as it came in addressed to "Security Lake Mead National Park"
and was poorly written. Inside was a folded-up sheet of yellow lined
paper which said that a terrorist act was to take place at Lake Mead or
Hoover Dam. Goldman reached that conclusion based on a thumping he felt
in his left calf and voices that he had heard. SA Paul Crawford
contacted Biscayne NP LES Dave Pharo and asked him to contact Goldman.
Pharo determined that Goldman was not a threat, and that he routinely
sends out letters with theories regarding current events in the news. He
claimed to have sent letters to other NPS sites, to DOI, and to the FBI.
Goldman has since retracted his prediction. His letters do not contain
any informational requests, but usually contain newspaper clippings that
he uses to support his thoughts.

Jefferson NEM (MO) - On the morning of November 25th, park
employees noticed a small quantity of a suspicious white substance on
the step to the Arch observation deck. As per established plans, the
city's hazmat team was notified and the observation deck was cleared of
all visitors. The hazmat team examined the material and determined that
it was sugar or coffee creamer. The observation deck was reopened after
a ninety-minute closure. A local TV station may have received a phone
call alerting them to the event. The FBI is investigating.

[Paul Crawford, SA, LAME, 11/26; Rod Danner, JEFF, 11/26

FIRE MANAGEMENT

National Fire Situation - Preparedness Level 1

The preparedness level has dropped to Level 1, which is in effect when
there are no large fires nationally, most geographic areas have low to
moderate fire danger, and there is little or no commitment of national
resources.

Effective yesterday, NICC has discontinued daily situation reports for
the winter. The report will be posted on Friday mornings over coming
months unless significant activity occurs.

Park Fire Situation

Shenandoah NP (VA) - Two fires started on private lands outside
Shenandoah on the weekend and burned to within a half mile of the
boundary. The park sent two crews to stop the fire before it entered the
park and necessitated a much larger response. Some rain fell on the park
on Sunday.

[NICC Incident Management Situation Report, 11/26; NPS Situation Summary
Report, 11/27]

OPERATIONAL NOTES

Annual SAR and EMS Reports - The information request for
submissions for the 2001 EMS and SAR activity report is currently
undergoing some minor revisions. It should be posted some time in early
to mid-January. Please hold off on sending any data until that time.
[Randy Coffman, RAD/WASO]

*  *  *  *  *

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

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