New River Gorge National River (WV)
Injured Climber Rescued From Endless Wall
On Monday, November 12th, rangers and Fayette County Emergency Services personnel rescued a climber who'd fallen at the Endless Wall climbing area. Rangers Randy Fisher and Karl Keach, working with only a general description of the location of the accident received through a 911 call, searched for and found the caller, who led them to the scene. Keach coordinated the rescue from the top of the cliff while Fisher employed a series of ladders and ropes to reach the injured climber, who'd suffered numerous fractures and lacerations. An 80-foot litter raise was conducted to bring him to the top of the cliff. He was then wheeled out on a litter and flown to the Charleston area trauma center. An investigation revealed that he'd removed his gear from the second bolt and was attempting to down climb when he fell about 20 feet on the 5.9-rated "Nasty Groove" climbing route. This was the fourth time a climber has fallen this year — a significant increase in climbing-related incidents. The causes included bad belays, traditional gear pulling from the rock, and poor climbing decisions. New River Gorge is a world-class climbing destination, with 1600 traditional and sport routes. It has miles of high-quality sandstone cliffs with an extraordinary diversity of climbing routes. [Submitted by Gary Hartley, Chief Ranger]
Colorado National Monument (CO)
Weekend Marked By Three Significant Incidents
Park staff dealt with three significant incidents on the weekend of November 16th through November 18th:
- On Friday, rangers and Mesa County technical SAR team personnel rescued two brothers from Independence Monument. The brothers, ages 24 and 29, climbed the five-pitch, 5.9-graded "Otto's Route" late that afternoon and were in the process of rappelling down when one of them ran into a knot and got stuck on his second rappel about 60 feet above the ground. He had a cell phone with him, though, and was able to call 911. Two members of the SAR team reached the brothers around 9 p.m. They performed a technical pickoff on the younger brother and belayed the older brother, who was stuck on the second pitch. Both brothers were able to hike out on their own.
- On Saturday morning, rangers dealt with a suicide at Cold Shivers Point. A 63-year-old man from Grand Junction shot himself with a .22 caliber handgun.
- On Sunday afternoon, a 72-year-old park volunteer died of a heart attack while hiking the Monument Canyon trail near Independence Monument. Three hikers performed CPR and called 911. A ranger and area firefighters hiked two miles to the scene, arriving about 45 minutes later. Efforts to resuscitate him were not successful.
PARKS AND PEOPLE
United States Park Police
Sergeant Pilot Ron Galey Retires
Sergeant Pilot Ron Galey will be retiring from the U.S. Park Police on November 24th after more than 34 years of distinguished service. Ron has been assigned to the Aviation Unit, most recently as the assistant commander overseeing the daily administrative operations of the unit.
Prior to joining the U.S. Park Police, Ron was a member of the Bethesda/Chevy Chase Rescue Squad and received training as a medic. He credits this experience as the bedrock of nearly everything he later accomplished in life, including his motivation and desire to pursue a career in public service.
Ron enlisted in the U.S. Navy as a corpsman and served in Vietnam. He was assigned to the USS Newport News and was in country with the 3rd Marine Battalion. Ron is among the last Vietnam Veterans retiring from the U.S. Park Police. After his tour, he was selected by the National Institutes of Health to work on research that facilitated the use of the first heart/lung pump during open heart surgeries.
Ron began his career with the U.S. Park Police on April 15, 1973. He was assigned to Police School #8 at the Federal Law Enforcement Training Academy and upon completion was reassigned to the Central District, patrolling the National Mall. The majority of this time was spent on foot beats around the White House and Lafayette Park. After 18 months he was reassigned to District 2, patrolling the George Washington Memorial Parkway and C & O Canal.
Ron enjoyed his work and distinguished himself as an active patrol officer. He recalls a particular incident from Christmas Day in 1974, three days before his wedding. He was involved in a vehicle pursuit and a prolonged struggle with a deranged driver which left Ron with a broken jaw. While at the hospital being treated, he was able to convince the attending physician not to wire his jaw shut so that he could say his vows.
During his early years as a patrol officer, Ron had the opportunity to be temporarily assigned to the Aviation Unit because of his medical experience. In 1977 he was permanently assigned to the Aviation Unit as a rescue technician. Through the years, Ron held the position of chief medic and in 1987 transitioned to the position of pilot. He was promoted to sergeant in 1999, and, while still actively flying missions, assumed the responsibility of assistant commander in 2003.
Ron's service to the Aviation Unit is historical as he has been assigned to it almost as long as it has been in operation. Ron has had the opportunity to fly in every helicopter the unit has operated, has flown with every pilot assigned to the unit, and has amassed several thousand hours of mission and piloting time. Ron has received numerous awards and recognitions for his outstanding performance in the Aviation Unit and his service to the Park Police.
