NATIONAL PARK SERVICE

MORNING REPORT

Tuesday, September 13, 2011

INCIDENTS

George Washington Birthplace NM

Heavy Rains Cause Flooding, Damage And Closures

Remnants from Tropical Storm Lee dumped 21 inches of rain over the park and the surrounding area last week. On September 8th, flooding became widespread, closing roadways and stranding motorists. Swiftwater rescue teams responded from outside the area and conducted several rescues. A section of Bridges Creek Road, the main roadway in the park, was washed out, cutting off access to inholders, the park maintenance area, and other park offices and public use areas. A section of the Ice Pond dam burst, causing the pond to drain. Utility lines were undermined and compromised by these breaches. Extensive erosion occurred on the Potomac River beach, causing a new inlet to form, and large amounts of tree debris have washed up on the beach. All employees have been accounted for and are safe, but some have been stranded in their neighborhoods due to dam breaks and washed out roads. Park employees worked with a contractor over the weekend and all night on Saturday to complete a temporary repair to the park roadway for limited access. The park was closed the public over the weekend, but plans were to reopen the visitor center and historic area yesterday. [Wayne Rose, Chief Ranger]

Sequoia and Kings Canyon NPs

Injured Climber Rescued from Face Of Thunderbolt Peak

On the evening of August 23rd, park dispatch was informed of a mountaineering accident on Thunderbolt Peak in the North Palisades of Kings Canyon National Park. Thunderbolt Peak is a 14,003-foot peak with a popular Class 4 ascent route. Rangers began mobilizing that evening, with the first ranger on scene hiking through the night and arriving in the area before 6 a.m. That ranger was able to confirm calls for help coming from the mountain. Two additional rangers were flown to the area and conducted an aerial reconnaissance, locating the climber on a cliff face above the 13,000-foot elevation. He was on a small sloping ledge in otherwise completely vertical terrain. A possible short haul operation was dismissed due to unstable and increasing winds. The two rangers were flown to a landing zone near Barrett Lakes, where they began a 1,300-foot Class 4 and 5 ascent to the victim. They reached him in mid-afternoon and found that he was suffering from exposure and from open fractures to his right leg and left arm. As they were preparing to spend the night on the ledge with him and continue evacuation operations in the morning, there was a brief window of clear and calm weather. A short haul operation was begun and the climber was successfully removed from the ledge and taken to the base of the mountain. He was then flown to Bishop, California, where he was admitted into the hospital. [Ned Kelleher, District Ranger]

Yosemite NP

Missing Hiker's Body Found In Tent By Searchers

Tuolumne rangers received a report on September 2nd that G.H., 69, of Olympia, Washington, was overdue from his solo hiking trip on the High Sierra Camp loop. G.H. had made arrangements to meet his daughter for dinner after his trip on September 1st and had not been at the scheduled engagement. His rental car was soon located at a nearby trailhead, and an investigation revealed that G.H. had last been seen at Vogelsang High Sierra Camp on either August 29th or 30th when he ate a meal there. Camp records showed that he had not arrived at Merced Lake as planned on the 30th. Since relatives indicated that G.H. intended to climb Vogelsang Peak and possibly other nearby peaks, an air and ground search was begun. At that point, G.H. had not been seen for several days, and the search area was extensive. Four other agencies assisted the NPS in the effort, which included 65 search personnel and a multi-disciplinary incident command team assembled from within Yosemite. On the afternoon of September 3rd, a dog team found G.H.'s body in his tent off trail near Fletcher Lake. An investigation is underway but preliminary evidence indicates that he died of natural causes.

[Kevin Killian, Deputy 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/):

Chaco Culture NHP - From August 3rd through 10th, indigenous Maya youths from towns in the Yucatán, México, and native youths from Laguna Pueblo in New Mexico participated in a field study and cultural exchange in the park.

Office of the Comptroller - The third edition of the Financial and Business Management System Newsletter is now available online.

Office of Communications - The Service's web-based PEPC system, which is used for environmental planning, has been selected by the Council on Environmental Quality as one of two projects for an initiative to increase efficiency of environmental reviews.

Joshua Tree NP - Joshua Tree National Park is celebrating its 75th anniversary with an employee and alumni reunion on November 12th. A link is provided for details.

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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).

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