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NATIONAL PARK SERVICE MORNING REPORT BLACKBERRY EDITION Thursday, May 25, 2006 =============================================================================================================== INCIDENTS Lowell NHP Significant Flood The heavy rains that fell on eastern Massachusetts in mid-May led to severe flooding along the Merrimack River in Lowell - the worst floods on that river since 1936. On Sunday, May 14th, the governor of Massachusetts declared a state of emergency and the city of Lowell activated its emergency operations center (EOC). Communications were established between the EOC and the park and Boott Hydropower as part of the city's overall flood emergency action plan. As the river approached major flood stage on Monday, emergency steel stop logs were placed in position at Guard Locks by Boott Hydropower staff, sealing off water from entering the canal system and from flowing towards downtown Lowell. This procedure had not been used since the 1936 flood, when the historic Francis floodgate was dropped. That floodgate, built in 1850, was not used on this occasion, as the steel stop logs performed the same task of shutting off the water from entering the historic lock chamber. About a foot of water entered the basement utility area of Boott Mills. Maintenance staff pumped this water out as the flood progressed in order to prevent damage to chiller equipment. Park protection rangers were augmented by rangers from Boston NHP in order to provide overnight security and spectator control along Pawtucket Falls and at the Francis Gatehouse. Although many schools were closed on Monday and Tuesday, park programs and operations suffered only minimal disruption. Park staff were dismissed an hour early on Monday so that employees could get home, as many roads became gridlocked due to drivers seeking alternate routes around closed roads. The river dropped below flood stage by late in the week. Some river wall damage was observed, similar to the damage inflicted by Hurricane Floyd in 1999. [Dave Redding, Chief Ranger] Grand Canyon NP Multiple Incidents Between Friday, May 12th, and Friday, May 19th, South Rim rangers responded to the following significant incidents along with numerous medicals, DUI arrests, domestic disputes, warrant arrests, minor motor vehicle accidents, larcenies, public intoxication arrests and assist calls. They are also in addition to two previously reported incidents - that of the suicide victim found below Maricopa Point (May 19th) and the technical rescue of a concession employee from a point below Verkamp's Curio Store (May 24th): Attempted Suicide - Rangers responded to an incident in which a 51-year-old woman took an overdose of morphine pills. She was transported by ambulance to Flagstaff Medical Center. Agency Assist- Rangers helped US Marshals serve an arrest warrant in the park on a local resident. The man has been arrested several times by rangers and was the subject of a barricade incident two years ago. Fatality - On May 17th, rangers investigated a report of a man not breathing at a cabin at the Bright Angel Lodge. CPR was performed with advanced life support intervention. Resuscitation efforts were unsuccessful and the man was declared dead at the scene. Felony Theft, Warrant Arrest - On the morning of May 17th, a 41-year-old woman from Flagstaff who was a passenger in a DUI arrest was released to a local resident to sober up. After she departed the resident's trailer that evening, he reported that she had stolen approximately $1,400 worth of cash and jewelry from him while she was there. The woman, who owned the car involved in the DUI, contacted rangers shortly after the theft was reported to retrieve her car from the park impound facility. The woman, who was intoxicated, confessed to stealing the money and jewelry. An NCIC check indicated she had an extraditable warrant out of Winslow, Arizona (she had given rangers a different date of birth and name spelling earlier in the day, and an NCIC check at that time indicated a non-extraditable warrant). The woman was arrested and transported to the park's booking facility. During the booking process, she told rangers that she had not taken her seizure medicine that morning and that she felt like she was going to have a seizure. She then began the first in a series of five seizures. Guardian Ambulance responded from Tusayan, Arizona, just outside the park, and transported the woman to Flagstaff Medical Center. Rangers accompanied the ambulance and took her to the Coconino County Jail when she was released from the hospital. Charges will be filed for the theft after her warrant is cleared. Agency Assist, Mass Casualty Incident - At 1:45 a.m. on May 19th, rangers who were finishing paperwork from an earlier DUI arrest responded in a park ambulance to a request for assistance from a Coconino County deputy. The deputy was on the scene of a single car rollover accident on a Forest Service road with five victims, three of whom had critical injuries. A Guardian ambulance and the Tusayan Fire Department also responded. The three people with critical injuries were transported to Flagstaff Medical Center. [Karyl Yeston, South Rim Shift Supervisor] OTHER NEWS New Firewise displays available from NIFC: HYPERLINK "http://inside.nps.gov/index.cfm?handler=viewnpsnewsarticle&type=Announcements&id=4480" http://inside.nps.gov/index.cfm?handler=viewnpsnewsarticle&type=Announcements&id=4480 Ranger positions at Gulf Islands and Yosemite: HYPERLINK "http://inside.nps.gov/index.cfm?handler=viewjobdetails&type=Jobs&id=2398" http://inside.nps.gov/index.cfm?handler=viewjobdetails&type=Jobs&id=2398 HYPERLINK "http://inside.nps.gov/index.cfm?handler=viewjobdetails&type=Jobs&id=2399" http://inside.nps.gov/index.cfm?handler=viewjobdetails&type=Jobs&id=2399 * * * * * Prepared by Visitor and Resource Protection, WASO, with the cooperation and support of Delaware Water Gap NRA. --- ### --- |