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NATIONAL PARK SERVICE MORNING REPORT BLACKBERRY EDITION Tuesday, May 30, 2006 =============================================================================================================== INCIDENTS Denali NP&P Climber Walks Away From 3,300 Foot Fall A 33-year-old Utah man fell over 3,300 feet on a ski descent of Mt. McKinley late on the evening of Thursday, May 25th, but suffered only minor injuries in the fall. The man, who had reportedly summitted the mountain earlier that evening with his two climbing partners, was attempting a ski descent of the steep couloir or snow gully known as the Orient Express when the accident occurred. He was able to descend toward the ranger camp at the mountain's 14, 200-foot level to seek assistance. Meanwhile, a three-person ranger team that had been notified of the accident by the man's climbing partners headed up the mountain, meeting the man about 500 yards outside the camp. A medical assessment revealed facial trauma, a possible spinal injury and pain in both legs. The park's contract Lama helicopter flew to the camp on Friday morning and transported the climber to the Kahiltna base camp at 7,200 feet. He was then transferred to a LifeGuard Air Ambulance and flown to Alaska Regional Hospital. The snow and rock-banded Orient Express lies directly west of the technical West Rib route. While rarely ever ascended, it is an occasional descent route for experienced skiers and snowboarders. The top of the Orient Express is located at 19,300-feet, at which point it steeply drops at a 40 to 45 degree angle to the 15,700-foot level, where it flattens into the 14,200-foot basin. A total of 15 climbers have died from falls on the Orient Express since 1972. The high altitude Lama helicopter has evacuated an additional four patients in the past month for various medical ailments, included a pre-existing heart condition, frostbite, high altitude pulmonary edema, and severe acute mountain sickness. As of last Friday, there were 423 mountaineers attempting Mt. McKinley, with another 13 climbing Mt. Foraker. So far this year, 89 climbers have reached McKinley's summit, with no recorded summits of Mt. Foraker. [Maureen McLaughlin, Public Affairs Specialist] Denali NP&P Two Climbers Rescued Near Summit of Mt. Hunter Two climbers stranded near the summit of Mt. Hunter were rescued by park's contracted high altitude Lama helicopter at 7:30 p.m. on the evening of Saturday, May 27th, after spending over 24 hours without food and shelter in severe winds. Denali mountaineering rangers had been informed on Friday evening that two members of a Korean climbing team required emergency assistance. The two men, both age 35, became separated below the summit of Mt. Hunter during their climb. Winds in the Alaska Range were severe overnight and throughout the day Saturday, gusting to 60 mph at the 14,000-foot elevation. Rangers were in radio contact with one of the men, who communicated his position and condition with the assistance of a translator. During a scheduled radio communication at 5:00 p.m. on Saturday night, he reported that the winds had calmed significantly and was able to identify an adequate helicopter landing zone. The Lama flew to their location shortly thereafter and extricated the two men. Both climbers were assessed and treated by a volunteer doctor. Despite fatigue and dehydration, both were in relatively good condition considering their overnight exposure to high winds and cold temperatures. They were released to the care of their three teammates, who were already at the Kahiltna base camp. [Maureen McLaughlin, Public Affairs Specialist] Lake Mead NRA Three People Die on Lakes Mead and Mohave Over Weekend Three people died in Lakes Mead and Mohave over the Memorial Day weekend. All are believed to have drowned: On the afternoon of May 26th, the park received a marine band radio call reporting a woman in the water and needing immediate medical attention near Princess Cove on Lake Mohave. The caller also reported that the woman had been operating a personal watercraft (PWC) with two passengers aboard. Rangers and Bullhead City FD paramedics reached the cove by road within minutes and were soon joined by rangers who arrived by boat. CPR was begun but proved unsuccessful. The two passengers told rangers that they'd been in the water for 30 to 60 minutes and had not been able to get back onto their PWC. Rangers believe that wind and wave action were significant factors in the 32-year-old woman's death. A lake wind advisory was in effect at the time, with sustained winds of 20 to 30 mph and gusts of up to 40 mph. At least eleven other visitors were rescued from Lakes Mead and Mohave that day. All were on vessels affected by strong winds and high waves. Visitors on a houseboat found a body floating in Lake Mead around 5 p.m. on May 27th. The victim is believed to be a 21-year-old man who'd been reported missing the previous day. The man and a 22-year-old female companion had headed out on the late in a small vessel around 11 a.m. on Friday, May 26th. They were reported missing at 7:30 p.m. About an hour later, rangers found the woman in the water. She was wearing a life jacket and told them that her boyfriend was also in the water and wearing a life jacket. An interagency search was begun, but had to be called off around midnight due to extremely windy conditions. A seven-year-old girl who was on a raft and not wearing a life jacket was carried out into the lake near Boulder Beach by strong winds on the evening of May 27th. Witnesses told responding rangers that she did not know how to swim. Her body was found by visitors around 7 p.m. The three deaths were the ninth, tenth and eleventh fatalities to occur in the park this year. [Roxanne Dey, Public Affairs Officer] * * * * * Prepared by Visitor and Resource Protection, WASO, with the cooperation and support of Delaware Water Gap NRA. --- ### --- |