NATIONAL PARK SERVICE

MORNING REPORT

Tuesday, July 23, 2013

INCIDENTS

Buffalo NR

Man Seriously Injured In Cliff Jumping Incident

On the afternoon of Saturday, July 13th, a 19-year-old Little Rock man suffered serious injuries resulting from a cliff jump into the Buffalo River from a height of 35 feet.

The man and his party were enjoying a float trip from Tyler Bend to Gilbert when they stopped at a busy day use and camping area called Grinders Ferry, known locally as a popular bluff jumping location. The man and his companions had already completed several uneventful jumps prior to the incident, and they began progressively increasing the height and difficulty of the jumps.

Witness statements secured on-scene indicate that the injured man climbed to a ledge 35 feet above the river and attempted a back flip. He completed one full flip, over-rotated another half-flip, slammed hard into the river flat on his back, and surfaced coughing up blood. Bystanders, including an off-duty first responder, rescued the man from the river and placed him in a supine position on the gravel bar. The first responder then used his radio to summon medical aid.

Field trainee ranger Heather Sharp and her field training ranger arrived at the scene almost immediately, followed shortly thereafter by rangers Justin Gibbs, Todd Garrett, and Ben Henthorne. Sharp and her FTR/EMT took over primary care of the injured man, stabilizing him until paramedics from North Arkansas Regional Medical Center (NorthArk) arrived a few minutes later, at which time they immobilized and transported the patient via gurney to a waiting ambulance.

Gibbs and Henthorne established a landing zone in a nearby hayfield and marshaled in a medevac helicopter from Air Evac. Prior to loading the man into the helicopter, he began presenting with a tension HYPERLINK "http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pneumothorax" pneumothorax, and a NorthArk paramedic conducted a needle HYPERLINK "http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Thoracostomy" thoracostomy to decompress his chest. Once loaded onto the medevac ship, the man was air lifted to the University of Arkansas Medical Sciences Hospital in Little Rock.

A follow-up interview with the injured man revealed he had suffered multiple fractured ribs that resulted in a flail chest, a fractured lumbar vertebrae, and a ruptured spleen. He is expected to make a full recovery. Though a small amount of alcohol was onboard the patient, witness statements strongly indicate that this was a mostly peer pressure-driven incident.

[Kevin Moses, Middle District Ranger]

Glacier NP

Body Found Below Going-To-The-Sun Road

An investigation is underway following the discovery and recovery of a body identified as that of 25-year old C.L.J. of Kalispell, Montana.

On July 12th, park dispatch received a report of a possible body located below The Loop area of the Going-to-the-Sun Road. Park rangers began a search and soon found C.L.J.'s body.

Due to the steep and rocky terrain, a helicopter and specialized short-haul rescue team from Parks Canada assisted with the recovery of the body. Going-to-the-Sun Road was closed temporarily to facilitate the operation. The Kalispell City Police Department, Flathead County Sheriff's Office and Federal Bureau of Investigation assisted with the search and recovery operation.

An investigation is underway into the cause of death. Anyone with information that may be related to this incident is encouraged to contact Glacier National Park at 406-888-7801.

[Denise Germann, Public Affairs Officer]

Yellowstone NP

Body Of Missing Hiker Found

Last Thursday morning, searchers discovered the body of a young man who went on a solo hike to a mountain peak in northwest Yellowstone Tuesday and failed to return.

The last contact with 23-year-old J.A.P. was a cell phone call he made to friends about 2:30 p.m. on Tuesday. J.A.P. told his friends he was below the summit of Electric Peak, and that he was starting to descend the mountain because of nearby lightning.

J.A.P. was reported missing by a friend about 7:30 p.m. Tuesday and a search was begun the next day. It involved an aerial search by both airplane and helicopter and ground search by teams in 4-wheel drive vehicles, on horseback, and on foot. No clues on his whereabouts were found.

J.A.P.'s body was discovered below the summit of Electric Peak shortly after the search resumed Thursday morning. The cause of death is under investigation.

Originally from Valdosta, Georgia, J.A.P. was working at a local Gardiner, Montana, business.

Electric Peak is a nearly 11,000 foot mountain in the Gallatin Range, located west of Gardiner, Montana, in the northwest portion of the park.

The National Park Service worked closely with a variety of agencies and landowners, including the Park County Sheriff's Office in conducting the search.

[Public Affairs Office]

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/):

Mount Rushmore NM - Honoring those who support the military was the overarching theme of the park's Fourth of July celebrations this year. They included the recognition of military families and support groups and the swearing-in of new recruits by the commander of Ellsworth Air Force Base.

Intermountain Region - John Wessels, regional director of Intermountain Region, has accepted a position as deputy secretary for overseas operations with the American Battle Monuments Commission in France.

Morristown NHP - Morristown's Fourth of July commemoration this year included recognition of the 80th anniversary of the park's dedication ceremony on July 4, 1933.

Fort Scott NHS - Fort Scott recently hosted “Americans by Choice: The Story of Immigration and Naturalization in Kansas,” a temporary exhibit commissioned by the U.S. District Court, District of Kansas.

National Capital Region - National Capital Region has established a Toastmasters Club so that interested employees can learn and improve their public speaking and leadership skills.

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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@contractor.nps.gov" Bill_Halainen@contractor.nps.gov).

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