RANGER ACTIVITIES DIVISION
MORNING REPORT
Attention: Directorate
Regional and Park Chief Rangers, USPP, BIFC, FLETC
CC: RAD Information Net
Day/date: Tuesday, April 9, 1991
INCIDENTS
91-99 - Shenandoah (Virginia) - Search
Late on the afternoon of April 6th, a youth group from a church
in Fredericksburg, Virginia, was hiking west on Saddle Trail
from the summit of Old Rag Mountain. When they were just below
the summit, 15-year-old R.C. ran ahead of the party, took
a social trail, and became separated from the group. The
minister hiking with the group reported the incident to the park
at about 6:30 p.m., and search efforts including confinement,
attraction and dispatch of hasty teams to the field were begun
immediately. Because R.C. suffered from a chronic medical
problem and because of the history of injuries occurring in that
area, the park geared up for a major search effort on Sunday,
April 7th. At about 8 a.m., park forest ecologist Tom Blount
found R.C. in a cliff area near the mountain. R.C. said that
he realized that the trail he'd taken was not the correct path,
but that darkness had overtaken him before he could return.
Realizing the hazards of the area, he'd chosen to stay put
overnight. R.C. was uninjured. [Telefax from Greg Stiles, ACR,
SHEN, 4/8]
91-100 - Chickamauga-Chattanooga (Georgia) - Homicide
On April 7th, FBI agents arrested K.H., 25, and
A.M., 18, for the murder of A.M., 21, whose
body was found in the park on the morning of April 6th. Their
arrest followed an investigation conducted by the FBI, the
Georgia Bureau of Investigation and the National Forest Service.
The pair were to appear before a U.S. magistrate yesterday. No
further information on the murder is currently available. [FBI
report, via telefax from RAD/SERO, 4/8]
91-101 - Big Cypress (Florida) - Fatality
M.G., 45, of Pompano Beach, Florida, sustained a
severe head injury when he was hit by a clevis pin while
attempting to extricate his offroad vehicle from a mud hole near
Alligator Alley on March 30th. M.G. died of his injury on
April 3rd. [Bill Carroll, CR, BICY, via telefax from Steve
Alscher, RAD/SERO, 4/7]
91-102 - Everglades (Florida) - Car Clouting Arrests
Rangers Chuck Passek, Jill Hawk and Kim Korthuis responded to
the report of an auto break-in at the Hell's Bay Trailhead in the
Flamingo District early on the afternoon of April 6th and
arrested three Miami men: R.G., 25, H.F., 26,
and A.T., 20 for burglary shortly thereafter. The
rangers made a consent search of the suspects' vehicle and
discovered several roles of German-made 35 millimeter film
identical to the film taken from one of three burglarized
vehicles. The car was owned by a German tourist. Several other
items and a packet of marijuana seeds were also discovered. Due
to the presence of the contraband marijuana, all property was
seized. The film was developed and the photos were identified
by the German visitor as having been taken by him. The photos
showed the members of his party and the vehicle from which the
film was taken. An investigation into two other car clouts is
continuing; the three men are suspects in those burglaries.
[Telefax from Mark Lewis, LES, EVER, 4/8]
91-103 - Shenandoah (Virginia) - Structural Fire
Park dispatch received a report of a structural fire in the
concessioner-owned Bridesburg Cabin at Big Meadows Lodge at 5:30
p.m. on the afternoon of the 7th. The Central District fire
brigade responded with two engines and found the exterior siding,
a portion of the front porch, and the surrounding leaf litter in
flames. The fire was knocked down within two minutes. Damage
is estimated at about $400. The cause is under investigation.
Neither accidental ignition nor arson have been ruled out as of
yet. Although the cabin was unoccupied at the time, guests had
stayed there the previous night. There were no injuries.
[Telefax from Greg Stiles, ACR, SHEN, 4/8]
FIRE ACTIVITY
1) FIRE SITUATION Preparedness Level I
No large fire activity nationally. Most geographic areas have
low to moderate fire danger. Little or no commitment of
national resources.
2) FIRE SUMMARY
State Agency Area Fire 4/6 4/8 Status
MT USFS Custer NF Robertson Draw T2 1,000 3,300 CN 4/8
State Holter Lake T2 125 125 Yes
SD USFS Black Hills NF Horse Creek T1 2,000 1,510 Yes
Shirttail T2 3,000 4,000 Yes
NOTES:
Fires - Asterisk indicates newly reported fire (on this
report). T1 and T2 indicate assigned Type I and Type II Teams.
Status The following abbreviations are employed:
* NR No report received * MS Modified suppression strategy
* CN Contained * MN Being monitored
* CL Controlled * None No estimate of containment
* CS Confinement strategy * Yes Fire has been contained
3) FIRE NARRATIVES
a) NATIONAL PARK SERVICE:
* Shirttail Fire (Wind Cave) - It's estimated that the fire
burned a total of 4,000 acres. As of yesterday, 450 people had been assigned
to the fire, along with 27 engines. Firefighters were to have engaged
in mop-up activities yesterday, and planned to eliminate all unburned
islands of fuels. Control was estimated for 6 p.m. yesterday evening.
Suppression costs to date are estimated at $440,000, and the total is
expected to reach $600,000.
b) OTHER AGENCIES:
* Robertson Draw Fire (Custer NF) - The fire received snow on
Sunday and is now being mopped up. Demobilization is underway.
4) ANALYSIS - Cooler weather and snow helped containment efforts
on the fires in South Dakota and Montana yesterday. Demob is in
progress.
5) PROGNOSIS - Fire activity in the Black Hills and eastern
Montana is expected to decrease due to snow showers.
[NIFCC Intelligence Section, 0530 MDT, 4/8; Kathy Lee, WICA, 4/8]
THIS DAY IN NPS HISTORY...
April 9, 1953 - Ranger Harkins of Petrified Forest received the
DOI Distinguished Service Award for attempting to rescue a mean
from a burning building in the park.
STAFF STATUS
Division Chief: No leave or travel scheduled.
Branch of Resource & Visitor Protection: Henry on SL (indefinite);
Halainen on detail to House Subcommittee on National Parks and
Public Lands (3/18-4/26); Marriott at PNR chief rangers' conference
(4/8-4/12); Martin at WR chief rangers' conference, Phoenix, AZ (4/9-4/17).
Branch of Fire: Farrel on site visit to GRCA, at WR chief
rangers' conference in Scottsdale, AZ, and at training session at NARTC,
Marana, AZ (4/10-4/19); Gale and Clark at Yosemite fire review, WRO, San
Francisco, CA (4/9-4/11).
Prepared by WASO Division of Ranger Activities
Telephone: FTS 268-4874/6039 or 202-208-4874/6039
Telefax: FTS 268-5977 or 202-208-5977
CompuServe: WASO-RANGER (Branch of R&VP); WASO-FIRE-WO (Branch of Fire)
SEAdog: 1/650