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NATIONAL PARK SERVICE MORNING REPORT Friday, June 15, 2007 =============================================================================================================== INCIDENTS Sequoia-Kings Canyon NP Injured Visitor Extricated In Seven-Hour Technical Rescue On the evening of Monday, June 10th, three people in their early 20s were walking along a treacherous segment of the Marble Fork of the Kaweah River that contains boulders, sheer cliffs and steep embankments carpeted in poison oak. As they tried to climb up to the ridgeline above the river, one of them lost his balance and fell 10 to 20 feet into shallow water. The other two pulled him out of the water and onto a boulder, then one of them went to get help. John Cilmi, the Potwisha campground host, notified dispatch of the incident just before 7 p.m. Rangers Tim Bailey, Mike Nattrass and Amber Blythe responded. Because the man could not be reached via the river and no helicopter was available, a technical SAR team was assembled to conduct a night rescue. Bailey served as IC, while Blythe rappelled about 100 feet down to the victim via long-line to provide medical treatment. The rescue took over seven hours to complete and required complicated mechanical belays, rappels, and hoists. The man was placed in a Three Rivers ambulance just before 2 a.m. and driven to Kaweah Delta Hospital. His injuries were not life threatening. This technical rescue required the efforts of more than 30 people, including rangers, firefighters and staff from all districts, California CDF firefighters, members of a Federal Highway Administration illumination crew who were working in the park, and the volunteer Potwisha campground hosts. [Alexandra Picavet, Public Affairs Specialist] OTHER NEWS The following stories (among others) 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: Northeastern Areas - Parks and regional offices in Northeast and National Capital Regions are assessing a draft electric transmission corridor proposal recently released by the Department of Energy. Transmission lines installed in these corridors have the potential to directly or indirectly impact dozens of NPS areas. US Park Police - Major Robert A. Rule, commander of the United States Park Police Special Forces Branch, has retired after 29 years of service. Delaware Water Gap NRA - Arrangements have been announced for a retirement dinner for Bill Halainen, who will be leaving the NPS on August 3rd following 33 years of service. Training Calendar - A listing of upcoming training courses offered by both the NPS and its partners across the nation. This week's listing includes new courses on special operations, natural and cultural resource law for superintendents, and fixed asset subsystems. Events Calendar - Today's listing of upcoming NPS and NPS-related events. Added in this edition is the Second Latin American Congress on National Parks and Protected Areas, to be held in Argentina in September 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 ( Bill_Halainen@nps.gov, 570-426-2430). --- ### --- |