NATIONAL PARK SERVICE

MORNING REPORT

Wednesday, November 2, 2011

INCIDENTS

Big Bend NP

Ranger/Packer Team Makes Back-To-Back Night Rescues

During the early morning hours of Sunday, October 23rd, a park visitor hiked out of the backcountry and placed a 911 call for medical assistance for his companion, who was camped at Laguna Meadows in the high Chisos Mountains. Supervisory ranger and park medic Michael Ryan responded and expeditiously made his way up the steep trail in the darkness to the site, where he found a 19-year-old woman experiencing severe abdominal pain, nausea and vomiting. While en route, Ryan had asked a park packer to join him with a mule team. Shortly thereafter, packer J.M. and his mule, C., made their way up the mountainside in the dark. The woman was stabilized, secured on C., and escorted out of the backcountry at sunrise to a waiting ambulance. Fourteen hours later, as the sun was setting, the park received another 911 call for assistance in the Chisos, this time from Southwest #4 campsite, the furthest and most remote campsite in the Chisos Mountains. Ryan, J.M. and C. again responded, this time joined by ranger Scott Taylor. Due to the remote location, it took several hours of night hiking to reach the site. There they stabilized and evacuated a 20-year-old man with an incapacitating spleen infarction. While medical evacuations common at Big Bend, night evacuations in the high Chisos are rare, especially made by the same response crew within a few hours of each other. [Allen Etheridge, Chief Ranger]

Organ Pipe Cactus NM

Two Sentenced For Drug Smuggling

On March 28th, rangers tracked a group of suspected drug smugglers into the Alamo Canyon area of the park, an area open to and frequented by visitors. The smugglers dispersed when approached by rangers, but two were caught and six backpacks with 291 pounds of processed marijuana were seized. The two men - O.S.-V. and J.M.B.-D. - were convicted of smuggling. Burgos-Diaz was sentenced to 13 months in federal prison earlier this year; on October 24th, O.S.-V. was sentenced to 24 months in federal prison. [Robert W. Mullikin, Special Agent in Charge, Investigative Services Branch - Central]

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/):

The White House - President Obama yesterday signed a proclamation to designating Fort Monroe a national monument under the Antiquities Act. Until recently, Fort Monroe was the third-oldest Army post in continuous active service, and is integral to the history of slavery, the Civil War, and the U.S. military.

Glen Canyon NRA - During the week of September 26th, the Wounded Warrior Project conducted an Odyssey rehabilitation trip to Glen Canyon and Grand Canyon. The 14 disabled veterans on the trip participated in such activities as bass fishing on Lake Powell, a day trip to the North Rim, and a raft trip on the Colorado River.

Natchez Trace Parkway - On October 7th, Natchez Trace Parkway staff participated in the grand opening of the visitor center for Mississippi Hills National Heritage Area, a 30-county NHA encompassing the natural and cultural resources of northeast Mississippi.

Office of Communications - Director Jonathan B. Jarvis was recently presented with the Walter T. Cox Award for sustained achievement in public service providing leadership in administration of public lands and for policy formation affecting natural and cultural resources.

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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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