NATIONAL PARK SERVICE
MORNING REPORT
Tuesday, November 18, 2008
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INCIDENTS
Yosemite NP
Stranded Hiker Rescued From Park's High Country
On November 10th, rangers learned that a solo backcountry hiker was overdue from a hike to an unknown location somewhere within the park. S.F. had begun what he'd planned to be a five day trip in perfect weather on October 28th. Over the next three days, S.F. hiked more than 20 miles into the heart of the park's wilderness. He set up camp at an elevation of 9,700 feet near Red Devil Lake as snow began falling on the evening of October 30th. This was the first significant storm of the developing winter season and it continued for three days, blanketing the High Sierra under nearly two feet of snow. The snow obscured the trail S.F. had been following, effectively trapping him at that location. He spent the next twelve days hunkered down in his tent, hoping to be rescued and rationing his remaining two days of food. Since S.F. had not told anyone of his plans, though, the rescue was long in coming. It was only after a list of missed commitments and appointments began to accumulate (including a missed plane flight home on November 9th), that questions regarding his whereabouts began to arise. Amazingly, searchers spotted the missing hiker and his camp from the air on their very first pass over the area and soon contacted a very happy S.F., who was in remarkably good shape for someone who'd had almost no food for 12 days. S.F. made some initial bad decisions, particularly in his failure to leave a detailed route plan with someone who could report him overdue on an agreed-upon date, but made better decisions when the storm hit. He'd attempted to hike out, but didn't go far before he realized that it was too difficult in deep snow and that he'd likely get into more trouble. So he stayed in his tent, rationed his food, stomped out an “SOS” in the snow, used his pot as a shovel to keep a clear area around the tent, and above all kept a positive attitude. [Keith Lober, Emergency Services Coordinator]
Mount Rainier NP
Flooding Again Closes Park Roads
Heavy rain on November 12th and 13th caused rivers to swell and resulted in damage to roads inside and outside the park. Kautz Creek diverted course and flowed over the Nisqually Road, resulting in closure of the park's primary entrance. Overnight guests at National Park Inn were escorted from the park via an administrative access route on November 12th as soon as river conditions allowed. Crews are at work this week redirecting the water into the stream bed and away from the park road. The work should be completed in time to reopen for the weekend. Although damage was not nearly as extensive as in the major flood two years ago, other access routes to Mount Rainier were also impacted. State Routes 123 and 410 were closed by debris and landslides, and a 200-foot section of the Carbon River Road washed away outside the park entrance. Steve Klump was the incident commander for the flood response. Media interest was regional and moderate. For further information, contact information officer Lee Taylor at 360-569-2211 ext. 3303. [Lee Taylor]
Lake Mead NRA
Hiker Dies In 75-Foot Fall
A 35-year-old Las Vegas man died as a result of a fall while hiking on Fortification Hill on the Arizona side of the park this past Sunday. He was pronounced dead at the scene. The park learned of the accident through a transferred 911 call from a member of the man's hiking group just before 11 a.m. that morning. According to investigators, the man fell about 75 feet while attempting a climb. The name of the deceased is being withheld pending next-of-kin notification. [Andrew Muñoz, Public Affairs Specialist]
OTHER NEWS
Among the stories in today's edition are the following:
Wind Cave NP - In an effort to prevent a potential public health threat and to preserve the dynamics of a mixed-grass prairie ecosystem, staff at Wind Cave National Park recently completed dusting 1,100 acres of prairie dog burrows in an attempt to prevent the introduction of sylvatic plague into the park.
HYPERLINK "http://home.nps.gov/applications/digest/headline.cfm?type=Announcements&id=7100" http://home.nps.gov/applications/digest/headline.cfm?type=Announcements&id=7100
Intermountain Region - Contaminants testing of cultural items subject to the Native American Graves Protection and Repatriation Act (NAGPRA) using a portable x-ray fluorescence (XRF) analyzer is now available Servicewide through Intermountain Region.
HYPERLINK "http://inside.nps.gov/index.cfm?handler=viewnpsnewsarticle&type=Announcements&id=7097" http://inside.nps.gov/index.cfm?handler=viewnpsnewsarticle&type=Announcements&id=7097
Fire and Aviation Management - The upcoming two-year program is designed to assist in developing some of the competencies necessary to function as a fire management officer. The deadline has been extended - applications are now due by November 28th.
HYPERLINK "http://home.nps.gov/applications/digest/headline.cfm?type=Announcements&id=7006" http://home.nps.gov/applications/digest/headline.cfm?type=Announcements&id=7006
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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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