NATIONAL PARK SERVICE
                               MORNING REPORT

To:         All National Park Service Areas and Offices

From:       Division of Ranger Activities, Washington Office

Day/Date:   Monday, December 7, 1998

INCIDENTS

98-742 - Arches NP (UT) - Pipeline Explosion; Park Evacuation, Closure

A gas pipeline explosion occurred less than a half mile north of the park's
visitor center and main entrance on Highway 191 just before 10 a.m. on
December 3rd.  A construction crew installing a new gas pipeline ruptured an
existing ten-inch line carrying unrefined natural gas liquids.  Workers heard
the sound of escaping gas and fled; shortly thereafter, the gas ignited,
creating a fireball and plume of black smoke visible for miles.  Rangers
heard the explosion and contacted the county sheriff's office.  A 150-foot
high column of flame was visible above the 200-foot high ridge directly in
front of the visitor center, but the ridge prevented substantial and possibly
catastrophic damage to the park's headquarters area and injury to park
visitors and employees who reside there.  The entire area was immediately
evacuated, and gas and electrical services were shut off.  Visitors and
employees already in the park were prevented from entering the area and had
to either exit the park via backcountry roads or spend the night in the park
campground.  An immediate interagency response ensued.  Over 100 fire, EMS,
SAR, hazmat and law enforcement personnel from about 20 agencies with a 200-
mile radius of the incident responded.  The incident was managed under a
unified interagency command.  There were initial reports of up to 20
fatalities, but these proved incorrect - three pipeline workers received
minor injuries and a fourth was hospitalized with internal injuries.  A D-8
Caterpillar bulldozer and eight other motor vehicles were incinerated in the
blaze, and a tractor-trailer travelling over the highway was damaged.  Damage
to park resources included destruction of all vegetation covering about 50
acres and loss of a number of park boundary signs.  Highway 191 was closed
for a day and a half, and nearby high voltage electric transmission lines
were shutdown for two days.  Media interest in the incident was very high. 
Twenty-eight NPS employees from Arches and Canyonlands NPs responded; several
filled key overhead positions and the remainder provided EMS, park security,
traffic control, spotter aircraft overflights, public information, and family
liaison.  Eight park residents were evacuated from their homes for two days,
with most housed in local motels.  The park remained closed and the
headquarters complex remained evacuated until repairs to the pipeline were
completed in the early morning hours of December 5th.  The park returned to
normal operations later that morning.  [Gary Haynes and Jim Webster, ARCH,
12/6] 

98-743 - Padre Island NS (TX) - Arrest of Fugitive

On October 21st, rangers were notified by the FBI that fugitive M.L.S.
was believed to be in the park.  M.L.S., who was wanted in Minnesota
for first degree assault, was considered to be armed and dangerous.  He had
been traced by the FBI's violent crimes task force to the Malaquite Beach
campground.  Responding rangers spotted his vehicle as it left the
campground, and, with the assistance of a Customs special agent, made a
felony vehicle stop at a remote section of the main park road.  M.L.S. was
taken into custody without incident and transported to the Nueces County
jail, where he was held until later extradited back to Minnesota.  [Mark
Foust, ACR, PAIS, 11/23]

98-744 - Rock Creek Park (DC) - Armed Robbery
     
On November 25th, a local man reported to Park Police that he'd been robbed
of his jacket at knife point by two men.  He was able to provide a detailed
description of his assailants.  About 90 minutes later, officer David
Leguillow spotted the two men.  The victim positively identified the pair,
who were arrested and charged with armed robbery.  The jacket and knife were
recovered.  [Henry Berberich, RLES, NCSO, 12/1]

                       [Additional reports pending...]

RESOURCE MANAGEMENT AND PROTECTION

No entries.

PARK DISPATCHES

No entries.

OPERATIONAL NOTES

No entries.

MEMORANDA

No entries.

INTERCHANGE

No entries.

MEETINGS, CONFERENCES AND EVENTS CALENDAR

Two calendars alternate in the Morning Report on Mondays - this one, which
contains meetings, seminars, 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.

Dates:      January 13 - 16 
Meeting:    America's Parks - America's People, A Mosaic in Motion
Location:   Fort Mason Conference Center, Golden Gate NRA, CA
Details:    National Parks and Conservation Association conference on race
            and diversity in our national parks.
Closes:     Registration closing date: Not given.
Contact:    Iantha Gantt-Wright
Phone/fax:  800-628-7275; ---
E-mail:     www.npca.org
Submitter:  Laura Loomis, NPCA

Dates:      January 24 - 27 *
Meeting:    First National Conference on Marine Bioinvasions 
Location:   Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Cambridge, MA
Details:    --
Closes:     Registration: $300 after December 1st.  
Contact:    MIT Sea Grant College Program  
Phone/fax:  --- ; ---
E-mail:     http//massbay.mit.edu/exoticspecies/conference.html
Submitter:  Diane Vogt O'Connor, CSD/WASO

Dates:      January 26 - 29 *
Meeting:    First Intermountain Region Resource Management Conference
Location:   Omni Bayfront Hotel, Corpus Christi, TX
Details:    The theme of this joint cultural-natural resource management
            conference is resource management for the 21st century in the new
            Intermountain Region.  More information on the conference should
            be available this week.
Closes:     Registration closing date: Not given.
Contact:    Linda Towle, MEVE
Phone/fax:  970-529-4465; ---
E-mail:     ---
Submitter:  Linda Towle, MEVE

Dates:      January 28 - 30 *
Meeting:    Restoration and Renovation Washington Exhibition and Conference
Location:   Washington, DC
Details:    This conference includes sessions on accessibility and historic
            integrity, holistic preservation, and structures. 
Closes:     Registration closing date: Not given.
Contact:    EGI Exhibitions, Inc.
Phone/fax:  ---; 978-664-5822
E-mail:     ---
Submitter:  Diane Vogt O'Connor, CSD/WASO

Dates:      February 9 - 11 *
Meeting:    Partners in Protection: The Arizona Conference on Conservation
            Law Enforcement
Location:   Prescott, AZ
Details:    Conference topics include commercialization of wildlife, a review
            of federal and state native plant laws in Arizona, and operation
            of surveillance equipment.  There will also be a competition
            pistol shoot.
Closes:     Registration closing date: Conference registration prior to
            February 1st is $100 per person; registration thereafter is $125.
Contact:    Conservation Law Enforcement Association
Phone/fax:  520-445-0441; ---
E-mail:     clea@bslnet.com
Submitter:  Dwayne Collier, SOAR

                                *  *  *  *  *

Distribution of the Morning Report is through a mailing list managed by park,
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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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