The Morning Report for Monday, June 16, 2003

INCIDENTS

Gates Of The Arctic National Park & Preserve (AK)
Rescue from North Fork of Koyukuk River

On the evening of June 10th, rangers were notified by a local air taxi operator that he had spotted an overturned raft and a stranded man — later identified as B.S., 39, of Seward, Alaska — about 60 miles up the North Fork of the Koyukuk River. At the time, the park's entire ranger staff was involved in river/rescue training at the confluence of the river's Middle and North Forks. Using a combination of park and aviation radios and satellite phones, rangers began coordinating an interagency search and rescue operation that combined the resources of several state, federal and commercial organizations. Incident commander Pete Christian contacted Alaska state troopers, who have primary responsibility for all search and rescue efforts in Alaska. Troopers in turn alerted the Army's MAST 68th Medical Company to stand by. Air taxi operator Dirk Nickisch managed to drop an emergency package and radio to B.S. B.S. then contacted Nickisch and told him that he and his 65-year-old father had been rafting on the river when they hit an ice shelf and overturned. The accident had occurred four days previously; since they'd lost everything, they'd had neither food nor shelter since then. In a desperate attempt to get help, B.S. walked ten miles down river through extremely rugged terrain before being spotted by Nickisch. Based on this information, Christian dispatched the MAST Pavehawk helicopter to the scene with two rangers aboard. The men were picked up and brought to the NPS camp, where they received treatment for severe abrasions, bruises and exhaustion due to exposure. They were then flown to the park's field office in Bettles, where they received additional care. Notable in this incident was that rangers were able to run a coordinated SAR from the field via satellite and radio communications. The success was also attributed in part to Alaska's round-the-clock summer daylight and the cooperative efforts of personnel and agencies in far flung parts of the park and state. Gear and raft will retrieved by park staff, possibly next week.

[Submitted by Dennis Knuckles, Ranger Pilot/Acting Chief of Operations]

Cape Hatteras National Seashore (NC)
Jeep Rollover Accident with Fatality

G.W., 20, of Beaufort, North Carolina, was driving a Jeep Wrangler on South Point Beach around 2:30 a.m. on Saturday, June 14th, when he passed through a washed-out area and rolled it over. A 17-year-old exchange student in the Jeep died at the scene; another passenger received serious injuries and was flown by Marine Corps helicopter to a mainland hospital. None of the four people in the vehicle was wearing a seatbelt. Alcohol was a factor. Charges against G.W. are pending.
[Submitted by Paul Stevens, Acting Chief Ranger]

FIRE MANAGEMENT

National Interagency Fire Center
NIFC Situation Report - Monday, June 16, 2003

Preparedness Level 2

There were 119 newly-reported fires on Friday, 61 on Saturday and 89 yesterday. Five new large fires were reported yesterday. Overall, about a dozen large fires are being fought at present.

Fire Danger

Day	6/11	6/12	6/13	6/14	6/15	6/16
Alaska	VX	--	--	VX	VX	VX
Arizona	VX	VX	VX	VX	VX	VX
California	VX	--	--	--	--	--
Colorado	VX	VX	VX	VX	VX	VX
Nevada	VX	VX	VX	VX	VX	VX
New Mexico	VX	VX	VX	VX	VX	VX
Oklahoma	VX	--	VX	VX	VX	--
Texas	VX	VX	VX	VX	VX	VX
Utah	VX	VX	VX	--	--	VX

VH — Very high

EX — Extreme

VX — Very high to extreme

Fire Weather Watches and Warnings

No watches or warnings have been posted for today.

