South Florida Areas
Hurricane Wilma Recovery Update
Hurricane Wilma recovery operations are now being managed by two teams. Denny Ziemann's Pacific West IMT is overseeing activities at Biscayne NP and Big Cypress NP. An incident management team headed by Bob Panko of Everglades NP is dealing with operations at Everglades NP and Dry Tortugas NP. A deputy IC (J.P. Mattingly) is responsible for the latter.
Big Cypress NP
Grading and debris clean-up continues along the Loop Road, which remains closed. Roofing work continues on structures.
Biscayne NP
Chipping operations and stabilization of the Oceanside boardwalk continues at Elliott Key. A management burn is planned on Boca Chita Key to remove debris piles from that area. Debris clean-up continues at Convoy Point.
Everglades NP
On Thursday, crews began preparing a USGS houseboat to accompany and support trail clearing missions into remote portions of the backcountry Wilderness Waterway. Efforts to remove debris from the Flamingo boat basin continued, as did efforts to clear storm damaged areas at Chekika. Restoration of Flamingo electric, water and wastewater facilities continued. Currently, planning is underway to transfer Wilma recovery efforts to normal park supervision. Long Pine Key Campground was opened for public use.
Dry Tortugas NP
Crews continued efforts to clear debris, rehabilitate and stabilize storm damaged areas and prepare for the future transfer of command. An informational flyer showing photographs of Dry Tortugas and Everglades NP damage was created and disseminated to two Dry Tortuga boat tour companies, the Sea Plane Company and the Key West Chamber of Commerce. A press release describing hurricane damage to Dry Tortugas and Everglades and listing park facilities and trails currently open to visitor use was written and distributed to all local area newspapers and park employees.
Additional Information
A web site has been established as a repository for official
documents related to hurricane recovery operations: http://inside
.nps.gov/waso/waso.cfm?prg=15&lv=1.
[Submitted by Richard Reuse, IO, Panko IMT; Judy Bartzatt, IO, Pacific West IMT]
Appalachian National Scenic Trail (CT,GA,MA,MD,ME,NC,NH,NJ,NY,PA,TN,VA,VT,WV)
First Civil Park System Resource Protection Act Case Tried in Court
On March 1, 2002, a private land owner severely damaged a
wooden trestle within Appalachian National Scenic Trail while burning
brush on his property. The land owner's property is adjacent
to the Virginia Creeper Trail Trestle Bridge #17, a part of the trail
in Damascus, Virginia. The USFS maintains the trestle and had recently
completed a pedestrian walkway across it. A USFS patrol captain,
assisted by a USFS LE officer, investigated the incident and determined
that the land owner's fire started the fire that damaged Trestle #17.
The investigation showed that the landowner left his property for an
hour to have dinner after starting a number of small fires, which he
thought were extinguished. When he returned to his property to check for
hot spots, he found the trestle on fire. The damage to the trestle,
including response and assessment costs, totaled $43,000. The case was
forwarded to the DOI Solicitor's Office and eventually on to the AUSA
for the Western District of Virginia. Although the NPS was willing to
settle and ultimately dropped the figure to $26,000 during settlement
negotiations, the responsible party's insurance company was unwilling to
raise their counter offer above $8,000. In coordination with the
Environmental Response Damage Assessment and Restoration Unit (ERDAR),
the NPS decided to not accept the counter offer from the insurance
company and moved forward with litigation. The jury trial was held on
October 25th and 26th in Abingdon, Virginia. The AUSA, with the
assistance of a DOI solicitor, successfully argued the NPS case. The
jury returned late in the day on October 26th with a verdict in favor of
the United States. This is the first 19jj case that has gone to
trial. With the successful outcome, the park will receive the $43,000,
which both parties had stipulated to before trial, for restoration of
the trestle and reimbursement of the parks response and assessment
costs. Parks are reminded that under DO-14, parks are to contact ERDAR
concerning all potential 19jj cases which include injuries to facilities
(fences, stop signs, patrol cars etc), natural and cultural resources.
