NPS Morning Report - Tuesday, June 18, 2002


                       NATIONAL PARK SERVICE
                           MORNING REPORT

To:		    All National Park Service Areas and Offices

From:		Division of Ranger Activities, Washington Office

Day/Date:	Tuesday, June 18, 2002

INCIDENTS

02-239 - Voyageurs NP (MN) - Carbon Monoxide Poisoning

At 8 a.m. on June 14th, ranger Kevin Grossheim received a report that
three people had evidently been overcome by carbon monoxide poisoning
while staying on a rented houseboat on Namakan Lake. When he reached the
boat, Grossheim and other first responders found five people vomiting,
semi-conscious and experiencing the signs and symptoms of carbon
monoxide poisoning. Oxygen was administered and additional boats were
obtained to transport the victims eight miles to waiting ambulances. It
appears that a propane furnace and portable generator had been operating
overnight, that the boat's CO detector was not functioning, and that the
windows had been closed to keep bugs out. The wiring to the detector
turned out to be loose. It had been routed to a battery source behind a
kitchen drawer and became disconnected due to the repeated opening and
closing of the drawer. As a result of this incident, the company that
manufactures this model of houseboat immediately conducted an inspection
of all houseboat CO detectors.  [James Hummel, VOYA, 6/17]

02-240 - Yosemite NP (CA) - Climbing Fatality, Rescue; Helicopter Mishap

Early on the afternoon of June 13th, off-duty ranger Jack Hoeflich and
SAR technician Greg Loniewski were climbing on Higher Cathedral Rock in
Yosemite Valley. They heard cries for help and located an injured
climber, R.Z., 43, at the base of the "Braille Book" route.
R.Z. had been rope soloing and had taken a 70-foot fall to the
ground. R.Z.'s self-belay system had slowed but not stopped his
fall, and he had sustained an open fracture of his left elbow. R.Z.
also complained of pain in his back and pelvis. Hoeflich ran to the
Valley floor and caught a ride to the Valley SAR cache with a passing
motorist, arriving around 1:45 p.m. Rangers John Dill, Dave Horne and
Donna Sisson heli-rappelled to R.Z.'s location two hours later. They
stabilized R.Z. and placed him in a Stokes litter. With the help of
several other climbers, R.Z. was moved 50 yards to a location from
where he could be hoisted. A rescue helicopter from Naval Air Station
Lemoore came in and lowered a Navy hospital corpsman to the scene, then
lifted the corpsman and the litter up to the helicopter. As the hoist
operation was underway, the helicopter began having problems. While the
crew attempted to maintain safe flight, the hoist cable separated from
the litter and the hoist belay rope caught the litter and attendant. The
crew was able to set the litter down in El Capitan Meadow, then land.
The corpsman was transported via air ambulance to Doctor's Medical
Center in Modesto, where he was treated for a bilateral pneumothorax and
a concussion. He was in stable condition at the time of the report.
R.Z. was pronounced dead at El Capitan Meadow after a lengthy
resuscitation effort. The NPS, DOI Office of Aircraft Services, and the
Navy are cooperating on the investigation of the helicopter mishap.
[Steve Yu, PR/IC, YOSE, 6/14]

02-241 - Glacier NP (MT) - Storm Impacts

Over the weekend of June 8th and 9th, an unseasonable storm dropped
several feet of snow in the mountains and along the park's east side,
causing power outages and closures. Through concerted efforts by park
staff, facilities and services reopened within several days. Electrical
power was restored at Many Glacier Valley on the evening of June 11th,
making it possible to open the Many Glacier Hotel for the season on
schedule. Two Medicine Valley had reopened by June 13th, but temporarily
without services. Going-To-The-Sun Road reopened for vehicle traffic on
the east side of the Divide as far as Jackson Glacier overlook, a
distance of 14 miles from St. Mary's. Hikers and bikers could travel
another two miles to Siyeh Bend. On the west side of the Divide, the
road was opened to Avalanche Creek, 16 miles from West Glacier.
Bicyclists and pedestrians could travel several miles beyond Avalanche
Creek. The area just above Siyeh Bend was hit by a massive slab
avalanche, the largest ever seen by veteran road crew members. Avalanche
debris is estimated to be an eighth to a quarter mile long and 20 to 30
feet deep. It will therefore take some time to clear. Crews working the
west side of Going-To- The-Sun Road counted a total of 72 avalanches,
some of which reached the road. Warm weather has returned to the area,
with temperatures in the 80s. Park staff are accordingly closely
monitoring stream and river levels throughout the park. [Amy Vanderbilt,
PIO, GLAC, 6/14]

