NATIONAL PARK SERVICE

MORNING REPORT

Friday, August 10, 2012

INCIDENTS

Grand Teton NP

Injured Hiker Rescued From Hanging Canyon

Rangers rescued an injured hiker on Tuesday after he slipped and tumbled 20 feet on rocky terrain and sustained facial and lower leg injuries. P.D., 23, of Raleigh, North Carolina, was scrambling alone and off trail near the mouth of Hanging Canyon at the time of his accident. Other day hikers who were in the Hanging Canyon area heard cries for help and discovered P.D. They provided basic care for his injuries and placed a cell phone call for help at 12:45 p.m. that was received by Teton Interagency Dispatch Center. Based upon the call and the relatively close location to Jenny Lake's west shore trail, rangers made preparations to evacuate P.D. by a wheeled-litter handled by four rescuers. Upon reaching P.D. by foot, however, they determined that a helicopter short-haul evacuation was the more prudent rescue technique. The decision was made because of a combination of P.D.'s injuries and the rough and rocky terrain over which the wheeled litter would be hauled to complete an evacuation by ground. A Teton interagency contract helicopter was summoned at 3 p.m. and an aerial evacuation of the injured hiker was completed by 4:15 p.m. P.D. was transported by park ambulance to St. John's Medical Center in Jackson for further medical treatment. P.D. is working as a seasonal concession employee in Yellowstone National Park for the summer. [Jackie Skaggs, Public Affairs Officer]

Sleeping Bear Dunes NL

Man Drowns In Rip Current In Lake Michigan

On the afternoon of August 5th, rangers were dispatched to Peterson Beach on Lake Michigan to investigate a report of two missing swimmers. Ranger Joe Lachowski was first on scene and was directed by several visitors to a man lying on the shore, conscious but wet and pale. Moments later, several visitors started yelling and pointing towards another man floating face down in the water about 100 feet offshore. Lachowski removed his law enforcement equipment and swam towards the man but was unable to locate him in the rough water. Waves were in the four- to five-foot range and there was a strong rip current in the area. Seconds after Lachowski returned to the beach, visitors started pointing to the victim, now about 50 feet off shore. Lachowski returned to the water and this time was able to retrieve the unresponsive man. Benzie County EMS personnel and Lachowski performed CPR and applied advanced life support measures, but were unable to revive him. He was later pronounced dead at a nearby hospital. The man was identified as K.S., 40, from Cincinnati, Ohio. According to family members, K.S. was swimming with a brother-in-law (the first victim), and two nephews when they got caught in a rip current. The brother-in-law and K.S. were able to rescue the two boys from the current, but K.S. started swallowing water and went under. Rangers and the Benzie County Sheriff's Office are investigating. [Phil Akers, Chief Ranger]

Chiricahua NM

Six Drug Smugglers Arrested, Seventh Injured And Medevaced

A group of drug smugglers was detected moving through the park on August 6th. Border Patrol agents began tracking them and took them by surprise while they were taking a rest break. Six smugglers with drug packs were captured after an extended foot chase, but two of them managed to get away - one by jumping off a 30-foot-high cliff. Blood was found at the base of the cliff, but the injured smuggler could not be located. Later that day, rangers received a report of a badly injured person near the main park road. It's believed that he's the man who jumped off the cliff. He was suffering from lacerations to the head, a broken jaw, a broken arm, a broken hip and other traumatic injuries, and was flown to a medical facility in Tucson for treatment. [Matt Stoffolano, 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/):

Office of Communications - Get ready to celebrate Founders Day, the 96th birthday of the National Park Service, on Saturday, August 25th. Several websites offer information on how you can participate.

Northeast Region - Historic downtown Lowell, Massachusetts, was the setting for the 26th Lowell Folk Festival, held on the last weekend in July.

Blue Ridge Parkway - Kathy Tustanowski has been selected as the park's next administrative officer. She will lead its business administration functions, including budget, property, contracting, human resources, policy development, records, and concessions. 

Servicewide Training and Conference Calendar - A compilation of upcoming training courses and conferences across the nation, plus online training.

* * * *

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).

--- ### ---