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NATIONAL PARK SERVICE MORNING REPORT Monday, November 20, 2006 =============================================================================================================== INCIDENTS Colorado NM Police Chase Culminates In Accident And Shooting In Park On the morning of November 13th, A.Y., 28, of Colorado Springs, Colorado, was shot several times by local law enforcement officers after an eight mile pursuit that culminated in a serious motor vehicle accident and armed confrontation in the park. A park ranger and a BLM ranger were involved in the pursuit, but did not fire their weapons. No law enforcement personnel or visitors were injured in the incident, and A.Y. was subsequently treated and released from a local hospital. The incident began just after 6 a.m. when Grand Junction PD officers stopped A.Y. for a license plate violation. A.Y. sped off in his Honda Accord after a police officer spotted a .380 handgun in his lap that was pointed at another officer. The officers chose not to pursue, but instead broadcast A.Y.'s vehicle description. About an hour later, Grand Junction dispatch received the first of several calls from residents in Glade Park reporting that a man was demanding a vehicle to continue his flight from the officers. One of the callers said that A.Y. had fired a handgun outside of his home, yelling that he only wanted the keys to the man's truck. Officers from the Mesa County Sheriff's Office, Grand Junction PD and BLM headed into the park to gain access to the road into Glade Park. A few minutes later, the sheriff's office asked park rangers to assist and the ranger on duty joined the response. At 8 a.m. the ranger heard over the radio that a high speed pursuit was coming his way. He immediately warned a half-dozen road construction workers in the area to clear the road and seek cover inside their vehicles. A.Y.'s vehicle soon appeared, traveling at high speed towards him and the construction vehicles. The ranger sought cover behind a dump truck and drew his handgun. A.Y. then turned east onto Rim Rock Drive, with five or six county deputies and a BLM ranger in pursuit. The NPS ranger joined them. A.Y. traveled about eight miles across Rim Rock Drive at speeds ranging from 40 to 60 mph (the road is currently being repaved and has a posted speed limit of 25 mph), then turned south onto Glade Park Road and hit three unmarked detective vehicles employed as a road block at about 60 mph. The Honda ended up on the roads' southbound shoulder. Rangers and offices converged on the scene within minutes. About ten officers approached the Honda, taking cover behind the wrecked detective vehicles and a civilian pickup truck across the road. A.Y. remained in his Honda, refusing to comply with officer commands. The NPS ranger stayed behind the parked pursuit vehicles, directing upcoming traffic and assisting a witness. When officers saw A.Y. pointing his handgun at them, they returned fire. The five Mesa County SO and three Grand Junction PD officers fired about 70 rounds at A.Y. with their handguns and a .223 rifle. A.Y. was hit in both hands and a shoulder. After the firing stopped, A.Y. continued to ignore officer's orders and started yelling obscenities at them. Four SWAT members subsequently arrived on scene, approached A.Y., and placed him under arrest. He was taken to St. Mary's Hospital in Grand Junction. A.Y. is known to be a regular methamphetamine user and has an extensive criminal history. He is currently being held at the Mesa County Detention Center. The Colorado Bureau of Investigation is leading the investigation. No federal charges have been filed at this time. [Phil Akers, Chief Ranger] Grand Canyon NP Wrecked Vehicle And Body Found Below Canyon Rim While responding to an unrelated medical call on the Bright Angel Trail, the crew of a park helicopter spotted a vehicle 500 feet below the canyon rim near an area known as the Abyss late on Thursday, November 16th. The Abyss is located approximately four miles west of Grand Canyon Village. The flight crew also reported a body about 150 feet above the wreckage. An emergency response crew found the vehicle and confirmed the presence of the body before night fell. At the time of Friday's report, a recovery team was headed to the location to recover the body and conduct an investigation. No further details are yet available. [Maureen Oltrogge, Public Affairs Officer] Mojave NP Man Killed In ATV Accident The park received a report of an ATV accident and an unresponsive victim before noon on Saturday, November 11th. Responding rangers were directed by park visitors to an area about four miles east of Kelbaker Road on a natural gas pipeline road. The road proved impassable, so the rangers walked to the scene and were met by a park visitor who was transporting the victim - R.P., 56, of San Marcos, California - in his pickup. R.P.' son and riding companions had performed CPR on him, but without success. Once the party reached a paved roadway, R.P. was transferred to an ambulance from Baker, California. He was pronounced dead at the scene. Investigation revealed that the four men were riding non-street legal ATV's across the park on the gas line road. R.P. was fourth in line. When he failed to catch up with the first three riders, they backtracked until they found him underneath his overturned ATV on a rough section of the road. The California Highway Patrol is investigating. [Denny Ziemann, Chief Ranger] OTHER NEWS Other news from today's edition of InsideNPS, the National Park Service's home page: Mount Rainier NP - Director Bomar traveled to the park last Friday to visit some of the areas damaged by the recent flood and to speak with employees working on short- and long-term recovery efforts. Training - A new forum for participants and graduates of the NPS Fundamentals Training Program has been established on InsideNPS. Participants and graduates now have a central location where they can continue to network and support each other while applying their learning on the job. SER GIS - Dean Gettinger, formerly Southeast Region's fire GIS specialist, is now head of the regional GIS program office. Shenandoah NP - The park is recruiting for a GS-13 chief for its division of natural and cultural resources. The announcement closes on December 22nd. To link to InsideNPS, click on HYPERLINK "http://inside.nps.gov/" http://inside.nps.gov/ * * * * * Prepared by Visitor and Resource Protection, WASO, with the cooperation and support of Delaware Water Gap NRA. --- ### --- |