NATIONAL PARK SERVICE

MORNING REPORT

Wednesday, June 30, 2010

INCIDENTS

Gulf Coast Parks

Weather Contributes To Increased Oil On Gulf Island Beaches

Gulf Islands is currently experiencing its worst oiling to date. Here are today's updates:

Gulf Islands NS - Because of high tides associated with the full moon and the tropical storm to the west, the park is experiencing the heaviest oiling to date. Tar balls, mousse, tar mats and sheen have all been reported. The park's barrier islands are surrounded by oil, and heavy oil is reported in the Florida District. Anne Castellina, former superintendent from Kenai Fjords continues to work with park staff to share lessons learned from the Exxon Valdez and to help craft interpretive and general public messages.

South Florida Parks (Big Cypress, Biscayne, Desoto, Dry Tortugas, Everglades) - The South Florida incident command PIO and a NOAA PIO travelled to Miami to participate in the Florida peninsular media availability event hosted by the JIC. The event went well, with Fox national, ABC local, CBS local, Channel 51 (Spanish), and the Miami Herald present. Dr. Erik Stabenau from the NPS provided the media with an update on the status of the oil and what the peninsula ICP is focusing on. The media were able to ask questions of the unified command representatives available, including BP, USCG, DOI, and the Florida Fish and Wildlife Commission. The media was most interested in how far the oil was from any location along the peninsula, the number of land management areas that could be impacted, and the best projections on where oil might eventually wind up. South Florida parks continue to meet daily for a planning call with the incident team in place to ensure that NPS units in Florida stay coordinated and updated on the incident. PIO Linda Friar worked with the Florida peninsular JIC to be part of a local fishing show as part of last week's outreach/media event.

Jean Lafitte National NHP&P - The park has updated its hurricane plan to include the possibility of oil spill response teams at work when an evacuation becomes necessary, as well as guidelines for post-storm assessments and actions related to oil contamination. No oil from the spill has been observed in the park's Barataria Preserve. Oil has fouled the shoreline of the Barataria Waterway about 12 miles south of the preserve boundary and has penetrated marshes on the north edge of Barataria Bay, about 15 miles south of the preserve. Booms are in place and cleanup is underway. Park personnel continue to monitor the situation and work with experts to prepare defensive actions.

Padre Island NS - Park natural resources personnel have completed baseline sampling, including samples of sand, water and vertebrate (fish) tissue. Currently, the park is closed for the hurricane and will likely begin the process of cleaning up and reopening on Friday.

For more information on the NPS, DOI and national oil spill responses and for a link to the BP on line oil spill safety training needed by all incident staff, please see the following sites:

HYPERLINK "http://www.nps.gov/aboutus/oil-spill-response.htm" NPS Oil Spill Response

HYPERLINK "http://www.deepwaterhorizonresponse.com/go/doctype/2931/53023/" Deepwater Horizon Oil Spill Response

HYPERLINK "http://www.doi.gov/deepwaterhorizon/index.cfm" DOI Oil Spill Response

HYPERLINK "http://www.deepwaterhorizonresponse.com/go/site/2931/" National Oil Spill Response

HYPERLINK "http://inside.nps.gov/index.cfm?handler=viewnpsnewsarticle&type=Conferences&id=1957" Oil Spill Safety Training

HYPERLINK "http://www.geoplatform.gov/gulfresponse/" GeoPlatform

HYPERLINK "http://inside.nps.gov/waso/custommenu.cfm?lv=3&prg=1006&id=9336" NPS ICS 209 Incident Status Summaries

HYPERLINK "http://classicinside.nps.gov/documents/NPS%20-%20Public%20Health%20Notice%20SIGNAGE%206-26-10.pdf" Gulf Islands Public Health Precautions Notice

HYPERLINK "http://www.nps.gov/archive/features/oilspillresponse/OilSpillSafety/index.htm" Public Health Service Oil Spill Safety Video

[Lynne Murdock, Gulf Coast Oil Spill Response]

