NATIONAL PARK SERVICE

MORNING REPORT

Wednesday, June 17, 2009

INCIDENTS

Chickasaw NRA

Infant Dies From Citronella Oil Poisoning

On the evening of June 9th, rangers were dispatched to Arbuckle Memorial Hospital to assist the state medical examiner with an investigation into the death of an infant that occurred in the park. The incident occurred earlier that evening when the parents saw the child holding a container of citronella oil. They immediately called the poison control center, then took the infant to the hospital. The two-year-old died just hours later of suspected citronella oil poisoning. Citronella oil, which is used to fuel camp torches and lanterns, coats the lungs with a toxic vapor and causes pulmonary arrest, resulting in death. This incident highlights the need for increased awareness of the risks of using hazardous materials while camping. [Dennis Weiland, Chief Ranger]

Yosemite NP

Body Of Missing Concession Employee Found

The body of C.H., 23, of Gainesville, Florida, was found by searchers on Monday. C.H., who had been reported missing and had not been seen since Sunday morning, was found by rangers at 1 p.m. It appears that he fell from an unnamed cliff face above Mirror Lake in eastern Yosemite Valley. The exact cause of death and other details remain under investigation. C.H. was an employee of DNC Parks and Resorts at Yosemite, Inc., the park's primary concessionaire. He was in training in Yosemite Valley and was slated to work at White Wolf. [Kari Cobb, Public Affairs Specialist]

Glen Canyon NRA

Helicopter Pilot Arrested

On Friday, June 12th, rangers were on patrol at a large wakeboard competition being held on Lake Powell when they saw a helicopter approach and hover within 500 feet of six beached houseboats, 15 ski boats, several personal watercraft, 20 to 25 swimmers and approximately 100 persons on shore. Several passengers then jumped from the helicopter into the water, after which the helicopter landed atop a nearby houseboat. Ranger Jared St. Clair contacted the 33-year-old pilot, out of St. George, Utah, and subsequently arrested him for illegal air delivery of passengers and creating a hazardous condition. Since an initial warning in 2003, the pilot has received four citations concerning the operation of his helicopter in the park, including two last year. He was scheduled to appear in federal magistrate's court yesterday. [Brent McGinn, Chief Ranger]

Great Basin NP

Missing Hiker Found After Becoming Lost In Bad Weather

Late on the evening of June 8th, the county sheriff's office notified the park's chief ranger that they'd received a 911 call reporting an overdue hiker on the Wheeler Peak trail. The responding ranger determined that a 56-year-old man had become separated from his hiking party while descending from the 13,063-foot Wheeler Peak. Weather conditions had been poor during the descent, with low clouds, snow flurries, wind gusts up to 30 mph and visibility of approximately 200 feet. The man had not been seen since approximately 5 p.m. Family members and other campers had been unable to locate him, finding only tracks in a snow bank suggesting he had left the designated trail. The missing hiker was reported to be in good physical condition with no known medical problems, but was not carrying food, water, flashlights, maps or any other equipment. He had left his daypack along a lower part of the trail on the ascent to reduce the weight he was carrying. A hasty team of two rangers was dispatched up the Wheeler Peak trail. They were unable to locate the man. After sunrise, an inter-divisional search team of park employees was dispatched to search the area to the west of the trail more thoroughly and seek signs of the missing hiker. Search units from the White Pine County Sheriff's Posse began searching areas immediately to the west of the park on BLM lands, while a fixed wing aircraft from the Civil Air Patrol was dispatched through the U.S. Air Force Rescue Coordination Center to begin an aerial search. Tracks indicated that the man had headed towards a drainage leading down the west side of the mountains on the park's northwest side. Willow Creek Ranch was clearly visible from the location where the man left the trail and lights from the ranch would have been prominent during the night. Since no sign of the missing man had been found by mid-morning, a search dog team from White Pine County and four dog teams from Zion K-9 Search and Rescue in Utah were requested and headed to the park. Just after noon, the missing man walked up to a park resource management crew conducting fish surveys along Strawberry Creek in the northernmost part of the park and identified himself. He was tired, hungry and thirsty, but otherwise in good condition. He was transported to park headquarters and reunited with his family. During a debriefing, he said that in the poor visibility he had mistakenly turned off the Wheeler Peak trail. He realized his mistake only after a brief clearing in the cloud cover revealed the setting sun and he determined he was traveling west. Since he had already descended a significant distance, he decided to continue hiking down the west side of the mountains and after dark headed for the lights of a ranch. He spent the night at the Willow Creek Ranch, finding no one in residence. In the morning he made the decision to hike back eastward into the park to return to his family. He hiked up the Willard Creek drainage, eventually finding an abandoned road that leads over a pass and into the Strawberry Creek drainage, where he found the resource crew. He had traveled at least 17 miles since starting his hike up Wheeler Peak the previous day. [Curt Dimmick, Chief Ranger]

OTHER NEWS

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

Fire and Aviation Management - Although fire activity nationwide is currently low, the totals for both the number of fires and the number of acres through today are running about 125% of average and peak months are yet to come. An analysis of the coming season and the Service's preparations for it.

HYPERLINK "http://home.nps.gov/applications/digest/headline.cfm?type=Announcements&id=7828" http://home.nps.gov/applications/digest/headline.cfm?type=Announcements&id=7828

Visitor and Resource Protection - A memo has been sent to the field on the July issuance of a revised version of the Field Training and Evaluation Program manual.

HYPERLINK "http://home.nps.gov/applications/digest/headline.cfm?type=Announcements&id=7830" http://home.nps.gov/applications/digest/headline.cfm?type=Announcements&id=7830

Yosemite NP - The Mariposa County Board of Supervisors has passed a resolution recognizing six members of the community for outstanding service to the emergency medical system within Mariposa County. Of those recognized, four were from Yosemite. Photo.

HYPERLINK "http://home.nps.gov/applications/digest/headline.cfm?type=PeopleNews&id=2384" http://home.nps.gov/applications/digest/headline.cfm?type=PeopleNews&id=2384

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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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