- Subject: NPS Morning Report - Friday, October 25, 1996
- Date: Fri, 25 Oct 1996
NATIONAL PARK SERVICE
MORNING REPORT
To: All National Park Service Areas and Offices
From: Division of Ranger Activities, Washington Office
Day/Date: Friday, October 25, 1996
Broadcast: By 1000 ET
INCIDENTS
96-626 - Haleakala NP (Hawaii) - Follow-up on Drowning
Divers found the body of R.S., 26, of Ashland, Oregon, in a pool on the
Palikea stream above Makahiku Falls on October 21st, the day after he
disappeared after jumping into the pool with two friends. R.S. was found to
be wearing Birkenstock-type sandals, which may have contributed to his
difficulty in escaping the current. Although R.S.'s two companions were
able to swim free of the current to the sides of the pool, they had to be
rescued because the pool's steep, sheer sides made it impossible to climb out
and egress via the downstream side carried the risk of being swept over the
200-foot-high falls. Warning signs advising of high water flow hazards were
posted at the time of the incident, which took place after several days of
flash flood watches and warnings in the area. [Karen Ardoin, CR, HALE]
96-629 - Everglades NP (Florida) - Structural Fire
Park dispatch received an alarm from the automated fire alarm system at the
South Florida Natural Resources Center around 7 p.m. on October 19th.
Rangers Albert Faria and Ben Morgan, the fire brigade chief, responded and
found smoke coming from the building. One park and three Metro-Dade fire
units were dispatched to the site. Firefighters found that a floor fan had
shorted out in the unoccupied building and that carpeting and nearby
equipment had been burned. The park presently estimates the damage from
smoke and fire at $5,500. The tightly-sealed computer room prevented the
fire from getting additional oxygen and spreading through the building. The
Metro-Dade fire captain on scene credited the recently installed fire alarm
with saving the contents of the room from destruction and the building from
serious damage. The contents of the room were valued at $200,000. [Phil
Selleck, EVER]
96-630 - Canyonlands NP (Utah) - Structural Fire
An explosion and fire destroyed the pump house and all equipment within the
Island in the Sky District's housing and maintenance complex late on the
afternoon of October 23rd. Fire suppression efforts focused on protecting
adjacent exposures with fire extinguishers, since the fire disabled the pump
which provides pressure to district fire hydrants. An engine from Moab
responded and extinguished the fire in the remains of the building.
Additional support was provided by a slip-on pumper from Arches. No other
structures were lost. At present, there is no water, propane or telephone
service to the district, including the visitor center. Efforts are underway
to get interim services on line as quickly as possible so that residents
won't have to be displaced. The estimated replacement cost to the structure
and equipment is $50,000. The county fire warden/investigator was on scene
yesterday in an effort to determine the cause of the fire. The incident
commander for the initial response was Steve Swanke; Jim Webster led the unit
from Arches. [Larry Van Slyke, CR, CANY]
96-631 - Death Valley NP (California) - Significant Search in Progress
On October 21st, an abandoned vehicle was discovered in Anvil Springs Canyon,
a remote location in the park. The vehicle had been reported stolen from a
rental company in Los Angeles when it was not returned as scheduled on July
26th. At the same time, the four German national who'd rented the vehicle -
E.R., 33, C.M., 28, G.W., 10 and M.M., 4 - had
been reported as missing. Since their itinerary was unknown, the park had
not been notified of their disappearance. A ground search is underway with
mounted horse units and rescue teams and SAR groups from several state and
federal agencies. Updates will follow as the search continues. [Ann Holeso,
PIO, DEVA]
96-632 - National Capital Parks Central (D.C.) - Special Events
The park hosted several significant special events over the Columbus Day
weekend. Sponsors estimated that more than a million people participated in
these events, which included the following:
o AIDS memorial quilt - The mile-long quilt, comprised of 37,000 panels
representing 12 percent of all U.S. AIDS deaths, was displayed on the
Mall on Friday, Saturday and Sunday.
o Candlelight march - The Whitman-Walker Clinic sponsored a candlelight
AIDS march from the Capitol to the Lincoln Memorial on Saturday
evening. A rally and program followed on the west side of the
Reflecting Pool which featured Rev. Jesse Jackson, Elizabeth Taylor,
Kathy Matea, Judith Light and Betty Buckley.
o Latino march - On Saturday, Coordinadora '96 sponsored a march from
Meridian Hill Park to the Ellipse and a rally on the latter to promote
human and constitutional rights of Latino immigrants and their
community.
o "Taste of Washington" festival - A D.C. committee established to
promote the city sponsored a festival of food and music throughout the
weekend.
o Foot race - The Military District of Washington sponsored a 10
kilometer race on Sunday which began and ended at the Pentagon. A
substantial portion of the route was through the Mall area.
o ACT-UP demonstration - On Saturday, the AIDS Coalition to Unleash Power
(ACT-UP) marched to the White House sidewalk to demand leadership on
AIDS issues from the administration. Demonstrators tossed funeral urns
that they said contained ashes over the White House fence. Horse-
mounted Park Police officers dispersed the crowd of about 300
demonstrators. No arrests were made.
