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Subject: NPS Morning Report (2) - Monday, July 19, 1999
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Date: Mon, 19 Jul 1999 04:23:54 -0400
99-394 - Cabrillo NM (CA) - Special Event
On July 13th, "Festival of Sail 99," the first major tall ship event to be
held in San Diego, took place in San Diego Bay. The festival and parade
consisted of 13 individual three- and four-masted sailing vessels from five
countries and numerous private spectator vessels. Since the park sits at the
end of a peninsula high above the Pacific Ocean and San Diego Bay, it was a
prime viewing area for the event. The parking lot was filled within an hour
of opening; vehicles were then directed to park on the adjacent state
highway. Traffic counters recorded visitation of nearly 10,000 people, not
including walk-ins (normal daily visitation is approximately 3,900 people).
Despite the volume, there were no significant incidents - four citations were
issued for parking violations and three minor medical incidents were
recorded. Following the afternoon event, traffic out of the area was
gridlocked and at a virtual standstill until early evening. Media interest
was high, with several local radio and television stations broadcasting live
remotes from within the park. Ely Edquid was IC. [Terry Petrovich-Joyce,
Administrative Assistant, CABR, 7/14]
99-395 - Indiana Dunes NL (IN) - Special Event
On July 10th, nearly 1,200 people took advantage of the first chance in six
decades to tour four unique, historic homes located in the park. The homes,
which were originally constructed for display at the Chicago Century of
Progress Exposition of 1933-1934, employed new techniques, revolutionary
materials, and ultramodern appliances. After the exposition, they were
transported by barge across Lake Michigan to northwest Indiana, where they
were sold as private homes. They were acquired by the NPS in the early
1970s; residents were allowed the right of use and occupancy until the 1990s.
The open house featured The Florida Tropical House, which is currently under
restoration through a unique leasing program overseen by Historic Landmarks
Foundation of Indiana through a cooperative agreement with the NPS. Visitors
were able to walk through three other homes that are also available for
restoration and residency under this leasing program. [Al Nash, PAO, INDU,
7/14]
FIRE ACTIVITY
NATIONAL PREPAREDNESS LEVEL - Level II
LARGE FIRE/INCIDENT SUMMARY
Wed Sat % Est
State Unit Fire/Incident IMT 7/14 7/17 Con Con
AZ Grand Canyon NP * Monsoon 99 T2 Flood damage assessment
and repair
NV Winnemucca District Lang Syne T2 24,340 24,340 100 CND
Carson City District * Stillwater -- - 4,500 100 CND
Elko District * Pilot -- - 1,200 40 7/18
Ely District * Delamar -- - 300 0 UNK
Humboldt-Toiyabe NF * West -- - 300 10 7/19
CA M-M-M RU 49 -- 400 400 100 CND
MT Crow Agency * East Tullock Ck. -- - 85 100 CND
UT State * Wildcat -- - 2,000 10 7/20
ID Lower Snake
River District * C Ranch -- - 450 0 UNK
AK Northern FO Kink -- 100,000 78,900 0 UNK
Koyukuk NWR Roundabout Mt. -- 4,330 6,630 50 UNK
State Jackson -- 600 600 60 UNK
Pitchuk -- 120 120 100 CND
Marshall Creek -- 12,000 18,000 0 UNK
Noatak NP Uvgoon #2 -- 70,600 70,600@ NR NR
Yukon-Charley NP B264 -- 46,360 46,360@ NR NR
B242 -- 45,174 45,174@ NR NR
B248 -- 17,573 18,521@ NR NR
B260 -- 44,600 44,600@ NR NR
Gates of Arctic NP B480 -- 100 100@ NR NR
B380 -- 600 1,200@ NR NR
@ = Acreages are as of Thursday, July 15th
Heading Notes
Unit Agency or Area Office = BIA area; NF = national forest; RU = CA
state resource or ranger unit; RD = state ranger district; FO =
BLM field office; 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 I Team; T2 = Type II Team; T3 = Type III Team; ST =
State Team; FUM = Fire Use Management Team
% Con Percent of fire contained; UNK = unknown; NR = no report
Est Con Estimated containment date; NEC = no estimated date of
