NATIONAL PARK SERVICE

MORNING REPORT

Tuesday, March 29, 2011

INCIDENTS

Lake Roosevelt NRA

Boaters Find Partial Human Skull

On the afternoon of March 22nd, Lincoln County dispatch advised rangers in the South District that a report had been received of boaters in distress near Jones Bay. A ranger drove to the shoreline of the bay and employed a PA system to contact them, advising the boaters to return to shore. They instead continued to paddle their disabled boat out into the lake, so the ranger departed. Later that evening, the district ranger learned that they'd come ashore and that a local resident had given them a ride to their vehicle at Keller Ferry. During the drive, they talked about finding part of a human skull while in the park, adding that they planned on taking it home with them. Rangers contacted members of the group when they returned to pick up their boat the next morning. Ranger Jeremy Miller interviewed a man who admitted to taking the skull home with him to Wenatchee, Washington. He said that he'd found it sitting on the beach and took rangers to the location where he'd found it, which they'd marked with a log. Rangers then went with the man to his residence in Wenatchee and retrieved the partial skull. Park archaeologist Ray DePuydt examined the area where it was found and was unable to locate any other remains, artifacts or evidence. It is believed to be Native American in origin, so DePuydt is consulting with local tribes regarding possible affiliation. [Bill Archard, District Ranger]

OTHER NEWS

The following stories are among those in today's edition of InsideNPS. To see the full text, including images, NPS employees should go to the InsideNPS home page ( HYPERLINK "http://inside.nps.gov/index.cfm?handler=index" http://inside.nps.gov/index.cfm?handler=index). Non-NPS employees can see most of them on the NPS Digest page ( HYPERLINK "http://home.nps.gov/applications/digest/" http://home.nps.gov/applications/digest/):

Gettysburg NMP - The National Park Service has acquired 95 acres of the former Gettysburg Country Club property to preserve as part of the park. The former country club land - now known by its historic name, the Emanuel Harman Farm - is where major fighting occurred on the first day of battle on July 1, 1863.

Grand Teton NP - Grand Teton National Park organized and recently hosted an innovative program, entitled the “NPS Academy,” which was designed to introduce college students with diverse backgrounds from across the country to career opportunities with the National Park Service. Photo.

Natural Resource Stewardship and Science - In order to address bison conservation issues, particularly diminishing numbers in the wild, the National Park Service and Fish and Wildlife Service last week cosponsored a meeting in Tulsa with the American Bison Society. Photo.

Workplace Enrichment - Between April 27th and May 31st, the Office of Personnel Management will be sending the Employee Viewpoint Survey to a random selection of NPS employees. Participation by those contacted is vital.

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

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