NATIONAL PARK SERVICE

MORNING REPORT

Thursday, May 26, 2011

INCIDENTS

Jean Lafitte NHP&P

Search For Missing Man Comes To Successful Conclusion

Dr. F.P. was found yesterday afternoon in the park's Barataria Preserve unit following an intensive four-day-long interagency search. He was spotted from a Jefferson Parish Sheriff's Department helicopter that was conducting a media overflight and a ground team was dispatched to his location. F.P. was found leaning against a tree approximately 300 yards off of a park trail - extremely dehydrated but coherent and in fairly good shape. - and was transported to a waiting ambulance by ATV. Family members, who had been holding vigil in the park, greeted him to the sounds of shouts of joy from over 100 watching rescuers. F.P. was then taken to a local hospital for treatment. The search began late in the day on Saturday, May 21st, and concluded at 3 p.m. on Wednesday, May 25th. Search teams contended with extremely hot and humid conditions and covered terrain dominated by dense, tropical vegetation. The Intermountain All Hazard IMT managed the incident for the National Park Service and was also part of a unified command established with the Jefferson Parish Sheriff's Department. The NPS search effort was supported by approximately 75 park staff from 12 parks in 12 states and by the Jefferson and St. Charles Parish Sheriff's Departments, Gulf Coast Search and Rescue, Louisiana Search and Rescue, the National Guard and Jefferson Parish Fire Dept and the Jean Lafitte Volunteer Fire Department. [Linda Friar, Incident Information Officer]

Zion NP

Two Rescued From Angels Landing In Separate Incidents

On Saturday, May 21st, a 24-year-old hiker from Norway sustained a lower leg fracture near the summit of Angels Landing when he jumped approximately five feet off a small, isolated pinnacle atop the route. Grand Canyon's helicopter and flight crew were summoned and short-hauled the man off the peak. While waiting for the helicopter, rangers prepared for a lengthy technical lowering operation down the 1500-foot-high north face of the mountain should weather or other factors preclude a short-haul evacuation. While doing so, rangers learned that a 62-year-old male from St. George had collapsed from severe chest pain approximately half way up the Angels Landing trail and responded. He was quickly treated and evacuated via wheeled litter, then flown to a hospital via commercial air ambulance, surviving what was described by hospital staff as a massive heart attack. The hiker from Norway was successfully short-hauled off the summit to a waiting NPS ambulance crew. [Brandon Torres, Canyon District Ranger]

Denali NP&P

Two Climbers Killed In Avalanche On Mt. Frances

Two overdue climbers on Mt. Frances were confirmed dead after Denali National Park mountaineering rangers located their remains in avalanche debris near the base of the 10,450-foot Mt. Frances. J.K., 33, of Canmore, Alberta, Canada, and J.S., 28, of Sapporo, Hokkaido, Japan, were attempting a new route on the west face of Mt. Frances, a commonly climbed technical peak just north of the 7,200-foot Kahiltna Basecamp, when the avalanche occurred. The two men were last seen at the Kahiltna Basecamp on May 21st. When they had not returned to their campsite by May 23rd, rangers skied to the western face with a spotting scope, but could not spot the two climbers. On the morning of Tuesday, May 24th, mountaineering rangers on board the park's contracted A-Star B3 helicopter conducted an aerial search of the peak and identified one body lying in avalanche debris, with a partially buried rope attached. Rangers flew back to the debris zone early Wednesday morning when the colder morning temperatures created safer condition for a recovery operation. Rangers were able to locate and recover the bodies of both men using helicopter short-haul technique. J.K. and J.S. had flown into the Alaska Range on April 27th with original plans of climbing the Cassin Ridge of Denali. The accident occurred following their successful ascent of Denali's West Buttress route. According to park records, these are the first two fatalities to occur on Mt. Frances. [Maureen McLaughlin, Information Officer]

Great Smoky Mountains NP

Park Scales Back Search For Missing Man

Rangers have scaled back their efforts to find 45-year-old C.L.C. who has been missing since April 27th. For over a week, rangers and search dog teams combed the forest near the Newfound Gap parking area where C.L.C.'s car was found, but found no sign of him. Searchers intensively covered an area of about two miles radiating out from the parking lot and from the hiking trails that pass through the area, and probed acres of steep, rocky terrain and dense brush. Up to 30 searchers, including as many as four search dog teams, covered the area each day and followed up on every suspected scent alert - but found no trace of C.L.C. The case remains open, and staff will continue to be on the lookout for signs of C.L.C. while engaged in regular duties. [Bob Miller, Management Assistant]

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/):

Director's Office - Tuck in those shirts and shine those shoes as Director Jarvis talks about the importance of the National Park Service uniform. INTERNAL ONLY.

Shenandoah NP - In celebration of Shenandoah National Park's 75th anniversary, park staff hosted an employee and alumni reunion on May 14th and 15th. Photo.

Lake Mead NRA - Lake Mead has requested and received approval to waive lake use fees over Memorial Day weekend for boaters who present proof of having completed an approved boating education course. Photo.

National Partnership Office - A new partnership has been established between the National Park Foundation and USA Today to print additional copies of a special edition that the newspaper recently published commemorating the 150th anniversary of the Civil War.

Workforce Management - Rose E. Pruitt has been appointed chief of the Equal Opportunity Programs Office in the Washington Office, effective May 22nd. Photo.

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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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