containment; CND = fully contained; NR = no report
NUMBER OF NEW FIRES (FOUR DAY TREND)
NPS BIA BLM FWS States USFS Total
Wednesday, 7/14 7 2 11 4 112 72 208
Thursday, 7/15 2 6 18 3 71 30 130
Friday, 7/16 3 4 5 1 60 31 104
Saturday, 7/17 1 4 19 2 93 34 153
TOTAL COMMITTED RESOURCES (FOUR DAY TREND)
Crews Engines Helicopters Airtankers Overhead
Wednesday, 7/14 140 250 51 9 353
Thursday, 7/15 159 160 42 4 322
Friday, 7/16 65 120 33 2 174
Saturday, 7/17 68 183 41 3 294
CURRENT SITUATION
Increased initial attack and large fire activity was reported in the Great
Basin. Substantial progress was made on the existing large fires in the
western Great Basin, northern Rockies and Alaska. In addition to the fires
in Alaska reported above, the state has 61 fires burning in limited and
modified protection areas for a total of 801,396 acres.
High to extreme fire indices were reported in Alaska, Oregon, Washington,
California, Idaho, Utah, Nevada and Arizona.
[NICC Incident Management Situation Report, 7/16-18; Mike Warren, NPS FPMC,
and Karen La May, ARO, 7/16]
RESOURCE MANAGEMENT AND PROTECTION
Amistad NRA (TX) - Archeological Field School Discoveries
The park recently hosted the 39th annual Texas Archeological Society (TAS)
field school, the first time it has met at Amistad. The field school
registered almost 300 volunteer archeologists and society members; together,
they investigated and surveyed 20 distinct geographic areas scattered across
600 square miles of park terrain and donated more than $125,000 in time
worked during the ten-day school. Highlights of the field school included:
o Discovery of 31 previously unknown and undocumented archeological
sites, and preparation of detailed site maps and documentation at 45
other locations. In doing so, many objects and artifacts were
identified, including two items of particular interest - a small piece
of prehistoric pottery found in soil that had been radio-carbon dated
to the 15th century, and a nearly 8,000-year-old piece of chert napped
into an Angostura point (the oldest identified during the school).
o Three prehistoric rock art sites were thoroughly documented, including
the Curlytail Panther site in a limestone cliff high above the Devils
River.
o A three-man team of divers from the Texas Historical Commission's
Nautical Archeological Division conducted underwater surveys at two
archeological sites submerged when Lake Amistad was created in an
effort to understand how various natural processes affect inundated
sites.
o Ten large circles of rock, interpreted as wickiup or tepee rings, were
identified at a site along the Rio Grande arm of the reservoir.
The TAS and the NPS conducted many educational programs for the general
public and young people enrolled in the school. Students sponsored by the
Houston Museum of Natural History established an up-linked website to provide
information to other students back at the museum regarding the activities of
the field school. They will next produce a 30-minute PBS documentary about
their experiences. Another program was recorded and prepared by the Texas
Parks and Wildlife Department for later broadcast on the Internet to 7,200
schools during Texas Archeology Awareness Month in October. Dr. Michael
Collins, associate director of the Texas Archeological Research Laboratory at
the University of Texas, served as field director and co-principal
investigator. Park archeologist Joe Labadie was the other co-principal
investigator and coordinated support provided by the park. Anyone interested
in obtaining more information about the 1999 Texas Archeological Society
field school at Amistad NRA should contact park archeologist Joe Labadie at
830-775-7491 x 217 or via cc:Mail. [CRO, AMIS]
Assateague Island NS (MD) - Loggerhead Sea Turtles
On July 8th, the nest of a federally threatened loggerhead sea turtle
(Caretta caretta) was confirmed on the northern portion of Assateague Island.
