NATIONAL PARK SERVICE
MORNING REPORT
Tuesday, July 27, 2010
INCIDENTS
Gulf Coast Parks
Shoreline Condition Assessment Teams Back At Work
Cleanup operations continued at Gulf Islands, but operations in South Florida began winding down to the low probability of oil impacts there. Here are the particulars:
Gulf Islands NS - SCAT Team 4 yesterday spent six hours assessing beach conditions in the Fort Pickens area (shoreline condition assessment teams, known as SCAT teams, gather information about the amount and dispersal of oil and tar balls on beaches so cleanup priorities can be set using the best available information). This team consists of three people - leader Tom Freeman is from contractor Polaris Applied Sciences of Bainbridge Island, Washington, Joyce Riesinger is from the Florida Department of Environmental Protection, and Benjamin Stixrud is from the Coast Guard. Together with resource advisor Sam Patten of USFWS Alaska, they examined points along the shore, recording information concerning size, type and location of oil contamination. The team traveled in UTVs along the beach just above the high tide mark. Winds associated with the remnants of Tropical Storm Bonnie exposed formerly sand-covered tar balls in previously cleaned areas. When team members spotted some of this oil on the surface of the sand, they stopped for a closer look. Then everyone got out of the vehicle and used shovels, rulers, GPS units and common sense to determine the severity and extent of the contamination. After locating oil and taking the onsite measurements, they recorded them along with comments on a highly systematic form used for analysis. The information gained will be used by experts back at incident command to determine which cleanup crews go where and in what order the areas are cleaned. By using the best available information, the highest priorities for work crews at Gulf Islands National Seashore are assured.
South Florida Parks (Big Cypress, Biscayne, Desoto, Dry Tortugas, Everglades) - Operations are beginning to wind down in South Florida, as the probability of impact from oil has been deemed to be low.
Jean Lafitte NHP&P - No new developments.
Padre Island NS - No new developments.
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 sites:
HYPERLINK "http://www.deepwaterhorizonresponse.com/go/doctype/2931/53023/" Deepwater Horizon Oil Spill Response
HYPERLINK "http://www.doi.gov/deepwaterhorizon/index.cfm" DOI Oil Spill Response
HYPERLINK "http://www.nps.gov/aboutus/oil-spill-response.htm" NPS Oil Spill Response
HYPERLINK "http://www.deepwaterhorizonresponse.com/go/site/2931/" National Oil Spill Response
HYPERLINK "http://www.restorethegulf.gov/" Restore The Gulf
HYPERLINK "http://inside.nps.gov/index.cfm?handler=viewnpsnewsarticle&type=Conferences&id=1957" Oil Spill Safety Training
HYPERLINK "http://www.geoplatform.gov/gulfresponse/" GeoPlatform
HYPERLINK "http://inside.nps.gov/waso/custommenu.cfm?lv=3&prg=1006&id=9336" NPS ICS 209 Incident Status Summaries
HYPERLINK "http://classicinside.nps.gov/documents/NPS%20-%20Public%20Health%20Notice%20SIGNAGE%206-26-10.pdf" Gulf Islands Public Health Precautions Notice
HYPERLINK "http://www.nps.gov/archive/features/oilspillresponse/OilSpillSafety/index.htm" Public Health Service Oil Spill Safety Video
HYPERLINK "http://www.nps.gov/archive/features/oilspillresponse/" Oil Spill Media Page
[Jeff Wolin, Gulf Coast Oil Spill Response]
Sequoia-Kings Canyon NPs
Marijuana Eradication Operation Conducted
On Friday, July 16th, rangers destroyed a marijuana plantation in the park containing 8,125 plants worth an estimated $32.5 million. In the near future, trash, fertilizer, pesticides, herbicides and other hazardous materials will be removed from the site. The plot, located near an area where a large number of marijuana plants were removed on July 1st, is believed to have been planted by people with ties to a Mexican drug trafficking organization. No arrests have been made yet. An investigation is ongoing. [Dana Dierkes, Public Affairs Officer]
Assateague Island NS
Motorcyclist Arrested After Pursuit, Manhunt
While on patrol on July 19th, seasonal ranger George Walton saw a motorcyclist riding without a helmet. Despite the operator's attempt to hide within the congestion created by a “pony jam,” Walton was able to find him and obtain a Maryland ID card. While running checks on him, the operator approached Walton with clenched fists and other indicators of aggression. Walton responded by ordering him to stop; as he reached for his taser, the man returned to his motorcycle and fled - minus his ID card. Walton pursued and was soon joined by another ranger and a Maryland Department of Natural Resources officer. The operator left the island at a high rate of speed and soon disappeared, so the officers terminated the pursuit and summoned additional help. A total of eight rangers and officers began searching the area and interviewing witnesses. A DNR officer employed his mobile data terminal to obtain a good image of the man and a description of his motorcycle. Shortly thereafter, he found the bike at a large campground/amusement park about four miles from Assateague. Rangers employed their mobile phone cameras to capture the man's image from the mobile data terminal, then began sweeping the area in a search for him. Ranger Dana Condron came upon a man who resembled the photo and called him by name. Although the man initially denied his identity, he soon admitted to being the person they were looking for. A check by dispatch revealed that the man had eight prior DUI convictions and that his license had been suspended and revoked. He was again found intoxicated in this contact. [Ted Morlock, Chief Ranger]
