NATIONAL PARK SERVICE

MORNING REPORT

Thursday, April 5, 2007

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INCIDENTS

Padre Island NS

Seasonal Employee Killed In ATV Accident

Late on the afternoon of Tuesday, April 3rd, seasonal biological technician Marina Giggleman died in an ATV accident while patrolling for nesting sea turtles near the 21 mile marker on South Beach. The initial report, made by another patroller, was that Giggleman was trapped beneath her overturned ATV. Ranger/EMT's immediately responded and a HALO-Flight medevac helicopter was dispatched to the scene. Additional assistance was provided by resource management and facility management staff. Resuscitation efforts made by both park EMT's and HALO-Flight personnel were unsuccessful. An investigation is underway. This was Giggleman's second season with the Kemp's Ridley recovery program which is an international recovery effort for the endangered Kemp's Ridley sea turtle. For additional information, see the news article below. [Randy Larson, Chief Ranger]

HYPERLINK "http://www.caller.com/ccct/local_news/article/0,1641,CCCT_811_5466085,00.html" http://www.caller.com/ccct/local_news/article/0,1641,CCCT_811_5466085,00.html

Great Smoky Mountains NP

Arrest For Theft From Campers

On March 26th, a camper hiked out of the park's backcountry, contacted a ranger, and reported that another hiker - later identified as W.B. of McComb, Mississippi - had stolen some food and equipment from him. He said that W.B. had appeared at the shelter from an off-trail area, that he was traveling with a young pregnant woman, and that he was carrying a large machete, an axe, a large filet knife and very little backpacking gear. He said that W.B. was “acting weird and was a bit scary.” The camper and his wife were preparing to leave the shelter that morning when he noticed that a small stuff sack with freeze-dried meals, a cook stove and a mess kit were missing. He questioned W.B. about the missing items at the time, but W.B. denied taking them. The camper and his wife left the area, but he decided to return shortly thereafter to question W.B. further about the missing items. When he got back to the shelter, he found W.B. cooking one of his freeze-dried meals in his pot and on his stove. He confronted W.B. and got his stove back, but said that he felt uncomfortable about pursuing the issue further. Over the course of the day, an Appalachian Trail Ridgerunner contacted several other hikers who'd stayed at the shelter and had come into contact with W.B. and his companion. All were aware of the theft and concerned that W.B. was a threat to their safety. All indications were that W.B. and his companion were hiking toward the Pecks Corner shelter, so rangers Lamon Brown and Duane Michael hiked into the area on the morning of March 27th to intercept them. They were not at the shelter, though, and hadn't been there the previous night. The rangers then contacted hikers along the trail and found that the pair were at the Kephart shelter. They advised dispatch by radio, and rangers Pat Patten and April Lee hiked to the shelter. W.B. lied about his identity, but admitted to the theft of the camping equipment. He was arrested and hiked out of the area with his companion. W.B. was charged with misappropriation of property, providing false information, and backcountry permit violations. At the jail in Swain County, his identity was determined and he was found to have an outstanding warrant against him in Mississippi for credit card fraud. Further investigation revealed that W.B. had stolen credit cards and a vehicle from his companion's father earlier that month. He and his companion then drove to Knoxville, where he sold the car, used the stolen credit cards, and entered the park to hike the AT. He'd been on the run for about 21 days when he came to the Smokies. W.B. has been extradited to Mississippi under felony warrants for credit card fraud and motor vehicle theft. [Rick Brown, Assistant Chief Ranger]

Glen Canyon NRA

Wisconsin Man Dies In Rollover Accident

N.P., 22, of Prescott, Wisconsin, was killed in a single vehicle rollover accident along Lakeshore Drive near the South Entrance Station around 10:45 p.m. on Thursday, March 29th. N.P. was driving his Ford pickup at a high rate of speed when he lost control. The truck rolled several times and he was ejected. A group of friends who were in a vehicle behind N.P.'s truck witnessed the accident and called 911. Rangers, Coconino County deputies, Arizona DPS officers and city of Page paramedics all responded. Alcohol appears to have been a contributing factor. The sheriff's office is investigating. [Lindy L. Mihata, Law Enforcement Specialist]

OTHER NEWS

The following stories can be read on either the InsideNPS web site (if you are within the National Park Service) or at the InsideNPS public ‘news digest' site (if you are outside of the NPS). The web sites appear below:

Shiloh NMP - Woody Harrell, superintendent of Shiloh NMP, recently completed a half century quest to visit every unit in the National Park System when he traveled to the tiny South Pacific island of Ofu to make the National Park of American Samoa the 390th (and final) unit of the National Park System he has visited.

Glen Canyon NRA - On March 30th, the park announced an expanded action plan to prevent zebra or quagga mussels from becoming established in Lake Powell.

Natchez Trace Parkway - Construction work to replace three parkway bridges began on April 2nd. The project is scheduled to be completed by the summer of 2009.

Western Parks - This New York Times article on the extended drought in the West focuses on the scramble to find more water. It includes some remarkable photos of the receding water line at Lake Mead.

NCRO - On March 18th, Stanley Briscoe began serving as the chief of the Design Services Division and Mike Doherty as the chief of Facility Management for NCR. Both previously served in NCR's former Office of Maintenance and Design.

To see the above articles, go to InsideNPS ( HYPERLINK "http://inside.nps.gov/" http://inside.nps.gov/) or NPS Digest ( HYPERLINK "http://home.nps.gov/applications/digest/" http://home.nps.gov/applications/digest/). For NPS incident reporting standards, go to HYPERLINK "http://inside.nps.gov/index.cfm?handler=viewnpsnewsarticle&type=Announcements&id=3363" http://inside.nps.gov/index.cfm?handler=viewnpsnewsarticle&type=Announcements&id=3363

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Prepared by the Division of Law Enforcement, Security and Emergency Services, Washington Office, with the cooperation and support of Delaware Water Gap National Recreation Area. Edited by Bill Halainen ( HYPERLINK "mailto:Bill_Halainen@nps.gov" Bill_Halainen@nps.gov, 570-426-2430).

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