- Subject: NPS Morning Report - Thursday, July 11, 1996
- Date: Thurs, 11 Jul 1996
NATIONAL PARK SERVICE
MORNING REPORT
To: All National Park Service Areas and Offices
From: Division of Ranger Activities, Washington Office
Day/Date: Thursday, July 11, 1996
Broadcast: By 1000 ET
INCIDENTS
96-340 - Caribbean/Florida Parks - Follow-up on Hurricane Bertha
Parks from Florida to North Carolina accelerated preparations for Hurricane
Bertha yesterday, with the anticipation of at least tropical storm level
winds along the Florida coast and hurricane winds at more northerly
locations. A follow-up report has also been received from the Virgin
Islands. Please note that reports were received at different times. The
balance were submitted late yesterday before the hurricane's shift to a more
northerly course:
o Cape Hatteras - Ocracoke, Hatteras and Bodie Islands have been
evacuated, and all NPS facilities have been secured. Fort Raleigh and
Wright Brothers remained open yesterday. All traveler information
stations on the seashore have been updated with current information on
the hurricane. The northern section of Dare County may be evacuated
later today, depending on the storm's track. Some park employees on
Ocracoke and Hatteras Islands were released yesterday; others came in
today and completed preparations for the hurricane. Fort Raleigh and
Wright Brothers - the other two parks in the Cape Hatteras group - have
also completed preparations, except that their visitor centers remain
open for visitor information until noon, at which time they will be
closed. At that time, essential employees in all three parks will be
put on standby. All other employees have been or will soon be
released. Superintendent Russell Berry is IC.
o Cape Lookout - The park closed yesterday, and will be completely shut
down today. Concessions operators transported guests out of the park,
and park employees were evacuated.
o Fort Sumter - Parks in the Fort Sumter group - Fort Sumter, Fort
Moultrie and Charles Pinckney - remained open yesterday. Fort Sumter
is closed this morning; the remaining two sites will remain open today
as community information points. Sustained winds of 35 - 40 mph and
heavy rains are predicted for the area.
o Fort Pulaski - Employees on leave have been called back to assist in
the implementation of the hurricane plan. Cockspur Island was closed
to incoming traffic in early afternoon, and the area around the fort
was cleared of visitors. Files, sensitive equipment and artifacts were
moved to dry areas of the fort, which has withstood numerous hurricanes
since its completion in 1847.
o Fort Frederica - Park grounds were closed at 11:30 a.m. yesterday, and
the entire was closed by late afternoon. All non-essential employees
were discharged. Park structures and houses have been boarded up, and
computers and essential records have been transported to the mainland.
The chief ranger, superintendent and their families have moved inland
to Waycross, Georgia. If landfall is on or near St. Simons Island,
efforts will be made to return to the area - by boat, if necessary -
within a day of Bertha's passage.
o Cumberland Island - All areas of the park were closed by 5 p.m.
yesterday. Park staff and all visitors were evacuated to inland
locations.
o Fort Carolina/Timuacan - Employees at both parks will be returning to
work this morning due to the cancellation of the hurricane warning for
Florida last night. It's estimated that park facilities will be
reopened by noon today. Primary step-down activities include the
removal of shutters on buildings throughout the park.
o Castillo de San Marcos/Fort Matanzas - Boats have been pulled and
stored inland, and equipment and material have been loaded in rental
trucks for evacuation. The fort portion of Fort Matanzas has been
closed, and the fort secured for heavy winds and rain. Winds of over
40 mph and high surf and tides were forecast for the area for late last
night.
o Canaveral - The park began final shutdown operations yesterday morning
and closed as of 10 a.m.
o Everglades - The park began standing down from storm preparations
yesterday, effective at 6:30 a.m. All employees returned to work.
o Biscayne - The park was reopened as of noon yesterday due to the change
in the hurricane's path. Efforts focused on readying the visitor
center for reopening today.
o Virgin Islands - A preliminary assessment of all park areas was
completed late on July 9th. All roads were open as of noon on the
10th, and park facilities were reopening. All guests to the campground
at Cinnamon Bay returned from local hurricane shelters. All park
personnel have been contacted; while many had damage to their property,
all were doing well. Many areas of the park are without power and
operating on generators, where available. The park staff is focusing
its efforts on removing debris, clearing trails, opening buildings and
generally returning to normal operations. The park is working closely
with local agencies. A more comprehensive assessment is underway and
should be completed by week's end.
