- Subject: NPS Morning Report - Monday, May 13, 1996
- Date: Mon, 13 May 1996
NATIONAL PARK SERVICE
MORNING REPORT
To: All National Park Service Areas and Offices
From: Division of Ranger Activities, Washington Office
Day/Date: Monday, May 13, 1996
Broadcast: By 1000 ET
INCIDENTS
96-197 - Homestead (Nebraska) - Follow-up on Tornado
One of the four tornadoes that struck the area last Wednesday night
apparently first touched down just north of the park, then proceeded through
it and continued for another nine miles to the city of Beatrice. Neither
this nor the other three tornadoes caused any significant damage to the park
or any employee residence in Beatrice. The majority of damage inflicted on
the park was to trees (80 to 100 were lost), three miles of fence, and the
east entrance sign. Five homes and an apartment building in a housing
division adjacent to Homestead were demolished, and the debris from the
structures is spread across 30 to 40 acres of the park's tallgrass prairie.
Debris pickup will be the biggest problem, because the tallgrass prairie is
not well-suited to raking. It's estimated that it'll take about 7,000 work
hours to clean it all up. Much of the debris is comprised of asphalt
shingles, glass and fiberglass insulation, which eliminates burning as an
option. Practical alternatives to hand labor are being sought. [Costa
Dillon, Superintendent, HOME]
96-200 - Everglades/Big Cypress (Florida) - Assist; Airliner Crash
On the afternoon of Saturday, May 11th, a DC-9 airliner with 109 people on
board crashed about eight miles north of Everglades NP and about 20 miles
west of Miami International Airport. Everglades received an initial request
for a helicopter from the National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB), but a
local aircraft operator was able to fill the request. On the morning of May
12th, an interagency meeting was held to coordinate response to the accident.
The Florida Freshwater Fish and Game Commission asked the NPS for airboats
and operators to help with the transportation of personnel to and from the
crash site. Everglades provided two airboats with three operators; Big
Cypress provided another two airboats with two operators. The commission
expressed its thanks, as its personnel had been on duty at the site for over
24 hours. Park employees were to remain on duty at the site until 6 a.m.
this morning, then be replaced by commission employees. No further requests
for NPS assistance have been received, but the parks are standing by to help
as needed. The communications center at Everglades, which serves the south
Florida parks, has been coordinating communications and resource orders for
both parks. Calls requesting information about the crash and its impacts on
the Everglades environment have been coming in from as far away as Australia.
Requests for information about the crash are being referred to NTSB, the
designated contact point. [Phil Selleck, EVER]
96-201 - Fort Scott (Kansas) - Bomb Threat
The governor of Kansas was scheduled to visit the park at noon on May 8th.
About two hours prior to his arrival, the Fort Scott police department
received a bomb threat over the telephone in which the caller said he'd
placed a bomb in the area of the old fort within the park. The park was
notified, and chief law enforcement ranger Kelley Collins coordinated a joint
response with town police and state troopers who protect the governor. A
bomb dog was brought in, but found no sign of any explosives. The visit by
the governor took place without incident. Fort Scott police describe the
caller as an older man, and have some leads. The investigation is
continuing; state and federal charges are pending. It's not clear whether
the park or the governor was the target of the threat. [Bruce Cunningham,
LES, MWFDO]
96-202 - Herbert Hoover (Iowa) - Flooding
Severe thunderstorms which struck the area on May 9th dropped about four
inches of rain within a short period of time, causing the Wapsinonoc Creek to
overflow its banks just after 12:30 a.m. on the 10th. Maintenance workers,
protection rangers and the superintendent responded. Maintenance shop
equipment was raised, the building was sandbagged, and pumps were set up.
The village green and two parking lots were inundated; two roads were flooded
but passable. Some basements also flooded. No damage to cultural resources
has yet been found. The flood level was six inches lower than the worst of
the 1993 floods. Cleanup was to continue through the weekend. [Carol Kohan,
MWFDO]
FIRE ACTIVITY
NATIONAL PREPAREDNESS LEVEL - Level II
LARGE FIRE SUMMARY
% Est
State Unit Fire IMT 5/10 5/13 Con Con
AK State * Kazakof Bay T2 - 1,500 0 NEC
* Hidden Creek -- - 150 0 NEC
* Bear Mountain -- - 200 20 5/12
NV Elko District * Bradshaw -- - 60 100 CND
* Rainbow -- - 100 100 CND
NM Carson NF Hondo T1 7,650 7,651 100 CND
FL Everglades NP 232 Ave #3 -- 814 814 100 CND
Star Grove -- 1,121 1,121 100 CND
Heading Notes
Unit -- Agency = BIA area; NF = national forest; RU = CA state resource
or ranger unit; RD = state ranger district; District = BLM
district; NWR = USFWS wildlife refuge
Fire -- * = newly reported fire (on this report); Cx = complex; LSS =
limited suppression strategy; CSS = containment suppression
strategy
IMT -- T1 = Type 1; T2 = Type II; ST = State Team
% Con -- Percent of fire contained
Est Con -- Estimated containment date; NEC = no estimated date of
containment; CND = fully contained; NR = no report
FIRES AND ACRES BURNED
NPS BIA BLM FWS States USFS Total
Number 0 0 6 1 29 15 51
Acres Burned 0 5 1,825 100 882 99 2,906
COMMITTED RESOURCES
Crews Engines Helicopters Airtankers Overhead
Federal 56 68 20 0 214
Non-federal 7 3 4 0 14
CURRENT SITUATION
Initial attack and large fire activity increased yesterday in Alaska and in
the western Great Basin. Demobilization of resources continues in the
Southwest; resource mobilization through NICC was minimal.
