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NATIONAL PARK SERVICE MORNING REPORT Monday, December 18, 2006 =============================================================================================================== INCIDENTS Yosemite NP BASE Jumpers Apprehended Ranger Keith Lober was descending from El Capitan while off-duty on December 3rd when he came upon two men who were ascending fixed ropes on the rappel route. While waiting at an anchor with the first man, it became apparent to Lober that the second man was not a climber due to his attire and lack of climbing skill. Suspecting that they were BASE jumpers, Lober engaged them in conversation. The men asked Lober if he was a ranger; when he assured them that he wasn't, they told him that they were going to BASE jump from El Cap that night. Later in the evening, they jumped from El Cpitan by the light of the full moon. Lober and other rangers were waiting for them when they landed. F.M., 29, of Oakland, California, landed in the meadow, stashed his gear, and evaded the rangers in the dark, but W.G., 28 of Angwin, California, was arrested as he landed. F.M. turned himself in two hours later in an effort to retrieve his vehicle and BASE jumping gear, all of which had been seized as evidence. Both were charged with illegal air delivery, and F.M. was also charged with possession of marijuana. Evidence seized by the rangers included video from F.M.'s helmet camera. [Leslie Reynolds, Valley District Ranger] Yosemite NP AWOL Army Soldier Arrested In Backcountry On Sunday, November 26th, rangers arrested C.P. in Little Yosemite Valley, a backcountry camping area six trail miles from Yosemite Valley. A limited search for C.P. had begun on the night of November 19th, when rangers noted that a vehicle registered to him had been parked at a trailhead for a long period of time. When rangers ran the vehicles' registration, they discovered that C.P. was AWOL from an Army base in Virginia. Further checks revealed that C.P. had obtained a wilderness permit for the John Muir Trail for the period from November 6th to November 20th. When he did not return to his vehicle on the 20th, rangers investigated further. They found that C.P. had come out of the backcountry to buy supplies at a store in Yosemite Valley on November 16th. Missing person flyers were posted and hikers eventually reported that C.P. was camping in Little Yosemite Valley. On the eve of an impending winter storm, rangers hiked to the valley and contacted C.P. They found that he had a loaded .38 caliber handgun in his possession, and he told rangers that he'd contemplated suicide. C.P. was arrested and escorted down the trail. An Army AWOL apprehension team took him into custody. [Leslie Reynolds, Valley District Ranger] OTHER NEWS Other news from today's edition of InsideNPS, the National Park Service's home page: Federal Hall - On December 14th, Federal Hall National Memorial and Museum of American Constitutional Government commemorated Bill of Rights Day with the help of its partners. Fire and Aviation Management - The structural fire program has issued a special edition of its newsletter for the upcoming holidays that deals with relevant fire safety issues. Horace Albright Training Center - Secretary Kempthorne has awarded the center the unit award for excellence of service in recognition of the staff developing and delivering outstanding training while managing a major renovation project. Glacier - Federal Highways and the National Park Service have embarked on a monumental restoration of the park's historic Going-to-the-Sun Road. DOI Office of Law Enforcement, Security, and Emergency Management - The office has an opening for a GS-14 IMARS program manager, NCRC - An opening has been announced for a GS-14/15 supervisory outdoor recreation planner who will serve as the chief of the Conservation and Outdoor Recreation Office in WASO. 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. --- ### --- |