Many other Columbus Day events, athletic competitions and religious
celebrations also took place in the park. [Bill Lynch, LES, NCSO]
96-633 - San Antonio Missions NHP (Texas) - Special Event
On October 23rd, about 300 people participated in the filming of a portion of
the television mini-series "True Women" at Mission San Jose. Participants
included over 200 hundred extras and a large film crew; 50 horses were
utilized in the filming. The series features actors Powers Booth, Dana
Delaney and Michael York. Media attention included a segment recorded in the
park for "Entertainment Tonight." Park staff monitored all activities and
worked closely with San Antonio police. [Dan Steed, CR, SAAN]
[Additional reports pending...]
FIRE ACTIVITY
NATIONAL PREPAREDNESS LEVEL - Level II
LARGE FIRE/INCIDENT SUMMARY
Tues Thurs % Est
State Unit Fire/Incident IMT 10/22 10/24 Con Con
CA Los Padres NF Sur T2 1,040 3,260 25 NEC
Los Angeles County Calabasas -- 14,000 13,015 85 10/25
San Diego RU Harmony ST1 8,600 8,592 100 CND
Otay #322 -- 11,000 14,720 70 10/26
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
FIRE HIGHLIGHTS
Calabassas Fire, Los Angeles County and Santa Monica Mountains NRA - Progress
continues to be made on the fire. Involved agencies are evaluating the
reasons for their success in quickly containing this fire, as opposed to a
similar fire in 1993. Several factors have been cited, including more
aggressive enforcement of requirements for brush clearance, revised
firefighting tactics, and the availability of appropriate firefighting
resources, including a 2,000-gallon capacity helitanker and a 14,000-gallon
capacity fixed-wing "super scooper." Time and topography were also on the
firefighters side. The fire began in mid-morning, giving firefighters
several hours of daylight as the fire raced for the beach over rolling
plateaus and canyons. In 1993, the fire started in mid-afternoon and
followed steep, twisting canyons on its way to the beach. Secretary Babbitt
toured the area on Tuesday evening, observing first hand the work of hand
crews as they set backfires in Corral Canyon. As firefighting resources were
released on Wednesday, the NPS role in the fire increased. Area maps
developed by the park's GIS staff will provide base information for mapping
the fire, determining ownerships, and evaluating impacts to community and
natural resources. The fire burned entirely within the boundaries of the
park, consuming about 1,300 acres of park land.
NUMBER OF NEW FIRES (FIVE DAY TREND)
NPS BIA BLM FWS States USFS Total
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
Tuesday, 10/22 1 0 1 0 44 5 51
Wednesday, 10/23 - - - - - - -
Thursday, 10/24 0 1 3 0 21 8 33
TOTAL COMMITTED RESOURCES (FIVE DAY TREND)
Crews Engines Helicopters Airtankers Overhead
Saturday, 10/19 53 47 11 12 23
Sunday, 10/20 43 39 10 9 149
Monday, 10/21 * * * * *
Tuesday, 10/22 67 120 24 34 *
Wednesday, 10/23 -- --- -- -- -
Thursday, 10/24 149 335 32 17 851
* No reports were received in this category from southern California, where
almost all fire resources are currently deployed.
CURRENT SITUATION
No new significant fire activity was reported in southern California
yesterday. The large fires in the Malibu and San Diego areas are nearing
containment due to favorable weather conditions; the Sur fire continues to
threaten the community and recreational facilities in Big Sur. Resource
mobilization through NICC was minimal.
NATIONAL OUTLOOK
NICC has posted a HIGH WIND WATCH (winds 25-50 mph) for the mountains of
southern California and southeast Arizona, and a WIND ADVISORY for the
remainder of Arizona.
OPERATIONAL NOTES
Seasonal Park Ranger Update - On October 11th, documents describing the new
ranger careers seasonal park ranger program were released for final comment.
The new program proposes six benchmark position descriptions to describe
seasonal park ranger work and establishes a base level of GS-5 for all park
ranger work, whether permanent or seasonal. Several new occupational,
procedural and position management changes are also proposed. Comments are
welcome until November 15th and may be sent directly to William Sanders, the
ranger careers manager in Ranger Activities, at NP-WASO-POPS. [Bill Sanders,
RAD/WASO]
Special Park Uses Update - A total of 308 requests for copies of the draft of
NPS-53 have been made and filled since it was issued last month, but only 22
comments have been received to date. Please remember that all comments must
be submitted by November 15th. On another note: Last summer, WASO Budget
published a change in the PWEs that we use for special park uses and
incidental business permits. The PWE for the former changed from 456 to 318;
the PWE for the latter changed from 461 to 319. These changes were optional
for FY 96, but are now mandatory. There have been some problems sorting out
the centralized accounting for these PWEs which are being worked on by WASO
Budget and the Accounting Operations Center. Reports for these two accounts
may be skewed, however, until the glitches are resolved. Parks are therefore
advised to keep accurate records for these accounts. [Dick Young, RAD/WASO @
COLO]
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
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Prepared by the Division of Ranger Activities, WASO, with the cooperation and
support of Delaware Water Gap NRA.
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