NPS Morning Report - Tuesday, July 9, 2002



                           NATIONAL PARK SERVICE
                              MORNING REPORT


To:         All National Park Service Areas and Offices

From:       Division of Ranger Activities, Washington Office

Day/Date:   Tuesday, July 9, 2002

INCIDENTS

00-135 - Saguaro NP (AZ) - Follow-up: Homicide

J.D., 30, was convicted of first degree murder last week in a jury
trial in Pima County Superior Court for an incident that occurred in the
Tucson Mountain District of the park two years ago. On April 9, 2000, Pima
County deputies attempted to stop J.D.'s vehicle after he ran a stop sign
west of the park. J.D. instead took off and a high-speed pursuit ensued,
ending when he lost control of the vehicle and crashed. Passenger Joseph
McDowell was killed instantly in the accident. J.D. fled the scene, but was
eventually located and arrested. J.D. was also recently convicted in the
murder of a security guard at T.C.P. Prosecutors will request a
life sentence at his sentencing scheduled later.  [Robert E. Stinson,  DR,
SAGU, 7/1]

02-278 - War in the Pacific NHS (Guam) - Follow-up: Typhoon Chata'an

Typhoon Chata'an passed through the Mariana Islands on July 5th, passing
directly over Guam and causing extensive damage. Winds were clocked at over
120 mph. The visitor center at War in the Pacific remains closed due to
flooding. Power on the island of Guam is out and may remain out for up to a
month in some areas. Phone lines are out as well. A full damage assessment
is underway. Winds of from 30 to 50 mph struck Saipan along with periods of
heavy rain. Damage to the park was light to moderate; rehab will be limited
to cutting hazard trees, making repairs to beaches, and landscaping. A
scaled down Fourth of July celebration was held on the morning of July 6th.
It included the launching of remaining fireworks. About 6,000 people
attended. [Chuck Sayon, WAPA, 7/8]

02-283 - Servicewide - Follow-up: 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:

•     Antietam NB (MD) - The park hosted the 17th annual "Salute to
Independence" on July 6th. This year's concert, performed by the Maryland
Symphony Orchestra, was one of the largest ever given and featured an Air
National Guard flyover and fireworks. The event was managed under ICS;
participating were more than 100 personnel from numerous agencies and
parks. Public and staff safety was the highest priority, so additional
rangers and officers were brought in this year. Several changes were also
made in logistical arrangements in order to improve security. Rangers
issued one citation and a warning for illegal sales, a citation for alcohol
use and disorderly conduct, and five citations for fighting. The fight
occurred in the Philadelphia Brigade area near the end of the event. Ranger
Todd Stanton received the report of the fight and found five people
involved. OC spray had to be used to disperse them. Eight more rangers
responded to help stabilize the situation. The five citations were all for
mandatory court appearances; two of the participants were also cited for
underage drinking. Sharpsburg EMS responded to several minor incidents
during the event and also provided eye rinses for those affected by the OC
spray.

•     Jefferson National Expansion Memorial (MO) - Pacific West Region's
incident management team assisted park staff in providing enhanced security
for Fair St. Louis 2002. The team, under the unified command of chief
ranger Rod Danner and IC's Don Mannel, Steve Klump and Hugh Dougher, was
assigned the overall responsibility for coordinating security for the fair.
The celebration is held every year over the Fourth of July on park grounds.
In response to heightened terrorist awareness, visitors were funneled
through ten entrance stations where bags and purses were searched and metal
detectors and radiological detection equipment screened fair-goers.
Bomb-sniffing dogs swept the park and checked all vehicles entering the
fair area. This security effort involved 380 National Guard soldiers, 120
federal law enforcement officers from the NPS, Fish and Wildlife Service
and BLM, and 60 NPS support and overhead personnel. The security efforts
caused very minimal inconvenience and received high praise from the public.

•     Fort Vancouver NHS (WA) - The city of Vancouver's 40th annual Fourth
of July celebration drew about 50,000 people to park grounds. The day-long
event began with food and craft vendors, continued with over ten hours of
live music, and culminated in a fireworks display billed as the largest
west of the Mississippi. Park staff and more than 35 VIP's led numerous
activities. The event was managed under a unified command with Vancouver
police, who served as the lead agency. A five-member team of USPP officers
and NPS rangers assisted park staff with security. There were only six
incidents during the day, with just one minor incident (a warrant arrest)
in the park.

•     Yosemite NP (CA) - The park was very busy on the Fourth of July
weekend, but had very few problems overall. Although exact visitation
figures are not yet available, it's estimated that as many as 50,000 people
visited the park over the four-day weekend. Despite the full campgrounds
and crowded trails, there were very few arrests or search and rescue
incidents.