This nesting attempt is the first for the species along the Atlantic coast of
Maryland and marks a northern range extension. The northern portion of
Assateague lies immediately south of Ocean City, Maryland, which boasts a
summer population of 300,000 visitors who utilize the coastal waters and
shorelines for their recreational pursuits. Decades of maintenance for the
Ocean City inlet has led to a sediment deficit on northern Assateague which
is responsible for a sand-starved, early successional barrier beach. This
early successional beach, currently 9 kilometers (6 miles) in length, also
hosts approximately 30% of the federally threatened piping plover (Charadrius
melodus) breeding pairs within that species' southern recovery unit. In
addition, the federally threatened sea beach amaranth (Amaranthus pumilus),
an early successional annual plant, was rediscovered near the inlet in 1998
following a 32-year absence. [Jack Kumer, NRS, ASIS, 7/14]
OPERATIONAL NOTES
GPRA Goals Meeting Revision - Employees in NCR will meet in the cafeteria at
NCRO on Ohio Drive from 2 p.m. to 3:30 p.m. on July 27th.
CISD Training - The NPS has been invited to participate in critical incident
stress peer support training over the period from August 16th to the 19th.
The training will be hosted by the USFWS and will be their first attempt at
establishing a peer support program. If you have someone interested in
attending, please contact Pat Buccello via cc:Mail as soon as possible. Send
the name of nominee, the nominee's position in the park, and a short memo
from the supervisor supporting the nominee and acknowledging that the nominee
will be called out occasionally. Pat can be reached at 207-288-3360.
MEMORANDA
No entries.
INTERCHANGE
No entries.
PARKS AND PEOPLE
Mojave NP - Resource management chief Doug Scovill will retire on August 3rd.
Doug signed on as a ranger (archeologist) at Gran Quivira NM in August, 1962,
following a brief stint on the Wetherill Mesa archeological project at Mesa
Verde NP. In 1967, he traveled to Amman, Jordan, with his wife, Gene, and
their three young children to serve on the team helping to establish the
Jordanian Park Service and complete master plans for six parks, including
Qumran, where the Dead Sea scrolls were found. Caught up in the June, 1967,
Arab-Israeli War, the team summered in Greece, spent the early fall in Turkey
and returned to a tense Jordan in the late fall. Doug and family returned to
the U.S. in October, 1968, where he took up duties at the Southwest
Archeological Center (SWAC). In 1971, he moved SWAC to the University of
Arizona campus in Tucson and established a new archeological center there,
now called the Western Archeological and Conservation Center. In 1974, he
became chief archeologist for the Service, and was appointed chief
anthropologist four years later, when the discipline of applied cultural
anthropology was added to the traditional mix of cultural resources
specialists required for park CRM programs. In 1995, Doug accepted the job
of cultural resource specialist at Mojave National Preserve, then became
chief of resources management in October, 1996. Gene served for over 15
years as a trustee for the Employee Association's educational trust fund,
which provides educational loans to members and their children. In 1998,
she was elected to her second term as a member of the association's board of
directors. Gene and Doug plan to stay in Barstow for about a year while they
"downsize" their accumulated possessions, sell their house, and house-hunt in
Santa Cruz. Their home address is 2190 Cameo Ave, Barstow, CA 92311; phone
(760) 252-2331.
Yosemite NP - Fred Elchlepp is retiring after 26 years of service. His party
will be held on Wednesday, July 28th, at 6:00 p.m. at the courthouse in
Yosemite National Park. Those wishing to send messages to Fred or to submit
stories or other material can cc:mail Mary Coelho at the park or email her at
Mary_Coelho@nps.gov. Those wishing to contribute to his retirement present
can send donations to Mary Coelho, P.O. Box 258, Yosemite, CA 95389. If you
think you can attend, please call Mary at 209-372-0270 during days, and 209-
372-9130 during evenings.
* * * * *
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coordinator.
Prepared by the Division of Ranger Activities, WASO, with the cooperation and
support of Delaware Water Gap NRA.
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