- Subject: NPS Morning Report - Monday, September 15, 1997
- Date: Mon, 15 Sep 1997
NATIONAL PARK SERVICE
MORNING REPORT
To: All National Park Service Areas and Offices
From: Division of Ranger Activities, Washington Office
Day/Date: Monday, September 15, 1997
Broadcast: By 1000 ET
INCIDENTS
97-542 - Olympic NP (WA) - SAR Follow-up; Accident with NPS Deaths, Injuries
On the afternoon of Friday, September 12th, a Bell 205-A helicopter which was
participating in the search for J.D. crashed just outside of the park
in Olympic NF, killing three of the helicopter's eight occupants and injuring
the remaining five. One of the dead and all five of the injured are NPS
employees or volunteers. Killed were Taryn Hoover, 31, a seasonal employee
from Olympic NP, the pilot, Kevin Johnston, 35, from Eugene, Oregon, and Rita
McMahon 52, of West Coast Search Dogs, from Aberdeen, Washington. Injured
were seasonal employees Heidi Pederson, 32, and Cynthia Stern, 24, and park
volunteers Christopher Cantway, 26, David Leeman, 26, and Robert Feldmann,
27. As of yesterday morning, Cantway and Leeman had been treated and
released, but the other three were still hospitalized. All are expected to
recover fully. An investigation of the accident was begun on Saturday by a
team comprised of representatives from the NTSB, FAA, DOI Office of Aircraft
Safety, and Bell, the manufacturer of the crashed helicopter. The crash
occurred just after Johnston had picked up the other seven, all members of a
search team combing the Mount Baldy area for J.D., 73, who has been
missing since September 6th. [Barb Maynes, PIO, OLYM, 9/12-14]
97-553 - Grand Canyon NP (AZ) - Follow-up on Search
Search efforts are continuing for the two hikers who were swept away by a
flash flood on September 11th. The hikers have been identified as P.M. and
J.M., both 40, from New Orleans, Louisiana. The couple and P.M.'s
brother, J.M., were caught by a five-foot-high wall of water
which came down Bright Angel Creek. The trio saw the water coming and jumped
behind a boulder for protection, but the force of the water washed them down
the stream. J.M. was able to get to shore and walked the half mile to
Phantom Ranch to report the incident. On Saturday, about 50 people, three
dog teams and two helicopters were involved in the search effort, but the
search was scaled back on Sunday due to the lack of significant clues. It
will continue on a limited basis until further notice. Scattered
thunderstorms struck the area on the day of the flood, one of which dropped
just under two inches of rain on the North Rim - equivalent to the average
rainfall for that area for the entire month of September. Several witnesses
at Phantom Ranch said they saw the wall of water come down the creek and that
they heard a loud rumble and could feel the ground shake as it approached.
[PIO, GRCA, 9/12-14]
97-554 - Grand Canyon NP (AZ) - Follow-up on Lightning Injuries
The two German visitors who were injured by the lightning strike on the
afternoon of August 11th have been identified as H.P., 26, and
J.M., 24, both from Kiel, Germany. As of Friday, H.P., who
was struck directly by the bolt, was in fair condition at a hospital in
Flagstaff. J.M. had been treated and was released. [PIO, GRCA, 9/12]
97-563 - Grand Canyon NP (AZ) - Assault
Around 5 a.m. on September 10th, South Rim rangers received a report of an
assault with a firearm which had occurred several hours previously in a
concession employee apartment complex. Rangers identified the suspected
assailant as J.M., 29, a concession employee. Following an
argument with his girlfriend at the Maswik Lodge bar, J.M. retrieved a
loaded .38 special revolver from his apartment, then went to a nearby
apartment to search for her. When the two male occupants of the apartment
came out to talk to J.M., he pointed the gun at them and threatened to
shoot them. J.M. then returned home and fired a single shot into the
air, which evidently caused neither injury nor property damage. J.M.
was arrested for assault with a dangerous weapon. The revolver was recovered
from his apartment. [David Brennan, SDR, South Rim, GRCA, 9/14]
97-564 - Grand Canyon NP (AZ) - Search
The park received a report of a missing river trip passenger late yesterday
morning. The incident occurred on the Colorado River about five miles above
Diamond Creek. The commercial river tour group camped along the river on
Saturday evening; on Sunday morning, the person was found to be missing from
camp. Members of the party searched for the person, but without luck. They
then traveled by boat to Diamond Creek and reported the incident. A search
was begun yesterday and will continue today. [PIO, GRCA, 9/14]
[Additional reports pending...]
