- Subject: NPS Morning Report - Tuesday, October 22, 1996
- Date: Tues, 22 Oct 1996
NATIONAL PARK SERVICE
MORNING REPORT
To: All National Park Service Areas and Offices
From: Division of Ranger Activities, Washington Office
Day/Date: Tuesday, October 22, 1996
Broadcast: By 1000 ET
INCIDENTS
96-608 - Saguaro NP (Arizona) - Drug Trafficking; Aggravated Assault
Ranger Brian Rutledge stopped a pickup truck on Sandario Road for a traffic
violation on the afternoon of October 17th. The two occupants appeared to be
very nervous. A warrants check was run on both, and the driver was taken
into custody for an outstanding arrest warrant and secured in Rutledge's
patrol vehicle. Rutledge searched the pickup truck while ranger Jon Hale and
a deputy kept an eye on the second man. Rutledge found a large duffel bag
containing 27 bricks of marijuana. The second man immediately fled into the
desert, but was tackled by the rangers and the deputy. A violent struggle
ensued in which Hale was struck twice in the abdomen. The man was finally
subdued when the deputy sprayed him with pepper spray. During the struggle,
the first man kicked out the left side window of the patrol car and fled on
foot, his hands still handcuffed behind him. He was caught a half hour later
by responding deputies. Felony charges of marijuana trafficking, aggravated
assault and escape are pending. The two men each have over 15 pages of
felony criminal history; one is also suspected in a homicide. The
investigation continues. [Robert Stinson, DR, SAGU]
96-609 - Blue Ridge Parkway (North Carolina/Virginia) - Armed Robbery
R.D. and J.D. of Aiken, South Carolina, were accosted while sitting
in their parked vehicle at Waterrock Knob overlook just after noon on October
17th. The man, who wore sunglasses and had a scarf wrapped around his face,
brandished a tire iron, claimed to possess a gun and a knife, and threatened
to kill the couple if they refused to hand over cash and valuables. He also
demanded a camcorder which was visible in the D.'s vehicle, but
R.D. was able to negotiate payment of additional cash in return for keeping
it. Their assailant's tone was polite, and he said that he wanted to be
known as a "gentleman thief." He left the parkway at Soco Gap with about
$200 in twenty dollar bills but no other property. He is described as a
slender white male, five feet five inches tall, weighing about 130 pounds.
[CRO, BLRI]
96-610 - Redwood NP (California) - Pipe Bomb
A pipe bomb was discovered by an inmate crew working on a resource project in
the Bald Hills Road area on the morning of October 15th. The bomb was on a
tree stump about five feet from the road. The inmates notified their
captain, who in turn notified rangers. The county bomb specialist was called
to the scene and was able to dismantle the device. This pipe bomb is similar
to the one found in the park two months ago. Bald Hills Road was closed for
several hours. The investigation continues. [Dana Sullivan, REDW]
96-611 - Lake Mead NRA (Nevada/Arizona) - Illegal Commercial Operation
Earlier this year, park staff contacted a Las Vegas company called "Extreme
Marine" regarding possible illegal commercial operations on Lake Powell. On
the first weekend in October, rangers Dave Chapman (Grand Canyon) and Thane
Weigand assisted the Grand Canyon concessions office in again contacting the
company, which was running an illegal tour up the Lower Gorge from Pearce
Ferry. The contact resulted in citations and the seizure of a 1996 Dodge
pickup with a V-10 engine, a trailer with five jet skis, and a second trailer
with one jet ski. [Paul Berkowitz, SA, GRCA]
[Numerous additional pending reports will appear tomorrow...]
FIRE ACTIVITY
NATIONAL PREPAREDNESS LEVEL - Level II
LARGE FIRE/INCIDENT SUMMARY
Sun Mon % Est
State Unit Fire/Incident IMT 10/20 10/21 Con Con
CA Los Padres NF Sur T2 650 680 85 10/21
Los Angeles County * Calabasas -- - 12,100 0 NEC
San Diego RU * Harmony ST1 - 4,500 0 NEC
* Rincon -- - 300 0 NEC
Orange County * Lemon Heights -- - NR 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; LPS = limited
protection status
NUMBER OF NEW FIRES (FIVE DAY TREND)
NPS BIA BLM FWS States USFS Total
Thursday, 10/17 0 12 5 0 18 10 45
Friday, 10/18 1 0 2 0 26 9 38
Saturday, 10/19 0 0 0 0 15 1 16
Sunday, 10/20 0 0 0 0 20 4 24
Monday, 10/21 0 0 0 0 24 6 30
TOTAL COMMITTED RESOURCES (FIVE DAY TREND)
Crews Engines Helicopters Airtankers Overhead
Thursday, 10/17 25 81 12 1 28
Friday, 10/18 21 77 9 0 51
Saturday, 10/19 53 47 11 12 23
Sunday, 10/20 43 39 10 9 149
Monday, 10/21 * * * * *
* No reports were received from southern California, where almost all fire
resources are currently deployed.
CURRENT SITUATION
Santa Ana winds caused significant fire activity in southern California
yesterday. Resource mobilization to the area through NICC included air
tankers, radios, crews, and miscellaneous overhead.
Numerous evacuations have occurred in the area around the Calabasas fire,
which is burning in some of the areas that burned in the 1993 Malibu fire. A
dozen homes have been destroyed by the Harmony fire, with many more
threatened. The Rincon fire threatens over 200 structures. Ten homes were
burned and 16 more damaged by the Lemon Heights/Mardick fire.
NATIONAL OUTLOOK
NICC has posted a RED FLAG WARNING for gusty Santa Ana winds below passes and
canyons in southern California.
OPERATIONAL NOTES
Omnibus Bill - The Director transmitted the following note to all staff on
October 18th. It is being passed on to you for your information: "It now
appears that the Omnibus Parks and Public Lands bill may not be signed into
law by the President for some time yet, perhaps not until after the election.
This is just a reminder that until the bill is signed, the National Park
Service does not have authority to implement its provisions."
Jet Ski Use - Ranger Activities is receiving more and more calls and
inquiries regarding the use of personal watercraft (jet skis) in national
parks. The calls are coming from Congress, other agencies, the boating
industry, conservation organizations and jet ski owners, to name just a few.
Ranger Activities would like to put together some information on jet ski use
to respond to these inquiries. Specifically:
o Which parks currently permit the use of personal watercraft?
o What bodies of water are they being used on?
o Are the uses controversial or creating any problems?
o Which parks currently prohibit the use of personal watercraft?
o Which parks are considering prohibiting the use of personal watercraft
in the future?
o Which parks currently use personal watercraft in their patrol
operations?
This issue is becoming increasingly significant and will be addressed in the
update of 36 CFR Part 3. If you can help with any of these questions, please
send a note via cc:Mail to Dennis Burnett in Ranger Activities at NP-WASO-
POPS.
MEMORANDA
No submissions.
EXCHANGE
Ammunition - Buffalo NR has 2,000 rounds of .357 service ammunition available
to any park willing to pay the shipping charges. Contact Mark Moseley at
501-741-5443 extension 113 or via cc:Mail at Mark Moseley at NP-BUFF.
* * * * *
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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