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NATIONAL PARK SERVICE MORNING REPORT Monday, July 7, 2014 INCIDENTS East Coast Areas Outer Banks Parks Return To Normal Following Hurricane Hurricane Arthur passed over the Outer Banks late last week, causing some damage but not significantly affecting park operations at either Cape Lookout or the Outer Banks Group. Cape Lookout NS - Effective yesterday, the following areas resumed operations on their normal schedules: Harkers Island, Beaufort, and Light Station Visitor Centers. Passenger ferry service provided by Island Express Ferry Service from Harkers Island and Beaufort to the Cape Lookout Light Station, and Shackleford Banks. Vehicle ferries departing from Davis and Atlantic. Keepers' Quarters Museum. South Core Banks and North Core Banks. Camping permitted under normal regulations. Portsmouth Village. Off-road vehicles were again permitted to operate as normal on North and South Core Banks. These areas were partly opened: Shackleford Banks opened to day use, but no camping was permitted. Long Point Cabins 5 through 20 reopened for occupancy Sunday night. Cabins 1 through 4 remained closed pending repairs. Great Island Cabins 2, 3, 4, 6, 7, 9, 12, 17, 20, 21, 22, 23, 24, and 26 reopened for occupancy on Sunday night. Cabins 1, 5, 8, 10, 11, 13, 14, 15, 16, 18, and 19 were closed until repairs could be completed. Due to damages, safety concerns or resource protection needs, the following areas remained closed: Cape Village Historic District Old Drum Inlet beach area North Core Banks for a quarter mile south of Ocracoke Inlet due to a deep tidal cut. Outer Banks Group - The Outer Banks Group of national parks - Cape Hatteras National Seashore, Wright Brothers National Memorial and Fort Raleigh National Historic Site - have resumed normal operations: Wright Brothers National Memorial and Fort Raleigh National Historic Site are open and have resumed normal hours of operation. In Cape Hatteras National Seashore, all facilities in the Bodie Island District, the Hatteras District, and the Ocracoke District are open and have resumed normal hours of operation. All ocean and sound-side beach areas have been evaluated for safe access for both pedestrians and off-road vehicles. The beaches are open to pedestrian access throughout the park unless otherwise posted. The following beach access ramps are open to off-road vehicles - Ramps 4, 27, 30, 38, 43, 44, 67 and 70. Cape Hatteras Lighthouse is open for climbing. Hatteras Visitor Center and bookstore and the Buxton off-road vehicle permit office reopened on normal schedules yesterday. The lighthouse beach lifeguard operation has returned to normal hours of operation. [Cyndy Holda, Outer Banks Group; Pat Kenney, Cape Lookout] Grand Canyon NP AED Utilized In Successful Resuscitation On June 4th, a 66-year-old man waiting for a shuttle bus near the South Rim Visitor Center suddenly collapsed. While family and visitors began CPR, others ran into the visitor center to get help. Interpretive Ranger Robb Hannawacker responded with an AED and other EMS supplies, resulting in one shock applied prior the arrival of EMS staff. While the initial shock seemed to revive the man, his condition soon deteriorated. Following 30 minutes of advanced cardiac life support treatment, including several more shocks and rounds of drugs, he was deemed stable enough to transport and survived the incident. Earlier in the day, rangers worked an unsuccessful resuscitation for a 55-year-old woman with a significant medical history in one of the South Rim hotel rooms. Rangers also conducted two helicopter medevac missions for visitors in remote areas of the canyon, completed an investigation and body recovery of a previously reported nut allergy fatality on a commercial river trip, and facilitated all-day skill stations and leadership activities for 36 teenagers enrolled in the Arizona Leadership Education and Development Academy, a challenging youth program sponsored by the Arizona Chapter of the FBI National Academy. [Brandon Torres, Branch Chief of Emergency Services] George Washington Birthplace NM One-Year-Old Rescued From Near Drowning Chief Ranger Wayne Rose overheard a county radio transmission concerning a 911 call originating from the park's Potomac River beach around 7 p.m. on the evening of June 30th. The caller reported that a boy had nearly drowned after falling into the water. Rose arrived on scene within a few minutes and was met by a father holding a one-year-old boy. The child was conscious, breathing and coughing. Rose learned that the boy had fallen into a tidal stream that feeds into the Potomac River. He was pulled out by a family friend and was reported to be blue and not breathing. The child's mother performed CPR and restored his breathing. Rose monitored the boy's condition and stood by with CPR equipment until volunteer EMS arrived. The child was transported by ambulance to a landing zone ten miles outside of the park and then transported by helicopter to Fairfax Hospital. He was still hospitalized the following day, but was listed in good condition. [Wayne Rose, Chief Ranger] Buffalo NR Driver Killed in Single-Vehicle Accident Ranger Ben Henthorne overheard radio traffic from Newton County Fire Rescue on the afternoon of June 20th concerning a motor vehicle accident on State Highway 123 at Carver, located within the park's boundaries. Ranger Melissa Moses joined him in responding. A witness who was driving in the opposite lane reported that the driver of a Toyota pickup swerved into her lane, overcorrected, then swerved back into the opposing lane and hit the guardrail. The vehicle went down an embankment and hit a tree on the driver's side, causing significant damage, then overturned. There were no other passengers in the vehicle. Northern Arkansas Regional Medical paramedics and Hasty Volunteer Fire Department and Harrison Fire Department personnel conducted extrication operations utilizing a Jaws of Life tool to peel the roof off of the vehicle back and gain access to the driver. Prior to extrication, they had to anchor the vehicle to a tree due to the steep uneven terrain. The driver, a 49-year-old man from Little Rock, Arkansas, was pronounced dead at the scene. He was not wearing his seatbelt. The Arkansas State Police are leading the investigation. [Karen Bradford, Chief Ranger] OTHER NEWS The following stories are among those in today's webpage editions of InsideNPS (available to NPS employees only) and the Morning Report (available to all readers): Black Canyon of the Gunnison NP - This year's Black Canyon of the Gunnison Astronomy Festival provided nearly 700 visitors and locals with solar viewing, kids astronomy programs, planet hikes, “learn the sky” workshops, evening talks, night sky viewing, and night sky photography workshops. Everglades NP - Everglades National Park co-hosted the 2014 Pine Rockland Symposium from June 26th to June 28th. The three-day conference included oral and poster presentations and several field sessions. Park Facility Management Division - The May/June issue of Park Facility Management Division Update is now out and available online. A link is provided to both current and past editions. Park Cultural Resources - The June Archeology E-Gram is now available online. This monthly newsletter contains information about archeological projects, training, awards, and other topics of interest. Division of Labor and Employee Relations - Steve Rosen is retiring on June 30th following a 31-year-career with the federal government, the last 15 years with the NPS as workers' compensation program manager, organization development consultant, CORE PLUS program coordinator and mediator. Redwood N&SP - Terry Hofstra, retired chief of resource management and science at Redwood National Park, passed away on June 3rd following a lengthy battle with cancer. To see the full text of these stories, readers should go to one or the other of the following sites: NPS employees - HYPERLINK "http://inside.nps.gov/index.cfm?handler=index" http://inside.nps.gov/index.cfm?handler=index Non-NPS employees - HYPERLINK "http://www.nps.gov/morningreport/" http://www.nps.gov/morningreport/ The Morning Report is 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). --- ### --- |