Editor's Desk
No Morning Report Monday or Tuesday
There will be no Morning Report on Monday, November 10th, or Tuesday, November 11th.
INCIDENTS
San Juan National Historic Site (PR)
Sentence Issued In Significant ARPA Case
On November 4th, D.M. plead guilty in federal court to an ARPA
charge (16 USC 470ee(d) and 18 USC 3559(a)(6)) that was filed against
him for stealing artifacts from Castillo de San Felipe Del Morro (or El
Morro), a 16th century fort located in the park. As per the terms of a
plea agreement, D.M. will pay $5,000 in restitution to the park; he
will also serve a year's probation, with previous time in jail counting
as time served. Last January, co-defendant Jimmy Fralick was sentenced
to three years' probation and ordered to pay restitution in the amount
of $5,000 to the park, but was not sentenced to jail time due to failing
health. El Morro is considered one of the world's most important
cultural sites and was designated a World Heritage Site by UNESCO in
1983. Fralick was hired as a contractor to clean vegetation away from
the fort in 1995. He entered a little-known passageway, where he found a
number of artifacts, some dating back 400 or more years. Fralick removed
several of them, including bullets and a lead bar with carved
inscriptions on one side. He returned to Florida with the stolen
artifacts and sold the lead bar to co-defendant Danny D.M. for $1,000
in 2000. Fralick later counseled D.M. on how to access the site to find
more artifacts and helped D.M. arrange a trip back to Puerto Rico to
steal some of them. On June 7, 2000, Fralick and D.M. broke into the
fort after park hours and attempted to locate artifacts. This was a very
important case because it was the first conviction for violations of
ARPA at a World Heritage Site in the United States. The case was
investigated by law enforcement specialist Eric Lugo and NPS
archeologist Margo Schwardon and prosecuted by AUSA Carlos Martinez
(Puerto Rico) and AUSA Kathleen O'Malley (Jacksonville, Florida).
Additional assistance was provided by the US Postal Inspection Service
and FBI.
[Submitted by Eric Lugo, Law Enforcement Specialist, plus
previous reports]
Ozark National Scenic Riverways (MO)
Attempted Suicide, Life Saved
On Sunday, November 2nd, visitors reported seeing a parked vehicle
with an unresponsive person inside on the gravel bar at Blue Spring on
the Current River, an area within the park owned by the Missouri
Department of Conservation. Ranger Brad Conway located the vehicle and
saw several empty pill bottles and an apparent suicide note on the seat.
After unsuccessfully attempting to awaken the 38-year-old occupant,
Conway requested assistance, then reached through a partially opened
window to open the vehicle and reach her. A certified First Responder,
Conway found that the woman was breathing on her own, so administered
oxygen and monitored her airway. Rangers Mark Miller and Chris Figge
guided an ambulance and a medevac helicopter to the scene. The woman was
flown to a hospital in Poplar Bluff, where she remains hospitalized.
[Submitted by Larry Johnson, Chief Ranger]
Ozark National Scenic Riverways (MO)
Fatal Tractor-Trailer Accident
A tractor-trailer truck hauling a load of lumber was descending a
sharp curve toward the bridge over the Jacks Fork River near Buck Hollow
on November 4th when the driver missed a turn and the truck ran off the
road and overturned. The driver, D.S., 40, of Houston, Missouri,
was pinned in the cab. Rescuers from nearby fire departments and ranger
Mark Miller extricated D.S., but he was pronounced dead at the scene.
The Missouri Highway Patrol is investigating and conducting an accident
reconstruction. The highway was closed for two days to clean up the
wreckage and scattered lumber.
[Submitted by Larry Johnson, Chief
Ranger]
PARKS AND PEOPLE
Booker T. Washington National Monument, Northeast Region
Passing of Albert Sydney Wright
Albert Sydney Wright, the first, and former Farmer Foreman (Chief of Maintenance) at Booker T. Washington National Monument passed away on Friday, October 31, 2003. Sydney joined the National Park Service in 1949 working for the Blue Ridge Parkway. He came to Booker T. Washington National Monument in 1957, the year that NPS took deed to the property and stayed until his retirement in June, 1985.
Sydney was an avid hunter, fisherman, and loved the outdoors. He remained close to the park staff and last year assisted us with LCS records and the Determination of Eligibility for the park's Mission 66 visitor center.
[Submitted by Connie Mays, Connie_Mays@nps.gov, (540) 721-2094]
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.