NATIONAL PARK SERVICE

MORNING REPORT

Thursday, October 22, 2009

INCIDENTS

Blue Ridge Parkway

Homicide Victim Found Along Parkway

A park visitor found the body of a woman about six feet off the parkway near milepost 395.3 just after 6 a.m. on Monday, October 19th. The park was notified and rangers responded along with Buncombe County deputies and investigators. The victim was eventually identified by family members as 21-year-old M.L.C. of Mountain Home, North Carolina. Evidence indicates that M.L.C. was murdered. The park and Buncombe County Sheriff's Department are investigating. [Jay Shields, Supervisory Park Ranger]

Channel Islands NP

Hiker Succumbs To Apparent Heat Stroke

On Friday, October 16th, a 49-year-old man died of what appears to have been a case of heat stroke following a prolonged hike in unseasonably hot weather on Santa Cruz Island. T.P., of Lake Forest, California, went on a 14-mile-long day hike with some friends from Prisoners Harbor to Scorpion Campground on Santa Cruz Island. The four men started their trek at approximately 11 a.m. in unseasonably hot conditions (record temperatures reaching up to 94 degrees) along terrain with little shade and no wind. According to his hiking partners, T.P. exhibited signs of fatigue early in the hike and experienced increasing difficulty throughout the day. He was assisted the last couple of miles and became unconscious and unresponsive shortly after 5 p.m. upon arrival at the Scorpion Valley campground. Immediate care was provided by an off-duty fire captain, a kayaking guide, and NPS maintenance and volunteer staff. The response lasted for almost an hour and included the use of an AED and CPR. The island protection ranger provided guidance and communications via radio, as she was several miles away. A Ventura County Sheriff's Department helicopter was dispatched and flew to the island to provide EMS support and transportation. Paramedics continued with resuscitation efforts for close to 30 minutes. T.P. was declared deceased at 7:30 p.m. A ranger provided T.P. and his group a general safety orientation upon their arrival the day before, which included information about staying hydrated while hiking on the island. They were met by another ranger the day of the incident and again given a safety briefing and advised to carry more water. They were each carrying approximately two liters of water at the start of their hike. [Mike Morales, Acting Chief Ranger]

OTHER NEWS

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

Natchez Trace Parkway - Earlier this month, over 1500 visitors traveled to the Meriwether Lewis Site, located on the parkway near Hohenwald, Tennessee, to pay tribute to Meriwether Lewis, co-captain of the Lewis and Clark Expedition. Clark died there 200 years ago this month. Earlier this month, over 1500 visitors traveled to the Meriwether Lewis Site, located on the parkway near Hohenwald, Tennessee, to pay tribute to Meriwether Lewis, co-captain of the Lewis and Clark Expedition. Clark died there 200 years ago this month.

Environmental Leadership and Sustainability - On September 14th, Secretary of the Interior Ken Salazar signed Secretarial Order No. 3289, “Addressing the Impacts of Climate Change on America's Water, Land and Other Natural and Cultural Resources." Photo.

Northeast Region - Last year, Northeast and Pacific West Regions and the Denver Service Center joined with five other partners to co-sponsor “Designing the Parks,” a two-part examination of the past, present, and future of park planning and design. Comments are now being accepted on six draft principles developed by conferees.

Social Science Program - The NPS Social Science Program has rolled out a new website on the use of focus group to evaluate park programs, activities, and visitor services. A link to the site is provided. Photo.

To see these and other stories posted on InsideNPS (or NPS Digest, its public version), click on one or the other of the following links (please note that not all stories in the former appear in the latter): NPS employees: HYPERLINK "http://inside.nps.gov/index.cfm?handler=index" http://inside.nps.gov/index.cfm?handler=index ; non-NPS employees: HYPERLINK "http://home.nps.gov/applications/digest/" http://home.nps.gov/applications/digest/

* * * * *

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).

--- ### ---