The contact should be made before a value is placed on the resource
injured to insure Servicewide consistency. The authorized official for
all 19jj cases is the Associate Director, Natural Resource Stewardship
and Science, who is the only person with the delegated authority to
officially refer a civil 19jj case to the DOI Solicitors Office or to
DOJ (including the AUSA). Parks should consult with ERDAR before
contacting the DOI Solicitors Office or the civil AUSA. Please
refer to DO-14, Resource Damage Assessments and Restoration Policies and
Implementation Handbook, for general guidance. If you have questions
concerning the case, please contact Robert Gray, chief ranger for the
Appalachian Trail, at 304-535-6171. Questions concerning 19jj should go
to Karen Battle, damage assessment case officer, at 404-331-0334.
For assignment of a case officer for your 19jj case, please
contact Rick Dawson, damage assessment program manager, at 404-331-0185.
[Submitted by Robert Gray, Chief Ranger, APPA, and Karen Battle, ERDAR]
OPERATIONAL NOTES
Director/Deputy Directors
Memorandum: NPS Motor Vehicle Accident Reports
The following memorandum, entitled "National Park Service Motor Vehicle Accident Reports," was issued on November 10th by the director and transmitted to regional directors and the chief of the Park Police. Please click on "More Information" below for copies of the referenced forms:
By memorandum, dated January 31, 2005, the Washington Office alerted the field of the Solicitor's Office determination that the Privacy Act prohibits release of private information contained in Motor Vehicle Accident (MVA) reports to requesters other than themselves. The National Park Service (NPS) proposed to amend the "routine use exceptions" to its Privacy Act System of Records, NPS-19 Case Incident Reporting System. This proposed amendment was published in the 70 Federal Register 1274-75 (January 6, 2005), and provided the public a 40-day comment period. No comments were received, so the proposed Privacy Act "routine use exception" amendment has been adopted and in effect since February 15, 2005. A copy of the revised NPS-19 can be retrieved at http://a257.g.akamaitech.net/7/257/2422/01jan20051800/edocket.access.gpo.gov/2005/pdf/05-290.pdf
With the new "routine use exception" now in effect, all or most of a MVA report may be made available upon written request by parties designated in that routine use exception; for example, individuals involved, injured, or who suffered property damage in such incidents, their duly verified insurance companies, personal representatives, or attorneys. To ensure that only appropriate information is released, each request for an MVA report must be in writing, and will be processed on a case-by-case basis under the Privacy Act (when the requester is not a party designated in the routine use exception, the Freedom of Information Act). The revised NPS-19 provides that information on MVA reports should be released to parties designated in the routine use exception only when the release will not interfere with an on-going law enforcement proceeding, risk the health or safety of an individual, or reveal the identity of an informant or witness that received an explicit assurance of confidentiality. It also provides that social security numbers should not be released unless they belong to the individual requester.
Since requests for a MVA report, as well as the NPS response to
such requests, must be in writing, NPS Request Form 10-339 may be used
to assist persons who wish to request a copy of a MVA report. NPS
Response Form 10-339a is no longer applicable and should not be used.
NPS Response Forms 10-339b and 10-339c may be used to respond to
requesters who are to be provided with either, as appropriate, an
unredacted or redacted MVA report. Any questions may be directed through
your Regional FOIA/Privacy Act Officer or Diane Cooke, WASO
FOIA/Privacy Act Officer, at 202/ 354-1925.
More Information...
Servicewide
Upcoming Training Calendar
NOTE: Insofar as is possible, new training submissions will now be run as separate, discrete entries when they are received, then will be briefly summarized and posted in this weekly training calendar, which comes out on Fridays. This will provide readers with two opportunities to catch new training postings. Please submit information to Bill_Halainen@nps.gov. New listings and revisions are in bold face.