FIRE ACTIVITY
NATIONAL PREPAREDNESS LEVEL - Level II
LARGE FIRE/INCIDENT SUMMARY
Thu Sun % Est
State Unit Fire/Incident IMT 9/11 9/14 Con Con
UT Salt Lake District Pennie -- 700 700 100 CND
CA San Bernadino NF * Mill T1 - 1,200 80 9/15
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
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
NUMBER OF NEW FIRES (FIVE DAY TREND)
NPS BIA BLM FWS States USFS Total
Wednesday, 9/10 2 3 19 0 23 72 119
Thursday, 9/11 2 2 43 0 58 51 156
Friday, 9/12 1 1 16 0 28 18 64
Saturday, 9/13 NR NR NR NR NR NR NR
Sunday, 9/14 0 2 8 1 6 19 36
TOTAL COMMITTED RESOURCES (FIVE DAY TREND)
Crews Engines Helicopters Airtankers Overhead
Wednesday, 9/10 20 87 13 3 3
Thursday, 9/11 19 85 10 0 9
Friday, 9/12 10 16 6 0 2
Saturday, 9/13 NR NR NR NR NR
Sunday, 9/14* 4 38 6 0 2
* No reports received from southern California.
CURRENT SITUATION
Large fire activity continued in southern California yesterday, but there was
little activity elsewhere. Very high to extreme fire indices were reported
in several units in southern California, the Great Basin and the northern
Rockies.
NICC has issued a FIRE WEATHER WATCH for strong winds in eastern Nevada.
[NICC Incident Management Situation Report, 9/13 and 15]
RESOURCE MANAGEMENT
No submission.
OPERATIONAL NOTES
Several reports pending and will appear tomorrow.
MEMORANDA
No submissions.
EXCHANGE
No submissions.
MEETINGS, CONFERENCES AND EVENTS CALENDAR
Two calendars alternate in the Morning Report on Mondays - this one, which
contains meetings, conferences and events, and a second, which contains
workshops and training courses. 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.
9/21-27 -- "Excellence in Wildlife Stewardship through Science and
Education," Annual Conference, The Wildlife Society, Snowmass,
CO. Contact: Kathy Jope at NP-PNRO. [Kathy Jope]
9/22-23 -- Annual Council Meeting, The Wildlife Society, Snowmass Village,
CO. Contact: Harry Hodgdon, The Wildlife Society, 301-897-9770
or tws@wildlife.org.
9/25-26 -- Meeting, Oral History Association, Royal Sonesta Hotel, New
Orleans, LA. Contact: Call 817-755-2764, or send e-mail to
OHA_Support@Baylor.edu. [Diane Vogt O'Connor, DCA/WASO]
9/25-28 -- Santa Fe Trail Association Symposium, Elkhart, KS/Boise City,
OK/Cimarron City, OK/Clayton, NM. Contact: Sue Richardson, PO
Box 366, Clayton, NM 88415. [Sheila Lee, NCRC, WASO]
9/25-29 -- Second World Congress, International Ranger Federation, San Jose,
Costa Rica. Registration is $600 per person for double occupancy
and $850 for single occupancy in a four-star hotel; the fee
includes six nights' lodging, all meals and tips, transportation
to and from the airport, and transportation for the field trips
to several nearby Costa Rican national parks. Congress
organizers are asking that those planning to attend register in
advance - even with a partial payment. Payment can be made by
VISA or Master Card. Contact: Lyn Rothgeb, Congress registrar,
730 East Main Street, Luray, VA 22835; 540-743-1775 (fax and
phone). [Bill Wade]
10/1-4 -- Annual Meeting, American Association for State and Local History,
Denver, CO. The meeting will be held in conjunction with the
Colorado-Wyoming Museums Association and will cover many aspects
of public history and interpretation. NPS speakers will be
featured. Contact: American Association for State and Local
History, 530 Church Street, Suite 600, Nashville, TN 37219-2325.
[Bill Gwaltney, FOLA]
10/2-4 -- "The Meaning of Museums: Will the Millennium Modify Our
Definitions?", Annual Meeting, Mountain-Plains Museum
Association, Missoula, MT. This year's session will focus on the
stated theme and on involving museums in the community. Contact:
MPMA coordinator, Jan Postler, PO Box 8321, Durango, CO 81301-
0203, 970-259-7866, or program chair Sue Near, Montana Historical
Society, 406-444-4710. [Matt Wilson, Curator, RMSO]
10/4-8 -- "Driving Forces: Forging Solutions," Annual Conference, Society
of American Foresters, Memphis, TN. Contact: SAF, 5400 Grosvenor
Lane, Bethesda, MD 20814-2198. [Kathy Jope]
10/8-11 -- 27th North American Symposium on Bat Research, Tucson, AZ.
Contact: Tom Griffiths, Illinois Wesleyan University, 309-556-
3230, or via Internet at tgriff@titan.iwu.edu. [Kathy Jope]
10/12-14 -- "People and Place: The Human Experience in Greater Yellowstone,"
Fourth Biennial Scientific Conference, Yellowstone NP, WY.
