NATIONAL PARK SERVICE

MORNING REPORT

Wednesday, September 17, 2008

===============================================================================================================

INCIDENTS

Midwest/Intermountain Regions

Update On Hurricane Ike

Parks are continuing to recover from the hurricane. Some areas have reopened, but others are awaiting restoration of power and other services:

Big Thicket NP - Massive search and rescue operations are continuing in Texas, especially in the coastal area, which has been destroyed. The Texas Emergency Operations Center is still requesting that those displaced by Hurricane Ike before and after the hurricane's landfall stay put and not return to their homes. Fuel, water, food, and services remain limited over a large area of southeast Texas. The park's primary focus continues to be the safety of its employees and their families. The park has prioritized employees' houses in order of their damages and has started work on securing and stabilizing structures. The goal is to make them livable so that employees can return to work. The first two phases were completed on Sunday and Monday. Resource damages are still being assessed. A damage assessment report will be sent to the regional office when completed. The Central IMT is now at the visitor center ICP. Communications and internet service have been restored to the visitor center. Yesterday, nine boats, working under the auspices of FEMA, patrolled the Neches River, the park's main waterway.

William Howard Taft NHS - The park is closed. The superintendent reports that the local power company is transporting workers from North Carolina to Ohio to assist in restoring power to over 500,000 area residents affected by the outage. The area is dealing with limited fuel availability and long lines at gas stations. The majority of park staff requested leave yesterday and some are staying in local hotels and assisting neighbors and church members during the power outage. The superintendent continues to monitor the situation and will make a determination about opening the park today.

Dayton Aviation NHP - The Huffman Prairie Unit is now open; the Cycle Shop Unit remains closed.

Lincoln Boyhood NM - The park remains open but has no power. The staff is clearing large trees that were blown down in the 60 to 70 mph winds sustained during the storm. Several trails are affected.

Cuyahoga Valley NP - The park is open but has very limited internet and phone service.

Jefferson NEM - The park continues to experience phone difficulties.

James A. Garfield NHS - All communications were restored late on Monday.

[Jackie Henman, MWRO; Matt Fagan BITH]

Big Bend NP

Rains From Tropical Storm Lowell Cause Evacuations

Due to significant rainfall from Pacific Tropical Storm Lowell in west Texas and northern Mexico, the Rio Grande is at flood stage. Mexican officials continue to release water from reservoirs into the Rio Conchos, which, combined with rain, has caused flooding and evacuations along the Rio Grande - including within the park. Big Bend has established an incident command post and has activated its incident management team. Fourteen employees and family members and four concession employees and family members have been evacuated from the Rio Grand Village area. Water was expected to reach the housing area yesterday. The river is due to crest on Friday and water levels are expected to be six to eight feet over pre-flood levels. There is a potential for a dam to breach on the Mexico side, with unknown consequences. Also at risk are an endangered species of fish which resides in a pond located in the area. Resource crews are working to relocate these fish to a safe location. Four employees from Ft. Davis have been sent to Big Bend to assist the park. If flooding is significant, cleanup issues may include both water and sewage contamination and damage to employee housing and a gas-station and general store. [Department of the Interior Watch Office]

George Washington Memorial Parkway

Motorcycle Checkpoint Conducted

On Sunday, September 14th, officers form the Park Police District 2 Station, in conjunction with the Virginia State Police and the Arlington County Police, conducted a motorcycle safety checkpoint on the southbound lanes of the parkway in the area of Reagan National Airport. Over 4,000 vehicles passed through this checkpoint, which was conducted between 10:00 a.m. to 3:00 p.m. During the course of this enforcement action, 75 motorcyclists were stopped. Of the motorcyclists stopped, eight operators had no driver's licenses, eight operators had registration violations, seven motorcycles were found to have safety inspection issues, one operator had a revoked permit, one operator was in violation of a learner's permit, and three motorcycles were impounded. Twenty-six citations were issued as a result of the above findings. The goal of the checkpoint was to enforce existing laws and educate riders through motorcycle safety tips brochures. According to the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration, 4,810 motorcyclists were killed in 2006 - an increase of five percent over the 4,576 motorcyclists killed in 2005. There were 88,000 motorcyclists injured during 2006. Also, per mile traveled in 2006, a motorcyclist is approximately 37 times more likely to die in a crash than someone riding in a passenger car. Due to the overwhelming success of this enforcement action, it will be repeated in the future. [Sergeant Robert Lachance]

Gateway NRA

Life Saved Through Use Of AED, CPR

Protection rangers, lifeguards and park EMTs were dispatched to Area F in the Sandy Hook Unit for a medical emergency on September 3rd. They found a 57-year-old man in full cardiac arrest, but were able to restore his pulse with CPR and an AED. A bag valve mask and oxygen were employed to restore his breathing. The man was taken to Monmouth Medical Center, where he is currently recovering in the cardiac rehabilitation unit. [Peter Tortorell, Law Enforcement Supervisor]

OTHER NEWS

Among the stories in today's edition are the following:

Clemson University - If you were familiar with the Trends, Grist and Design publications, all part of the now defunct series of "Park Practice" publications, you will be interested in the coming publication of a new quarterly electronic journal on park practices.

HYPERLINK "http://home.nps.gov/applications/digest/headline.cfm?type=Announcements&id=6886" http://home.nps.gov/applications/digest/headline.cfm?type=Announcements&id=6886

Pacific West Region - Paul DePrey has been chosen as the next superintendent of the USS Arizona Memorial. He is expected to arrive at the park in October and will immediately begin planning the December 7th commemoration and the groundbreaking for the new visitor center.

HYPERLINK "http://home.nps.gov/applications/digest/headline.cfm?type=PeopleNews&id=2069" http://home.nps.gov/applications/digest/headline.cfm?type=PeopleNews&id=2069

US Park Police - Park Police officers have been assisting officers from the Republic of Georgia with the development of a horse mounted enforcement unit, both through training of their officers at a USPP facility and through training held in the republic.

HYPERLINK "http://home.nps.gov/applications/digest/headline.cfm?type=PeopleNews&id=2068" http://home.nps.gov/applications/digest/headline.cfm?type=PeopleNews&id=2068

* * * * *

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).

--- ### ---