NPS Morning Report - Monday, July 8, 2002


                           NATIONAL PARK SERVICE
                              MORNING REPORT


To:         All National Park Service Areas and Offices

From:       Division of Ranger Activities, Washington Office

Day/Date:   Monday, July 8, 2002

INCIDENTS

02-283 - Servicewide - Fourth of July Special Events

A number of significant events occurred in the parks on the Fourth of July
and the days before and after:

•     Independence NHP (PA) - On July 3rd, a copy of the Magna
Carta dating from 1297 was put on display at the park's visitor center.
The document, which is on loan from the Perot Foundation and normally
displayed in the National Archives, will be on display at the park
through March, 2003. On that same date, a group called "Avenging
Our Ancestors" held a permitted demonstration at the Liberty Bell
Pavilion to demand a memorial to slavery at the site of the Liberty Bell
Center, currently under construction. On      the morning of July 4th,
Secretary of State Colin Powell received the Liberty Medal from the city
of Philadelphia before an audience of about 2,000 people. Rangers
cooperated with State Department security people to secure the area;
Philadelphia police also provided assistance. The heat index was over
100, and rangers responded to three cases of minor heat-related
ailments. No significant incidents were reported during the ceremony. In
the afternoon, a group of protestors supporting convicted cop killer
Mumia Abu Jamal gathered in a city street adjacent to the park, spilling
over onto park property and sidewalks. City police and rangers monitored
the group until they departed without incident.

•     Mount Rushmore NM (SD) - Due to the extreme fire danger
throughout the area, the annual and very popular fireworks show was
canceled and replaced with a laser show. About 28,000 people visited the
park on July 3rd and 18,000 on July 4th. Normal crowds are from 25,000
to 35,000 each day. The laser show on the night of the 3rd was not a
great success, and the performance on the 4th was canceled due to
technical difficulties. A media blitz was accordingly conducted
throughout the 4th to apprise everyone of this fact. Twenty agencies
worked together on the event. Only a few suspicious activities were
reported, and there were only 19 medical responses.

•     Perry's Victory and International Peace Memorial (OH) -
Twenty-three people took the oath of citizenship at a naturalization
ceremony on July 4th. The proceeding was held on the monument plaza
before a crowd of nearly 600 people. Several local dignitaries spoke.
Just before they received their certificates, the new citizens and crowd
were treated to a flyover by the Ohio National Guard. The event was
coordinated by the park and the International Institute of Ohio.

Additional reports are anticipated and will appear in future editions.
[Phil Sheridan, PIO, INDE, 7/5; Larry Frederick, PIO, MORU, 7/5; Ralph
Moore, Superintendent, PEVI, 7/5]

02-284 - Glen Canyon NRA (UT/AZ) - Drowning

A group of ARAMARK employees went swimming in Crappie Cove northwest of
Bullfrog Marina on the afternoon of June 24th. A member of the group,
C.F. of Honduras, was attempting to swim across the cove, a
distance of about 60 feet, when he appeared to get a cramp, yelled for
help, then went under. Another member of the group quickly ran to a nearby
houseboat, whose occupants contacted authorities via marine band radio.
Rangers were on scene shortly thereafter, and divers made their first dive
about two hours after the accident first occurred. C.F.'s body was found
15 feet from shore in about 65 feet of water. Alcohol was not a factor.
[Lisa Ford, GLCA, 6/28]

02-285 - Chickasaw NRA (OK) - Drowning

A group of four men, ages ranging from 16 to 45, came to Lake of the
Arbuckles to picnic and recreate on the evening of June 29th. Around 8:30
p.m., G.L., 27, a Mexican national living in Norman, Oklahoma,
walked away from the spot where the group was gathered to a point about 20
yards away and entered the lake. G.L., a non-swimmer who had reportedly
been drinking alcohol all day, was gone for 15 to 20 minutes before members
of the group realized he was missing. They searched the area and lake and
found G.L. underwater in about eight feet of water 20 feet from shore.
They pulled him to shore and contacted rangers via cell phone. Rangers
arrived and conducted CPR until county EMS units arrived. G.L. was taken
to Arbuckle Memorial Hospital, where he was declared deceased. [Ed Cummins,
SDR, CHIC, 7/4]