[Kent Cave, CR, FOPU; Bob Panko, IC, EVER; Bill DeHart, IC/CR, CANA; Wendell
Simpson, Superintendent, CANA; Ray Morris, CI&RM, FOFR; Gary Bremen, PIO,
BISC; John Tucker, FOSU; Mark Woods, VIIS; Bob Woody, CI&VS, CAHA; Chuck
Harris, CR, CALO; C. Dale, CR/IC, CASA/FOMA; Suzanne Lewis, FOCA/TIMU; CRO,
CUIS; Steve Smith, SEFDO]
96-354 - Yosemite (California) - Major Slide; Multiple Fatalities, Injuries
Preliminary information has been received through an on-line news service
(Modesto Bee) of a massive rock slide which fell near and on the Happy Isles
Nature Center. A 200-foot portion of the sheer granite cliff at Glacier
Point broke loose just after 7 p.m., sending a half-mile-wide section of
rocks down the cliff. A portion of the nature center was buried. Rangers
confirmed one fatality and seven injuries by midnight, but the number is
likely to rise significantly. Restrooms, a shuttle bus stop, a snack stand,
and the Vernal and Nevada Falls' trail head are all located at the site of
the rock fall. Much of the damage apparently was caused by the huge blast of
air pushed by the rock slide. The wind knocked over trees and sent debris
flying. Every search and rescue ranger in the park was called to the scene
immediately, as were the four nurses from the park's clinic. Dog teams were
brought in, and, at the park's request, the state dispatched an urban search
and rescue team to Yosemite. Numerous helicopters were employed to evacuate
victims to area hospitals. Additional reports will follow. [Modesto Bee,
based on on-scene reports and comments from Mary Vocelka of YOSE]
[Additional reports pending....]
FIRE ACTIVITY
NATIONAL PREPAREDNESS LEVEL - Level III
LARGE FIRE SUMMARY
% Est
State Unit Fire IMT 7/10 7/11 Con Con
UT State Sorenson Cx T1 44,473 44,473 96 7/11
Salt Lake District Davis Knoll Cx T1 36,000 38,140 70 7/12
Cedar City District * Rock Corral -- - 480 50 7/13
NV Carson City District Nixon -- 3,000 3,000 100 CND
State Schoolhouse #2 -- 347 347 100 CND
OR Deschutes NF Jefferson T2 300 300 15 7/11
Burns District Burnt Flat -- 3,500 5,000 30 7/11
Paul Creek -- 200 200 100 CND
Vale District Gin Basin -- 1,700 1,700 90 7/10
Warm Springs Agency * Kuckup -- - 1,310 100 CND
AZ AZ Strip District * Jump Canyon -- - 350 0 NEC
TX State Byrd Branch -- 140 140 100 CND
AK Statewide 31 LSS fires -- 379,457 380,470 -- --
NM# Mescalero Agency Chino Well Flood T1 - - - -
# An observant reader correctly noted that the Mescalero Agency was
inadvertently placed in Arizona in yesterday's report. It has been moved
back to New Mexico...
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; LPS = limited
protection status
FIRES AND ACRES BURNED
NPS BIA BLM FWS States USFS Total
Number 5 21 44 2 109 88 269
Acres Burned 17 1,339 3,488 1,510 339 680 7,373
COMMITTED RESOURCES
Crews Engines Helicopters Airtankers Overhead
Federal 116 225 55 6 403
Non-federal 28 18 3 0 130
CURRENT SITUATION
Initial attack continued in most areas of the West yesterday, but significant
progress was made on containing several large fires in the Great Basin.
NATIONAL OUTLOOK
NICC has issued a fire weather watch for dry lightning in northern and
central Nevada and northeast California.
Dry lightning may cause an increase in initial attack in those areas.
[NICC Incident Management Situation Report, 7/11]
RESOURCE MANAGEMENT
No submissions.
OPERATIONAL NOTES
No submissions.
MEMORANDA
No submissions.
EXCHANGE
No submissions.
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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