NATIONAL PARK SERVICE
MORNING REPORT
BLACKBERRY EDITION
Tuesday, November 1, 2005
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NOTICE
Per proclamation by President Bush, the U.S. flag will be flown at half-staff in memory of Rosa Parks on Wednesday, November 2nd - the day of her funeral and burial in Detroit. Flags are to be flown at half-staff until sunset, then returned to full staff on Thursday. [NCR Dispatch]
INCIDENTS
South Florida Areas
Hurricane Wilma Recovery Update
The National IMT (JD Swed, IC) transitioned Monday with the park IMT from Biscayne National Park. The team spent the morning at an all employee meeting at Biscayne and transitioned with the park's IMT shortly thereafter. The park IMT has done an outstanding job of employee assistance and initial damage assessment. The National IMT will now assist the park with continuing assessments of damage and storm recovery. Equipment and material are arriving at all three parks. An additional employee assistance specialist has arrived and is out in the parks meeting with park employees to determine how best to assist them. Phone service was again out this morning at both Biscayne and Everglades, creating continuing communications problems for both the parks and the IMT.
Big Cypress NP
Two squads continue to work on access issues on off-road vehicle trails. They will also help the Red Cross temporarily move non-agency people into park employee housing. The special event team assigned to the incident continues to provide 24-hour patrol of closed areas and provide assistance to Big Cypress and the Gulf Coast portion of Everglades with security and LE, with a squad attached to each. There are at least three or more significant tree hazards in the Concho Billy, Oasis and Monument Trail areas. These trees will be flagged and cordoned off to prevent public access. GPS coordinates for these trees will be obtained and a special mitigation plan will be developed.
Biscayne NP
The newly arrived maintenance crew will conduct an on-site assessment of facilities at Elliot Key and gather information on resource needs for repairs there. The NIMT transitioned with the park's Type 3 IMT Monday morning and began planning for the park's clean-up and recovery. A well attended all-employee meeting was held in the visitors center at Convoy Point. Park management introduced the NIMT to employees and staff were encouraged to ask questions and express concerns. Of 40 park employees in attendance, six remain without power. They have been offered generators and fuel to run them until power is restored. After the all-employee meeting, interpretive ranger Jorge Acevedo provided the NIMT with a complete orientation to the park and IMT activities to date.
Everglades NP/Dry Tortugas NP
Superintendent Dan Kimball yesterday reported that phone service was not available at Everglade headquarters. Work continues to try to fix the air conditioning at the Krome Center in Homestead. The A/C unit was blown off the roof by Wilma. The park is taking action to dehumidify the Dan Beard center to protect cultural resources.
Protection ranger Bud Walsh (Sequoia-Kings Canyon) has been assigned as branch director at Dry Tortugas for this incident. He traveled to Key West yesterday to prepare to go to the park on Tuesday and begin damage assessment and recovery.
Additional Information
A web site has been established as a repository for official documents related to hurricane recovery operations: HYPERLINK "http://inside.nps.gov/waso/waso.cfm?prg=15&lv=1" http://inside.nps.gov/waso/waso.cfm?prg=15&lv=1.
[Shauna Dyas, IO, National IMT]
Hawaii Volcanoes NP
Technical Rescue
On the evening of October 21st, a 19-year-old female nursing student from the University of Hawaii at Hilo went looking for a suitable place to go to the bathroom near the Kilauea Military Camp, which is inside Hawaii Volcanoes National Park. She jumped over a fence surrounding a clump of vegetation, then fell 30 feet into an earth crack. There are perhaps thousands of these cracks throughout the park and vegetation makes it difficult to see these deep holes. The majority of these cracks in high visitor use areas are surrounded by railings and/or marked with signs. One of the woman's nearby friends called for help. Hawaii County rescue and NPS rangers were notified and responded. One ranger rappelled down to the woman, who was standing on an old trash can on a ledge, 15 feet above the bottom. The ranger stabilized the young woman as a sked was lowered to their location. The ranger and a county medic packaged the patient before she was raised using a mechanical advantage hauling system. The woman was treated at the scene, transported to Hilo Medical Center for further evaluation, then released with only a few abrasions and a sprained ankle. [John Broward, Acting Operations Supervisor]
Natchez Trace Parkway
Drug Seizure
A Natchez Trace ranger made a traffic stop on a vehicle for speeding at mile post 260 this past August. The driver of the vehicle admitted to drinking, and there were open containers in plain view. During the DUI investigation, the driver and passenger both appeared to be very nervous. The ranger asked what else was in the vehicle, and the driver admitted that there was a large quantity of marijuana. A search of the vehicle revealed five pounds of marijuana in the spare tire. Both driver and passenger have numerous felony convictions for narcotics and possession of firearms in the past and were on probation. They were charged with possession with intent to distribute, DUI, speeding and open container. [Jay Drinkwater, Park Ranger]
JOBS
Ozark NSR
GS-7 or GS-9 Protection Ranger - Lateral Opportunity
Ozark National Scenic Riverways is seeking a motivated and qualified applicant interested in a lateral reassignment to a GS-7 or GS-9 subject-to-furlough position. The protection ranger selected will be involved in the full range of traditional ranger functions. The park has an active law enforcement program with over a million visitors during the busy summer months along with year-round hunting and fishing enforcement. The park hosts a FLETC-sponsored field training program and has a good working relationship with local law enforcement. Patrols are conducted by foot, canoe, motorboat, ATV and vehicle. The park features 134 miles of crystal clear water with over 100 natural springs and 300 caves in the rolling hills of southeast Missouri. This area offers a low cost of living with a range of housing available. Moving expenses will be paid. Applications are being accepted from today through December 13th. If you are interested, please contact Kinsey Shilling, chief ranger, at 573-323-4236 X 237.
TRAINING AND EVENTS
Conservation Law Enforcement Association
Eighteenth Annual Conference Set for February
The 18th Annual Conservation Law Enforcement Conference will be held from February 8th to February 10th in Prescott, Arizona. The conference provides a competition pistol shoot and 18 hours of AZPOST certified training to local, state and federal conservation law enforcement officers. For further information, visit the website at HYPERLINK "http://www.azclea.org" www.azclea.org. This year's speakers and topics are outlined below.
Dr. James T. Reese - Weaving his powerful anecdotes of his 25 years of experience as an FBI “mind hunter,” Dr. Reese works tirelessly to share what he has taught to tens of thousands of law enforcement personnel and employees of Fortune 500 companies the world over. While it has always been considered one of the most stressful occupations in the world, law enforcement doesn't hold the copyright on stress. Instead it's the uniqueness of police stress, the work, the responsibility for people, the dangers associated with the job, the long, irregular hours, the pressures placed upon you to perform at your maximum capacity 24-hours a day and the need to control your emotions on a fulltime basis. Dr. Reese's presentation is entitled "You Don't Have To Give Up What's Important For a Career In Law Enforcement."
Gordon J. Graham - Graham is a 30-year veteran of California law enforcement. His education as a risk manager and experience as a practicing attorney, coupled with his extensive background in law enforcement, have allowed him to rapidly became recognized as a leading professional speaker in both private and public sector organizations with multiple areas of expertise. Graham will speak on the following topics: “Why Things Do Right, Why Things Go Wrong,” “Ethical Decision Making,” and “Effective Courtroom Testimony.”
[Tom Cherry]
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Prepared by Visitor and Resource Protection, WASO, with the cooperation and support of Delaware Water Gap NRA.
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