02-286 - Delaware Water Gap NRA (NJ/PA) - Drowning

O.V., 13, drowned while swimming the Delaware River near
Karamac Access in the New Jersey District on the afternoon of July 4th.
O.V. arrived at Karamac with his aunt, uncle and two friends around 3
p.m. and entered the river shortly thereafter. He began struggling almost
immediately and went under before others could reach him. His body was
recovered by park divers from ten feet of water around 5:30 p.m. According
to the boy's parents, he was unable to swim, though he told his aunt
otherwise. He was not wearing a life jacket at the time of the accident.
[Chris Nelson, DEWA, 7/5]

02-287 - Cape Hatteras NS (NC) - Drowning

On the evening of June 26th, A.G., 19, was in a small plastic
inflatable dinghy about 50 feet from the shore north of Buxton. A.G.
could not swim and wasn't wearing a life jacket. He was paddling the dinghy
with his hands until it capsized. Friends who were floating in another
plastic dinghy saw him go under, but could not swim either. Witnesses
summoned help. Local emergency personnel and district ranger Steve Ryan
responded; contract lifeguard Jeremy Crum served as an interpreter between
Gonzalez' friends and rescuers. The area was searched by plane, helicopter,
and boat and by searchers along, in and under the water. A windsurfer found
Gonzalez' body early on the afternoon of June 28th and brought it to shore.
Gonzalez was from Hidalgo, Mexico, but was living and working in North
Carolina. [Jeff Cobb, CR, CAHA, 7/5]

02-288 - Cape Hatteras NS (NC) - Drowning

Forty-five-year-old D.M. of Lebanon, Virginia, went swimming
with his adult daughter and her boyfriend in the park on the morning of
July 1st. They were about 50 yards from shore near beach access ramp 38
when they realized they could not touch the bottom. The daughter and
boyfriend decided to return to shore, struggling against an off-shore
current as they came in. When they reached the shore, they saw D.M.
struggling and heard him call for help. Local resident Susan Herndon was
surfing nearby and went to D.M.'s aid, but he slipped beneath the
surface just as she arrived. Herndon retrieved him, placed him on her
surfboard, and brought him to shore. He had no pulse and was not breathing,
so she began CPR and continued it until the Hatteras Island Rescues Squad
arrived on scene. D.M. was taken to Avon Medical Clinic, but never
regained consciousness and was pronounced dead. [Jeff Cobb, CR, CAHA, 7/5]

02-289 - Voyageur NP (MN) - Drowning

On the evening of July 2nd, a 24-year-old man left his house on Sand Point
Lake by boat to visit a local bar. He failed to return and was reported
missing the next morning. Rangers and other searchers found an overturned
21-foot boat with extensive damage to its bow and port side in a narrow
passage between two shorelines. Evidence at the scene revealed that the
boat, which was found to have been the boat that the missing man was
operating, struck a rock wall on an island adjacent to the passage. An
intensive search was conducted, but no sign of him was found. Dragging
operations were then begun, but were hindered in part by the extensive
flooding and high water currents that have prevailed for the past three
weeks. Divers searched the area, and side scan radar was also used. No sign
of the man has been found, and all operations have been terminated. Due to
the flooding and cold water temperatures, it will likely be several weeks
before the body is found. [Jim Hummel, VOYA, 7/5]

[Additional reports pending. . . .]

FIRE MANAGEMENT

National Fire Situation

Preparedness Level 5

Initial attack was extensive yesterday throughout the eastern Great Basin
and Northwest. A total of 471 new fires were reported over the weekend, but
only ten of them became large fires.

Very high to extreme fire indices were reported in Arizona, California,
Colorado, Idaho, Kansas, Nevada, New Mexico, North Dakota, Oklahoma,
Oregon, South Dakota, Utah, Washington and Wyoming.

Priorities for large fires in the Southwest, the Rockies and the Great
Basin are being established by the multi-agency coordinating groups for
those areas.

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.