Ron has been a part of several of the more notable missions of the Aviation Unit. In 1982, he was on duty when Air Florida Flight 90 struck the 14th Street Bridge. Ron assisted the responding aircrew in getting the helicopter through the snow and out of the hangar so that it could respond. On 9/11, Ron piloted the first responding Park Police "Eagle 1" helicopter to the Pentagon minutes after the plane struck. In response to this unprecedented event and due to the fact that the air traffic control tower at Washington National Airport was overrun by smoke and fumes from the crash, Ron was given the responsibility of controlling the airspace. During this time Ron facilitated the arrival of additional aircraft to evacuate victims and personnel from the scene.
In 2002, the Park Police Aviation Unit was asked to rescue several bald eaglets that had become stuck in a muddy marsh in southern Maryland. Due to the terrain, rescue by air was the only option. Ron piloted the helicopter to a low hover while crew members plucked the eagles from their muddy trap. In response to this, the governor of Maryland personally thanked the crew and presented them with the Governor's Award for Outstanding Service. The headline of the newspapers reporting the incident read "Eagle Rescues Eagles."
Ron and his wife Joannie have been married for almost 34 years. Their son Seamus is an officer with the Montgomery County Police Department in Maryland and their daughter Shannon is a media director for the Department of State.
Ron leaves the U.S. Park Police with years of experience and fond memories as he transitions to a new job as a program analyst for aviation security with the Transportation Security Administration, Department of Homeland Security, in late November.
[Submitted by Sergeant Robert Lachance, Public Information Officer]
Pictured Rocks National Lakeshore (MI)
Chief Ranger Larry Hach to Retire
Larry Hach, chief ranger at Pictured Rocks National Lakeshore in Michigan, will retire on January 3rd after a 35-year career that has taken him to six National Park Service areas.
After graduating from Iowa State University with a degree in outdoor recreation and natural resources management in 1973, Larry went to work as a seasonal ranger at Bighorn Canyon National Recreation Area in Wyoming. His first permanent assignment was at Fire Island National Seashore (1974-75). Subsequent assignments included an area ranger position at Everglades National Park (1975-77) and district ranger positions at Voyageurs National Park (1977-84) and Sleeping Bear Dunes National Lakeshore (1984-93). He has served as the chief ranger at Pictured Rocks since 1993 and also served as the acting superintendent there from March through December 2001.
Larry was a distinguished graduate of the Federal Law Enforcement Training Center, served for 19 years on special event teams in the Southeast and Midwest Regions as both a member and team leader, and has received numerous performance awards over the course of his career.
"I feel very fortunate and privileged to have worked for the National Park Service with its worthwhile mission," Larry said. "I also truly feel blessed to have worked with such caring and professional people in all my NPS assignments."
"We congratulate Larry and his family on a great career," said superintendent Jim Northup. "He has made an important and significant contribution here at Pictured Rocks, particularly in the area of interagency relations. We will miss him and wish him the very best in retirement."
A retirement dinner is planned for Tuesday December 11th. Anyone interested in attending should contact Brenda St. Martin at 906-387-2607, ext. 201. Stories or photos can also be sent to Brenda or Jim Northup at P.O. Box 40, Munising, MI 49862. Larry and his family plan to remain in Munising for the foreseeable future. Larry plans to spend time traveling to visit his children and to be out on Lake Superior in his pleasure boat as often as possible. [Submitted by Jim Northup, jim_northup@nps.gov, 906-387-2607, ext. 202]
Lake Mead National Recreation Area (AZ,NV)
GS-1035-12 Public Affairs Specialist
Lake Mead has an opening for a GS-12 public affairs specialist. The announcement closes on December 7th. The position is being offered on USA Jobs both governmentwide (LAME 08-08) and all sources (LAME 08-09D). For a copy of the former, click on "More Information" below.
More Information...
Glacier National Park
GS-1101-7/9 Supervisory Fee Program And Permit Specialist
Dates: 11/19/2007 - 11/30/2007
Glacier National Park is soliciting applications for a GS-1101-7/9 supervisory fee program and permit specialist. The announcement number on USA Jobs is GL 155339, and it closes on November 30th. It's open Servicewide to current permanent employees of the National Park Service. A complete description of duties and details on the application process can be found on the announcement, available at "More Information" below.
[Submitted by Chris Tesar, chris_tesar@nps.gov, 406-888-7832]
More Information...
Submission standards for the Morning Report can be found at the following web site:
http://inside.nps.gov/index.cfm?handler=viewnpsnewsarticle&type;=Announcements&id;=3363
All reports should be submitted via email to Lane Baker in the Division of Law Enforcement, Security and Emergency Services in the Washington Office and to Bill Halainen at Delaware Water Gap NRA, with copies to your regional office.