- Subject: NPS Morning Report - Wednesday, July 3, 1996
- Date: Wed, 3 Jul 1996
NATIONAL PARK SERVICE
MORNING REPORT
To: All National Park Service Areas and Offices
From: Division of Ranger Activities, Washington Office
Day/Date: Wednesday, July 3, 1996
Broadcast: By 1000 ET
INCIDENTS
96-126 - Hawaii Volcanoes (Hawaii) - Follow-up on MVA with Employee Fatality
On June 28th, T.T., 20, pled guilty to a charge of involuntary
manslaughter in the March 29th accident which killed interpretive ranger Russ
Bickler. T.T. also pled guilty to charges of excessive speed, driving
without insurance, possession with intent to distribute cocaine and crack,
and causing substantial bodily harm to park VIP K.J., a passenger
in Bickler's vehicle. He will be sentenced on October 15th. [Yvette Ruan,
CR, HAVO]
96-321 - George Washington Birthplace (Virginia) - Follow-up on Storm Impacts
The park has reopened following clearance of debris caused by the storm on
June 24th. Numerous trees, most of them 65 or more years old, were blown
down, and large amounts of historic fencing were lost. Rehab of the area was
done through the concerted efforts of park staff with assistance from
personnel from Appomattox Courthouse, Colonial, Assateague Island,
Fredericksburg-Spottsylvania, and Fort McHenry. [John Donahue,
Superintendent, GEWA]
96-336 - Glen Canyon (Utah/Arizona) - Boating Accident; Double Fatality
J.G., 20, and D.D., 53, were killed when their 19-foot
boat struck an anchor buoy at the Wahweap breakwater around 1 a.m. on Sunday,
June 30th. The lone survivor of the accident, Cary Stoneberger, 32, suffered
only a minor laceration and was able to swim to the breakwater after the
accident. D.D. was pulled from under the capsized boat within minutes of
the accident. CPR was begun, but proved fruitless. A multi-agency search
was begun for J.G., the daughter of an Arizona Game and Fish
commissioner; her body was recovered in 145 feet of water by divers following
an extensive underwater search by the park's ROV (remote operated vessel).
Witnesses from the marina said that the boat was traveling at a high rate of
speed, slowed down momentarily, then was throttled up again just before
impact. Stoneberger said that D.D., the owner and operator of the
prototype bass boat, applied power in an attempt to avoid the buoy. It's
believed that alcohol was a contributing factor. [Tomie Lee, CR, GLCA]
96-337 - Southern Arizona Group (Arizona) - Threats To Federal Facilities
One of the federal buildings in Phoenix which was targeted by the Viper
militia members arrested on July 1st is adjacent to the Southern Arizona
Group office, and the other targeted buildings are all within several blocks
of the NPS office. A training video seized in the raid shows all the
buildings, and discusses shift changes and security measures at each site.
Other items seized in the raid included three machine guns and large
quantities of chemicals similar to those used in the Oklahoma City bombing
last year. A member of the group has claimed that he had a contact who had a
computer disk containing the names and addresses of federal agents. The
investigation continues. [Dwayne Collier, SOAR]
96-338 - Golden Gate (California) - Attempted Suicide
On the evening of June 26th, the Golden Gate Bridge was shut down due to a
major motor vehicle accident. As a result, Park Police officer Pat Fouty
remained on patrol in the Marin Headlands past his normal tour of duty. At
8:20 p.m., a distraught woman told Fouty that her suicidal husband was trying
to drive their van over a cliff with their two-year-old daughter inside.
Fouty found the vehicle; as he approached, the driver revved the engine and
made several attempts to drive over a log barrier. Negotiations were begun,
and Fouty was able to get the little girl out of the van. The father
insisted that his wife be brought to the scene so that she could watch him
drive over the edge. Sergeant Boyer arrived to assist. After several more
attempts by the driver to clear the log barrier, Boyer got him to roll down
his window and again tried to establish a dialogue. Boyer and Fouty then
quickly reached into the van, threw the gearshift into park, and removed the
keys. The distraught father was then taken into custody for a 72-hour
psychiatric evaluation. [Lt. Kevin Hay, USPP/CIB, GOGA]
96-339 - Baltimore/Washington Parkway (Maryland) - Closure
The Route 450 bridge over the parkway was restricted to one lane in each
direction on the evening of June 29th after a three foot by eight foot hole
was discovered following a heavy rainstorm. The bridge was closed for about
eight hours while Federal Highway Administration inspectors assessed the
structure. Only two lanes of the four-lane road will be open until repairs
are completed. [Bill Lynch, LES, NCFDO]
[Additional reports pending...]
