NATIONAL PARK SERVICE
                           MORNING REPORT

To:        All National Park Service Areas and Offices

From:      Division of Ranger Activities, Washington Office

Day/Date:  Thursday, November 13, 1997

Broadcast: By 1000 ET

INCIDENTS

97-696 - Bents Old Fort NHS (CO) - Death of Employee

Maintenance worker Michael McNerney, 49, died unexpectedly on November 8th
while visiting relatives in Santa Fe, New Mexico.  Mike had been at the park
performing preservation carpentry since April, 1986, and participated in the
fort's 1840s reenactment program.  He was also an accomplished blacksmith. 
Mike served two tours in VietNam with the Marine Corps and twelve years in
the Colorado National Guard.  He was a graduate of the first NPS preservation
and skills training (PAST) program.  He is survived by his wife, D.M., sons
M.M. Jr. and P.J., daughters K.M., S. (S.) M., D.M., and four
grandchildren.  Memorial services will be held at 2 p.m. Friday, November
14th, at the First Church of the Nazarene in LaJunta, Colorado.  Arrangements
are being made by the Peacock-Larsen Funeral Home at 401 Raton Avenue,
LaJunta, CO, 81050 (719-384-8777).  A memorial fund in lieu of flowers has
been established at the Colorado Bank and Trust Co., 3rd and Colorado Avenue,
LaJunta, CO, 81050.  Condolences can be sent to his wife and children.
[Charles Masten, BEOL, 11/12]

97-697 - Arches NP/Canyonlands NP (UT) - Agency Assist; Five Lives Saved

On November 8th, five young adults became stranded on a vertical 400-foot
cliff at Mat Martin Point near the Colorado River about 13 miles north of
Moab.  They had hiked to the top of the cliff to rappel down the rock face. 
During the descent, the cotton rope they were using, which had been acquired
by the father of a member of the group during military service many years
ago, got stuck in a crack, making further descent impossible.  Since they
didn't possess any ascending equipment, they were stranded on the cliff. 
Passing motorists heard calls for help and advised the sheriff's office,
which in turn summoned help from the NPS.  Rangers Galen Howell, Wendy Howell
and Steve Swanke responded.  Galen Howell completed a lead climb to the four
members of the group who were lowest on the cliff (about 120 feet off the
ground) and rescued them; the fifth was subsequently rescued by a county
rescue team.  The members of the group were dressed in T-shirts and shorts
during their 18-hour ordeal.  It rained and sleeted for most of the time
during the rescue operation, and temperatures were in the low 30s.  The
rappel harnesses and hardware that one member of the group had were
improperly and unsafely utilized.  During the rappel, several of the group's
members were hit by falling rocks; on one occasion, one of them fell while
trying to free climb in an attempt to free a jammed rope and only avoided
death by landing on a ledge.  The rock face had tons of loose rock, which
complicated rescue operations.  All five were treated for the initial stages
of hypothermia, then released.  One was overhead saying that "they had
conquered the wall."  [Steve Swanke, DR, CANY, 11/10]

97-698 - Cumberland Gap NHP (KY/TN/VA) - Railroad Tunnel Fire

On the morning of November 11th, the park received an emergency call
reporting that there was a fire in the Norfolk and Southern railroad tunnel,
which passes through Cumberland Mountain within the park.  The park's brush
engine responded along with engines from local fire departments.  A
determination was made that the situation was too dangerous to permit any
action to control the fire at that time.  The fire was burning at a point
about 1,200 feet within the tunnel in heavy creosote-treated timbers, which
had been used for bracing and which were in some places as much as five feet
thick.  Two underground coal mining emergency response teams were contacted
for assistance; after examining the situation, they determined that the
tunnel should be sealed at both ends with heat resistant brick and mortar,
then pumped full of nitrogen gas in an attempt to remove the oxygen feeding
the fire.  The fire was started by sparks from a welder that workers were
using while reinforcing the tunnel with steel.  The sparks got into the
timbers and went unnoticed overnight.  Thick toxic smoke and zero visibility
prevented an examination of the tunnel walls to determine if there are any
exposed coal seems or caverns to take into consideration.  Initial estimates
are that it may take over a week to extinguish the fire.  Although the
railroad is responsible for putting the fire out, the park will be closely
monitoring their efforts due to the seriousness of the situation.  State EPA
agencies are also monitoring the fire.  [Charlie Chadwell, SPR, CUGA, 11/12]

