NATIONAL PARK SERVICE
MORNING REPORT
Thursday, May 13, 2010
INCIDENTS
Gulf Coast Parks
Some Oil Found At Gulf Islands
Preparations continue in parks all along the Gulf Coast for oil to come ashore from the spill following the sinking of the drill rig Deepwater Horizon on April 20th. The Western incident management team remains in place at Gulf Islands National Seashore, and the five South Florida parks (Big Cypress, Biscayne, DeSoto, Dry Tortugas, and Everglades) continue to work under a type III organization preparing for possible landfall there. Yesterday, Assistant Secretary of the Interior Tom Strickland was on scene to support Director Jarvis, the Department of Interior incident commander, and other DOI staff at the Mobile Incident Command Post.
Padre Island NS - The park's baseline assessment continues.
Jean Lafitte NHP&P - Park staff will begin to set up sample sites and take baseline soil samples and photos over the next few days. As yet, there is no oil in the Barataria Basin, and the park remains well outside the zone of predicted impacts. The park continues to work towards its objectives by coordinating with local partners and the West IMT at Gulf Islands.
Gulf Islands NS - All park sites remain open and operating normally. Small amounts of burned oil residue were found and removed by shoreline cleanup and assessment teams on their continuing patrols of West Ship Island and Horn Island. On Perdido Key, sufficient amounts were discovered to warrant further assessment today. Two oiled birds were found on Horn Island yesterday; an oyster catcher has been taken to the Theodore (AL) rehabilitation center to be cleaned, and a gannet is currently in the process of being retrieved. Safety training for park staff continues and boom maintenance is ongoing.
South Florida Parks (Big Cypress, Biscayne, DeSoto, Dry Tortugas, Everglades) - Teams under the resource assessment branch have now completed the baseline condition assessment for De Soto. A baseline assessment is also underway at Dry Tortugas, where teams continue to assess the status of cultural and natural resources spanning a variety of ecological communities. It is anticipated that work will continue there for the balance of the week. The natural resource assessment branch is currently determining trigger points at which to execute plans for Everglades, Big Cypress, and Biscayne. It is anticipated that recommended trigger points will be finalized by week's end. The South Florida IMT is committing resources to better integrate park efforts with the St. Petersburg unified command response. A public information officer has been assigned to support Dan Kimball, lead DOI official at the St. Petersburg Unified Command Center, and is scheduled to arrive on Thursday. Local media interest in South Florida is currently low. A series of park-specific fact sheets that address response efforts are available on each park's respective website. A communications center continues to be staffed by a team of information officers, and 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 and for a link to the BP online oil spill safety training needed by all incident staff, 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
Oil Spill Safety Training - HYPERLINK "http://inside.nps.gov/index.cfm?handler=viewnpsnewsarticle&type=Conferences&id=1957" http://inside.nps.gov/index.cfm?handler=viewnpsnewsarticle&type=Conferences&id=1957
[Rudy Evenson, Lead Information Officer, Gulf Islands National Seashore Oil Spill Response]
Channel Islands NP
Hiker Dies Of Injuries Suffered In Fall
A 22-year-old man died last Saturday afternoon after a 60-foot fall off the cliff at Potato Harbor on Santa Cruz Island. T.C., a student from Santa Barbara City College, landed on a ledge situated about 60 feet below the top of the cliff and well over 200 feet above the harbor. Ranger Randy Nelson responded after being notified at about 2:30 p.m. by one of T.C.'s friends. He and two other park employees were able to safely descend the slope at Potato Harbor, where they found two bystanders assisting T.C.. Nelson found T.C. unconscious, unresponsive, and with labored breathing. Initial emergency medical treatment and monitoring continued until a Ventura County Sherriff's Department search and rescue helicopter arrived with paramedics. Shortly following their arrival, T.C.'s condition worsened and CPR was begun, but he did not survive. [Yvonne Menard, Public Information Officer]
OTHER NEWS
The following stories are among those in today's edition of InsideNPS:
Fire and Aviation Management - This month saw the grand opening of the National Park Service's first interagency structural fire training center in Page, Arizona. Developed in partnership between Glen Canyon NRA and the city of Page, this site will become the cornerstone of the agency's national training program.
Statue of Liberty NM - The National Park Service and cadets from the United States Military Academy last week demonstrated a new rescue device designed to evacuate injured or sick visitors down the steep double-helix steps that wind up and down inside the Statue of Liberty. Photo.
Climate Change Program - The May 2010 issue of the Climate Change Response Program's newsletter is now available.
Denali NP&P - Phil Brease, Denali National Park and Preserve's geologist since 1986, died yesterday while leading a field trip for a Tri-Valley School science class taking place at Garner Point south of Healy.
Department of the Interior - Former Secretary of the Interior Walter J. Hickel, 90, passed away on May 7th in Anchorage, Alaska.
Historic Preservation Training Center - Nora Mitchell, the founding director of the Conservation Study Institute, has received the Service's Crystal Owl Award for her work as a pioneer and innovator in the field of leadership learning and development in 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/
NPS serious incident submission standards can be found at the following web site: HYPERLINK "http://inside.nps.gov/notify" http://inside.nps.gov/notify
* * * *
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).
--- ### ---