NATIONAL PARK SERVICE

MORNING REPORT

Wednesday, September 7, 2011

INCIDENTS

C&O Canal NHP

Park Declares Flood Emergency

Due to the very heavy rains falling on the region, the park declared a flood emergency yesterday morning. Members of the park's staff are preparing for what the National Weather Service says could be one of the top ten major floods to strike the area. Areas of the park are being closed, including hiker/biker campgrounds, drive-up campgrounds, boat ramps, visitor centers, and day use areas. Portable toilets throughout the park are being emptied and closed. The Great Falls entrance road, Billy Goat A Trail, and Great Falls Overlook will be closed beginning today. The Canal Quarters program, which provides overnight accommodations in some of the historic lock houses, has been temporarily suspended. A section of the towpath has been closed between Offutt Street and Brehm Road in Allegany County because of a weakened culvert. Additional closures are likely through the week. Visitors are asked to refrain from entering the park and to respect all safety barriers, as there is a risk of being swept away by swift water or becoming stranded along the towpath as the waters rise. The rising water will be carrying extremely hazardous debris, trees, and man-made objects. In addition to the rising water, waterlogged soils can lead to other hazards, including uprooting of trees and falling branches. Visitors are advised to observe the rising water from a safe distance. An internal incident command team has been established to manage information, coordinate resources, and ensure the orderly implementation and completion of the park's flood emergency response plan. The team's top priorities are protection of life and the physical well-being of employees and visitors, and protection of park resources and government property. [Peggie Gaul, Education Specialist]

Bandelier NM

Major Marijuana Eradication Operation Conducted

Federal, state, and local law enforcement agents secured and eliminated a suspected marijuana growing operation in the park's backcountry early on Thursday, September 1st. The coordinated efforts of a National Park Service SETT, DEA, the New Mexico State Police SWAT, the New Mexico National Guard, the Santa Fe National Forest, the Bernalillo and Sandoval County's Sheriff Offices and the Los Alamos Police and Fire Departments led to the netting of more than 9,000 marijuana plants with an estimated street value of more than $9 million. The early morning raid was conducted in a remote area of the monument guarded by steep terrain with soil and rocks loosened by the recent Las Conchas Fire. No one was captured as a part of the operation, but investigators saw at least two men at the grow site earlier in the week. While no arrests have yet been made, three sophisticated marijuana grow sites were located near each other. The grow site was located in a burned area of the park. Park officials said the investigation into the illegal growing operation will continue after all the marijuana plants are eradicated. Operations at the site are expected to continue for several days. Officials at the operations center managing the raid had been planning for Thursday's operation for about a week. The marijuana grow operation was first detected on August 23rd during an overflight of the area meant to determine the damage to the park's resources from recent floods associated with the Las Conchas Fire. That flooding was caused when monsoonal rains fell on the fire ravaged terrain of the national park. This is the first marijuana grow operation detected in Bandelier and a DEA official onsite said such grow operations have been rare in New Mexico. Superintendent Jason Lott said that the successful drug raid was a learning experience for all of the park's staff. “The safety of all the members of this interagency task force, the park staff and the public has been our paramount concern before, during and throughout this operation,” said Lott. “Now that we are aware of how these illegal growing operations are conducted we will be even more vigilant in our efforts to make sure we don't have other such illegal activities in the park again.” Lott credited Tom Betts, the park's chief ranger, for his quick response and collaborative planning with the different federal, state and local agencies involved for the success of the operation. Specially trained law enforcement and military personnel took part in the raid and will remain on scene until all of the evidence is collected and transported out of the remote grow site. “This was a precise tactical maneuver and working with this group of professionals has been a pleasure and a privilege,” said Betts. The Bernalillo County Sheriff's Office and the New Mexico National Guard both lent helicopters to the operation and a National Guard Blackhawk helicopter airlifted the suspected drugs out. Most of the marijuana was transported to an undisclosed location for proper disposal. Some was retained for testing as evidence. In addition to the contraband, investigators on site located temporary housing structures, trash, food caches, and irrigation supplies. Those items and other evidence are being processed and the investigation is expected to continue for several weeks. [James Doyle, Chief of Communications & Legislation, IMR]