97-699 - Cape Hatteras NS (NC) - Sexual Assault

During the early morning hours of November 8th, a 35-year-old woman who had
been drinking with friends at a local tavern accepted a ride home from two
men whom she had met that evening.  The men instead drove her to a beach
access ramp to Oregon Inlet, where one of them sexually assaulted her.   The
suspects left her at the ramp; she made her way to a nearby fishing center,
called 911, and reported the assault.  Rangers and county deputies are
conducting a joint investigation.  Mike Anderson is the lead investigator for
the park.  [CR, CAHA, 11/10]

97-700 - Delaware Water Gap NRA (PA/NJ) - Search

Over the weekend of September 27th and 28th, a de-horned Brahma bull weighing
between 1,500 and 2,000 pounds escaped from a rodeo show at the Shawnee
Mountain ski area, which is located just outside of the park.  The bull
wandered into the southern end of the park during the first few days of
October and was spotted by a bow hunter in a corn field near River Road on
the evening of October 3rd.  The bull was later seen at several other
locations in or near the park.  A search for the animal was begun which
involved three people from the Barnes rodeo company, as many as eight people
from the ski area, and six rangers.  The bull disappeared, though, so the
effort was scaled back to regular patrols of the area by rangers and Shawnee
Mountain employees.  The bull reappeared on the evening of Saturday, November
8th; it was darted with an immobilizing drug by a Shawnee Mountain employee,
but still managed to evade a team of about ten rangers who attempted to track
it down through cornfields around Hialeah recreation area in the dark and
rain.  The bull was spotted by Pennsylvania state troopers at that same
location early on the evening of November 11th.  Rangers and the Shawnee
Mountain employee arrived within minutes.  The bull was darted with 10 cc of
immobilizing drug, but the drug had little effect and the bull subsequently
disappeared in the woods.  A state police helicopter with infrared search
capability was summoned and arrived in the area around 11:30 p.m.  The bull,
which was still mobile despite the anesthetic, was spotted from the
helicopter within a few minutes.  The animal was again darted, but still did
not go down.  It required two more darts to immobilize it.  An effort was
made to hobble the bull, but it got to its feet and began walking off as this
attempt was being made.  Because of the bull's size, its unpredictable
behavior and the lack of sufficient additional anesthetic, there were serious
concerns that it would again get away and that it might run into a visitor or
be struck by a car on a heavily-traveled nearby road.  The bull was
accordingly dispatched by the Shawnee Mountain employee.  At one time or
another, about a dozen rangers assisted in the two-month-long effort to
locate and capture the bull.  [CRO, DEWA, based on reports from Dan
Kirschner, South Zone Supervisor, PA District, 11/12]

                   [Additional reports pending...]

RESOURCE MANAGEMENT

Yellowstone NP (WY) - Bison Research

Wildlife handlers from Helicopter Wildlife Management of Salt Lake City,
Utah, recently employed helicopters to approach and net-gun bison from the
air for a new study which was recently begun in the park.  Specially trained
"muggers" subdued the bison without use of chemical immobilization agents and
placed radio collars on the captured bovines.  The marking of 45 bull and cow
bison is aimed at increasing the knowledge about seasonal movements of bison
throughout the park.  The five-year research project is being funded by the
US Geologic Survey's Biological Resources Division.   [Sue Consolo-Murphy,
YELL]

OPERATIONAL NOTES

Freeman Tilden Award - Charles "Chuck" Arning, a park ranger at Blackstone
River Valley National Heritage Corridor, has been selected as the recipient
of this year's national Freeman Tilden award for outstanding interpretation. 
The award was recently presented at the National Association for
Interpretation conference in Beaumont, Texas.

Food Service at Special Events - The national media recently reported a major
outbreak of illness at a church supper in Maryland attended by about 1,400
people.  Of that number, 622 became ill and at least 31 were hospitalized;
two deaths may also have resulted from eating food at this event.  Local and
state public health personnel are investigating the incident.  As you know,
special events in the NPS occur very frequently.   Large special events can
involve several hundred thousand visitors over a period of a few days.  
Annually, we have millions of visitors partaking of food at special events. 
Food storage, preparation, serving and holding at these events create public
health problems not routinely encountered at regular food service facilities. 
The health impact of a food outbreak at one of these large NPS special events
could be devastating.  The reason none has occurred is likely due in large
part to public health guidance and support provided to parks holding these
events - although we may also be the beneficiaries of a certain amount of
good luck.  This good track method can't be maintained without your help. 
Public health personnel need to know when your park is planning a special
event that includes food, whether the food is prepared on-site or at a
kitchen located off-site.  When you are planning a special event that
includes food service, please contact your regional public health consultant
or park sanitarian for more information and guidance, or call WASO Public
Health at 202-565-1120.  [Jerry M. Johnson, Chief, Public Health, WASO]

MEMORANDA

No entries.

EXCHANGE

No entries.

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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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