NPS Morning Report - Wednesday, April 24, 2002



                           NATIONAL PARK SERVICE
                              MORNING REPORT


To:         All National Park Service Areas and Offices

From:       Division of Ranger Activities, Washington Office

Day/Date:   Wednesday, April 24, 2002

INCIDENTS

02-124 - Canyonlands NP (AZ) - Search and Rescue

At 6 a.m. on April 18th, Glen Sherrill, district ranger for the park's Maze
District, received a request from the Wayne County Sheriff's Office for
assistance in a search for three overdue hikers. Sherrill called the wife
of one of the hikers and found that the trio had gotten canyoneering route
information from a web site (http://www.climb-utah.com) and that they'd
mentioned a location called Leprechaun Canyon. Sherrill relayed this
information to the sheriff's office, then called Shane Burrows, the web
site owner, and obtained the password to gain access to the route
descriptions and maps from the site's "Select Circle of Few" section.
Sheriff's deputies found the missing party's vehicle parked at the
Leprechaun Canyon trailhead along Utah Highway 95 south of Hanksville and
asked Sherrill's assistance in conducting the search. At 1 p.m., Sherrill
and two Wayne County SAR volunteers headed into the search area. Within an
hour, they'd made voice contact with the three hikers. A Utah DPS
helicopter arrived shortly thereafter and began ferrying other rescuers to
the scene. The hikers had reached a point in the slot canyon where they
could go no further downstream. They couldn't return up the canyon, either,
because they'd pulled their rope down after them. While trying to climb out
of the slot, one of the hikers slipped and fell about 40 feet, suffering a
fractured skull and other injuries. Since there were no natural anchors on
the slickrock. Sherrill set bolts for rappelling and a possible litter
raising. County EMT's then descended and provided treatment to the injured
hiker. At 5 p.m., a Life Flight EMS helicopter from Salt Lake City arrived
on scene. The helicopter's scoop litter was lowered to the rescuers in the
canyon, and they began the difficult task of moving the patient 40 feet up
the slot to the best point for retrieval. The two uninjured hikers ascended
the rappel ropes. The Life Flight crew dropped their short-haul rescuer
into the slot at 6 p.m. and he rigged up the stretcher. It turned out that
the slot was too narrow to accommodate both the rescuer and the litter, so
the litter had to be raised without a rescuer alongside. Rescuers on the
ground stabilized the stretcher with a belay line. Given the nature of the
terrain, this was a high-risk operation for both the helicopter crew and
the ground crew, as the pilot had to hover for a long time with his rotors
just a few feet from the wall of the canyon. The patient was lowered to the
bench after being extracted from the canyon, then transferred to the
helicopter and flown to Salt Lake City. He was admitted in critical
condition, but his condition was upgraded to 'serious' on April 21st. The
operation involved about 20 people from the Wayne and Garfield county SAR
teams, the counties sheriffs' offices, and Arizona DPS and Life Flight
helicopters. The "Select Circle of Few" canyoneering routes are mostly in
or near Zion NP, the Hite area of Glen Canyon NRA, and the Moab area.
[Peter C. Fitzmaurice, CR, CANY, 4/23]

02-125 - Grand Canyon NP (AZ) - Search and Rescue

On April 18th, the park SAR office received a request for assistance from
the Coconino County Sheriff's Office, which was conducting a search for a
79-year-old man in Corral Valley on BLM land in the Arizona Strip to the
north of the park. The man had become separated from his group while taking
photos the evening before. The sheriff's office asked for the park's
helicopter and for additional searchers for the air search. Helicopter
manager Mike Minton, helispot manager Sean Cox, operations chief Bil
Vandergraff and searcher/paramedic KJ Glover flew to the area in NPS
Helicopter 210. A state police helicopter also responded. Due to the remote
location of the search area, the helicopters had short operational periods
before they had to fly to Page to refuel. Minton coordinated air operations
so that the helicopters alternated over the search area in order to
maintain critical separation and increase safety. A search dog team from
Page also joined the operation. The state police helicopter located tracks,
but had to suspend operations in order to refuel. The park helicopter
brought the dog team to the point where the tracks were seen; the dog
alerted on the tracks, and the park helicopter followed them for several
miles and found the lost man. A medical assessment was made and he was
flown back to the incident command post. He declined further medical
treatment and left the area with his group. He had been missing for about
20 hours, with overnight temperatures during the period running in the 30s.
The dog team was vital to the success of the search. Severe high winds were
blowing through the area at the time. If the man's tracks had not been
found and followed when they were, the wind would have obliterated them.
[Jennifer Flynn, IC, GRCA, 4/23]

FIRE MANAGEMENT

National Fire Situation

Daily preparation and dissemination of the national fire report has been
temporarily suspended due to lack of activity.

Park Fire Situation

Kings Mountain NMP (SC) - The park completed the Howser Complex  prescribed
burn on April 17th. The 101-acre burn was conducted as a wildland-urban
interface project, consuming hazard fuels along a one-half-mile section of
park boundary that has homes and outbuildings within 60 feet. The burn also
eliminated much of the fuel load around the historic Henry Howser House
created by dead trees that had been killed by southern pine beetle. Kings
Mountain staff were assisted by the Great Smoky Mountains NP fire use
module and fire effects monitoring crew, the Cumberland Gap NHP fire use
module, and staff from Big South Fork NRRA, Congaree Swamp NM and Crowders
Mountain State Park . The burn received media coverage from three area TV
stations within the Charlotte, North Carolina, area. The Howser Complex is
the second burn completed by the park this year. Two additional burns are
planned for completion by mid-June. [Chris Revels, CR]

Park Fire Danger

Extreme - N/A
Very High - N/A
High - Hawaii Volcanoes NP

[NPS Situation Summary Report, 4/23]

PARKS AND PEOPLE

Gulf Islands NS (MS/FL) - The park is currently advertising for a seasonal
GS-189-5 lead recreation assistant (lifeguard) in the Florida District. The
person in this position is responsible for leading and conducting the
lifeguard operations and the junior lifeguard program.  The announcement
(GUIS S02-11) closes on May 3rd. Government housing and a government
vehicle to perform duties are available. A performance test must be passed
in order to qualify; certifications are required. You can view or download
this announcement from USA Jobs at www.usajobs.opm.gov or obtain a copy by
calling the personnel job line at 850-934-2601. [Kitty Lewis, GUIS]

                               *  *  *  *  *

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

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