INCIDENTS

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Sequoia & Kings Canyon National Parks (CA)
Operation No Grow Continues

Operation No Grow — a sustained effort to eliminate marijuana plantations from the park — continued on August 2nd with the eradication of 13,452 marijuana plants from a massive clandestine farm in the park. With a potential value of $4,000 per mature plant, this crop could have netted nearly $54 million.

The farm, discovered earlier this year, appears to have been under cultivation for at least two years. Participating in the operation were specially-trained rangers (guided by SA Eric Inman) and officers and personnel from the California Campaign Against Marijuana Planting (CAMP), the California National Guard, Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE), the Drug Enforcement Agency, and the Central Valley High Intensity Drug Trafficking Area. Supporting agencies also provided helicopters for the operation.

In addition to the marijuana plants, rangers and officers seized a loaded semi-automatic shotgun, a .177 caliber pellet rifle with pellets, 30-30 rifle rounds, .45 pistol rounds, and .44 magnum rounds. Other significant evidence was collected and will be processed, examined and analyzed  by task force members.

Thousands of native shrubs, trees and herbaceous plants were destroyed by the growers to accommodate the marijuana farm, which was directly above a year-round water source. One inch black plastic irrigation hoses brought water to the complex from a half mile away. Thousands of depressions were dug to hold the marijuana plants. Evidence of hundreds of pounds of various fertilizers were found. A large trash pit, almost full of refuse, remains on site along with the remains of the irrigation system and two large camps with hundreds of pounds of miscellaneous camping gear, food, equipment and trash. The depredation of the natural environment from marijuana farms such as this is one is, by far, the most destructive human activity occurring in the parks. A limited amount of special funding has been made available to clean up and rehabilitate the many marijuana farm sites in the parks. Overall costs would have been substantially higher without the direct involvement and superb cooperation of the Riverside ICE air unit. Because of the helicopter and personnel they provided, the entire mission was completed in eight hours. The significant contributions of ICE and other cooperators have been and continue to be critical to the success of these operations. 

Park public information officer Alex Picavet arranged for local media, including Univision, the Spanish programming network, to witness and record this operation. A Univision camera crew filmed the remote marijuana farm from aboard the CAMP helicopter and a broadcast a report on the operation that evening.

To date this year, more than 17,750 marijuana plants have been eradicated from the parks through Operation No Grow.
[Submitted by Eric Inman, Special Agent, and Gregg Fauth, Acting Chief Ranger]

North Cascades National Park (WA)
Climber Rescued from Forbidden Peak

A party of three climbers began an ascent of the North Ridge of Forbidden Peak on Saturday, July 31st, after first crossing the Quien Sabe and Boston Glaciers to reach the ridge. Around 9 a.m., B.M. of Seattle was leading the ascent when he fell about 40 feet, pulled out two protection pieces, then fell another 80 feet down a gulley. B.M. sustained open fractures of both legs, but no other apparent injuries. His two partners raised him the 80 feet back to the ridge, then left him there and climbed out to seek assistance. Eight hours passed before they were able to climb to a location where their cell phone worked. They then contacted the park. Just before dark, a recon flight was made of the accident site and a radio was lowered to B.M. to inform him that a rescue effort would be undertaken the next morning. Four rangers were flown in early on Sunday. Two climbing rangers were lowered to a point near B.M. and prepared him for extrication. B.M. was shorthauled to a flat snow bench further down the ridge, then transferred to an Airlift Northwest medical helicopter and flown to Harborview Trauma Center in Seattle.
[Submitted by Pete Cowan, Chief Ranger]

Denali National Park & Preserve (AK)
Backpacker Sustains Minor Injuries in Bear Incident

On the evening of Wednesday, July 28th, a solo backpacker received minor scratches on his right arm when he encountered a sow grizzly bear with a single spring cub while hiking near Glacier Creek, about three miles southwest of the Eielson Visitor Center. N.H., from Oslo, Norway, was hiking through a brushy area near the creek when he saw the bears approximately 150 feet from him. He began to make noise and back away from them, but the adult continued to approach him. When the bear got to within 10 feet, N.H. lay down and played dead. He felt heavy pressure on his right side when the bear made contact with him and scratched at his arm through the layers of clothing. N.H. then shot off an emergency flare that he had in his pocket and the adult bear backed away. Both animals then moved away from the area.

N.H. hiked to the Eielson Visitor Center and reported the incident to park staff at approximately 7:30 p.m. He spent the night at the Wonder Lake Campground and took a bus back to the park headquarters area the next morning. He was taken to a local clinic where he received a tetanus shot.

The last incident involving a bear injuring a visitor in the park occurred in 1997.

The same bears may have been involved in another incident that occurred earlier that day in the same area. Rangers at Eielson Visitor Center received a report from another solo backpacker who had encountered two bears. He reported that the bears had approached him until they were about 30 feet away. He made noise and the animals moved away and left the vicinity.