NATIONAL OUTLOOK
Dry lightning will increase the potential for escaped fires in the Southwest.
[NICC Incident Management Situation Report, 5/13]
RESOURCE MANAGEMENT
No submissions.
OPERATIONAL NOTES
Submissions pending.
MEMORANDA
No submissions.
EXCHANGE
Rifles Available - Death Valley has a number of .223 caliber Mini 14 rifles
with folding or standards stocks and spare magazines that they'd like to
survey to interested parks. They're also offering them to interested parties
in BLM, the Forest Service, and the Fish and Wildlife Service. If you're
interested, please contact Dale Antonich or Bud Inman at 702-293-8908.
TRAINING AND WORKSHOP CALENDAR
Two calendars alternate in the Morning Report on Mondays - this one, which
contains training courses and workshops, and a second, which contains
meetings, conferences and events. If you know of a conference, meeting,
workshop or training session with Servicewide interest and implications,
please send the information along. Entries are listed no earlier than FOUR
months before the event, EXCEPT in instances in which registration dates
close much earlier. Asterisks indicate new entries; brackets at end of entry
indicate source of information. Brevity is appreciated.
5/20-23 -- Advanced Conservation of Geologic Materials, Yellowstone, NP, WY.
Cost is $350 before May 1. Discounts if in conjunction with
course listed above (prerequisite). Contact: Sally Shelton, 619-
232-3821 x 226 (phone), 619-232-0248 (fax), libsdnhm@class.org
(e-mail). [Diane Vogt O'Connor, CSD/WASO] [Diane Vogt O'Connor,
CSD/WASO]
5/29-31* -- Basic Environmental Investigations Training, Scottsdale, AZ.
Sponsored by Western States Project Enforcement Network.
Contact: Kathy Braase, 602-542-8511. [Einar Olsen, CR, NCFDO]
6/1-5 -- SCA Comprehensive Conservation Work Skills Program, Yellowstone
NP, WY. Projects will deal with building with rock, site
restoration and revegetation, trail tread and drainage, basic
timber, and survey and design. $625. Contact: Debi Monroe, 603-
543-1700. [David Kratz, FRLA]
6/5-7 -- "Past Reflection Builds Future Perfection," National Asian
Pacific American Women Tenth National Training Conference. Cost:
$150 before May 10th, then $175. For registration information,
write NAPAW, 10th National Training Conference, PO Box 494,
Washington Grove, MD 20880-0494. Contact: Colleen Spicka at NP-
NCRO-FIN. [Colleen Spicka, NCFDO]
6/8-16 -- Rock Art Field School, Deadman Wash, Coconino National Forest,
AZ. Costs are $60 for the field school, $20 for membership in
Arizona Archeological Society, $10 for enrollment in AAS
certification program. Contact: Jane Kolber, 520-432-3402.
[Diane Vogt O'Connor, CSD/WASO]
6/12-14 -- Incidental Business Permits/Special Park Uses, San Francisco, CA.
Specific meeting location TBA. Contact: Laurie Shaffer via
cc:Mail at NP-DSC-AP. [Laurie Shaffer, DSC]
6/16-21 -- Managerial Grid: Phase I and Instructor Preparation Seminars,
Jackson, MS. Phase I is a prerequisite for attending the IP
seminar. Sponsored by ANPR. Cost: $500 for members, $550 for
non-members. Deadline for applications is May 10th; they should
be sent to ANPR, PO Box 307, Gansevoort, NY 12831. Contact: Paul
Anderson; Ann Baugh, 520-638-2691; or Bill Wade, 540-999-3400.
[Bill Wade, SHEN]
6/17-20 -- "Progression Through Challenge," Training Conference, Interagency
Committee on Women in Federal Law Enforcement, Omni Shoreham
Hotel, Washington, DC. This training conference is the largest
federal government training of its kind; 900 people attended last
year. Men are welcome. Cost: $250 (before Mary 17th). Contact:
Pamela Dickenson at 202-433-9175 (phone) or 202-433-0904 (fax).
[Colleen Spicka, NCFDO]
7/14-19* -- Advanced Wilderness Management Training for Line Officers and
Staff, Trappers Lake, White River NF, near Meeker, CO. REPLY DUE
BY MAY 31st. The workshop is designed to strengthen the
understanding of wilderness values and concepts, and will enhance
line and staff knowledge of current resources and management
issues affecting wilderness. Three days and two nights will be
spent in the Flat Tops wilderness. Contact: Tim Devine at 970-
586-1244, or Greg Kroll at 406-626-5208. [Wes Henry, RAD/WASO]
OBSERVATIONS
"Twenty centuries of progress have brought the average citizen a vote, a
national anthem, a Ford, a bank account, and a high opinion of himself, but
not the capacity to live in high density without befouling and denuding his
environment, nor a conviction that such density is the true test of whether
he is civilized."
Aldo Leopold, from "Quotable
Quotes: Relating to Conservation in
General and the National Parks in
Particular," Department of
Interior, 1950s
Distribution of the Morning Report is through a mailing list managed by park,
office and/or field area cc:Mail hub coordinators. Please address requests
for the Morning Report to your servicing hub coordinator.
Prepared by the Division of Ranger Activities, WASO, with the cooperation and
support of Delaware Water Gap NRA.
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