INCIDENTS

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Canyonlands National Park (UT)
Falling Fatality

A park visitor came to the Needles Visitor Center on the morning of April 9th and reported that a woman had fallen off a cliff. The visitor had come upon Paul Thompson of Littleton, Colorado, on his bicycle, and Thompson had asked him to get in touch with rangers immediately because his wife had just fallen from a point near Big Springs overlook. Ranger Tom Wilson headed to the scene; ranger Kevin Moore assumed responsibility as IC and began assembling a response team. Wilson contacted P.T. and located the body of his wife, M., 54, about 120 feet below the overlook. Wilson requested that the county coroner be notified and documented the scene. The San Juan County SO conducted the investigation and concluded that the death was accidental. The park team carried the body out over rocky terrain.
[Submitted by Peter C. Fitzmaurice, Chief Ranger]

Oregon Caves National Monument (OR)
EMS Rescue

On the morning of Saturday, April 10th, ranger Ann Schlichting was on duty at the park visitor center when she received a call on the cave emergency phone from an SCA guide reporting that a woman had experienced an episode of syncope (a spontaneous loss of consciousness caused by insufficient blood to the brain) at one of the cave exits. Schlichting, a First Responder, quickly headed to the cave along with other park staff. They found a 65-year-old woman with a cardiac history who was suffering from labored breathing. Shortly after they arrived, she again lost consciousness. Oxygen was administered and paramedics summoned. The woman was evacuated from the cave via stair chair, taken to the visitor center, then flown to Providence Hospital in Medford for treatment.
[Submitted by Tom Siewert, Lead Guide]

Fort Necessity National Battlefield (PA)
Flooding Damages Park VC

Heavy rains that fell throughout the region on April 12th and 13th caused area rivers to crest above flood stage yesterday. Flooding caused water damage to the basement of the Great Meadows Center at Fort Necessity. Trail damage assessments are to be completed as soon as the weather improves. The county remained under a flood warning yesterday, and forecasters also warned that super-saturated soils might shift or fail.
[Submitted by Ken Mabery, Superintendent]

FIRE MANAGEMENT

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National Interagency Fire Center
NIFC Situation Report — Wednesday, April 14, 2004

Preparedness Level 1

Initial attack was again light, with 77 new fires reported.

Very high to extreme fire indices were reported in Illinois.

National Resource Commitments

Day	Thu	Fri	Sat	Sun	Mon	Tue	Wed
Date	4/8	4/9	4/10	4/11	4/12	4/13	4/14
Crews	15	9	15	22	7	10	7
Engines	142	61	70	89	32	60	46
Helicopters	13	9	7	13	5	5	7
Air Tankers	0	0	0	0	0	0	0
Overhead	216	192	224	269	113	178	76

National Team Commitments

State	Type Team	Team IC	Fire and Location	Acres 4/13	Acres 4/14	Percent Contain	Est Full Contain
FL	T1	Ferguson	East Fork Fire, Florida National Forests	19,878	19,878	70%	4/16

PARKS AND PEOPLE

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Mount Rushmore National Memorial (SD)
Jim "Pop" Popovich is Retiring

Pop arrived at Mount Rushmore on February 3, 1985. He was the first Chief of Interpretation at Mount Rushmore National Memorial. During his time at the Memorial he has implemented and seen many changes. The interpretive program was bolstered by Pop's implementation of walking tours of the park's under used historic area and the development of Terrace Talks and other programs to enhance the visitor's experience.

Pop has seen many changes and many faces at the Memorial. A new film was developed for vistor oientation, "Mount Rushmore the Shrine", narrated by Tom Browkaw. The 50th Anniversary of the completion of the work on Mount Rushmore was celebrated and the first fireworks display were fired during his tenure. High profile figures have toured the grounds at Rushmore with Pop including presidents, actors, politicians and world leaders.

The greatest and most significant change at the Memorial that Pop contributed to was the redevelopment. The needs of increased numbers of visitors were not being met by the old facilities. A new trail was built to porvide visitors with closer access to the mountain sculpture. The Lincoln Borglum Museum was opened with informative videos and interactive displays to educate park visitors.

Pop's skills of leadership and dedication to the park visitor and his staff and co-workers will be missed. Enjoy New Mexico Pop!
[Submitted by Nichole Andler, nichole_andler@nps.gov, (605) 574-3195] More Information...

Submission standards for the Morning Report can be found on the left side of the front page of InsideNPS. All reports should be submitted via email to Bill Halainen at Delaware Water Gap NRA, with a copy to your regional office and a copy to Dennis Burnett in Division of Law Enforcement and Emergency Services, WASO.

Prepared by the Division of Law Enforcement and Emergency Services, WASO, with the cooperation and support of Delaware Water Gap NRA.