NATIONAL PARK SERVICE

MORNING REPORT

Tuesday, August 2, 2011

INCIDENTS

Yosemite NP

Hiker Falls 600 Feet From Half Dome

H.L., 26, was descending from the summit of Half Dome last Sunday when she fell 600 feet to her death from the Half Dome cables. A severe lightning, thunder, and rainstorm was present in the area for several hours that morning and afternoon. This type of weather can make for hazardous trail conditions and the granite slopes of Half Dome become very slick. The cause of the fall is currently under investigation. The last hiker who died on Half Dome was M.K., from San Ramon, California, on June 13, 2009. On June 16, 2007, H.N., slipped to his death on the cables. Two other Half Dome fatalities involved women who were hiking on the dome when the cables were down. These were J.B., who died on April 21, 2007, and E.S., who died on November 8, 2006. Half Dome trip planning and safety information is available through the Yosemite National Park webpage at HYPERLINK "http://www.nps.gov/yose/planyourvisit/halfdome.htm" http://www.nps.gov/yose/planyourvisit/halfdome.htm. [Kari Cobb, Public Affairs Specialist]

Upper Delaware S&RR

Portuguese Visitor Drowns In Delaware

Interpretive ranger Brandon Diefenbach received a report of a swimmer missing in the Delaware River near Skinner Falls late last Saturday afternoon. Rangers responded along with emergency personnel from the surrounding area and a joint incident command was established with all agencies. Rangers soon determined that two people had attempted to swim across the river from New York to Pennsylvania, but that one - A.P., a Portuguese national - had not made it and had disappeared about half way across the Delaware, which at this point is about 150 feet wide. A.P.'s companion was transported by ambulance to a local hospital due to difficulty in breathing. Witnesses were able to establish a point last seen and a surface search was begun in an attempt to find A.P. Searchers were soon joined by members of the Sullivan County dive team, who found the man's body in the river. All indications are that this was an accidental drowning. The NPS is the lead investigating agency. River conditions at the time of the incident were typical for this time of summer. The river height was 3.5 feet and the temperature was 73 degrees Fahrenheit. [Joe Hinkes, Chief Ranger]

Curecanti NRA

Man Drowns In Willow Creek

Rangers were dispatched to a report of a swimmer struggling in Willow Creek on the morning of July 28th and arrived on scene minutes later. They were informed that the swimmer had disappeared under the creek's surface just before they'd arrived. The rangers soon retrieved the victim, a 23-year-old man from Pueblo, Colorado, from ten feet of water. CPR was begun and advanced life support measures were employed throughout the trip to Gunnison Hospital, but he did not survive. The incident is being jointly investigated by the Gunnison County Sheriff's Office and the NPS. [Marc Yeston, Chief Ranger]

Grand Teton NP

Critically Injured Hiker Rescued From Middle Teton

Rangers rescued a 20-year-old hiker who took a tumbling 1,200-foot fall last Friday morning and sustained critical injuries. R.H. of Houston, Texas, was HYPERLINK "http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Glissade_(climbing)" glissading down the Ellingwood Couloir on the south side of the Middle Teton when he lost control and hit a rock, causing him to flip over and continue head first down the HYPERLINK "http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Couloir" couloir. A bystander who witnessed the fall and was nearby called 911 to report the incident. The 911 call went to the Rexburg sheriff's office and was transferred to the Teton Interagency Dispatch Center. Three rangers were flown by a Teton interagency contract helicopter to a landing zone near the bottom of the Ellingwood Couloir. A fourth ranger was flown to the scene shortly after the first three, and the rangers provided emergency medical care before preparing R.H. for a helicopter flight to the valley floor. R.H. was loaded into the ship and flown to the Lupine Meadows rescue cache, where he was met by a team of emergency medical providers led by Dr. Will Smith, one of the co-medical directors for Grand Teton National Park. R.H. was stabilized at the rescue cache and then flown directly on an Air Idaho life flight to the Eastern Idaho Regional Medical Center in Idaho Falls, Idaho. R.H. and his companion had glissaded about a third of the way down the couloir when the incident occurred. R.H. was glissading behind his companion when he picked up speed and passed him; shortly thereafter, he hit the first series of rocks. R.H. was not wearing a helmet at the time of the incident. Although he was carrying an ice axe and wearing crampons, he was unable to right himself or self arrest. Although R.H. is from Houston, he has been working seasonally in Jackson Hole. [Jackie Skaggs, Public Affairs Specialist]

Blue Ridge Parkway

Arrests Made For Possession Of Methamphetamine

On the evening of July 15th, rangers stopped a pickup truck for an equipment violation. Initial observations of suspicious items within the vehicle during the stop led the rangers to believe that the occupants had illegal drugs in their possession. They consented to a vehicle search, which led to the discovery of methamphetamine and assorted drug paraphernalia, including several “meth” pipes, a loaded .22 caliber pistol, and $1,000 in cash on the passenger. Following arrest and transport to the Buncombe County jail, the passenger revealed a schedule of drug prices that he had hidden in his undergarment. Both were strip searched as there was reason to believe other drugs may have been hidden within body cavities, ultimately leading to the discovery of two more baggies of methamphetamine and drug paraphernalia. On July 27th, B.R., the driver of the vehicle, pled guilty to possession of methamphetamine and was sentenced to 30 days in jail. The passenger will appear in court at a later date on charges of possession and distribution of methamphetamine. [Tim Francis, Pisgah 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/):

Prince William Forest Park - During the second weekend in July, more than 125 visitors of all ages enjoyed a weekend of outdoor fun at Prince William Forest Park's 75th anniversary campout.

Carl Sandburg Home NHS - A new documentary film entitled "The Day Carl Sandburg Died" has been released that highlights Carl Sandburg's prolific contributions to poetry, history, journalism, folk music, children's literature, and social democracy. Photo.

Grand Canyon NP - Staff from the park's Branch of Fire and Aviation recently hosted two park managers from Australia's New South Wales National Parks and Wildlife Service who are traveling the U.S. and Canada as part of a study tour to learn about methods of fire and fuel management and measurement. Photo.

Hubbell Trading Post NHS - Anne Worthington, superintendent at Hubbell Trading Post National Historic Site, has traded AFS3 and reply dues for gardening and weaving after over 22 years with the federal government. She retired on July 30th. 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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