Additional reports are anticipated and will appear in future editions. [Ed
Wenschhof, CR, ANTI, 7/8; Shauna Dyas, IO, IMT, 7/8; Greg Shine, CR, FOVA,
7/8; Public Affairs, YOSE, 7/8]

02-290 - Prince William FP (VA) - Accidental Shooting

On the evening of June 30th, rangers Scott Engelhardt and Stuart West
responded to a radio call from the park entrance station reporting that a
young man had accidentally shot himself and was parked at the park
entrance. The rangers discovered that the victim, D.A., shot
himself in his thigh with a 45 caliber pistol while driving down Interstate
95. According to D.A. and the young woman with him, he had attempted to
make his semi-automatic handgun safe while driving to a firing range.
D.A. squeezed the trigger to prove to his girlfriend that the gun was
safe and discharged a round into his left thigh. The round penetrated his
leg and traveled through the driver's side door. Although D.A. had
removed the gun's magazine, he'd failed to clear the round in the chamber.
Engelhardt and West provided emergency medical aid to the victim until
ambulances arrived on scene.  Prince William County PD officers charged
D.A. with reckless discharge of a firearm.  The county police department
is reviewing the incident. [Stuart West, CR, PRWI, 6/30]

[Additional reports pending...]

FIRE MANAGEMENT

National Fire Situation

Preparedness Level 5

Initial attack was extensive yesterday throughout the Rockies, Great Basin
and Northwest. About 400 new fires were reported, six of which became large
fires.

Very high to extreme fire indices were reported in Arizona, California,
Colorado, Kansas, Nebraska, Nevada, New Mexico, North Dakota, Oklahoma,
Oregon, South Dakota, Texas, 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

                  Mon   Tue   Wed   Thu   Fri   Sat   Sun   Mon
Date              7/1   7/2   7/3   7/4   7/5   7/6   7/7   7/8

Crews             365   372   388   389   ***   329   276   264
Engines           857   950   715   768   ***   632   551   585
Helicopters       131   138   130   135   ***   145   137   141
Air Tankers       2     3     1     1     ***   1     3     4
Overhead          3,024 2,934 3,248 3,001 ***   2,877 2,890 2,711
Area Commands     2     2     2     2     ***   0     0     0
Type 1 IMT        11    8     8     9     ***   7     4     3
Type 2 IMT        11    15    15    15    ***   10    8     7
Fire Use IMT            2     2     1     1     ***   1     2     2

*** - Report not available

National Fire Warnings and Watches

NICC has not issued any fire watches or warnings for today.

Park Fire Situation

Yellowstone NP (WY) - The lightning-caused Broad Fire (600 acres) started
on June 27th but didn't become active until July 5th. The fire, located six
miles east of Mt. Washburn, is in a remote backcountry area and is not
threatening any structures, backcountry campsites or trails. The fire is
burning in very heavy fuels (old growth timber and heavy accumulations of
dead and down trees) and is putting up a good deal of smoke. Eight
firefighters are constructing line and were assisted by water bucket and
retardant drops.

Shenandoah NP (VA) - The Rocky Top II fire (150 acres) is burning in
bug-killed pine, rhododendron, leaf litter and understory about five miles
east of Port Republic. Crews are constructing fire lines in remote and
rugged terrain. A total of 124 firefighters and overhead have been
committed.

[NICC Incident Management Situation Report, 7/9; Public Affairs,
Yellowstone NP, 7/6-7/8]

PARKS AND PEOPLE

Ozark NSR (MO) ? The park is seeking applicants for two positions currently
advertised on USA Jobs.  The Lower Current District DR position is
advertised as a GS-025-11 supervisory park ranger (protection) under
OZAR-02-25, which closes on July 10th. Ozark NSR is reorganizing from unit
managers to standard divisions and the park is seeking applicants with
solid field experience in protection who have also had some experience in
program management, fee collection, and supervision. The park is complex
and has a visitation of 1.5 million annually with numerous resource impacts
that need to be addressed. A significant law enforcement and EMS workload
in the Big Spring and Jacks Fork River areas, combined with boat, ATV, and
horse use, makes this job one of the most diverse ranger positions in the
NPS. The park is also re-advertising its GS-0401-12/13 chief of resource
management and education position in order to obtain more applicants. It is
on USA Jobs as OZAR-02-22A and closes July 16th. Due to the park's
reorganization, applicants possessing the ability to deal with significant
resource impacts and program management experience in interpretation and
resource management are encouraged to apply. The park is in a rebuilding
phase, so the opportunity to make significant contributions exists in both
positions. Questions about the district ranger position should be directed
to chief ranger Larry Johnson at 573-323-4236 ext. 237.  Questions about
the chief of resource management and education position should be directed
to acting superintendent Chris Ward at 573-323-4236 ext. 223. (Larry
Johnson, OZAR)

Grand Teton NP (GRTE) - The park is currently recruiting to fill at least
two and perhaps as many as six GS-7/9 commissioned ranger positions. These
positions have been announced on USA Jobs with a closing date of July 9th.
The persons selected will be responsible for a wide range of visitor and
resource protection duties, including a very active year-round frontcountry
law enforcement program, a fall elk hunt in the park, and winter snowmobile
recreation. Each will be involved in search and rescue, structural fire,
emergency medical services (three park ambulances), and wildland fire. For
additional information, contact Bill Holda, acting chief ranger, at
307-739-3327 [Bill Holda, GRTE]

                               *  *  *  *  *

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

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