NATIONAL PARK SERVICE
MORNING REPORT
Friday, August 7, 2009
NOTICE
Glacier NP
Searchers Find And Rescue Missing Kayaker
A major search for a missing 13-year-old kayaker on Lake McDonald came to a successful conclusion when the boy was found and rescued on Tuesday evening. Earlier on that afternoon, the boy's grandfather contacted rangers and told them that he'd searched for his grandson on the upper section of the lake for an hour but hadn't been able to find him. High winds blowing at the time had churned the lake's surface into very rough, choppy, five- to six-foot-high waves. The boy had last been seen in a plastic kayak near the middle of the lake. Rangers began a search, assisted by personnel from Glacier Park Boat Company, the Flathead County Sheriff's Department, North Valley Search and Rescue, and Minute Man Aviation. Boats, a helicopter and ground searchers were employed in efforts to find the teenager. Around 4 p.m. rangers found a capsized kayak near the middle of the lake. An air, land and water search continued until just after 6 p.m., when the crew of a park tour boat saw the boy on the eastern shore of the lake about a half mile south of Sprague Campground. He told the rangers that he'd been capsized by a large wave and that he'd been unable to stay with the kayak. He then swam to the far shore of the lake. He said he was so tired and cold when he got so land that he crawled into a hollow log to warm up, fell asleep, and didn't wake up for about an hour. A park medic treated the boy, recommending that he be taken to the hospital to be checked out after possibly suffering from hypothermia. The boy was wearing a properly fitting lifejacket and a “shorty” style wetsuit. [Wade Muehlhof, Public Affairs Specialist]
Badlands NP
Man Sentenced To Jail Time For Assault On Rangers
P.W.M., who assaulted rangers Vincent Littlewhiteman and Chad Coles in 2007, has pled guilty to two counts of assaulting a federal officer and been sentenced to two years imprisonment. The other two people who were with him were convicted last year. On October 1, 2007, Coles contacted three Native American men who were riding in a van for a minor traffic violation. Almost immediately, they began yelling at him and stating that they were not accountable to the laws of the United States of America. When additional units arrived, two of the three men were arrested without incident on outstanding warrants, but when rangers called on P.W.M. to get out of the vehicle he suddenly jumped to the driver's seat and attempted to escape. His efforts failed after an assisting highway patrol officer jumped into the moving vehicle and turned the engine off. The attempt to arrest P.W.M. failed, though, as three pit bulls in the vehicle lunged towards the officer. P.W.M. was instructed to leash the animals and to step out of the vehicle; although he leashed the dogs, he let the leashes go after opening the side door of the van. The dogs jumped out and attacked Littlewhiteman. Using the dogs as a diversion, P.W.M. grabbed a black bag from behind one of the seats and ran towards the badland formations to the east. Coles and one of the troopers started to pursue him, but one of the pit bulls attacked Coles, who fell to the ground. As he attempted to stand, the dog lunged towards his throat and face, so Coles drew his weapon and fired two rounds at the dog, stopping it. The incident quickly became multi-agency as a perimeter was setup and an NPS tactical team descended into the formations to search for P.W.M.. Investigators meanwhile determined that the three men were transporting narcotics and that P.W.M. was armed with a handgun.
After a three-hour search, which included overflights by a helicopter from the South Dakota Highway Patrol, P.W.M. was found outside the park walking towards the Pine Ridge Indian Reservation by tribal police officers. He was taken into custody and a search revealed that he had narcotics and a .38 caliber handgun in his possession. Both Littlewhiteman and Coles were treated for dog bite injuries and released. [Mark Gorman, Chief Ranger]
Cuyahoga Valley NP
Fuel Oil Leak Discovered In Park Building
On Wednesday, July 29th, resource management staff reported what appeared to be fuel oil leaking through a wall into the basement in their offices at a point where storm water runoff has routinely penetrated for years. Maintenance employees used a shop vac to remove as much of the oil as it would hold. About 15 gallons of suspected fuel oil and water were removed. Homestead employees were moved to the Woodlake Field Station and will reoccupy the structure when it has been deemed safe to do so. The Ohio EPA, the state fire marshal, Boston Heights Fire Department, MWAC archeologist Ann Bauermeister, and MWR environmental engineer Mary Rozmajzl were notified and provided assistance and guidance. A licensed contractor was to be employed for the fuel oil tank removal and site assessment/remediation. [Chris Ryan, Chief Ranger]
OTHER NEWS
The following stories are among those in today's edition of InsideNPS. The first story on the list is the lead story.
Vanderbilt Mansion NHS - In one of the many events marking the 400th anniversary of Henry Hudson's exploration of the river that now bears his name, a puppet theater group recently put on a performance of a play about the explorer on the lawn in front of the Vanderbilt Mansion.
HYPERLINK "http://home.nps.gov/applications/digest/headline.cfm?type=Announcements&id=8018" http://home.nps.gov/applications/digest/headline.cfm?type=Announcements&id=8018
Law Enforcement, Security and Emergency Services - A Mount Rainier National Park protection ranger recently experienced an unintentional discharge of an electronic control device (ECD) while conducting a spark test with the cartridge detached from the device. New procedures for ECD spark testing have accordingly been established.
HYPERLINK "http://home.nps.gov/applications/digest/headline.cfm?type=Announcements&id=8016" http://home.nps.gov/applications/digest/headline.cfm?type=Announcements&id=8016
Risk Management Division - The medical standards program contract was recently awarded to Comprehensive Health Services (CHS), and full CHS services will resume on August 10th. As of this date, chief rangers are to submit requests for baseline and periodic examinations.
HYPERLINK "http://home.nps.gov/applications/digest/headline.cfm?type=Announcements&id=8015" http://home.nps.gov/applications/digest/headline.cfm?type=Announcements&id=8015
National Capital Region - Regional curator Pamela Beth West has announced her plans to retire at the end of this fiscal year after 34 years of exemplary government service. Photo.
HYPERLINK "http://home.nps.gov/applications/digest/headline.cfm?type=PeopleNews&id=2433" http://home.nps.gov/applications/digest/headline.cfm?type=PeopleNews&id=2433
Training Calendar - A listing of upcoming training courses offered by the NPS and its partners across the nation. Added to this week's listing - an East Coast aviation training course in Atlanta, commercial service program monthly call-in chats for August and September, a course on effective interpretation of archeological and cultural heritage resources at Mesa Verde, and a course on producing NPS publications at Zion.
HYPERLINK "http://home.nps.gov/applications/digest/headline.cfm?type=Conferences&id=1810" http://home.nps.gov/applications/digest/headline.cfm?type=Conferences&id=1810
Events Calendar - A calendar of upcoming NPS-related events from around the National Park System. Added today are the 14th annual lighthouse celebration at Apostle Islands; a celebration of 100 years of hostelling at Redwood, Point Reyes and elsewhere; and the annual Duneland Harvest Festival at Indiana Dunes.
HYPERLINK "http://home.nps.gov/applications/digest/headline.cfm?type=Conferences&id=1811" http://home.nps.gov/applications/digest/headline.cfm?type=Conferences&id=1811
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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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