November 28 — December 2
Quarters Management Information System and Rates Training, Denver, CO. The course will provide housing managers a better understanding and working knowledge of the NPS housing program. Specific topics include QMIS inventory requirements, required and non-required occupancy, safety and health issues, need assessments, condition assessments, housing management plans and PMIS projects. For more information, contact Hala Bates, IMRO housing office, at 303-969-2742 or via email.
December 5 — December 9
LE In-Service Training, Grand Canyon NP, AZ. The park is hosting a 40-hour LE in-service training session designed specifically for LE and emergency services supervisors. Sessions will include:
- Managing LE employee discipline and performance process (presented by William Rudman and Associates)
- Integrity leadership — responding to ethics issues by preventing misconduct (presented by the National Institute of Ethics)
- Officer-involved shootings — planning and response (presented by an NPS special agent)
- Safety: Error identification, tolerance and reduction (presented by Todd Conklin, Ph.D.)
There will also be a control tactics session. Tuition is $150 per person. To register or obtain additional information, contact South Rim shift supervisory Karyl Yeston at 928-638-7813.
December 12 — December 14
NREMT Refresher Course, Arches NP, Moab, UT. The park will be holding a 24-hour NREMT refresher course from December 12th to 14th, with an optional eight-hour ALS/EMT I skill review on December 15th for all participants seeking continuing education credits. The course will be taught by instructors from the University of Utah EMS outreach program, with a 10:1 student-to-instructor ratio and hands-on exercises and skills practice. Classes will be held at the park visitor center in Moab. Tuition is $300, paid by benefiting account. For more information, contact course coordinator Jeff Webb via email or at 435-259-4712 ext. 11.
January 30 — February 3
Archeological Resources Protection Training (CP-ARPTP-601), Port
Hueneme, CA. Training in asll aspects of archeological investigation and
subsequent prosecution of crimes. Taught by instructors who are
nationally-recognized subject-matter experts in the fields of law
enforcement, archeology and law. Questions should be directed to Charles
Louke (912-280-5188, charles.louke@dhs.gov); for NPS course registration information, contact Wiley Golden (912-267-2246, Wiley_Golden@nps.gov).
Servicewide
Upcoming Events Calendar
NOTE: Insofar as is possible, submissions on upcoming events will now be run as separate, discrete entries when they are received, then will be briefly summarized and posted in this weekly events calendar, which comes out on Fridays. This will provide readers with two opportunities to catch new event postings. Please submit information to Bill_Halainen@nps.gov. New listings and revisions are in bold face.
November 18 — November 20
Maritime Heritage Education, National Maritime Center, Norfolk, VA. This conference will be the first of its kind to bring formal and informal educators together to promote the sharing of maritime heritage education partnerships, programs and products. People from all over the country will come together to participate in this exciting conference featuring guest keynote speakers, concurrent sessions, a book room and social gatherings related to the following maritime heritage topics: Lighthouses/lightsaving stations; whaling and fishing heritage; native canoe cultures; shipping and port heritage; shipboard education programs; shipwrecks and other submerged sites. For information on the conference, go to http://www.sanctuaries.noaa.gov/education/mhec ; for info on submitting abstracts (due by August 30th), go to http://www.sanctuaries.noaa.gov/education/mhec
November 29 — December 1
2005 EMS Coordinators' Conference, Best Western Plaza Hotel, Salt Lake City, UT. For particulars, go to http://inside.nps.gov/waso/custommenu.cfm?lv=3&prg=177&id=3898
December 4 — December 8
28th Ranger Rendezvous, Association of National Park Rangers, Francis Marion Hotel, Charleston, SC. The objective of this annual forum is to exchange ideas that further the preservation and management of the National Park Service and the National Park System. General information, a tentative agenda and registration information can be found at www.anpr.org .
