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NATIONAL PARK SERVICE MORNING REPORT Monday, April 16, 2007 =============================================================================================================== INCIDENTS North Cascades Complex Hiker Killed In 600-Foot Fall On Sunday, April 8th, Seattle resident J.C., 28, died in a fall as he was traversing rough terrain while on a fishing trip in the park and in Mount Baker-Snoqualmie National Forest. J.C. and a companion had been backcountry camping in the park and were attempting to hike cross-country between two lakes. The pair encountered difficult terrain and were trying to negotiate a cliffy area above a sheer vertical wall when J.C. fell several hundred feet to his death. His companion hiked out the same day and called authorities. Difficult weather and terrain hampered ground searchers and poor visibility prohibited an aerial search until Tuesday afternoon, when J.C.'s body was located. He was found in a narrow gully that bisected a 600-foot cliff face just outside the park boundary. The recovery was a joint effort by the Whatcom and Skagit County Sheriff Offices, volunteer Mountain Rescue Association units and National Park Service rangers. Recovery efforts involved flying teams of rescuers to the base of a cross-country route, helicopter insertion of gear for the technical raise of J.C.'s body out of the gully, and the eventual short-haul of his remains from the top of the cliff. [Kinsey Shilling, Chief Ranger] Gettysburg NMP Fatal Suicide Jump From Observation Tower Rangers received a report of a body at the Longstreet Observation Tower on West Confederate Avenue just before 9 a.m. on Tuesday, April 10th. Visitors at the top of the tower had spotted the body next to a stone wall near its base and notified authorities. Initial indications were that the middle-aged woman had either fallen or jumped from the 76-foot-high observation deck and landed on the wall and that she'd not been there very long. The area was closed while an investigation was conducted. Evidence indicated that a vehicle found in the tower parking lot had been driven there by the woman. A purse, cell phone and suicide note were seen on the front seat. Since her death was not witnessed, rangers decided to obtain a search warrant before entering the vehicle in case she proved to have been the victim of a crime. The investigation revealed that the woman had been a resident of Gettysburg, but was currently living with her family in Annapolis, Maryland. She'd left her house early that morning, saying that she was going on a long-distance run with friends. Family members said that she'd been having medical problems and had previously attempted suicide. Assistance in the investigation was provided by the Harrisburg Office of the FBI, Cumberland Township PD, the Adams County coroner's office and Anne Arundel PD. [Randy Phiel, Park Ranger] 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: Colonial NHP - Chief Justice of the United States John G. Roberts, Jr. visited the Historic Jamestowne unit of Colonial National Historical Park on Saturday, April 14th, to take part in a ceremony commemorating 400 years of the rule of law in America. Policy Office - Copies of the 2006 edition of Management Policies are being sent to parks and offices Servicewide. A link is provided to a web site that provides information on the numbers sent to each location. SERO - Mike Anderson joined the Southeast Regional Office on March 28th as the new regional chief ranger. Mike has been with the NPS for 27 years, with experience in law enforcement, interpretation, resource protection, and park management. 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 * * * * * 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). --- ### --- |