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NATIONAL PARK SERVICE MORNING REPORT Thursday, September 25, 2014 INCIDENTS Guadalupe Mountains NP Park Recovers From Heavy Rains And Flooding The park is recovering from the intense rainfall and flooding that fell on the area between September 12th and September 23rd. During that period, Guadalupe Mountains received 14.93” of rain at Pine Springs, 13.52” at the Pinery, 17.35” at the Bowl, 12.45” at McKittrick Canyon and 10.86” at Dog Canyon, and was forced to close most roads and trails on September 22nd due to flooding. The Pine Springs area of the park so far has received 17.84” this month, breaking last year's record of 17.10”, which also resulted in closures to most park areas. Park staff this week assessed the damage to park trails and roads and determined that the Guadalupe Peak, Pinery and Devil's Hall Trails were safe and passable and could be reopened to the public. The Salt Basin Overlook Trail is open from the Guadalupe Canyon trailhead only. The Pine Springs Visitor Center, Pine Springs and Dog Canyon Campgrounds and Guadalupe Peak Backcountry Campground are open. All other roads and trails will remain closed to the public until park staff are able to assess and stabilize them. Closed areas will reopen as soon as it is safe to do so. For more information about current road conditions, see HYPERLINK "http://www.drivetexas.org/" www.drivetexas.org for Texas or HYPERLINK "http://www.nmroads.com/" www.nmroads.com for New Mexico. For park closure information, visit the park website at HYPERLINK "http://www.nps.gov/GUMO/" www.nps.gov/GUMO/. [Karl Pierce] New River Gorge NR Rangers Successfully Intervene In Attempted Suicide On Friday, September 19th, rangers responded to a 911 call concerning a woman threatening suicide and believed to be on a park trail near the town of Fayetteville. Family members revealed that the woman had a state concealed weapons permit and was known to carry a handgun. A team of three rangers conducted a search of the trail network and soon found the woman seated near a small bridge in a low lying area. Rangers first established a tactical observation point and moved in and made contact after assessing the situation. A handgun was found in the woman's purse and was secured. The rangers determined she had ingested a large quantity of sleeping pills and convinced her to walk with them out to the trailhead. Once there, they were met by an ambulance crew and the woman was transported to a local hospital as an overdose patient. Ranger Nate Freier is the case ranger. [Chuck Noll, Law Enforcement Specialist] 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): Golden Gate NRA - The National Park Service and National Oceanographic and Atmospheric Administration are jointly conducting a two-year-long project to better understand the underwater cultural landscape in Pacific Ocean waters administered by NOAA and Golden Gate NRA. Geologic Resources Division - The Natural Resource Stewardship and Science Directorate has issued a call for proposals from parks for Mosaics in Science diversity internships for the summer of 2015. Submissions are due by November 1st. Independence NHP - On World Heritage Day, a ceremony was held to announce that the section of Walnut Street along Independence Square will now be known as World Heritage Way. US Park Police - On Thursday, September 18th, the United States Park Police held an awards and promotion ceremony at its Anacostia Operations Facility in Washington. Intermountain Region - Jeff Bradybaugh, a 32-year veteran of the National Park Service, has been named superintendent of Zion National Park. He will begin his new assignment on October 20th. Santa Monica Mountains NRA - Kerry Olson has been selected as the new chief of interpretation for Santa Monica Mountains National Recreation Area. She currently holds the same position at Lowell National Historic Park. 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). --- ### --- |