December 31
Deadline for submissions in response to the call for proposals for the 2006 Firewise Communities National Conference, which will be held in Denver, Colorado, next November. The program is seeking proposals for presentations sharing experiences and fostering discussions in several subject areas:
- Firewise communities/USA
- Research
- Planning and mitigation
- Fire and emergency operations
- Communicating the Firewise message
- Using technology
For more information, go to www.firewise.org
February 8 — February 10
Eighteenth Annual Conservation Law Enforcement Conference,
Prescott, Arizona. The conference provides 18 hours of AZPOST certified
training to local, state and federal conservation law enforcement
officers, and features a competition pistol shoot. For further
information, visit the conference web site at www.azclea.org .
PARKS AND PEOPLE
Buffalo National River (AR)
GS-7 or GS-9 Park Ranger (Protection)
Buffalo National River is seeking applicants for two to three vacancies, one in each of its three districts.
Established in 1972 as the country's first national river, the park protects 135 miles of river from near its origin in the Boston Mountains to the confluence with the White River in Northwest Arkansas. Nearly 100,000 acres in size, roughly one third of the park's land base is designated wilderness. The river flows past massive sandstone and limestone bluffs throughout the park, with the most challenging sections of whitewater near its headwaters. Heavily wooded and extremely rugged terrain are found throughout the park along with numerous hidden caves and waterfalls. There are over 100 miles of maintained trails for hiking and horseback use and 13 designated campgrounds. Elk, black bear, endangered bats, and a wide variety of other animals are found along the river. Hundreds of pre-historical and historical sites dot the landscape.
With over 1 million visitors annually, the park has a very active
law enforcement and search and rescue program. Applicants must be
willing to participate in high-angle, swiftwater, cave and powerboat
rescue operations. Patrols vary from frontcountry foot and vehicle
patrols to backcountry foot, horse, kayak or powerboat patrols,
depending on the district and water levels. Government housing may be
required depending on the position. The area has a low cost of living,
low taxes, and very reasonable land and housing prices. Rental property
is readily available. The city of Harrison is located less than an hour
from each district; park headquarters, K-12 schools, community college,
restaurants, shopping, groceries, movie and performing arts theatre,
hospital, and specialized clinics are found there. Small communities
with more limited amenities are within minutes of each duty station.
Springfield, Missouri, Little Rock and Fayetteville, Arkansas, are
located within two hours from the park. Branson, Missouri, a popular
tourist destination, is located ½ hour north of Harrison. In addition to
the park, national forest and state land, and several large reservoirs
located nearby offer a wide range of outdoor recreational
opportunities.
The merit promotion announcement number is
BUFF-06-03; the all sources announcement number is CK100715TB. If
you have any questions concerning these openings, please contact chief
ranger Bob Maguire (870-741-5446 ext. 231), or district ranger Lee
Buschkowsky (870-439-2502).
[Submitted by Lee Buschkowsky]
Sequoia & Kings Canyon National Parks (CA)
Craig Axtell Appointed Superintendent
Craig T. Aztell has been appointed the superintendent of Sequoia and Kings Canyon National Parks. He replaces Richard Martin, who retired in June. Axtell is expected to move from Bryce Canyon National Park in Utah, where he is the park superintendent, by the middle of January.
"Craig has a strong sense of community and interagency partnership," said RD Jonathan Jarvis in making the appointment. "He also has a can-do attitude for planning, developing transportation systems, implementing fire management plans, and demonstrating financial sustainability."
Axtell has a 30-year career with the NPS — 25 of those in parks. He began work as an economist and park planner in Denver, Colorado, then served as a park resources specialist at Everglades National Park in Florida and Isle Royale National Park in Michigan. For a 15-year period, he worked at Rocky Mountain National Park as chief of resources management and research and was involved in a number of interagency and community partnerships, including the Countinental Divide Learning Center and the Fall River Visitor Center.
He also has served as the chief of the NPS' Biological Resource Management Division in Ft. Collins, Colorado, responsible for developing national policy and for providing the technical capability to assist park units throughout the country with wildlife management, invasive plant management, and ecosystem restoration. Throughout his career he has served on wildland fire incident management teams.
