NATIONAL PARK SERVICE

MORNING REPORT

Friday, October 19, 2012

INCIDENTS

Glacier NP

Missing Hikers Were Well Prepared

On Monday, October 15th, the search for two hikers missing in the park's backcountry came to a successful conclusion. Additional information has since been gathered on how the pair got lost and how they fared during the five days that searchers were looking for them. Hikers N.P. and J.H. were planning to hike from the North Shore trailhead at Two Medicine and camp at the Oldman backcountry campground on Tuesday, October 9th. After spending the night in the campground as planned, they continued on their 17-mile hike, encountering snow on the trail and very high gusts of winds as they hiked a section of trail on a ridge along the Continental Divide. One of the men slipped and fell approximately 100 feet down a steep slope. The men then tried to hike in parallel for a bit, one above and one below. They determined that the best approach would be for both hikers to be together, to go down the mountain, and to perhaps try another route back up. The men had a quality map of the area, but lost it when extreme wind gusts blew it out of their hands. They continued down the mountainside and spent Wednesday evening in the Nyack Lakes area, where they set up camp and lighted a fire. On Thursday, they started to hike back up the mountain by another route, hoping to follow their original direction. Weather conditions and mountainous terrain were challenging. They put considerable thought into what their best options would be, finally deciding to travel back down the wet and slippery terrain and wait for a break in the weather. That break did not come, so they camped near the headwaters of the Nyack Drainage at approximately 6,000 feet for the next four nights. They rationed their food, collected firewood and materials to create a fire and smoke, turned their cell phones on during the day, displayed their space blanket for possible reflection during the day and used it to stay warn at night, and created an SOS message with logs. On the afternoon of Monday, October 15th, two park employees were searching on foot when one of them saw colored flagging that led him to a tent and the missing hikers. N.P. and J.H. were cold and wet, but in fairly good condition with no injuries. The two men communicated their appreciation to the searchers and were ready to travel home with family and friends. [Denise Germann, Public Affairs Officer]

Great Smoky Mountains NP

One Killed, Three Injured In Vehicle Collision

Rangers responded to a two-vehicle accident on the northbound side of the Pigeon Forge - Gatlinburg Spur near West Gate Resort just after noon last Saturday. The preliminary investigation revealed that J.M., 34, of Pittman Center, Tennesse, may have been attempting to cross the spur from Westgate when a vehicle driven by N.S., 19, of Kodak, Tennessee, collided with his pickup. J.M. was transported to Leconte Medical Center, where he was pronounced dead. N.S.'s vehicle carried two passengers, an 18-year-old male and a 17-year-old female. One was extricated from the vehicle by Gatlinburg EMS. Lifestar flew both to UT Medical Center, while N.S. was transported to the center by a personal vehicle. All three have since been released. [Dana Soehn, Public Affairs]

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/):

Northeast Region - On September 15th and 16th, Eisenhower National Historic Site hosted its annual World War II weekend. A five-acre pasture behind General Eisenhower's home was turned into a full-scale living history encampment with authentic living history units that commemorated numerous facets of this historic conflict. 

Capitol Reef NP - A delegation of national park and tourism professionals from Tajikistan recently visited Capitol Reef National Park and talked about management issues with park staff.

Mount Rainier NP - On October 2nd, Mount Rainier celebrated the reopening of the historic Chinook Entrance Arch after the completion of a three-year restoration project.

Klondike Goldrush (Seattle Unit) - Spirit Trickey has been selected as the new chief of interpretation for Klondike Gold Rush NHP's Seattle Unit.

NPS Alumni - Jay Jessen, a career NPS ranger who retired from Whiskeytown NRA in 1988, passed away earlier this month. Memorial services will be held on Monday in Redding.

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

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