National Resource Commitments

Day	6/10	6/11	6/12	6/13	6/14	6/15	6/16
Crews	52	48	29	47	46	34	61
Engines	55	58	46	89	82	52	87
Helicopters	17	15	14	14	11	9	18
Air Tankers	0	0	0	1	0	0	0
Overhead	615	700	704	720	698	666	1,288

National Team Commitments

State	Type Team	Team IC	Fire/Location	Acres	Percent Contain	Est Full Contain
AZ	T2	Kvale	Thomas Fire Apache-Sitgreaves NF	10,618	80%	UNK
NM	FUM	Goheen	Dry Lakes Complex Gila NF	13,200	0%	UNK

Rocky Mountain National Park (CO)
Beaver Meadows Prescribed Fire (Prescribed Fire Treatment)

The 46-acre Beaver Meadows prescribed burn was ignited Thursday morning at 9:30 am. Thirty-four fire staff from the park and USFS participated in managing and monitoring the prescribed fire. A thunderstorm cell passed through in the early afternoon and dropped a small amount of rainfall on the fire area, which moderated fire behavior. Some of the larger fuels are expected to continue burning for several days and residual smoke may be present. No road or trail closures are anticipated. (full report)
Status
No road or trail closures implemented
Acreage: 46 acres
Resources Committed: 31 total staff, 3 engines
Estimated containment date: 06/26/03[Submitted by Scott Sticha, scott_sticha@nps.gov, 9705861264]

OPERATIONAL NOTES

Visitor and Resource Protection
Memorandum: "Law Enforcement Needs Assessment"

IN REPLY REFER TO:

W34 (2460)

June 12, 2003

Memorandum

To: Regional Directors and Superintendents

From: Associate Director, Visitor and Resource Protection /s/ Karen Taylor-Goodrich

Subject: Law Enforcement Needs Assessments
Reply Due: August 1, 2003

As described in the Director's memorandum of April 4, 2003 regarding the National Park Service (NPS) law enforcement reform strategy, and subsequent discussions with regional program managers, as one element of the reforms, all parks are requested to submit a Law Enforcement Needs Assessment (LENA) to the Associate Director, Visitor and Resource Protection (AD-VRP), through the regional offices, no later than August 1, 2003.

The LENA helps the park meet the mission of the NPS and the objectives of the park's visitor and resource protection program by:

Identifying and evaluating the factors which create the law enforcement work load in the park
Identifying staffing and organizational needs
Providing guidance for position management planning
Providing a framework for budget and project requests

Completion of this project will provide the NPS with an accurate and up-to-date assessment of its overall law enforcement needs. Quantifying and describing our law enforcement needs, and using consistent methodology, is an important step in building the internal and external support required to address these needs. The starting point for the LENA is the individual park's Visitor Management Resource Protection Assessment Program (VRAP). Significantly, the recommendations resulting from the LENA can directly support budget requests in OFS and PMIS.

In order to help develop a LENA, the attached template is provided as an example. We strongly recommend that regional offices establish a review process, such as a team, to evaluate all park LENAs for consistency of data collection and analysis prior to forwarding to the Washington Office for consolidation into a Servicewide LENA package. Each regional team, or contact, will be requested to coordinate their evaluation efforts with the other regional teams/contacts, and the Office of the AD-VRP, to ensure Servicewide consistency.

If you have any additional questions, please contact your Regional Chief Ranger, or Dennis Burnett, NPS Law Enforcement Administrator, at 202/513-7128. We thank you in advance for your assistance in addressing these important needs.

Attachment

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LAW ENFORCEMENT NEEDS ASSESSMENT
Anywhere National Historical Park

Prepared: John Doe, Chief Ranger, Anywhere National Historical Park
Jane Doe, Chief Ranger, Big Sky Region

Approved: ____________________________________ Date: _______________

Superintendent

INTRODUCTION

The Introduction section is basic boilerplate, summarizing RM-9 and NPS Policy.