FIRE ACTIVITY
NATIONAL PREPAREDNESS LEVEL - Level III
LARGE FIRE SUMMARY
% Est
State Unit Fire IMT 7/2 7/3 Con Con
CA San Bernadino NF Bee T1 8,723 9,580 40 NEC
Diego T1 500 500 0 NEC
Angeles NF Bichota Cx T2 1,800 2,000 60 7/3
AZ Kaibab NF Bridger Cx T2 50,000 50,000 60 7/2
Truxton Canyon Agncy * Black Tank -- - 200 0 NEC
ID Boise District * North Shore -- - 200 NR NR
* Notch Butte -- - 30,000 20 7/3
OR Burns District * Andrews Saloon -- - 300 0 NEC
AK Statewide 29 limited
suppression fires -- 356,853 356,651 -- --
ON Thunder Bay, Ontario Graham Cx T1 6,730 6,730 80 NEC
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 2 16 18 0 54 48 138
Acres Burned 1 268 33,147 0 2,471 547 36,433
COMMITTED RESOURCES
Crews Engines Helicopters Airtankers Overhead
Federal 135 243 58 22 569
Non-federal 71 100 3 0 144
CURRENT SITUATION
Initial attack operations continued throughout the West yesterday; new, large
fires were reported in the eastern Great Basin, Southwest and Northwest.
Significant progress was made on some of the fires in California. Resource
mobilization through NICC remained moderate.
NATIONAL OUTLOOK
NICC has posted a FIRE WEATHER WATCH for dry lightning in central Nevada.
Warmer and drier conditions over much of the West will increase the chances
for fires, as will activities associated with the upcoming holiday.
[NICC Incident Management Situation Report, 7/3]
RESOURCE MANAGEMENT
No submissions.
OPERATIONAL NOTES
Safety Advisory - A mechanic at Valley Forge was working on some interior
wiring on a patrol vehicle in June. While removing the rear seat, he came
within a fraction of an inch of striking an uncapped hypodermic syringe, and
discovered several packets of possible narcotics thrust between the seats.
Caution should be exercised by anyone performing maintenance on the interiors
of patrol vehicles, particularly around hidden areas that prisoners may be
able to reach. [Earl Cram, Safety Specialist, VAFO]
Hepatitis B Immunity - OSHA states that about ten percent of people who
receive hepatitis B vaccinations never develop sufficient immunity to protect
them from contracting the disease. Although not required by the bloodborne
pathogen standard, it's a good idea to have a hepatitis B surface antibody
blood test performed to make sure that sufficient immunity has been developed
by those vaccinated to protect them from the disease. OSHA recommends the
following treatment for those who don't develop immunities: "If the exposed
person is known not to have responded to the primary vaccine series, the
exposed person should be given either a single dose of HBIG (hepatitis B
immune globin) and a dose of hepatitis B vaccine as soon as possible after
the exposure, or two doses of HBIG (0.06 m/kg), one given as soon as possible
after the exposure and the second one month later. The latter treatment is
preferred for those who have failed to respond to at least four doses of the
vaccine." The treatment may also be used for employees who have not been
vaccinated, or employees who have an exposure prior to developing an immunity
after starting the vaccination series. [Earl Cram, Safety Specialist, VAFO;
with concurrence from WASO Safety]
Critical Incident Management - A new publication from the National Wildfire
Coordinating Group, entitled "Agency Administrator's Guide to Critical
Incident Management," has been disseminated to every park in the system (one
copy each). Additional copies may be ordered through the publication
management system at the National Interagency Fire Center in Boise. [Doug
Erskine, Fire and Aviation Management, NPS, Boise]
MEMORANDA
No submissions.
EXCHANGE
No submissions.
OBSERVATIONS
Since tomorrow is the Fourth of July, it seems fitting to repeat today one of
the first "Observations" to appear in the Morning Report. We will return to
new entries next week....
"There is nothing so American as our national parks. The scenery and
wildlife are native. The fundamental idea behind the parks is native. It
is, in brief, that the country belongs to the people, that it is in process
of making for the enrichment of the lives of all of us. The parks stand as
the outward symbol of this great human principle."
- President Franklin D. Roosevelt
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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