NATIONAL PARK SERVICE

MORNING REPORT

Thursday, June 4, 2009

INCIDENTS

Lowell NHP

Injured And Intoxicated Man Rescued From Concord River

On the afternoon of Saturday, May 30th, ranger Matt Collins responded to a report of a man struggling in the Concord River. City police officers and fire and EMS personnel also responded. When Collins and two officers arrived on scene, they quickly located the man in the water at the bottom of a steep slope covered with loose bricks and debris. They were able to scramble down the slope to the man, whose head was nearly under the water. He appeared to be suffering from multiple facial injuries and was highly intoxicated. Collins and the Lowell officers were able to lift and partially remove him from the water. When firefighters and paramedics from the local hospital arrived, Collins helped them immobilize and move the man up the steep slope. Paramedics determined that he'd suffered multiple injuries and that, despite the warm weather, he was becoming hypothermic because he'd been submerged in the water for quite some time. Investigation revealed that earlier that day he'd walked away from Lowell General Hospital, almost four miles from where he was pulled from the river. He was transported to the Lahey Clinic in Burlington, Massachusetts. [Dave Redding, Chief Ranger]

Buffalo NR

Rangers Make Numerous Failure To Appear Arrests

In cooperation with the United States Marshal's Service, the US Attorney's Office, and the United States Court, Western District of Arkansas, park rangers and a special agent with the WASO Investigative Services Branch executed 12 arrest warrants and 14 summons on violators for failure to appear before a United States magistrate during several roundup operations over the past three months. The rangers tasked with the execution of the court orders volunteered for the assignment and went through additional training for the operations. The original crimes included possession of marijuana, underage possession of alcohol, driving on suspended or revoked drivers licenses, lack of insurance, fictitious tags, tampering with property, speeding, destruction of government property, public intoxication, and disorderly conduct. Twenty-five of the suspects subsequently pled guilty or no contest and were sentenced by the magistrate; one pled not guilty and is scheduled for trial on July 7th. Due to the success of the roundup operations, the magistrate has asked that rangers conduct roundups the day before regularly scheduled court sessions in the future until the backlog of failure to appear notices has been cleared. [Jeff West, Law Enforcement Specialist]

Bighorn Canyon NRA

SUV Goes Over Rim Into Canyon

Owners of a hybrid Ford Escape called the county sheriff just before midnight on Sunday, May 24th, to report that their SUV had gone over the rim and fallen into Big Horn Canyon. The vehicle was found 700 feet below its original location on Crow Indian Reservation land. Rangers and resource management staff traveled to the location by boat the next day to determine if the SUV had fallen into the park. They found the vehicle's debris scattered over a wide area, but determined that none of it was on park land. Concern was raised, however, about leaking fluids and hybrid batteries still on site. The park will continue to monitor the area for any resource impacts, since the site is close to the park boundary, and will also assist the tribe. The SUV reportedly began rolling toward the edge of the canyon rim after its two occupants got out to look around. They attempted to stop it by holding onto its bumper, but were unsuccessful in keeping the SUV from going over the edge. They reported that the parking brake had failed. [Dale Kissner, South District Ranger]

OTHER NEWS

The following stories are among those in today's edition of InsideNPS:

Grand Teton NP - Visitors will witness a classic western scene this Saturday as wranglers move 250 head of cattle from Pinto Ranch to summer pastures on Elk Ranch, located within the park.

HYPERLINK "http://home.nps.gov/applications/digest/headline.cfm?type=Announcements&id=7771" http://home.nps.gov/applications/digest/headline.cfm?type=Announcements&id=7771

Natural Resource Program Center - The Human-Wildlife Habituation Steering Committee, composed of managers in several parks and the Biological Resource Management Division, is compiling and synthesizing park guidance documents that address problematic human-wildlife interactions. Information links are provided.

HYPERLINK "http://home.nps.gov/applications/digest/headline.cfm?type=Announcements&id=7773" http://home.nps.gov/applications/digest/headline.cfm?type=Announcements&id=7773

Cumberland Gap NHP - On Wednesday, May 27th, Senator Mitch McConnell joined the park, the Trust for Public Land, local officials and other supporters to celebrate the protection of 4,021 acres of the Fern Lake watershed as part of Cumberland Gap NHP.

HYPERLINK "http://inside.nps.gov/index.cfm?handler=viewnpsnewsarticle&type=Announcements&id=7767" http://inside.nps.gov/index.cfm?handler=viewnpsnewsarticle&type=Announcements&id=7767

Chief Information Officer - Here is a story about two topics - dams and enterprise architecture - that may, at first blush, seem completely unrelated. But the ending may surprise you.

HYPERLINK "http://inside.nps.gov/index.cfm?handler=viewnpsnewsarticle&type=Announcements&id=7772" http://inside.nps.gov/index.cfm?handler=viewnpsnewsarticle&type=Announcements&id=7772

Castillo de San Marcos NM - On May 31st, Suzanne Nulty, who was recently promoted to the role of facility support assistant for the park's maintenance division, passed away suddenly at Baptist Hospital in Jacksonville.

HYPERLINK "http://home.nps.gov/applications/digest/headline.cfm?type=PeopleNews&id=2372" http://home.nps.gov/applications/digest/headline.cfm?type=PeopleNews&id=2372

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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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