NATIONAL PARK SERVICE
MORNING REPORT
Wednesday, March 31, 2010
INCIDENTS
New River Gorge NR
Life Saved During Arduous Work Capacity Test
An NPS employee collapsed while he was taking an arduous work capacity test (WCT) around 11 a.m. on Friday, March 12th. Other employees at the scene responded quickly. After determining that he had no pulse, one ranger began chest compressions while a second administered ventilations via a pocket mask. An ambulance that had been prepositioned at the site in accordance with the park's fire management protocols responded quickly. An automated external defibrillator (AED) was hooked up; it advised that a shock was needed and one was accordingly administered. Ventilations were then provided by a bag valve mask. A third ranger noted that the man was breathing independently and began administering high flow oxygen via a non-rebreather mask. He was then taken by ambulance to a local hospital and later transferred to a regional hospital. Medical personnel believe that the AED was critical in reviving him. He was discharged from the hospital on March 23rd with a favorable prognosis. The arduous WCT is administered to wildland firefighters annually to assess fitness. Participants walk three miles in under 45 minutes while wearing a 45-pound pack. A medical response plan is required in order to administer the test. It includes the evaluation of options for immediate medical care and transport and identification of the closest emergency medical services. A minimum of a qualified first responder/emergency medical responder must be on site during a WCT. Based upon specific evaluation of needs, a higher level of emergency medical qualifications on scene may be warranted. At New River Gorge, the policy is to have an ambulance with an AED on scene for all arduous work capacity tests. [Frank Sellers, District Ranger, New River Gorge; Barb Stewart, NCR/NER Fire Communications Specialist]
OTHER NEWS
The following stories are among those in today's edition of InsideNPS:
National Natural Landmarks - The seventh annual National Natural Landmarks photo contest is now underway. Submissions will be accepted through the end of June
Chief Information Officer - Current guidance is provided on safeguarding personally identifiable information (PII) while transferring information within or outside of NPS facilities.
Workplace Enrichment - The Learning and Development Office is providing funding to regions this fiscal year to begin a multi-year effort to improve leadership competencies across the Service.
NPS Alumni - Retired career NPS employee John Urbanek died on March 25th in Moab, Utah. A remembrance event will be scheduled in the near future. 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/
NPS serious incident submission standards can be found at the following web site: HYPERLINK "http://inside.nps.gov/notify" http://inside.nps.gov/notify
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Prepared by the Division of Law Enforcement, Security and Emergency Services, Washington Office, with the support of the Office of the Chief Information Officer. Edited by Bill Halainen ( HYPERLINK "mailto:Bill_Halainen@nps.gov" Bill_Halainen@nps.gov).
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