"I am extremely pleased and feel very privileged to have been selected for the superintendency of these parks," Axtell said. "I am looking forward to this great opportunity to work with a very professional park staff and eager to begin working and collaborating with partners in the local and regional community to implement the new general management plan."
Axtell is the recipient of the Department of the Interior Superior Service Award for accomplishments made in the natural resource management program. He has a BS in forest science and a masters in natural resources management from Colorado State University in Ft Collins.
Axtell and his wife, Kristine, a teacher, have a son in graduate
school and a daughter who is a senior, both at Colorado State
University. The family enjoys outdoor activities including hiking,
backpacking, skiing and mountain biking.
[Submitted by Holly Bundock, Public Affairs Officer]
Intermountain Region
Margaret Johnston Named Superintendent at Golden Spike
Margaret Johnston, a 30-year veteran of the National Park Service, has been named superintendent at Golden Spike National Historic Site in Brigham City, Utah. Johnston will assume her new responsibilities effective immediately. She succeeds Mary Risser, who earlier this year accepted the superintendency at Dinosaur National Monument in Colorado.
"I am excited to return to Utah and honored to serve as the
superintendent of Golden Spike National Historic Site," said
Johnston. "Frankly, I am awed by the two authentic steam
locomotives - the Jupiter and the 119; and the staff and volunteers who
operate these engines. Recreating the meeting of the
transcontinental railroads and driving the golden spike are such unique
experiences. The landscape, resources, and stories of Golden Spike are
so important to our shared American heritage."
Johnston, a native of Oakland, California, began her career with
the National Park Service in 1975 as a seasonal park technician at
California's Golden Gate National Recreation Area. She also worked
seasonally at the Statue of Liberty National Monument, and at
Chesapeake and Ohio Canal National Historical Park. Johnston
returned to Golden Gate National Recreational Area in 1977 as a
permanent park technician. She transferred to Point Reyes National
Seashore in 1980 as an interpreter in the north district, and four
years later was a park ranger.
Johnston has also worked as
a park ranger at Death Valley National Park (1985-1988), Canyonlands
National Park (1988-1991), and at Florissant Fossil Beds National
Monument (1991-1998). For the last seven years, Johnston served as
the park manager at Capulin Volcano National Monument in New
Mexico.
In 1994, while at Florissant Fossil Beds National Monument,
Johnston served as acting superintendent on two separate occasions and
coordinated the events to commemorate the 25th anniversary of the
monument.
She is a founding member of the National
Association of Interpretation, and a life member of the Association of
National Park Rangers. From 1989 to 1997, Johnston was a
member of the Rocky Mountain special events team and completed tactical
training conducted by U.S. Army Rangers at Joshua Tree (1992), Fort
Carson (1994). and Camp San Luis Obispo (1997). Assignments
included details to Mount Rushmore National Memorial, Grand Teton
National Park, Devils Tower National Monument, and Grand Canyon National
Park.
Johnston was twice elected by her peers to the southwest park manager advisory group. She also served as board chair of the Southern Plains Inventory and Monitoring Network, representing nine national park units in five states. In late 1994, she served as the program chairperson for "Partners in Paleontology," a multi-agency conference on paleontological resources, held in Colorado Springs, and served as co-editor of the post-conference National Park Service National Resource Publication.
Johnston has a BA degree (cum laude) in interdisciplinary social
science from California State University in San Francisco. She is
married to James McChristal of Boston. McChristal has worked
seasonally at Big Bend and Canyonlands National Parks, Point Reyes
National Seashore and Dinosaur National Monument. Johnston and
McChristal enjoy hiking, skiing, and camping.
[Submitted by Patricia Turley, patricia_turley@nps.gov, 303-969-2701]
Submission standards for the Morning Report can be found by clicking here. 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 Visitor and Resource Protection, WASO, with the cooperation and support of Delaware Water Gap NRA.