NATIONAL PARK SERVICE

MORNING REPORT

Friday, October 28, 2011

INCIDENTS

Rocky Mountain NP

Searchers Locate Missing Hiker

Park dispatch received a 911 call early on Wednesday morning from a 22-year-old man identifying himself as A."A."L. of Branson, Missouri. He was calling from his cell phone and thought he was somewhere above Lake Haiyaha (elevation 10,220 feet), where he was seeking shelter under a large boulder. A.L. had hitchhiked to the park and was dropped off at the Bear Lake trailhead on Tuesday afternoon. Overnight temperatures on Tuesday were below 25 degrees and more than a foot of snow had fallen in the area by Wednesday morning. A.L. seems to have been unprepared for the deep snow and winter conditions, but reported that he had a sleeping bag, tarp and whistle. He said that he was wet, cold and had no water, and that he'd intended to spend Tuesday night in the backcountry but did not get the required backcountry camping permit. Rangers spoke with him hourly on his cell phone throughout Wednesday, but were unable to reach him by phone after 3 p.m. Rangers also attempted to track the location of the cell phone, but A.L.'s phone evidently lacked the necessary features. A hasty search team reached the Lake Haiyaha area around midday Wednesday, with additional searchers joining them about three hours later. They searched the upper “Chaos Canyon” area west of Lake Haiyaha and attempted to establish contact using air horns and whistles. Chaos Canyon is appropriately named, known for very large boulder fields that make walking difficult. With over 18 inches of new snow in this area, conditions were challenging and hazardous. The Wednesday night wind chill was below zero. Search efforts resumed yesterday morning, with rangers joined by personnel from the Colorado Mountain School and Larimer County Search and Rescue. The search area was expanded to include Dream and Emerald Lakes. Around 10:30 a.m. yesterday, rangers made verbal contact with A.L., who proved to be above Emerald Lake in the Tyndall Glacier area - not above Lake Haiyaha as he initially told rangers. A search team reached him within a half hour. At the time of the report late yesterday, team members were determining the best way to help extricate him from the backcountry. [Kyle Patterson, Public Affairs Specialist]

Indiana Dunes NL

Body Of Long-Missing Person Discovered

Last February, rangers found a mini-van parked after hours in the Mt. Baldy area of the park. At that time, the region was experiencing a blizzard and whiteout conditions existed. A search of the area revealed footprints leading along a trail to the nearby beach. There was a note in the van indicating that it had broken down and that the driver would return in a few days. There were no indications or clues indicating foul play. A check of the video cameras mounted on a nearby building showed the driver, later identified as R.S. of Indianapolis, walking to and returning from the trail to the beach. However, blowing snow obscured segments of the video. Rangers called the Indianapolis Police Department to request a check of R.S.'s residence, which led to her family filing a missing person report. Park staff conducted a more extensive search of the area at first light with assistance of a U.S. Coast Guard ice rescue crew, fixed wing aircraft and a search dog from a local police department. No evidence was found. A follow-up search the next week, when some melting had occurred, did not reveal any additional clues. Reports from the family indicated that R.S. was known to go off on her own for days at a time and loved winter camping. On the morning of October 21st, a jogger discovered R.S.'s body on the beach at Indiana Dunes State Park, which is located within the national lakeshore and approximately six-and-a-half miles from Mt. Baldy. Recent severe storms, which had created waves as high as 24 feet on Lake Michigan, had probably dislodged the body and carried it ashore. The Porter County coroner conducted an immediate autopsy and determined the cause of death to be drowning. There were no signs of foul play. Although there are a number of theories as to how R.S. met her end, there is no evidence to support any conclusions. [Mike Bremer, 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/):

Saguaro NP - A National Park Service/National Geographic BioBlitz was held in Saguaro last Friday and Saturday. The event attracted about 5,500 people, including more than 2,000 school children, approximately 1,500 members of the public, and over 600 ambassador volunteers.

Office of Communications - On Thursday, November 3rd, the Office of Communications will host a Servicewide conference call to discuss NPS.gov design enhancements, go over related guidance, and answer questions. Park web coordinators and CMS authors are invited to join in.

Rosie the Riveter WWII Home Front NHP - The park's Maritime Child Development Center, built in 1943 as a federally funded childcare center to serve the families of shipyard workers, has reopened following an $8 million historic restoration. A grand reopening celebration was held in September. Photo.

Office of Communications - Details have been received on how gifts may be made in memory of the past Director Roger Kennedy, who died earlier this month.

Human Resources Operations Center - William "Jessie" Wood has been selected as the new manager of the Human Resources Operation Center.

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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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