NATIONAL PARK SERVICE
MORNING REPORT
Monday, June 2, 2008
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INCIDENTS
Canyonlands NP
Plane Crash Kills Former Head Of Bureau Of Reclamation
A former Bureau of Reclamation commissioner and an Arizona man died after their plan crashed in the park on Friday. According to the San Juan County Sheriff's Office, J.W.K. III, 66, of Moab, Utah, and G.K., 49, of Scottsdale, Arizona, died when the plane went down around 10:30 a.m. that morning in the park's Needles District. J.W.K. was flying the Cessna 172 on a scenic flight over Canyonlands when it went down. He worked for the Bureau of Reclamation for nearly 40 years and once served as the Pacific Northwest regional director. When he retired from the bureau in 2006, Interior Secretary Gale Norton praised him for his work in developing the “Water 2025 Initiative,” intended to avoid future water crises in the West. The plane's wreckage was found Friday and the bodies were recovered. The crash is under investigation by the Federal Aviation Administration the National Transportation Safety Board. [Associated Press]
Grand Canyon NP
Good Decisions Led To Fortunate Outcome For Backpackers
Following the happy conclusion of last week's search for A.H. and his spouse, I.F., rangers were able to learn what happened to them during their hike on the Royal Arch route. The couple was reported overdue from their backpacking trip on Sunday, May 25th, and a search began for them the next day. By May 28th, five days after they were expected to complete their trip, a number of ground crews were searching high-probability areas on foot, helicopter flight crews were searching drainages and rim areas increasingly distant from the couple's anticipated route, and a technical team from Zion National Park was searching the lower Royal Arch Drainage using canyoneering techniques. Around 5 p.m. that day, a ground search team found the couple - tired, hungry, but otherwise in good condition - near the South Bass trail in the Royal Arch route area. Personnel working on the incident, and the couple themselves, attribute the fortunate outcome to being prepared and making good decisions. A.H. and I.F. had backpacked at the Grand Canyon before and were familiar with the rugged nature of the terrain and the changeable weather conditions (conditions during their 11 days in the canyon ranged from “temperatures in the 90s to hail and freezing,” according to I.F.). While they had never hiked the Royal Arch route, they had done research on the route and had sought the advice of others who had previously hiked it. They set specific dates when they would be meeting people after their hike, and they made sure that at least one person knew what they planned to do while they were at the Grand Canyon. In spite of all of their preparations, on the last leg of their trip, they overshot their exit route and attempted to reach the rim via the wrong side canyon. Eventually, they realized they were lost - and to a degree stuck - but they didn't panic. Instead, they assessed their situation, developed a plan, and made a commitment to stick with that plan no matter what. They first decided to be prepared for up to a week on their own and rationed their one day of remaining food accordingly. Then they found water and a source of shade and decided to stay put until help arrived or their meager supplies started to run out. Above all they made a decision to stick together. These decisions, it is believed, are a big part of why they here today. They shared the burden of decision making, they kept track of each other's condition (physically, mentally and emotionally), they kept each other on track, and they stuck to the plan. Finally, as their rations began to run out, forcing a last ditch attempt to seek aid at the river, searchers and this resourceful pair of lost backpackers found each other. [Shannan Marcak and Maureen Oltrogge, Public Affairs Officers]
Devils Tower NM
Two Climbers Rescued After Night On Tower
On the evening of May 23rd, the park received a call from two stranded climbers who were on the southwest face of the tower, asking for help. A.T. and T.H. were stranded one pitch down on the southwest rappel route, unable to pull their ropes from above due to a knot. The climbers had no headlamps, but were able to utilize the flash on their camera to help rescuers locate them. Due to lightning, thunder, fog and rain, though, it proved nearly impossible to determine their exact location. After communicating with A.T., climbing rangers learned that the two men had both ends of their rope and webbing material that could be used to make a prussic to ascend their stuck ropes. Due to the hazardous conditions, the rangers determined that the safest and quickest way to facilitate a rescue would be to instruct A.T. to ascend up his ropes to free the knot. A.T. was able to free his rope, then descend to T.H. and pull the ropes down for the next rappel. The rangers found that A.T. would then be able to rappel under his own power, but that T.H. was suffering from hypothermia and would need to be lowered with assistance from a climbing ranger via a tandem rappel. Both climbers safely reached the ground at 3:30 a.m. due to the expertise of the park's climbing rangers, law enforcement staff, and a local climbing guide. [Dona Rutherford, Chief Ranger]
Redwood N&SP
Three Men Rescued, One Drowns After Boat Capsizes
C.H., 44, died on May 20th when a boat that he was in with three other people capsized near the mouth of the Klamath River. None of the four men on board was wearing a life jacket. C.H., Guadalupe Oscar, Nonnie Lee, and Michael Perry were gill-netting near the mouth of the river in a 16-foot, flat-bottomed jet drive boat when a docking line got caught in the propeller. The boat was swept into the surf zone and capsized. Perry and Oscar stayed with the overturned boat, but the other two men were caught in the waves. A Yurok tribal rescue boat arrived on scene shortly thereafter and picked up Perry and Oscar. Perry then directed his rescuers toward the point where he thought C.H. was located. They didn't find him, but - with the help of a Coast Guard helicopter out of Eureka - found Lee two miles off shore, where the river's current had carried him. Lee, who has a prosthetic leg and had been in the 55-degree water for nearly an hour and a half, was still alive when a Coast Guard rescue swimmer reached him and placed him in a basket to be hoisted into the helicopter. He was taken to Mercy Hospital in Redding to receive treatment for hypothermia and near drowning. C.H.'s body later washed up on shore. [The Daily Triplicate]
HYPERLINK "http://www.triplicate.com/news/story.cfm?story_no=8791" http://www.triplicate.com/news/story.cfm?story_no=8791
OTHER NEWS
The following stories (among others) can be read on InsideNPS:
Servicewide - The National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration last week issued its forecast for this year's Atlantic hurricane season, which began yesterday. It calls for a 90 percent chance of a near or above normal season.
HYPERLINK "http://home.nps.gov/applications/digest/headline.cfm?type=Announcements&id=6560" http://home.nps.gov/applications/digest/headline.cfm?type=Announcements&id=6560
Learning and Development Division - The National Park Service's New Superintendent Academy debuted on June 1st. Twenty-four superintendents have been recommended for the first course, and, effective immediately, managers will be automatically enrolled when they are selected into their first superintendency.
HYPERLINK "http://home.nps.gov/applications/digest/headline.cfm?type=Announcements&id=6562" http://home.nps.gov/applications/digest/headline.cfm?type=Announcements&id=6562
Legislative and Congressional Affairs - This week's update on past and upcoming hearings and the status of legislation pertinent to the National Park Service.
HYPERLINK "http://home.nps.gov/applications/digest/headline.cfm?type=Announcements&id=6561" http://home.nps.gov/applications/digest/headline.cfm?type=Announcements&id=6561
Midwest Region - Robin White, currently serving as superintendent at William Howard Taft NHS in Ohio, will report for this new assignment in Arkansas in August.
HYPERLINK "http://home.nps.gov/applications/digest/headline.cfm?type=PeopleNews&id=1938" http://home.nps.gov/applications/digest/headline.cfm?type=PeopleNews&id=1938
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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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