Although the park's wildlife biologists believe that the bears reacted normally and may have been surprised by solo backpackers who were not making much noise, they monitored the area for several days. No adverse actions were against the bears, who have been seen regularly in the area this summer. Food was not obtained in either incident.

Additional bear activity at the Eielson Visitor Center has prompted park managers to temporarily close the area in the vicinity of the Visitor Center to all hiking. A different female grizzly with two spring cubs has been frequenting the area and has begun to exhibit erratic behavior, including charging the building and vehicles for no apparent reason. Bus drivers are currently dropping off and loading their passengers at the entrance to the visitor center and visitors are being asked to remain by the building or observation deck until further notice. Use of the picnic area immediately adjacent to the building is being allowed if the bears are at least a quarter mile away.
[Submitted by Kris Fister, Public Affairs Officer]

Saint Croix National Scenic River (WI)
Two Drownings in St. Croix River

Rangers dealt with two drownings within a week in mid-July. Late in the afternoon on July 17th, the park received a call from the Burnett County (Wisconsin) Sheriff's Office, reporting that a young male, later identified as N.V., 15, was missing in the St. Croix River near the Sandrock Cliffs camping area. N.V. was camping with a group of other young family members and friends when, while wading in the river, he disappeared under the surface after stepping into a six-foot-deep hole. Namekagon District DR Chuck Carlson, the closest ranger, responded and assumed command of the incident. Other park staff soon joined him, including members of the park's dive team. N.V.'s body was recovered approximately four hours after the initial call near the point last seen. Other agencies involved included the Burnett County Sheriffs Office, the Grantsburg (Wisconsin) Volunteer Fire Department, the Danbury (Wisconsin) Volunteer Fire Department dive team, and both the Minnesota and Wisconsin Departments of Natural Resources. Less than a week later, rangers responded to another drowning in the river, this time near the Osceola day use area. R.B., 39, was floating on a raft on the river with his wife and 13-year-old son when a rope attached from an inner tube (with cooler) to his ankle snagged on a submerged log and pulled him under. Several other people also floating on rafts in the area tried to locate and assist R.B., but the swift current prevented them for doing so. The Osceola (Wisconsin) Volunteer Fire Department and St. Croix District rangers managed to locate and bring R.B. to the surface within 15 minutes. CPR was immediately begun. R.B. was transported by boat and ambulance to the Osceola Medical Center, where he was pronounced dead after continued life saving efforts failed. Sergeant B., known to many of the St. Croix District rangers, was a 13-year veteran of the Chisago County (Minnesota) Sheriffs Department.
[Submitted by Brian R. Adams, Chief Resource Protection]

Lake Mead National Recreation Area (AZ,NV)
Arrest of Sexual Assault Suspect

On Wednesday, July 21st, NPS special agents arrested J.L., 42 in North Las Vegas, on an outstanding warrant charging him with one count of felony sexual assault and three counts of gross misdemeanor open or gross lewdness. The charges stemmed from an investigation conducted by special agent Beth Shott. The arrest warrant was issued after two girls under the age of 16 came forward and reported that they had been sexually molested by J.L. at a beach camp on the lake's shore about three years ago.
[Submitted by Mike Blandford]

FIRE MANAGEMENT

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NIFC/NPS Fire and Aviation Management
National Fire Situation Highlights — Monday, August 9, 2004

Preparedness Level 3

NIFC reported 108 new fires on Sunday, five of which became large fires; four other large fires were contained. Initial attack was light everywhere.

Very high to extreme fire indices were reported in Alaska, Arizona, California, Colorado, Idaho, Montana, Nevada, Oregon, Utah and Wyoming.

Weather Forecast

A strong ridge of high pressure will bring hot and dry weather to most of the West except for cooler weather east of the Rockies. A few thundershowers can be expected over Colorado, Arizona and New Mexico. Warm and dry weather is also on tap for the central and eastern interior of Alaska.

Warnings and Watches

No warnings or watches have been issued for today.

NPS Fires

For a brief supplemental narrative on each fire, click on the bar with the arrow. Internal NPS readers can link directly to full reports on each fire by clicking on the notepad icon; public readers of the Morning Report can obtain similar information by going to http://www.nps.gov/fire/news

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National/State Team Commitments

Newly listed fires (on this report) appear below in boldface. Changes in the status of a fire (type of team, change from a fire to a complex, etc.) are also noted in boldface.

Fires are sorted by type of team; teams are listed in alphabetical order within each type by the IC's last name.

