NPS Morning Report - Thursday, April 25, 2002


                           NATIONAL PARK SERVICE
                              MORNING REPORT


To:         All National Park Service Areas and Offices

From:       Division of Ranger Activities, Washington Office

Day/Date:   Thursday, April 25, 2002

INCIDENTS

01-127 - Independence NHP (PA) - Follow-up on Attack on Liberty Bell

At the conclusion of an interpretive program on the morning of April 6,
2001, 27-year-old M.G. pulled out a concealed four-pound
sledgehammer and repeatedly struck the Liberty Bell. He was quickly subdued
and taken into custody and was held for psychiatric evaluation. The bell
received only minor damage, with four strike marks visible on its surface.
On Tuesday, M.G. was sentenced to nine months in jail and five years'
probation and ordered to repay the $7,093 it cost to repair the bell. The
self-described "wanderer" told the judge that he didn't mean to inflict any
harm: "It was not my intention to damage the bell. It was strictly to ring
the bell." M.G. will serve his time in Boise, Idaho, near the home of
his mother, where he had been confined and electronically monitored since
the incident. For more information, see the Associated Press story at
http://story.news.yahoo.com/news?tmpl=story&u=/ap/20020423/ap_on_re_us/liberty_bell_hammer_2
 . [AP, via Yahoo! News)

02-126 - Natchez Trace Parkway (MS/AL/TN) - Drug Arrest

On the afternoon of April 21st, Ridgeland ranger Joe Mangino stopped a
vehicle that was southbound on the parkway for a traffic-related offense.
While talking with the driver, Mangino caught the scent of an unusual odor
emanating from the vehicle and saw both a syringe and pills inside. A
search of the vehicle was conducted with the assistance of rangers Regina
Klein and David Linville. Numerous ingredients associated with
methamphetamine production were found in both the trunk and passenger
compartment, including two anhydrous ammonia tanks, sulfuric and muratic
acids, ether, salt, tubing, vacuum pumps, and methamphetamine oil. The
Mississippi Bureau of Narcotics' CLANLAB cleanup team was summoned and the
chemicals were removed. Subsequent interviews with the vehicle's occupants
led to the identification of between ten and fifteen methamphetamine drug
labs in Mississippi and Louisiana. Search warrants are being issued.
[Jackie Henman, ACR, NATR, 4/24]

FIRE MANAGEMENT

National Fire Situation

Preparedness Level 1

Initial attack was light nationwide. Twelve new large fires were reported
on Tuesday - one in the Rockies, two in the Southwest, one in southern
California, three in the South, and five in the East. A Type 1 team (Hart)
has been assigned to the 800-acre Snaking Fire in the Pike-Isabel NF in
Colorado. The fire, which is only 10% contained, continues to threaten the
town of Bailey. Over 400 homes have been evacuated. A Type 2 team (Sears)
is working the 692-acre Center Fire in the Coronado NF in Arizona. It is
30% contained.

Very high to extreme fire indices were reported in Arizona, New Mexico,
Oklahoma and Texas.

National Resource Status

                  Tue
Date              4/24

Crews             56
Engines           148
Helicopters       16
Air Tankers       0
Overhead          351

Park Fire Situation

Yosemite NP (CA) - Over coming months, the park will be conducting
prescribed fire operations to meet the 2002 management goals for wildland
urban interface protection and ecosystem restoration. The park plans on
burning between 300 and 700 acres in four separate  areas. The largest burn
is scheduled to begin this spring in the Gin Flat area along the Tioga Road
east of the Tuolumne Grove of Giant Sequoias. Prescribed burn blocks
totaling 200 to 300 acres will be ignited south of the historic Wawona
Hotel to reduce hazardous fuels adjacent to the community of Wawona near
the park's south entrance. A 65 acre-prescribed fire near Hodgdon Meadow
campground will build on previous nearby fuel treatments to lessen the risk
of unwanted fire to park housing and facilities. Burns will also be made
along Northside and Southside Drive in Yosemite Valley to restore meadows
and a more open forest structure. Weather permitting, all burns will be
conducted between April 23rd and July 1st. During the burns, park
operations will continue as usual, though foot and vehicle travel near
these projects may be restricted for safety reasons.

Park Fire Danger

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

[NPS Situation Summary Report, 4/24; NICC Incident Management Situation
Report, 4/24]

OPERATIONAL NOTES

Court Decision in Ship Grounding Incident - For 150 years, maritime law has
always been the final authority in cases involving boating and shipping.
Recently, this law was superseded by the Park System Resources Protection
Act (16 USC 19jj), commonly referred to as "19jj". This was due to an
incident that occurred in Biscayne NP.  On July 20, 1998, the 110-foot tug
Allie-B, towing a 350-foot barge containing 12,000 tons of sugar, ran
aground on the coral reef tract in Biscayne. In addition to damage caused
over the three-quarter-mile stretch where the barge bumped over the reef
tract, the Allie-B powered off the reef, leaving a crater that was 10 feet
long by 42 feet across. This crater caused extensive damage to hard and
soft corals and coral reef colonies.  The crater was surrounded by a berm
approximately 15 feet high made up of ancient corals, sand and marine life.
The tug and barge owners' filed a petition under the Limitation Act which
allows ships to limit their legal responsibility to the value of the vessel
and cargo AFTER the accident.  The United States asked for restoration
costs under 19jj, which says that a person is responsible for damages
caused to park resources regardless of intent or negligence. The liability
limitation case originally went to district court, which ruled against the
owners of the Allie-B. Upsetting this 150-year-old maritime law created
shock waves throughout the shipping and insurance industries. The owners of
the Allie-B appealed this decision to the circuit court on the grounds that
the two laws were similar and the court should rule that the United States
could file under 19jj but should limit its claim to the value of the vessel
AFTER the accident. The United States said that the two laws were clearly
at odds with each other. In the four months that the court was deciding the
intent of the two laws, negotiations occurred on the parks' claim for money
to restore the damaged resources. The owners of the Allie-B offered to
settle the claim for $1 million if the park would agree to drop the appeal
that would decide if the 19jj law would supersede the maritime law. The
United States agreed. As the signatures on the settlement were being
obtained, the federal appellate court upheld the district court's decision
that there was a conflict between the two statutes and that 19jj was
supreme in regard to limiting liability. The 19jj law was ruled more recent
and more specific in its intent. In a stroke of good timing, the federal
government got the settlement they wanted AND a ruling from the court
saying that the 19jj law took precedence over maritime law. Many people
were involved in this case, and the park would like to extend its thanks to
rangers from Everglades, Gulf Island, Lake Mead and Apostle Island;
assistant U.S. attorneys Bob Kaplin and Michelle Delmarre; regional
solicitors Patricia Corteloy-Hamilton and Holly Diehl; the EPA; biologist
Karen Battle; case agent Steve Stinnet from Point Reyes; and the entire
staff at Biscayne. [Holly Rife, CR, BISC]

                               *  *  *  *  *

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

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