The Director's Order/Reference Manual 9, National Park Service Law Enforcement Policies, requires the Superintendent to prepare a Law Enforcement Needs Assessment (LENA). The LENA helps the park meet the mission of the National Park Service (NPS) and the objectives of the park's visitor and resource protection program by:

Identifying and evaluating the many factors which create the law enforcement workload in the park
Identifying staffing and organizational needs
Providing guidance for position management planning
Providing a framework for budget and project requests

The starting point for the Law Enforcement Needs Assessment is the Visitor Management-Resource Protection Assessment Program (VRAP). VRAP is a computerized model, designed to consider all the elements necessary in making an assessment and determination of personnel requirements for the protection program in a park. The model uses commonly available statistics and known characteristics of a park. The VRAP model provides some evaluative consistency on a regional or service-wide basis.

The LENA provides an opportunity to confirm and validate VRAP versus real time, on-site circumstances of the park. The components of the LENA, identified in RM-9, include:

Servicewide and Park Specific Statutory and Program Direction
Elements of the Needs Assessment

Visitation Patterns and Trends
Public Use
Access and Circulation Patterns
Community Expectations
Cooperative Assistance
Protection of People, Resources and Property
Type of Jurisdiction
Criminal Activity
Special Needs

Servicewide Program Direction (NPS Policies)

The law enforcement program is an important tool in carrying out the NPS mission. The objectives of the program are:

The prevention of criminal activities through resource education, public safety efforts and deterrence.
The detection and investigation of criminal activity and the apprehension and successful prosecution of criminal violators.

Law enforcement is characterized by high risks, inherent dangers, and high public expectations and will be performed in a professional manner. The program will be managed in accordance with all applicable laws and regulations, DM 446 and DO/RM-9.

Park law enforcement activities will be managed by the superintendent as part of a comprehensive, interdisciplinary effort to protect resources, manage public use, and promote public safety and appropriate enjoyment. Congress has authorized the designation of certain employees as law enforcement officers, with the responsibility to "...maintain law and order and protect persons and property within areas of the National Park System." The duties of commissioned employees will not be limited to just law enforcement.

The NPS is authorized to deputize another agency's personnel only for the purpose of obtaining supplemental law enforcement assistance during emergencies or special events, and not to delegate NPS law enforcement responsibilities.

PARK PROGRAM DIRECTION

Park Description

The citations from RM-9 (Chapter 1-1, 3. Law Enforcement Needs Assessment) are provided for your convenience for each section.

RM-9: "The laws governing the administration of the National Park System, as well as a park's enabling legislation, provide program direction. Documents such as the general management plan, regional management plan, RM-9, and statement for management provide additional program direction."

This section should be a concise summary of the park. The park's enabling legislation, the GMP or resource management plans and even the park's brochure, are all excellent sources for this section. Suggested items to cover include:

The park's purpose (enabling legislation language) and subsequent relevant legislation
Date of the park's establishment
Size of the park
Description of the resources
Unique resources and/or resources of concern
Significant management issues, including regulations/Superintendent's Compendium items
Other pertinent information needed to provide a good, descriptive summary of the park

Visitation Patterns and Trends

RM-9: "The numbers of visitors, visitor demographics, average length of stay, length of season, seasonal variations, and visitation trends all greatly affect the amount and type of law enforcement services required."

This section summarizes visitation patterns and trends that would be expected to impact the law enforcement workload. Suggested topics:

Annual visitation figures, including how those figures are obtained
Description of the primary visitation season, including shoulder seasons if relevant
Description of how visitors arrive — by vehicle, foot, bus, cruise ship, etc.
Geographic origin of visitors — local, within state, surrounding states, foreign
Primary destination — is the park a primary destination or one of many destinations
Visitation distribution throughout the week — does visitation tend to peak on certain days
Group visitation — are visits by bus, school groups, etc important

Public Use

RM-9: "The variety and impact of public use and special events are major influences on the scope of the park's law enforcement program."

This section generally describes the types of public use in a park.

Describe the types of user groups that visit the park. Examples might include local, non-local, day users, campers/backcountry users, visitors that go to only one area or engage in one activity

Access and Circulation Patterns

RM-9: "Access and circulation patterns and transportation methods all have significant impact on a park's law enforcement program."