State	Agency	Team	IC	Fire and Location	8/6	8/9	% Con	Est Con
CA	State	1	Heil *	Calaveras Complex, Tuolumne-Calaveras Unit	-----	400	0	UNK
MT	USFS	2	Carlson	Capri Lake Fire, Bitterroot NF	200	155	85	8/11
WA	USFS	2	Furlong	Pot Peak Complex, Okanogan-Wenatchee NF	45,970	46,970	85	8/20
WA	USFS	2	Jennings/ Perry #	Freezeout Fire, Okanogan-Wenatchee NF	482	586	17	UNK
ID	USFS	2	Saleen	Corn Fire, Salmon-Challis NF	197	205	100	CND
WA	USFS	FU	Bonefeld	Rattlesnake Peak Fire, Okanogan-Wenatchee NF	738	738	N/A	N/A
MN	NPS	FU	Hall	Section 33 Fire, Voyageurs NP	1,409	1,409	N/A	N/A

* CDF Type 1 IMT

# Washington State IMT

National Resource Commitments

Day	Tue	Wed	Thu	Fri	Sat	Sun	Mon
Date	8/3	8/4	8/5	8/6	8/7	8/8	8/9
Crews	229	258	154	122	126	131	207
Engines	477	499	365	202	292	321	474
Helicopters	102	108	93	83	74	73	88
Air Tankers	0	2	0	2	2	0	2
Overhead	1,848	2,379	1,536	1,130	992	847	1,005

Further Information

This report is meant to present just highlights of the current fire situation. Two other NIFC sites provide much greater detail:

Full NIFC Situation Report (PDF file) — http://www.nifc.gov/news/sitreprt.pdf
National Fire News — http://www.nifc.gov/fireinfo/nfn.html

Information on NPS Fire and Aviation Management (FAM) and on park fires can be found at:
FAM — http://www.nps.gov/fire
Park fires — http://www.nps.gov/fire/news

OPERATIONAL NOTES

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NPS Office at the Federal Law Enforcement Training Center
Basic Ranger LE Training

National Park Ranger Basic Law Enforcement Training (NPRI-502) will be offered at FLETC from December 6th to next April 28th. This intensive basic training course has been specially developed for the National Park Service and is specifically designed to meet the basic training required of rangers to qualify for a permanent NPS commission. The announcement, which closes on October 20th, can be found at http://www.nps.gov/training/announcements/NPRI-502.doc

 
[Submitted by Wiley Golden, FLETC]

PARKS AND PEOPLE

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Northeast Region
Northeast Regional Yount Award Winner Named

Ranger Dave Redding has been named the region's 2004 Yount Award winner. The text of the citation follows:

During the past seventeen years, this Park Ranger has provided superb instruction and been a shining example of the consummate professional ranger. His teaching abilities are recognized and respected by his peers and those in the field.  Because of his great teaching abilities, he has traveled throughout the region providing exceptional law enforcement refresher training courses in the areas of officer safety, defensive tactics, firearms and impact weapon use to hundreds of Northeast Regional permanent and seasonal Protection Rangers.  His reputation as an extraordinary instructor has led to requests to provide instruction at the Federal Law Enforcement Training Center in Georgia, a number of colleges and universities that offer our Seasonal Law Enforcement Training Program and at a number of local police training academies. He has given countless hours of his time and his tireless energy over the years in presenting this critically important training.  His strong emphasis on officer safety and the techniques he teaches has in great measure contributed to the prevention of loss-of-life and serious injury to many of the region's Protection Rangers. His instruction remains up-to-date, technically informative and inspirational as is his example of a truly professional and skilled ranger to those he has instructed. For his example and his extraordinary teaching abilities, it gives me great pleasure to present David J. Redding of Lowell National Historical Park as this year's recipient of the 2004 Northeast Region Harry Yount Award for Excellence in Rangering.
[Submitted by Marc Vagos, Northeast Regional Office]

Passing of Retired Ranger J.R. Buchanan

Retired ranger J.R Buchanan passed away at his home on August 3rd. J.R. had a wide and colorful reputation for his work in law enforcement at Great Smoky Mountains National Park. He began his service at the Smokies in March 1956 as a fire control aide and was elevated to protection ranger. He worked in the Abrams Creek area of the park until 1974 before moving to the Cosby area, where he remained until his retirement in 1987. Buchanan was 77. J.R. was widely recognized as the "Tracker of All Trackers" and was sought out throughout the Smokies and by neighboring law enforcement agencies to track fugitives as well as lost persons. He is best remembered for his role in a 1986 manhunt for Michael Wayne Jackson, who was being pursued following a killing and carjacking spree in Indianapolis. In one day, Jackson had killed three people, including a federal parole officer, then carjacked over a dozen vehicles as he fled south into Missouri. Following a shoot-out with police, Jackson fled into the forest. J.R. and FBI agent Bob Swabe from Tennessee tracked the Jackson to a barn near Wright City, Missouri. The pursuit ended when Jackson shot himself as J.R. and Swabe entered the barn. J.R. was flown to Washington for departmental recognition. Even after retirement he continued to come back to teach man-tracking courses annually, leaving a legacy of skilled trackers throughout the National Park Service and in east Tennessee law enforcement agencies. Condolences may be sent to J.R.'s son Wesley Buchanan, 4212 Bart Giffin Rd. Maryville, TN 37804. At this point no memorial plans have been set up by the family.

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.