Contact: Joy Perius, 307-344-2209. [Sheila Lee, NCRC, WASO]
10/14-17 -- "Canals, Communities, Collaboration," 1997 World Canals
Conference, RI/MA. Contact: 401-724-2200 or BVTourism@aol.com.
[Sue Andrews, BLAC]
10/14-18 -- Annual Rendezvous, Association of National Park Rangers, Sheraton
Harbor Place Hotel, Fort Myers, FL. Contact: Bill Wade at 520-
615-9417 or jwbillwade@aol.com, or Tony Sisto at 360-699-9307 or
anprsisto@aol.com.
10/15-19 -- Annual Meeting, National Trust for Historic Preservation, Santa
Fe, NM. Contact: Michele Jones, 202-588-6039. [Sheila Lee,
NCRC, WASO]
10/18 -- Dedication, Women In Military Service Memorial, Arlington, VA.
New memorial on NPS lands at entrance to Arlington National
Cemetery. Contact: 800-222-2294. [PAO, NCRO]
10/25* -- "The Eisenhower Era: 1941-1961," Second Annual D.D. Eisenhower
Seminar, Gettysburg NMP, Gettysburg, PA. Registration is $35
($20 for students) and includes a tour of the Eisenhower farm.
Contact: Carol Hegeman, EISE, 717-338-9114, 717-338-0821 (fax),
eise_site_manager@nps.gov, or EISE Interpretation at NP-GETT.
[Carol Hegeman, EISE]
10/25-29 -- "San Antonio Roundup," NPS Employees & Alumni Association.
Reunion will include visits to San Antonio Missions, Padre
Island, LBJ and Nuevo Laredo, Mexico. There will also be a
Southwest dinner and Texas barbecue. All employees, retirees and
friends are welcome. Contact: Jennifer Mummart at 610-832-0555 or
via Internet at EastNatl@ix.netcom.com.
11/3-5* -- Conference, "School for Scanning: Issues of Preservation and
Access for Paper-based Collections," New York Academy of
Medicine, New York City, NY. Co-sponsored by NPS. The
conference will take the mystery out of digital technology, while
training participants in the basics of digital technology, file
formats, content selection for digitization, legal issues, text
and image scanning, quality control, costs, meta-data, digital
preservation, WWW applications, and CD-ROM publications.
Contact: Kim O'Leary, 508-470-1010, 508-475-6021 (fax). [Diane
Vogt O'Connor, DCA/WASO]
11/5-7 -- Eighth Annual Southern Appalachian Man and the Biosphere
Conference, Holiday Inn Sun Spree, Gatlinburg, TN. The objective
will be to work with communities to promote sustainable
development and healthy ecosystems in the southern Appalachians.
Abstracts on presentations are due by September 30th. Contact;
Ruthanne Mitchell or Gene Cox at NP-GRSM.
11/8-12* -- "A Celebration of Diversity: Experience the Common, Witness the
Unique!", National Interpreters' Workshop, National Association
for Interpretation, Beaumont, TX. Several pre-workshop functions
will be offered, including Interpretive Management Institute
sessions. Contact: Chairperson Bob Valen, BITH, 409-839-2689 x
231, or NAI (for pre-registration packets) at 1-888-900-8283.
[Bob Valen, BITH]
11/12-15 -- "Ecological Restoration Within a Regional Context," Society for
Ecological Restoration, Fort Lauderdale, FL. Contact: Society
for Ecological Restoration, 608-262-9547, or via the Internet at
ser@vms2.macc.wisc.edu. [Kathy Jope]
11/16-18 -- North American Conference on Pesticide Spray Drift Management,
Portland, ME. Contact: J. Dill, 207-581-3880 or umce@umext.
maine.edu. [Steve Cinnamon, MWRO]
11/19-21 -- World Energy Engineering Congress, Atlanta, GA. One of several
regional conferences sponsored by the Association of Energy
Engineers, focusing on energy conservation and renewable energy.
Contact: Ted Collins, 202-586-8017. [Steve Hastings, HOAL]
12/4-6 -- Reunion, Everglades 50th Anniversary Celebration, Everglades NP,
FL. A reunion is planned for this weekend during the anniversary
celebration. It will culminate with the dedication ceremony at
Everglades City on December 6th. Special activities will be held
for former employees. Contact: Sandy Dayhoff or Laura Cowan via
cc:Mail at NP-EVER. [Pat Tolle]
12/13-18 -- Entomological Society of America Annual Meeting, Nashville, TN.
Contact: ESA, 301-731-4535 or PUBINFO@entsoc.org. [Steve
Cinnamon, MWRO]
* * * * *
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
pertaining to receipt of 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.
--- ### ---