NATIONAL PARK SERVICE

MORNING REPORT

Monday, May 10, 2010

INCIDENTS

Gulf Coast Parks

Director Jarvis On Scene Leading NPS Oil Spill Response

Secretary of the Interior Ken Salazar announced yesterday that Director Jarvis and Acting Director of the Fish and Wildlife Service Rowan Gould have been dispatched to command centers along the Gulf Coast. They will lead efforts to protect coastal communities and natural resources from BP's Deepwater Horizon oil spill. Said Salazar: “We are continuing to put all hands on deck to support the coordinated response to this spill and to do everything we can to help BP stop its leaks and clean up its spill. The National Park Service and the Fish and Wildlife Service, under the leadership of Jon Jarvis and Rowan Gould, are on the front lines as we fight to protect the Gulf Coast from the dangers of the oil spill. Their leadership on the ground will ensure that we remain coordinated, prepared, and effective in protecting precious natural resources.” Jarvis is stationed in the Mobile, Alabama, Incident Command Center. He will oversee the ongoing work with the USCG and other agencies. including planning for wildlife reconnaissance and recovery and shoreline cleanup and assessment; conducting surveys, sampling, and flyovers to document baseline conditions; mobilizing resource experts to direct USCG and responsible party contractors during cleanup and recovery; and providing guidance and prioritization for protection measures such as boom placement in sensitive areas. Eight national parks are responding to the oil spill:

Padre Island NS - The park's baseline assessment involves the installation of photo points every two miles along its seventy miles of beach. Most of these points are now installed and located by GPS. This weekend, park staff and volunteers began photographing and weighing samples collected by seine-netting in the surf at each photo point.

Jean Lafitte NHP&P - A Type III organization has been established in the park to work toward the following objectives: potentially conduct a current-condition resource pre-assessment; integrate and coordinate all operations and planning with the Unified Incident Management Teams (IMT); support and coordinate with the UC IMT and the Natural Resource Damage Assessment within NPS lands if needed; maintain visitor services and normal park operations; and maintain financial accountability for expenditures.

Gulf Islands NS - Aerial reconnaissance over the weekend did not show any oil within 20 miles of the Mississippi Gulf Islands. No oil has been detected on park shores. Projections show little potential for oil on the islands for at least several days. Last Friday, approximately 20 media representatives attended a media tour offered at West Ship Island in Mississippi. Also on Friday, an NPS investigator dove near the two compressed gas tanks that washed up on Horn Island to document the condition of the seagrass bed before a contractor removes them. The removal, originally scheduled for Saturday, has been delayed because the proposed method of removal would have caused additional environmental damage. On Saturday, Assistant Secretary of the Interior Tom Strickland and Director Jarvis met with the Western IMT and NPS staff at Gulf Islands' headquarters. Boom deployment continued over the weekend around Cat Island and Ship Island; additional boom was placed off the south side of the island in deeper water to deflect incoming oil. The recent cool weather pattern dislodged several booms on the north shores of islands, which will be replaced over the next day or two. On Sunday, a tar-like substance was detected on the south shore of West Ship Island, but it was determined not to be related to the oil spill. There are no closures, and all regularly scheduled boat trips and other park events will continue.

South Florida Parks (Big Cypress, Biscayne, DeSoto, Dry Tortugas, Everglades) - The resource assessment branch of the south Florida national parks' Type III IMT continues to prepare the baseline condition assessment plans for all five NPS units. Final baseline conditions assessment plans are near completion and they are being adapted to cover a variety of ecosystems. A data management plan has been completed. Pre-impact sampling of sediment and tissue is anticipated to begin on Tuesday at De Soto and Dry Tortugas, followed by Everglades, Big Cypress, and Biscayne (in priority order) at a date yet to be determined. A cultural resource assessment was conducted at De Soto on Sunday. The park units are prioritized by proximity to the spill and the potential amount of time for oil to arrive if and when the spill becomes entrained in the Loop Current. This prioritization may change over time as weather conditions change. Staff from Biscayne attended a meeting on Thursday with numerous representatives from Miami-Dade County, the Coast Guard, the Florida Department of Environmental Protection (DEP), NOAA, and various cities within Miami-Dade County. Most believe any oil arriving here will be primarily submerged tar balls pushed along the ocean bottom or suspended in the water column, but not on the surface. There is not an imminent threat because the oil may not get into the Loop Current and be transported to this location. Local media interest is currently low. Information officers can be contacted at 305-224-4215, or via email at HYPERLINK "http://inside.nps.gov/mailtSouthFloridaNPS@gmail.com__" SouthFloridaNPS@gmail.com.

For more information on the NPS, DOI and national oil spill responses, please see the following:

NPS Oil Spill Response - HYPERLINK "http://www.nps.gov/aboutus/oil-spill-response.htm" http://www.nps.gov/aboutus/oil-spill-response.htm

DOI Oil Spill Response - HYPERLINK "http://www.doi.gov/deepwaterhorizon/index.cfm" http://www.doi.gov/deepwaterhorizon/index.cfm

National Oil Spill Response - HYPERLINK "http://www.deepwaterhorizonresponse.com" http://www.deepwaterhorizonresponse.com

[Jody Lyle, Information Officer, Gulf Oil Spill Response]

Mammoth Cave NP

Park Recovers From Flood, Some Areas Still Closed

Waters from the past week's flood have receded, allowing park staff to reopen some affected roads and services:

Green River Ferry is now open during daylight hours, from 6 a.m. until 9 p.m. Normal operating hours will resume when electrical systems at the ferry site are restored.

Houchin Ferry suffered a cable break and will remain out of service until Wednesday at the earliest and perhaps as late as Friday. Persons wishing to learn the status of the ferries can call the park's Ferry Hotline at 270-758-2166.

Houchin Ferry Road on the south side of the river remains closed.

Houchin Ferry Campground, which lies in the floodplain, is closed until further notice while post-flood cleanup is undertaken.

Dennison Ferry Day Use Area remains closed.

Green River Ferry Road is now open, both north and south of the river, although the Joppa Ridge Road remains closed.

Ugly Creek/Little Jordan Road suffered washout damage and remains closed until further notice.

Park staff are still evaluating the park's trail systems now that flood waters have allowed access to affected areas. Although no trails have been closed at this time, visitors are urged to use extra caution in places where trails may be blocked or eroded. [Vickie Carson, Public Affairs Officer]

Blue Ridge Parkway

Driver Killed In Early-Morning Accident

R.B., 36, of Granite Falls, North Carolina, was headed north on the parkway around 3:45 a.m. on April 29th when he lost control of his vehicle on a curve near Milepost 341 and went off the road. The vehicle went down an embankment and collided with a large tree. R.b was pronounced dead at the scene. Speed and possibly fatigue appear to have caused the accident. [Tim Francis, Pisgah District Ranger]

OTHER NEWS

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

NIFC - Coming off a strong El Niño winter weather pattern, portions of the western United States will enter the 2010 fire season drier than normal, according to the annual fire season outlook released last week by the Predictive Services Group at the National Interagency Fire Center.

Big Bend NP - Big Bend National Park recently completed upgrades to the exterior lighting in the Chisos Basin to reduce light pollution, reduce energy consumption, and provide better and safer illumination for visitors. Before and after photos included.

Legislative and Congressional Affairs - This week's update on past and upcoming hearings and the status of legislation pertinent to the National Park Service.

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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