NATIONAL PARK SERVICE

MORNING REPORT

Wednesday, June 8, 2011

INCIDENTS

Yellowstone NP

Two Bus Drivers Arrested On Suspicion Of DUI

Two bus drivers taken into custody Friday afternoon on suspicion of drunk driving made their initial court appearances on Monday. J.P., Jr., 44, and K.L.S, 42, both of Bozeman, Montana, appeared before a magistrate judge in the Yellowstone Justice Center in Mammoth Hot Springs, Wyoming. Acting on a phone tip, park rangers contacted the pair Friday at the Specimen Ridge trailhead in the Lamar Valley east of Tower Junction, where the two buses the men were driving were parked. Both were employed by Karst Stage of Bozeman, Montana. The firm had been hired by Bozeman Public Schools to provide transportation for a field trip by a group of middle school students. When taken into custody, J.P. had a blood alcohol content of 0.091, K.L.S. a blood alcohol content of 0.032. J.P. and K.L.S. each face three misdemeanor charges. Neither entered a plea during their federal court appearance Monday. Both men were released on signature bonds. [Public Affairs Office]

Glen Canyon NRA

Parks Join Forces To Rescue Injured Hiker

Rangers from Glen Canyon and Grand Canyon joined forces on Saturday, June 4th, to rescue an injured hiker from an unnamed canyon near Halls Crossing on Lake Powell. Rangers received a report of a hiker in a canyon near Halls Crossing with a possible broken leg around 9:30 p.m. on June 3rd. Glen Canyon ranger Tim Sveum responded by boat with staff from Utah State Parks and arrived on scene about 10:30 p.m. The injured hiker, a teenager from Buena Vista, Colorado, had taken a fall in a very narrow canyon and suffered a broken leg. Other members of the family had lowered one person into the canyon by rope to see if he could be extricated, but he found it impossible to get out of the canyon as well. Sveum determined that the patient was stable and that a technical rescue in the dark would be too dangerous. The group lowered food, water, and sleeping bags to the victim and his friend, and Sveum instructed the two individuals to bivouac for the night, adding that he would facilitate a rescue for them in the morning. There were no safe anchor points on the canyon rim for a technical rescue, so the decision was made to conduct a short-haul rescue by helicopter. Staff from Grand Canyon NP were contacted and arrangements were made for their helicopter to assist in the rescue the next day. The helicopter was on scene by 10:30 a.m. the next morning and lowered a rescuer into the canyon. He prepared the patient and his friend to be lifted out of the canyon. Once out of the canyon, the injured hiker was transported to Halls Crossing by Glen Canyon staff and then flown by Classic Lifeguard to St. Mary's Hospital in Grand Junction, Colorado, for treatment. [Max King, Public Affairs Specialist]

New River Gorge NR

Climber Injured In Fall In Park

On Sunday, June 5th, a 22-year-old climber from Pennsylvania was lead climbing a route at the Bubba City Climbing Area when he fell approximately 12 feet. His fall on the 5.10 rated climb was arrested by his climbing partner, but he hit his head and was knocked unconscious (he was not wearing a helmet). A rescue operation was launched around 2:30 p.m. and involved the park's SAR team, Fayette County's rope rescue team, and several local climbers and volunteer firefighters. Due the difficult terrain and the low angle litter rigging needed to safely move the litter up the trail, it took about two hours to carry him out to an ambulance. He was transferred to a Health Net helicopter at Burnwood and flown to the Charleston Area Medical Center. [Jeff West, Chief 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/):

Natural Resource Stewardship and Science - Today is World Oceans Day, when we celebrate and honor the bodies of water that cover two-thirds of the planet. With 84 ocean and Great Lakes parks conserving over 11,000 miles of coast and 2.5 million acres of coastal and marine waters, the National Park System plays a prominent role in ocean stewardship.

Glacier Bay NP&P - On the next to last weekend in May, the Gunaax—o Kwaan, an Alaskan native group, held an historic event in Glacier Bay National Preserve to celebrate a reconnection with their traditional homelands. Photo.

Ulysses S. Grant NHS - On May 19th, about 450 visitors and special guests braved rainy conditions to witness the U.S. Mint's launch of the Ulysses S. Grant $1 presidential coin. Photo.

Presidio of San Francisco - On Wednesday, May 25th, the United States Park Police San Francisco Field Office held its fourth annual Presidio of San Francisco child fingerprinting event.

Intermountain Region - Patrick Malone has been selected as the assistant regional director for Intermountain Region's natural resources program. Photo.

Ozark NSR - Dr. James E. Price, chief of resources management at Ozark National Scenic Riverways, has hung up his ranger hat after 11 years of federal service at the park. Photo.

* * * *

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).

--- ### ---