Death Valley NP

Charges Filed In Continuing ARPA Investigation

In December 2001, a ranger saw two people collecting historic and prehistoric artifacts in the park. Further investigation by BLM, FWS and NPS officers resulted in the service of numerous search warrants, the recovery of over 11,000 artifacts and the convictions of seven individuals and a corporation for violations of the Archaeological Resources Protection Act (ARPA). During the searches and subsequent proffer sessions with one of the defendants, information was obtained concerning the sale of looted archaeological resources to commercial entities in southern California. Based upon this evidence, a covert investigation was begun in 2004 on a southern California gallery by NPS and FWS agents. Numerous commercial transactions of archaeological resources illegally removed from federal lands were conducted with the gallery. During the investigation, the gallery owner, despite knowing the artifacts had been illegally removed from federal and Indian lands, created false documents stating the artifacts had been collected on private land before the passage of ARPA to “launder” the relics. The gallery owner subsequently pled guilty to felony ARPA charges (16 USC 470ee (b) & (d)) and agreed to provide substantial assistance concerning other suspects. Throughout the period from 2007 to 2009, the gallery owner worked on behalf of the government, conducting covert contacts with other dealers. The cooperator completed numerous commercial transactions involving looted and smuggled material that has thus far resulted in the charging of two individuals and one company with felony violations of ARPA. Additional felony ARPA charges are pending against other suspects. The gallery owner was sentenced in September 2009. The defendant was fined $20,000, and, due to the substantial assistance rendered, placed on two years' supervised probation rather than being sentenced to prison. [Todd Swain, Special Agent]

New River Gorge NR

Man Sentenced To Prison Term For Arson

C.W. of Oak Hill, West Virginia, was sentenced to six months in prison in federal district court a week ago Tuesday for his involvement in the arson of a portable restroom facility at a rock climber parking lot in June, 2010. In addition to the prison sentence, C.W. was ordered to pay nearly $2,000 in restitution to the park for the damage. His prison sentence will be served consecutive to a 6 to 30 year prison term he is currently serving on sexual abuse charges in a state case. Rangers cooperating with the Oak Hill PD developed C.W. as a suspect during the sex abuse investigation. C.W. was implicated by a witness and later confessed to setting the restroom afire. Ranger Stan C.W. (no relation) is the case ranger for the park. [Frank Sellers, Park Ranger]

Shenandoah NP

Motorcyclist Killed In Head-On Crash With Car

On Saturday, August 20th, rangers responded to a motor vehicle accident on Skyline Drive near milepost 42 involving a sedan and a motorcycle. The motorcycle rider, a 21-year-old man, was found unconscious and unresponsive in the roadway. Rangers provided care and transported him via park ambulance to a landing zone to rendezvous with a University of Virginia medevac helicopter. Despite ALS intervention, the man was pronounced dead shortly after the accident. The occupants of the sedan were uninjured. Evidence and witness statements suggest that the man was attempting to illegally pass a fellow rider at a high rate of speed when he collided head-on with the sedan. Ranger Coby Bishop was IC for the incident. [Stu Curtin, Park 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/):

Cape Cod NS - The park held a bike helmet fitting and distribution event at Province Lands Visitor Center on August 18th. The event was one of several efforts aimed at improving bike safety and reducing accidents and injuries at the national seashore. Photo.

Alaska Region - An NPS biologist has tracked a radio-collared wolf's extraordinary 1,500-mile-long journey this summer from south of the Yukon River to the Beaufort Sea. Photo.

President William Jefferson Clinton Birthplace Home NHS - Jazz, blues, and zydeco music filled the air on August 19th as a celebration of President Clinton's 65th birthday was held in the park. Photo.

Yosemite NP - Linda Mazzu has been selected as the park's new chief of resources management and science

* * * *

The Morning Report is a publication of the Division of Law Enforcement, Security and Emergency Services, Washington Office, produced with the support of the Office of the Assistant Director for Information Resources and the Office of the Chief Information Officer. Edited by Bill Halainen ( HYPERLINK "mailto:Bill_Halainen@nps.gov" Bill_Halainen@nps.gov).

--- ### ---