NATIONAL PARK SERVICE
MORNING REPORT
Tuesday, May 27, 2008
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INCIDENTS
Denali NP&P
Search Underway for Two Overdue Climbers
A search is underway for two overdue climbers on the Cassin Ridge of Mt. McKinley. The two men, both from Japan, were expected to return from their climb of the Cassin Ridge by Thursday, May 22nd. The pair had been climbing in the Alaska Range since April 7th, including several technical peaks in the Ruth Gorge. Clouds and high winds in the Alaska Range kept the high altitude Lama helicopter on standby all day on Friday, though weather conditions allowed a preliminary aerial search to an elevation of 12,000 feet on Saturday morning. The climbers were not spotted. The search resumed on Sunday. A Cessna 206 was launched at noon on Sunday, but had to turn around due to cloud cover. The Cessna and a twin-engine Conquest tried again around 5 p.m. and this time were able to fly over the climbers' route. Spotters saw no obvious sign of the pair, but high resolution photos were taken and are being scrutinized for clues. Another Conquest flight was planned for later on Sunday night. As is common for climbers attempting the challenging Cassin Ridge route, the two men made an acclimatizing ascent of the West Buttress in early May, reaching Denali Pass at 18,200 feet. The team was reportedly last seen by another climbing party on May 9th at their camp at 7,800 feet near the mouth of the Northeast Fork of the Kahiltna Glacier, the team's intended approach route to the ridge. It is uncertain what day they began their ascent of the Cassin Ridge, a technically difficult climbing route that involves a one to two-day approach, plus three to six days climbing on the route itself. Cassin Ridge features steep, 55- to 75-degree slopes of mixed snow, ice, and rock. According to their stated intentions, the climbers planned to descend the mountain via the West Buttress, which would take an additional one to two days. The National Park Service will resume the aerial search as soon as weather permits. [Maureen McLaughlin, Mountaineering Administration and Public Information]
Fort Davis NHS
Second Defendant Sentenced For Thefts From Park Museum
On May 19th, K.A., 36, currently of Robbins, North Carolina, and formerly of Terlingua, Texas, was sentenced to 63 months in federal prison for his role in the April, 2006, burglaries committed at Fort Davis, the Hallie Stillwell Museum near Big Bend NP, and the international airport located at the Lajitas Resort. The judge also ordered that K.A. be placed on supervised release for a period of three years after completing his prison term and that he pay $22,450.99 in restitution - almost all of it to Fort Davis. In July of 2006, K.A. pled guilty to one count each of stealing U.S. property, the shipping and transporting of ammunition by a prohibited person, and the interstate transportation of stolen goods. He remained on bond until that October, when he was arrested in North Carolina and charged federally for two separate offenses of a prohibited person being in possession of firearms. The current prison term will run consecutively to a 46-month federal prison sentence handed down in December 2007 in Tennessee on the firearms charges. K.A.'s co-defendant, Joey Priddy, 47, of Danville, Virginia, was sentenced in 2006 for his role in the burglaries and received 46 months in federal prison, plus three years of supervised release and joint restitution. Fort Davis NHS and museum have been renovated since the break-in. The seven antique firearms and the Bowie knife stolen from the park - plus the items stolen from the Stillwell Museum and the Lajitas Resort - were returned to federal and state authorities in North Carolina in 2006. The NPS-owned firearms, which K.A. had buried, were sent to Springfield Armory NHS for refurbishing. All of the items taken in the three burglaries has been returned to their rightful owners. This investigation was conducted jointly by NPS special agents from El Paso, Santa Fe, Denver, St. Louis and Luray, Virginia, together with rangers from Big Bend, Cape Hatteras and Fort Davis. It was coordinated with U.S. Immigrations and Customs Enforcement, the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives, the Texas Rangers, the Moore County Sheriff's Office (NC), the Brewster County Sheriff's Office (TX), and the Jeff Davis County Sheriff's Office (TX). It was prosecuted by AUSA James J. Miller, Jr. [Joel Wright, Special Agent]
Cape Hatteras NS
Update On “Operation Consent Decree”
Southeast Region's special events team checked in on Friday in advance of the holiday weekend and received a briefing and orientation from the incident management team. Rain fell on Saturday morning, reducing visitation and limiting anticipated problems with beach congestion. Rangers investigated several reported violations of decree restrictions, but all were unfounded except for one violation at ramp 29. Several more violations of decree restrictions were reported over Sunday and Monday. Most again proved to be unfounded, but several people were cited for entering closed areas. Park staff also dealt with the normal range of incidents that occur on a busy holiday weekend, including several alcohol violations and some disorderly conduct incidents. A total of 51people are currently committed to the incident. [Greg Stiles, Incident Commander]
OTHER NEWS
The InsideNPS and Morning Report web pages are down this morning, so no other stories have been posted…
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Submission standards for the Morning Report can be found at the following web site:
HYPERLINK "http://inside.nps.gov/index.cfm?handler=viewnpsnewsarticle&type=Announcements&id=3363" http://inside.nps.gov/index.cfm?handler=viewnpsnewsarticle&type=Announcements&id=3363
Prepared by the Division of Law Enforcement, Security and Emergency Services, Washington Office, with the support of the Office of the Chief Information Officer and Delaware Water Gap National Recreation Area. Edited by Bill Halainen ( HYPERLINK "mailto:Bill_Halainen@nps.gov" Bill_Halainen@nps.gov).
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