Golden Gate NRA
Fisherman Falls To Death At Marin Headlands
On the afternoon of Saturday, July 10th, dispatch received a call reporting that a man had fallen off a cliff at Rodeo Beach in the Marin Headlands. Rangers and public safety personnel from the Presidio responded; patrol craft from the Coast Guard and Marin County Sheriff's Office were also dispatched. The reporting party, talking through a Spanish interpreter, said that her husband had been fishing on the rocky coast of Rodeo Beach when a large wave hit him and knocked him off the rocks, causing him to fall about 40 feet to the water below. County deputies found and retrieved the man and transferred him to the Coast Guard vessel, Coast Guard personnel conducted CPR while he was being transported to a waiting ambulance at Fort Baker. Southern Marin emergency responders pronounced him dead at the Coast Guard Station. U.S. Park Police criminal investigators conducted the follow up investigation. [Kim Coast, Acting Chief Ranger]
Rocky Mountain NP
Ailing Teenager Evacuated From Backcounty
Members of a park trail crew working near Lost Lake on the morning of July 23rd were contacted by a visitor and told that a 15-year-old boy hiking with a group near Lake Dunraven was ill and needed help. The lake is at 11,600 feet and about 11 miles from the North Fork trailhead. The 15-year-old, who was complaining of chest pain and nausea, had pre-existing health conditions, including asthma. The trail crew hiked to his location, arriving at 1:35 p.m. Due to the young man's condition, acceptable weather conditions and an appropriate helicopter landing zone nearby, rangers requested assistance from Flight for Life from St. Anthony Hospital. The Flight for Life reached the landing zone in Upper Beaver Meadows around 4 p.m. and flew the boy to the Medical Center of the Rockies. [Kyle Patterson, Public Affairs Officer]
Gates of the Arctic NP&P
Hiker Bitten By Animal
A Glennallen man was bitten on the hand, reportedly by a bear, during a backpacking trip in the park last week. On July 16th, K.S., 55, reported that he was in his tent at about 2:30 a.m. when an unseen animal struck the outside of the tent. K.S. raised his hand against the tent, and the animal took his hand in its mouth and held it for a few seconds; when K.S. attempted to pull his hand back, the animal bit. He recounted that the animal left after about 30 seconds while K.S. “played dead” in the tent. He then heard the animal cross the creek and depart from the area. K.S. was camping along Easter Creek, west of Anaktuvuk Pass, in the Brooks Range. K.S. packed his gear and began hiking out, contacting NPS staff at Agiak Lake about a dozen miles away from the incident. He declined assistance, and continued hiking to Anaktuvuk Pass, more than 30 miles to the east, where he received medical treatment on July 19th. He then flew to Fairbanks where he was treated at Fairbanks Memorial Hospital, National Park Service staff are investigating, and will try to determine if the animal that bit K.S. was indeed a bear; tracks at Easter Creek did not provide a clear identification, K.S. said. Bear-resistant food containers are required in Gates of the Arctic, and are loaned for free at NPS ranger stations in park gateway communities. K.S. had most of his food in an approved container. He may have had some food outside the container, but the animal did not obtain any food. [John Quinley, Public Affairs Officer, Alaska Region]
OTHER NEWS
The following stories are among those in today's edition of InsideNPS. To see the full text, including images, NPS employees should go to the InsideNPS home page ( HYPERLINK "http://inside.nps.gov/index.cfm?handler=index" http://inside.nps.gov/index.cfm?handler=index). Non-NPS employees can see most of them on the NPS Digest page ( HYPERLINK "http://home.nps.gov/applications/digest/" http://home.nps.gov/applications/digest/):
Washington Office - Director Jarvis has named John A. Wessels the new regional director for Intermountain Region. Wessels, who serves as the region's associate director for administration, business and technology, assumes his new position in Denver in August. Photo.
International - World Ranger Day will be celebrated this coming Saturday. It is a day set aside each year to pay tribute to the work that rangers perform to protect the last vestiges of the earth's natural and cultural heritage.
Workplace Enrichment - NPS employees are passionate about the agency's mission and like the work they do. Over 7,000 permanent employees responded to this year's survey. A summary and links to detailed information are provided.
Office of International Affairs - Staff from three NPS offices and the National Park Foundation met with a visiting delegation of educators, reporters and researchers from India in mid-July. Photo.
National Capital Region - Alex Romero, a 19-year veteran of the National Park Service, has been named superintendent of National Capital Parks-East. Romero officially begins his new duties on July 26th. Photo.
NPS incident submission standards can be found online at the HYPERLINK "http://inside.nps.gov/waso/custompages.cfm?prg=45&id=8728&lv=2&pgid=3504" serious incident notification web page.
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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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