This section describes the possible ways visitors may enter a park and how they may travel within the park. Suggested topics:

Describe the ways the park can be accessed and note routes and other issues that impact the work load
Are certain areas choke points with congested traffic
Does the park have controlled access, monitored access or through roadways
Accessible by boat, aircraft, foot traffic, etc
365/24/7 access

Community Expectations

RM-9: "Political, sociological, geographical, and environmental factors influence the scope and profile of the law enforcement program."

This is a brief summary of the park's relationship with the local communities and how this may affect the law enforcement program.

Describe the relationship with the local communities (in some areas this may extend to the state government)
What are the major areas of concern by the local communities

Cooperative Assistance

RM-9: "Qualified law enforcement assistance may be used to supplement, but not replace, capabilities in a park. Conversely, mutual aid commitments outside the park may place increased demands on a park's law enforcement program."

This section describes cooperative assistance with other agencies.

Describe any existing MOU's
Describe any Cooperative Agreements with local law enforcement - for example dispatch operations
Describe the involvement of local law enforcement inside the park — routine patrols, intrusion alarm responses, backup or emergency response including time frames involved
Describe the involvement of NPS law enforcement outside the park

Protection of People

RM-9: "Threats to visitors and residents will be identified and maximum efforts and attention should be devoted to mitigating these threats."

This section describes threats to visitors and park employees.

Do you feel crimes are not being detected or reported
Does the park adequately protect NPS employees - is the law enforcement staff on duty while other NPS employees are working — maintenance on early shifts or interpretation on late shifts
Where do most crimes against people occur within the park
Describe any positive deterrent effect of non-law enforcement uniformed employees — entrance stations, visible Interpretation or Maintenance employees

Protection of Resources

RM-9: "Resources should be inventoried and priorities assigned to their protection based on an assessment of their vulnerability."

This section describes threats to resources within the park.

Describe the natural and cultural resources of importance and/or at risk
Describe the threats to the resources — poaching, off-trail use/abuse, thefts, disturbance of cultural resources and/or wildlife, vandalism
Describe any internal threats to resources — for example, the theft of collection items
Where do most crimes against resources occur within the park
Describe the relationship (communications) of Interpretation, RM, Maintenance and LE personnel in protection of park resources

Protection of Property

RM-9: "The protection of property may be accomplished in a variety of ways, some of which involve a significant commitment of personnel services."

This section describes threats to property, including visitor and park property.

Describe the park facilities including intrusion and fire/smoke alarms
Describe park property, including fee receipts, that are subject to theft
Describe the extent of vandalism to property
Do thefts occur from visitors — car clouts, thefts from campgrounds, pick pockets
Where do most crimes against property occur within the park

Jurisdiction

RM-9: "The type of jurisdiction exercised by the NPS has a direct bearing on the scope of a park's law enforcement program..."

A brief summary of the park's jurisdiction is needed; it is not necessary to restate the entire Jurisdictional Compendium.

Briefly summarize the park's jurisdiction
Reference the park's Jurisdictional Compendium

Criminal Activity

RM-9: "The frequency, severity, and complexity of criminal activity and other law enforcement incidents and the duration of individual incidents are significant elements to be considered in determining a park's law enforcement workload. Decisions as to the level of deterrence and response desired will significantly impact overall program costs."

This section is intended as an overall summary, coming after the Protection of People, Resources and Property sections. It provides an opportunity to highlight areas of highest concern and other pertinent information that perhaps has not been addressed.

Describe the overall crime activity — low, medium or high
Low —

Medium —

High -
List the number of Part I and Part II crimes per year (using last year's figures or an average of the last several years for an accurate picture)
Identify the closure rate of Part I and Part II crimes
Part I — 20% closure rate is considered adequate

Part II — 50% closure rate is considered adequate

A closure rate less than adequate would be a cause to increase staffing
Is the physical layout of the park conducive to criminal activity — for example, a single point for entry and exit tends to deter criminal activity
List the most common types of violations
List the most serious type of violations and/or areas of highest management concern
Are criminal activities involving drug, undocumented aliens, or ARPA violations occurring
Does the park have Homeland Security concerns

Special Needs

RM-9: "One-time or infrequent events and incidents that occur within or adjacent to the park may require selectively increasing law enforcement efforts."