Klondike Goldrush NHP

NPS And Parks Canada Rangers Rescue Poisoned Hikers

Last Wednesday evening, five hikers were evacuated from the Chilkoot Trail by helicopter and treated for poisoning following a hasty community rescue involving several agencies, a local helicopter company, and Parks Canada. While backpacking 13 miles into the Chilkoot Trail, five hikers consumed varying small amounts of the root bulb of the highly toxic false hellebore (Veratrum viride). False hellebore is reported to be the most toxic plant along the Northwest coast and can be lethal when consumed in just small quantities. Although only the person who ate the most had serious symptoms (vomiting and intestinal problems), all five felt minor burning sensations in their mouths and throats and also had gas. Rangers were changing shifts when the incident occurred and not near the camp, but Sean Cox, a Parks Canada ranger, was hiking on the US side of the trail as part of his orientation tour and came upon the hikers just minutes from the Sheep Camp ranger station and helispot. Personal knowledge of local plants aided his assessment of the seriousness of the medical status of the five hikers and quickened his determination to get them promptly evacuated. The park's trail center helped the Skagway-based rangers to coordinate a helicopter evacuation, which was aided by Skagway EMT's and community clinic staff. As the evacuation developed, park natural resource staff researched the toxicity of and treatment recommendations for false hellebore poisoning, which produced vital information for the nurse practitioners at the clinic. Despite marginal cloud ceiling levels and worsening weather conditions, a TEMSCO helicopter pilot was able to use his local knowledge and experience to navigate the mountainous terrain and safely evacuate all five to Skagway. When they arrived in Skagway, the most serious patient was in critical condition and a second began to present with symptoms. All five were treated and the three asymptomatic hikers were released that same night. The two symptomatic patients were stabilized and transported to Whitehorse, Yukon Territory, for further treatment and evaluation. They were released two days later. The National Park Service would like to extend its recognition and gratitude to all of those involved in the rescue effort, including Parks Canada, TEMSCO Helicopters, Skagway Emergency Services and the Dahl Memorial Clinic. [Tim Steidel, Chief Ranger]

Joshua Tree NP

Major Search Underway For Missing Hiker

Search and rescue personnel from several agencies are searching the park for missing hiker W.E., 65, of Marietta, Georgia. W.E. was reported missing to park personnel on Friday evening. Initial information concerning W.E.'s possible whereabouts led searchers to focus on the Hayfield area in the southeast section of the park, but efforts shifted to Quail Mountain late on Saturday afternoon when his car was found at the Juniper Falls trailhead and searchers learned that he'd told friends he might hike there. Hasty teams searched the area that evening and operations continued the next day with personnel from the park, Joshua Tree Search and Rescue, and the Riverside and San Bernadino County sheriff's offices. Several teams searched on foot and on horseback on Monday near the Lost Horse Valley area, and yesterday the operation expanded further, with about 100 people taking part, including dog and horse teams. No sign of him has yet been found. [Joe Zarki, Public Information Officer]

OTHER NEWS

The following stories are among those in today's edition of InsideNPS:

Scotts Bluff NM - A 150th anniversary commemoration of the Pony Express took place in the park on June 18th. Witnessing this anniversary event were about 200 visitors. Photo.

Natural Resource Program Center - The Natural Resource Program Center is seeking feedback and suggestions on how to improve the technical assistance process for parks, regions, and offices. Responses are due by July 23rd.

Great Falls Park - Taking advantage of the mild, summer weather last Friday, NPS comptroller Bruce Sheaffer invited employees from the accounting firm of KPMG to spend the day clearing overgrown vegetation and removing trash from the trails in Great Falls Park. Photo.

Visitor and Resource Protection - Louis Rowe returns to NPS as deputy associate director in Visitor and Resource Protection.

To see these and other stories posted on InsideNPS (or NPS Digest, its public version), click on one or the other of the following links (please note that not all stories in the former appear in the latter):

NPS employees: HYPERLINK "http://inside.nps.gov/index.cfm?handler=index" http://inside.nps.gov/index.cfm?handler=index

Non-NPS employees: HYPERLINK "http://home.nps.gov/applications/digest/" http://home.nps.gov/applications/digest/

NPS serious incident submission standards can be found at the following web site: HYPERLINK "http://inside.nps.gov/notify" http://inside.nps.gov/notify

* * * *

Prepared by the Division of Law Enforcement, Security and Emergency Services, Washington Office, with the support of the Office of the Chief Information Officer. Edited by Bill Halainen ( HYPERLINK "mailto:Bill_Halainen@nps.gov" Bill_Halainen@nps.gov).

--- ### ---