02-242 - George Washington Memorial Parkway (VA) - Rescue

Ranger Sarah Koenen was at an overlook in the Great Falls unit on the
afternoon of June 15th when she saw a person in the Potomac River in a
dangerous location above the falls. USPP officer Kris Traynor and other
rangers were notified. They determined that a man in his 30s was about
500 feet from the Virginia shoreline holding onto a rock and in apparent
distress. The rock was surrounded by at least chest deep water with a
strong current. Traynor contacted USPP aviation and a helicopter was
dispatched to the falls. The man was hoisted from the river in a rescue
net and taken to the Maryland shore. Ranger Khabira Al-Muhyee Ettaji
then spotted a second man in the river. The man, who turned out to be a
friend of the man who had just been rescued, was in the river about 250
feet from shore, also in a location where strong currents prevailed. He
was hoisted from the river by the USPP helicopter and brought to shore.
It turned out that he'd gotten into trouble while trying to rescue his
friend. During the rescues, rangers learned that an eight-year-old boy -
the nephew of one of the men - was missing. Local fire and rescue units
and Great Falls rangers searched the area and found the boy standing
near the river about 500 yards downstream from the point where the two
men had been rescued. He was okay. [Jesse Reynolds, GWMP, 6/17]

02-243 - Whiskeytown NRA (CA) - Drowning

Dispatch received a report of a possible drowning in the Whiskey Creek
arm of the lake on the afternoon of June 6th. Rangers and firefighters
were on scene within five minutes. Chief ranger Steve Prokop swam out
100 yards to the area where the victim was last seen and made several
dives, finding the 21-year-old man within about 10 minutes in 10 to 15
feet of water. CPR was begun, but suspended when Shasta County
paramedics arrived five minutes later and pronounced him dead. The
victim had been swimming in the area on and off for several hours with
friends. They were attempting to swim to islands and buoys along the
western shore of Whiskey Creek arm when the drowning occurred. The park
and county coroner's office are investigating. A post-traumatic critical
incident debriefing was held for park employees following the incident.
[Steve Prokop, CR, WHIS, 6/11]

02-244 - Cuyahoga Valley NP (OH) - Poaching Arrest

On April 24th, ranger Mike Wilson was monitoring a flock of wild turkeys
near the park boundary in an effort to detect poachers. Wilson soon
heard hunters attempting to call the flock out of the park with
artificial turkey calls. The birds declined to respond, however, so the
hunters moved into the park, set up a blind, and continued calling.
Wilson approached without being detected and apprehended Wayne Carter as
he attempted to shoot a large tom turkey. R.C. had two turkey calls, a
portable camouflage blind, camouflage clothing and a loaded 12 gauge
shotgun in his possession. With the assistance of rangers Lois Neff and
Dave Vasarheyli, two other men - R.T. and R.C. - were
arrested on a nearby parcel of private property where several illegal
mechanical corn feeders were found. In June, R.C. waived his
appearance and was fined and paid $450. R.T. was fined and paid $50
for providing false information and is currently under investigation by
the state for the illegal baiting operation. [Mike Wilson, ADR, CUVA,
6/9]

[Additional reports pending….]

FIRE MANAGEMENT

No report today due to early release of the Morning Report. For a map
showing the locations of current major fires , click on
http://www.nifc.gov/fireinfo/firemap.html ; for details on all major
fires currently burning, click on http://www.nifc.gov/news/sitreprt.pdf
or http://www.nifc.gov/fireinfo/nfn.html.

PARKS AND PEOPLE

Sleeping Bear Dunes NL (MI) - The park is looking for a commissioned
ranger for a 60-day detail, starting the first week of July. The
position is open to either seasonals or permanents at the GS-7 or GS-9
level. The park will pay base salary, travel and per diem; park housing
is available. If you are interested, send a résumé or SF-171 to the
park. For further information, call Kym Mukavetz at 231-325-5562 ext.
460. [Roger Moder, SLBE]

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

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