NATIONAL PARK SERVICE

MORNING REPORT

Thursday, December 17, 2009

INCIDENTS

Mount Rainier NP

Two Visitors Survive Night In Snow Cave

Rangers received several reports of an overdue party of two who went skiing and snowshoeing in the park on Sunday, December 13th. They did not return home Sunday night and were reportedly not prepared to spend the night out. Rangers began a hasty search on Monday morning, called in park and mountain rescue resources, and made arrangements for a helicopter to assist with the search effort. Avalanche conditions, an approaching storm, possible medical complications for one of the individuals, and limited daylight were considerations in stepping up the search. Before search resources arrived on scene, the pair - a man from Kirkland, Washington, and a woman from Wenatchee, Washington - walked out to their car, having spent a cold night in a snow cave. Both were okay. Stefan Lofgren was the IC for this search. [R. Chuck Young, Chief Ranger]

OTHER NEWS

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

Director's Office - The latest episode of Director Jarvis' monthly Flat Hat Chats focuses on outreach with underserved communities and his recent visit to Fort McHenry National Monument and Historic Shrine. [NOTE to external readers - these videos are currently only available to NPS employees]

Fort McHenry NM&HS - Director Jarvis briskly hoisted the Star-Spangled Banner over the ramparts of Fort McHenry during a visit to the park on December 10th. The flag-raising kicked off the first stop of a national tour to engage new audiences with the National Park Service. Photo.

Capitol Reef NP - F. LaMont Chappell, 54, maintenance supervisor at Capitol Reef National Park, passed away on Monday, December 14th, of complications following a stroke. Photo.

Washington Office - Jim Poole retires on January 1st with 41 years of service, 17 of them with the National Park Service. 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/

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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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