RANGER ACTIVITIES DIVISION
MORNING REPORT
Attention: Directorate
Regional and Park Chief Rangers, USPP, BIFC, FLETC
CC: RAD Information Net
Day/date: Tuesday, July 2, 1991
INCIDENTS
91-249 - Grand Canyon (Arizona) - River Rescue
On the afternoon of the 22nd, rangers at Phantom Ranch were
notified that a motorized Tour West raft was stranded on exposed
rocks in the middle of the Colorado River a quarter mile below
Silver Bridge. Responding rangers found that the boat could not
be moved off the rocks because of the rapidly dropping river
level; due to the lateness of the hour and the risks that
passengers would be exposed to during a shorebased rescue, the
rangers instead decided to employ shorthaul rescue procedures.
Two rangers were transported to the stranded raft to rig and
brief passengers. Helicopter pilots and rescue spotters were
rotated to prevent fatigue from becoming a problem. Sixteen
passengers and two crew members from the raft were successfully
removed from the raft and brought to the shore. None were
injured. Rising waters removed the raft from the rock the next
day. [Dispatch, GRCA, via CompuServe message from Herb Gercke,
RAD/WRO, 7/1]
91-250 - Golden Gate (California) - Rescue
On June 29th, rangers responded to a report that a visitor,
later identified as G.J., 27, of San Rafael,
California, had become stranded on a sea stack north of Point
Bonita. Ranger Steve Prokop and Norm Simons secured G.J.,
then swam him through the surf to a Coast Guard boat. G.J.
was not injured in the incident. [Michael Quijano, GOGA, via
CompuServe message from Herb Gercke, RAD/WRO, 7/1]
91-251 - Yosemite (California) - Accidental Shooting
L.S., 34, an off-duty concession security officer, shot
himself in the hand around 8:00 p.m. on June 21st. L.S. was
drinking in a concession bar when he reached into his fanny pack
and accidentally discharged his concealed .22 caliber derringer.
He was transported to the Yosemite clinic, then flown to Modesto
for further treatment. L.S. was later charged with carrying a
concealed weapon in magistrate court. [Law Enforcement Office,
YOSE, via CompuServe message from Herb Gercke, RAD/WRO, 7/1]
91-252 - Yosemite (California) - Drug Arrests
On June 29th, arrest warrants were obtained for four men for
possession and distribution of drugs in the park. Three of the
men - D.E., 38, J.G., 41, and W.P.,
24, all employees of Yosemite Park and Curry Company
were arrested without incident for distribution of LSD and
marijuana and for operating a continuing criminal enterprise.
The fourth man, C.D., 27, a former NPS employee, is
still at large. He has been charged with the distribution of
methamphetamines, rock cocaine and marijuana. C.D. was
recently arrested by the local drug task force on similar
charges. At the time of the arrest, he was en route to the park
with a shipment of cocaine and marijuana. [Law Enforcement
Office, YOSE, via CompuServe message from Herb Gercke, RAD/WRO,
7/1]
91-253 - Yosemite (California) - Structural Fire
A YCC crew was burning trash in Badger Pass on June 17th when a
cook trailer next to the fire ignited. Flames soon spread to
the exterior walls of the ski lodge. YCC crews and rangers at
Badger were able to quickly extinguish the fire. Damages are
estimated at $1,000. [Law Enforcement Office, YOSE, via
CompuServe message from Herb Gercke, RAD/WRO, 7/1]
91-254 - Yosemite (California) - Rescue
Late on the morning of the 26th, S.M., 32, fell 40 feet
while climbing Half Dome and landed on a ledge which was 400
feet below the summit. A medic was lowered to S.M.'s location
late in the afternoon, but rain and snow prevented evacuation.
The medic remained with S.M. on the ledge through the night.
S.M. was raised to the summit the next day; when the weather
cleared briefly around 4:00 p.m., he was picked up by helicopter
and flown to the valley floor. Over 20 people were involved in
the rescue effort. This was the 33rd SAR mission of the month.
[Law Enforcement Office, YOSE, via CompuServe message from Herb
Gercke, RAD/WRO, 7/1]
[Pending incident reports will appear in tomorrow's morning
report]
FIRE ACTIVITY
1) ACTIVITY LEVEL Planning Level II
2) FIRE SUMMARY
State Agency Area Fire 7/1 7/2 Status
AK BLM Tanana Zone B376 14,630 14,630 NEC
Up. Yukon Zone B541 250 250 NEC
AK State B356 5,170 5,170 NEC
B402 T2 1,220 1,110 NEC
B475 150 150 NEC
B492 T2 2,500 2,500 NEC
B402 T2 1,220 NR NEC
* B552 T2 1,200 NEC
104352 3,100 3,100 NEC
NM BLM Las Cruces * Good Hope 650 CN 7/1
Alaska also has 24 fires under modified suppression strategy for
27,451 acres and 43 fires under limited suppression for 60,305 acres.
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 * NEC No estimate of containment
* CS Confinement strategy
3) 1990/1991 COMPARATIVE ACTIVITY SUMMARY
Fires Acres
1991 (Year-to-date) 36,369 604,784
1990 (Year-to-date) 33,328 713,591
4) ANALYSIS - Fire activity has increased in Alaska and the
Southwest. Incidental overhead orders continue for Alaska, and
174 smoke jumpers have been sent to the state.
5) PROGNOSIS - Orders from Alaska and the Lower 48 are expected
to continue, but resources remain adequate.
[Fire Management Situation Report, NIFCC Intelligence Section,
0759 EDT, 7/2; NICC Daily Situation Report, 7/1]
RESOURCE MANAGEMENT
No reports today.
OPERATIONAL NOTES
1) "All Things Considered", the 90-minute evening news show on
National Public Radio, will have a feature segment on NPS
rangers either this evening or on an evening later this week.
The show is carried on NPR stations nationwide, usually at the
dinner hour. [Bill Halainen, RAD/WASO]
2) Early last month, we installed a new sign at the end of our
corridor in Main Interior. The standard, brown park sign has an
NPS arrowhead in one corner and reads: " Ranger Activities
Division: What Have We Done For Parks Today?" The sign looks
really good and captures the feelings of those here as to their
purpose for being in WASO. We'd now like to augment that sign
with 8 x 10, framed color photos of rangers in action in the
parks. If you have photos of rangers involved in SAR,
firefighting, LE, RM, interpretation or similar tasks and would
like to send it to us for enshrinement in the halls of RAD,
please send it along to Ranger Activities Division, Stop 3310,
National Park Service, Box 37127, Washington, DC 20013-7127.
Send it to the attention of Bill Halainen. [Walt Dabney,
RAD/WASO]
3) Production of the new uniform catalogue continues, and the
current projected release time is late July. The catalogue will
be accompanied by order forms which will allow employees to
purchase some of the new uniform items with FY 91 funds. A
lengthy memo to all uniformed employees explaining changes in
the uniform program will be sent out in midmonth. We'll keep
you posted on developments. [Bill Halainen, RAD/WASO]
STAFF STATUS
Division Chief: Dabney on AL (7/27/5).
Branch of Resource & Visitor Protection: Schamp on AL (7/2-7/3);
Halainen on AL (7/5).
Branch of Fire & Aviation: Cook on AL (7/1-7/5); Bristol on AL
(7/3-7/12).
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