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NATIONAL PARK SERVICE MORNING REPORT Wednesday, September 20, 2006 =============================================================================================================== INCIDENTS Denali NP&P Plane Crash Kills Two On Monday, September 18th, two rangers flew to the site of a plane crash in the southwestern part of the park with NTSB and FAA personnel to assist in the investigation of an aircraft accident and recover the remains of the two occupants. The site is at an elevation of 2,700 feet, approximately one mile inside the park boundary on the north side of the canyon in the west fork of the Yentna River drainage southwest of Mystic Pass. The airplane was broken into many sections and there was evidence of a post-crash fire. According to information received by the Alaska State Troopers, two aircraft - a DeHavilland Beaver and a Cessna 185 - were returning to Anchorage after a successful moose hunt in the Selawik area on Friday, September 15th. The two planes stopped in Galena to refuel, but reportedly encountered bad weather in the Mystic Pass area. The Cessna was able to turn back and returned to Galena around midnight. When the Beaver failed to show up, the occupants of the Cessna contacted authorities. On Saturday, troopers asked the Rescue Coordination Center and Civil Air Patrol to launch a mission to locate the missing aircraft. At approximately 3 p.m. on Sunday afternoon, the wreckage of the Beaver was located by members of the Anchorage Polaris Squadron of the CAP. Pararescuemen with the 212th Rescue Squadron were able to make it to the crash site and confirmed that both occupants had died in the accident. The two men have been identified as A.S., 38, and A.B., 33, both of Anchorage. Stack was the pilot. The NPS was notified of the accident late on Sunday when it was determined that it had occurred within the preserve. [Kris Fister, Public Affairs Officer] HYPERLINK "http://www.adn.com/news/alaska/aviation/story/8208217p-8104889c.html" http://www.adn.com/news/alaska/aviation/story/8208217p-8104889c.html Blue Ridge Parkway Two Motorcycle Accidents With Fatalities On September 4th, a 52-year-old woman from Hendersonville, North Carolina, succumbed to injuries she received in an accident that occurred in the park on August 22nd. The woman was riding behind her husband on a motorcycle that was headed south on the parkway. Both fell of the bike when he lost control of it as they were entering the Fork Mountain Tunnel. He suffered cuts and abrasions, but his wife sustained head and other injuries and had to be flown to Mission Hospital. The operator later told investigating rangers that he lost control of the bike when its rear tire came in contact with the double center line on the slick, wet pavement. On September 16th, a 43-year-old man from Greenville, South Carolina, was killed when he failed to negotiate a curve at milepost 366. He was riding with several others at the time and was evidently traveling too fast for conditions. [Tim Francis, Pisgah District Ranger] Glen Canyon NRA Woman Drowns When Boat Breaks Apart N.H., 40, of Fruita, Colorado, drowned in Lake Powell on Friday, September 15th, after the boat in which she was riding hit a wake at high speed, causing the hull to split and dumping the two occupants into the water. Her body was found the following afternoon at a depth of 387 feet, about 30 to 40 feet from the site of the accident. The other person in the boat was rescued from the water by the Desert Odyssey, a tour boat operated by Lake Powell Resorts and Marinas. N.H. was an employee of Marine Max of Grand Junction, Colorado. Marine Max holds a commercial use authorization allowing it to launch and retrieve boats on Lake Powell for its customers. Employees of the company were visiting the park for a corporate retreat when the accident occurred. The cause of the accident is under investigation. [Kevin Schneider]
NEWS Yosemite - A ceremony was held at Olmsted Point on September 13th to celebrate the completion of a major repair and restoration project at this spectacular overlook, which now features a plaque commemorating NPS employees who have lost their lives while working at Yosemite. HYPERLINK "http://inside.nps.gov/index.cfm?handler=viewnpsnewsarticle&type=Announcements&id=4783" http://inside.nps.gov/index.cfm?handler=viewnpsnewsarticle&type=Announcements&id=4783 MEDIA Harpers Ferry - Preservation Magazine: Last month, bulldozers dug two trenches in Harpers Ferry National Historical Park, laying water and sewer pipes under land where Stonewall Jackson launched his greatest military victory in 1862. HYPERLINK "http://www.nationaltrust.org/magazine/archives/arc_news_2006/091106.htm" http://www.nationaltrust.org/magazine/archives/arc_news_2006/091106.htm PEOPLE Hot Springs - Kathy Smith, administrative officer at Hot Springs National Park, has announced her retirement. She will retire on November 3rd after 30 years with the National Park Service. HYPERLINK "http://inside.nps.gov/index.cfm?handler=viewnpsnewsarticle&type=ParkNewsEvents&id=24872" http://inside.nps.gov/index.cfm?handler=viewnpsnewsarticle&type=ParkNewsEvents&id=24872 JOBS Grand Teton - The park is hiring a GS-12 supervisory park ranger to manage and operate the new Laurance S. Rockefeller Preserve and manage Grand Teton's volunteer-in-parks (VIP) program. HYPERLINK "http://inside.nps.gov/index.cfm?handler=viewjobdetails&type=Jobs&id=2506" http://inside.nps.gov/index.cfm?handler=viewjobdetails&type=Jobs&id=2506 * * * * * Prepared by Visitor and Resource Protection, WASO, with the cooperation and support of Delaware Water Gap NRA. --- ### --- |