NATIONAL PARK SERVICE
MORNING REPORT
Wednesday, May 21, 2008
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INCIDENTS
Grand Canyon NP
Follow-up On Manhunt For Carjackers
On Monday, May 12th, park law enforcement rangers conducted a criminal manhunt following a carjacking at gunpoint of a visitor vehicle from Twin Overlooks on Desert View Drive (Highway 64). The manhunt was associated with the investigation of a motor vehicle accident in the same location that had occurred three-and-a-half hours earlier. Rangers investigating the accident immediately determined that there'd been an attempt to drive it over the rim of the canyon. Initial efforts to find the occupants - identified as brothers T.T. and W.T., ages 36 and 38 respectively - were unavailing. The vehicle was towed from the scene and impounded. Investigation revealed that T.T., based at Quantico, Virginia, was known to suffer from post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) associated with recent tours of duty in Iraq. The search for the two men was impeded by a significant delay in receipt of the initial report by park dispatch. Immediate efforts included checkpoints outside the park and near Flagstaff, conducted with the assistance of officers from the Coconino County Sheriff's Department and the Arizona Department of Public Safety. Weather conditions deteriorated overnight, with four inches of heavy snowfall blanketing the South Rim. The search continued on Tuesday, but without results. It was accordingly suspended that afternoon. On Wednesday, the white Dodge Caliber that the T.'s had stolen was spotted at a Border Patrol checkpoint at Welton, Arizona, located 29 miles east of Yuma. A pursuit ensued which continued eastbound on Interstate 8 past Gila Bend. The 130-mile pursuit involved officers from the Border Patrol, Maricopa County Sheriff's Department, Arizona Department of Public Safety and Pinal County Sheriff's Office. Tohono O'odham Indian Reservation officers spiked the Caliber's tires, but the car continued for another mile before going off the roadway. Pinal County deputies and Border Patrol officers converging on the car heard two shots and accordingly withdrew. Maricopa County and U.S. Customs helicopters hovered over the area for about 20 minutes, watching the vehicle. Bomb squad robots were called in and were used to determine that both T.'s were dead. According to a Pinal County spokesman, one man evidently shot the other, then killed himself. [Ken Phillips, Incident Commander]
Yosemite NP
Seriously Injured Climber Rescued From El Capitan
Climbers M.C., 26, and T.M., 20, were attempting to climb the Nose on El Capitan in a single day on May 15th when M.C. took a 30-foot leader fall on pitch 25 and suffered a closed head injury. T.M. fixed the climbing rope to an anchor, ascended to his partner, and found that he was hanging upside down, suffering from changes in consciousness, and bleeding profusely from the back of his head. Since he had neither a cell phone nor a radio with him, T.M. used his headlamp to signal a party that was below in El Capitan meadow. Rangers employed a loud speaker to contact him. Between the loud speaker and the headlamp, they were able to determine that he was asking for a rescue. On the morning of May 16th, a technical rescue team and park helicopter were in the El Cap meadow preparing for the operation when a spotter in the meadow saw a person climbing from a ledge where M.C. was believed to be located. The park helicopter flew up to the spot, where they saw T.M. wave off the rescue. Two YOSAR team members were sent to the top of El Capitan to contact T.M. and determine the reason for canceling the rescue. T.M. reached the YOSAR team members around 4:30 p.m. He said that M.C.'s condition had deteriorated over the course of the day and that he needed immediate medical care. M.C. was able to ascend fix ropes and was still moving towards the top-out point. When he reached the El Cap tree, he collapsed. A medical team was flown to the El Cap landing zone and moved down to M.C.'s location, where they provided medical care. M.C. was placed in a litter while a park helicopter was prepped for a short-haul extraction. Ranger/parkmedic Rob Lewis was flown to M.C.'s location and the pair were short-hauled to the El Capitan meadow, where M.C. was transferred to an air ambulance and flown to Memorial Hospital. Doctors determined that M.C. had sustained a fractured skull, subdural hematoma and a cerebral bleed. He was in the hospital's ICU at the time of the report and was in stable condition. [Matt Stark, Valley Area Ranger/IC]
Chickasaw NRA
PWC Operator Killed In Collision With Boat
On the evening of Saturday, May 17th, 20-year-old M.O.H. PWC) when he collided with a powerboat on Lake of the Arbuckles. Other visitors removed M.O.H. from the water and performed CPR until relieved by emergency responders. M.O.H. was transported to Arbuckle Memorial Hospital in Sulphur, where he was pronounced dead from his injuries. Oklahoma Highway Patrol and local emergency service agencies also responded to the accident, which is under joint investigation by the National Park Service and the Federal Bureau of Investigation. [Susie Staples, Public Information Officer]
OTHER NEWS
The following stories (among others) can be read on InsideNPS:
Servicewide - This week, May 18th to May 24th, is national Emergency Medical Services Week. This year's theme is “Your Life Is Our Mission.”
HYPERLINK "http://home.nps.gov/applications/digest/headline.cfm?type=Announcements&id=6522" http://home.nps.gov/applications/digest/headline.cfm?type=Announcements&id=6522
NPCA - The National Parks Conservation Association has issued a report, entitled Dark Horizons, that identifies the top ten national parks at risk from pollution from new coal-fired power plants.
HYPERLINK "http://home.nps.gov/applications/digest/headline.cfm?type=Announcements&id=6521" http://home.nps.gov/applications/digest/headline.cfm?type=Announcements&id=6521
NPS Alumni - NPS retiree Kevin Kacer died suddenly due to a massive aneurysm while in Chicago visiting family yesterday.
HYPERLINK "http://home.nps.gov/applications/digest/headline.cfm?type=PeopleNews&id=1929" http://home.nps.gov/applications/digest/headline.cfm?type=PeopleNews&id=1929
US Park Police - Kenneth Brodie has accepted the position of administrative officer for the United States Park Police, effective May 25th.
HYPERLINK "http://home.nps.gov/applications/digest/headline.cfm?type=PeopleNews&id=1928" http://home.nps.gov/applications/digest/headline.cfm?type=PeopleNews&id=1928
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Submission standards for the Morning Report can be found at the following web site:
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 support of the Office of the Chief Information Officer and Delaware Water Gap National Recreation Area. Edited by Bill Halainen ( HYPERLINK "mailto:Bill_Halainen@nps.gov" Bill_Halainen@nps.gov).
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