This section describes infrequent events that occur in or near the park that may require extra law enforcement presence.

Describe special events that may require a Special Event Team or an Incident Management Team and/or would impact the park's law enforcement workload.

Current Staffing and Support

This section should summarize the current staffing and support and assess basic effectiveness.

List the current staffing and position management arrangement
Does required occupancy of housing exist
Is the current staffing effective
Does the current staffing address law enforcement safety concerns
Are non-law enforcement, but visible uniformed employees, contributing to the deterrence of criminal activity
Does the staff have adequate dispatch services including the means to contact other agencies for law enforcement help
What is the current support level — vehicles, standard equipment, travel, training, etc

Recommendations

This section describes the recommendations based on the analysis of the Needs Assessment:

Describe the needs for law enforcement coverage — year-round, number of days per week, number of hours or shifts per day, peak seasons during the year
Discuss the depth needed for basic coverage, back up needs and for lieu days, leave, training and participation in Servicewide commitments such as SET and IMT.
Have there been any new developments since the current staffing/position management was put into place - new additions to the park, increased visitation, increase in crime rates, new management concerns or resources at risk, assistance from other agencies
Does the park's level of activity contribute to skill erosion, necessitating details to other parks, especially for new employees
Has cooperation with other agencies been explored in enough detail to maximize the effectiveness of the law enforcement program
List the VRAP recommendation for staffing
List your recommendations for staffing and support based on this analysis

OFS/PMIS

The OFS/PMIS narrative is not a component of the LENA, but should be a logical output of the Assessment.

If out-of-park resources are part of the LENA process, their input into an OFS/PMIS narrative submission should be obtained. Otherwise, the park should input the OFS submission directly.

Fire and Aviation Management
New Tool to Get the Word Out about NPS Fires

For over a year, Fire Communications and Education has been working with the WASO Information Technology group on a new web-based tool, called Fire News. This tool will assist parks and regions in getting information out about their fire management programs. Fire News serves as a communication tool to assist the parks in advising stakeholders, partners, and colleagues about fire activities in the parks and regions, therefore providing valuable opportunities to share information.

The summer of 2003 is a trial period for Fire News, comments and concerns can be sent to Roberta D'Amico and/or Tina Boehle. To view some of the information currently posted (thank you to the Fire News beta testers) of the final web based product that this tool produces, go to:

http://inside.nps.gov/programs/firenews.cfm (for the internal web page product)
http://www.nps.gov/fire/news (for the external web page product)

To begin using Fire News, print out "Announcing. . .Fire News" (detailed instructions for input are included) and follow the instructions for data entry.[Submitted by Tina Boehle, tina_boehle@nps.gov, 208-387-5875] More Information...

Servicewide Training
Weekly Listing of Operations Training Opportunities

Operations Training Calendar

This calendar appears every Monday as an addendum to the Morning Report and a separate entry for InsideNPS. It is not meant to be replace the Learning Place; rather it is a quick summary of available training with links (as available) to relevant Learning Place pages. Please note:

New entries are in bold face.
Submissions for other training courses should conform to the style used here.
Please include the URL to the web sites where readers can obtain the requisite forms and/or find out additional information about the training course. If a URL is not specifically listed, the announcement can likely be found on the Learning Place, the NPS training page found at http://www.nps.gov/training/announcements/index.doc.
Closing dates for applications are underscored.