National Resource Commitments

                  Sat   Sun   Mon   Tue   Wed   Thu   Fri   Sat   Sun
Date              6/29  6/30  7/1   7/2   7/3   7/4   7/5   7/6   7/7

Crews             334   318   365   372   388   389   ***   329   276
Engines           890   856   857   950   715   768   ***   632   551
Helicopters       142   126   131   138   130   135   ***   145   137
Air Tankers       0     3     2     3     1     1     ***   1     3
Overhead          3,029 2,915 3,024 2,934 3,248 3,001 ***   2,877 2,890
Area Commands     3     3     2     2     2     2     ***   0     0
Type 1 IMT        9     11    11    8     8     9     ***   7     4
Type 2 IMT        8     12    11    15    15    15    ***   10    8
Fire Use IMT            1     1     2     2     1     1     ***   1     2

*** - Report not available

National Fire Warnings and Watches

NICC has issued:

•     A FIRE WEATHER WATCH for windy, hot dry and unstable conditions for
central and southwest Wyoming.
•     A FIRE WEATHER WATCH for wind, warm temperatures and low relative
humidity for portions of western Wyoming.
•     A FIRE WEATHER WATCH for thunderstorms and gusty winds for south
central and southeast Montana.

Park Fire Situation

Yellowstone NP (WY) - The Broad fire has burned 240 acres in old growth
lodgepole pine and Douglas fire 20 miles southeast of Mammoth. Single-tree
torching and short-range spotting occurred yesterday. Firefighters are
constructing lines and improving a helispot for use by helicopters, which
are being used to check the fire's spread to the north and northeast toward
Broad Creek.

[NICC Incident Management Situation Report, 7/6-8]

PARKS AND PEOPLE

Washington Office (DC) - An announcement (NPS-WASO-02-062)has been posted
for a GS-0301-15 special assistant to Associate Director, Park Operations
and Education who will serve as the implementation manager for the McKinsey
fee study - a study of the NPS fee program conducted last year that
recommended a number of changes to that program. This is a term position
that is open to all applicants. It has also been announced as a temporary
promotion for NPS employees in the Washington commuting area
(NPS-WASO-02-070). Only one position will be filled. The person in this
positions will be responsible for providing executive direction,
professional staff advice, technical assistance and oversight for the
development of National Park Service policy and the implementation of the
McKinsey fee study recommendations  for the Service's recreation fee
program. She/he provides advice on controversial and precedent-setting
issues and works closely with the associate director in developing
solutions to complex and politically sensitive problems. Such assignments
can focus on any of the broad spectrum of NPS programs, impact nationally
on operations, and involve other DOI bureaus, other federal agencies, state
governments, conservation groups and private industry. He/she is
responsible for managing the implementation of recommended policy and
operational changes to be applied to the recreation fee p, including
program structure changes, metrics, communications, and legislative
efforts. She/he will provide perspectives and further analytical support to
assist directorate managers in the development of key policy and procedural
decisions, and will be responsible for developing the strategy and resource
needs necessary to carry out this project. Topics of concern areas for the
fee program include implementation of NPS-22 guidelines, policies on
standardized rate structures, user fee rates and standardization, the
National Park Pass, commercial tour fee rate changes, the feasibility of
collecting fees at all NPS sites, fee allocation, legislative changes, and
other topics related to the collection of fees. For further information
contact Jane Moore 202-208-4205. [Jane Anderson, WASO]

Biscayne NP (FL) - The park is seeking a highly-motivated, full
performance, level one commissioned ranger at the GS-9 level for a lateral
transfer. They are looking for an aggressive, self-sufficient person who
has the ability to work with little or no supervision. The incumbent may be
involved in an array of duties in EMS, SAR, and law enforcement, including
patrols conducted with a variety of boats, vehicles and bicycles. Common
enforcement activities include fisheries enforcement, boating safety,
boating under the influence of drugs and or alcohol, commercial and
recreational poaching of a large variety of resources, marine and
terrestrial cultural resources enforcement, and drug and illegal immigrant
smuggling/interdiction. EMS skills at the EMT level are preferred but not
necessarily a deal breaker. If hired, the incumbent will be assigned to and
responsible for a 22-foot Mako patrol vessel powered by a 250-horsepower
outboard motor and equipped with radar, a chart plotter and GPS. Park
housing is available. The person selected will conduct duties during
weekends, holidays, and all hours of the day and night. Those potentially
interested in the position are asked to contact chief ranger Holly Rife,
supervisory ranger Thomas Rutledge or law enforcement specialist David
Pharo at 305-230-1144. [David Pharo, BISC]

                               *  *  *  *  *

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

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