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June

June 26: Safety Management Information System (SMIS): A Valuable Resource for Supervisors, TELNPS training course. DOI has updated SMIS to make it a user-friendly, web-based accident reporting system. SMIS can be a valuable tool in helping parks identify accident causes and measures to prevent future accidents. Supervisors are required to use SMIS to report accidents or injuries when they occur. The workshop is designed to help supervisors understand how to correctly use SMIS to report and record employee accidents and injuries. The workshop will be offered twice on the 26th to accommodate time zones, works schedules and course demand. Closes on June 17th. [Risk Management, WASO]

June 23 — 25: Staffing, Classification and Compensation Practitioner's Training, San Francisco, CA. Training on a variety of topics and issues and provision of state-of-the-art information and guidance to assist practitioners in their consultant and management advisory roles. On-line registration can be done at http://www.doi.gov/ppm/. For more information, contact Lisa Williams (Lisa_Williams@ios.doi.gov, 202-208-6755) or Winford Hooker (Winford_Hooker@ios.doi.gov, 202-208-7949). [DOI LAN Team]

July

July 29 — August 7: Basic Law Enforcement for Supervisors (BLESTP-307), FLETC, Glynco, GA. Closes on June 30th. [Wiley Golden, FLETC]

August

August 4 — August 15: Technical Investigative Equipment (TIETP-309), FLETC, Glynco, GA. Closes on June 26th. [Wiley Golden, FLETC]

August 4 — August 14: Driver Instructor (DITP-302), FLETC, Glynco, GA. Closes on June 26th. [Wiley Golden, FLETC]

August 4 — August 15: Defensive Tactics Instructor (DTITP-302), FLETC, Glynco, GA. Closes on June 26th. [Wiley Golden, FLETC]

August 5 — August 14: White Collar Crimes (WCCTP-303), FLETC, Glynco, GA. Closes on June 30th. [Wiley Golden, FLETC]

August 5 — August 8: Fundamentals of Special Park Uses, Albuquerque, NM. The course provides comprehensive guidance on all aspects of special park uses, from First Amendment issues to filming and photography to wireless telecommunications sites. Added this year is a component on temporary food services and other health and safety issues related to special park uses. NPS Management Policies, 36 CFR, and DO-53 and RM-53 will be covered in depth. NOTE: This is the only course offering this year. Closes on June 27th. Email nomination forms via Lotus Notes to Margie Fresquez or fax them to her at 505-988-6099. Fore more information, contact either Lee Dickinson in WASO (202-513-7092), or Delpha Maunders in Santa Fe (505-988-6015). [Delpha Maunders, IMRO]

August 11 — August 15: Archeological Resource Protection Training (XP-ARPTP-301), Milwaukee, WI. Closes on June 26th. [Wiley Golden, FLETC]

August 11 — August 22: Firearms Instructor (FITP-309), FLETC, Glynco, GA. Closes on June 30th. [Wiley Golden, FLETC]

September

September 8 — September 19: Small Craft Enforcement (SCETP-301), FLETC, Glynco, GA.. Closes on August 5th. [Wiley Golden, FLETC]

September 8 — September 19: Physical Security (PSTP-308), FLETC, Glynco, GA. Closes on July 28th. [Wiley Golden, FLETC]

September 9 — September 18: Basic Law Enforcement for Supervisors (BLESTP-308), FLETC, Glynco, GA. Closes on July 29th. [Wiley Golden, FLETC]

September 9 — September 18: White Collar Crimes (WCCTP-304), FLETC, Glynco, GA. Closes on July 30th. [Wiley Golden, FLETC]

September 15 — September 26: Firearms Instructor (FITP-310), FLETC, Glynco, GA. Closes on July 28th. [Wiley Golden, FLETC]

* * * * * * * * * *

Submission standards for the Morning Report can be found on the left side of the front page of InsideNPS. All reports should be submitted via email to Bill Halainen at Delaware Water Gap NRA, with a copy to your regional office and a copy to Dennis Burnett in Division of Law Enforcement and Emergency Services, WASO.

Prepared by the Division of Law Enforcement and Emergency Services, WASO, with the cooperation and support of Delaware Water Gap NRA.