NATIONAL PARK SERVICE
MORNING REPORT
Friday, August 13, 2010
INCIDENTS
Yosemite NP
Firefighters Knock Down Blaze in Tecoya Apartments
On the evening of August 11th, dispatch received a 911 report of a structural fire at the Tecoya Apartments in Yosemite Valley. Engine 7 (operated by concessioner Delaware North Corporation) from Yosemite Valley was paged and soon arrived on scene. The company officer saw smoke issuing from the front door and window at the south end of the building. Initial attack was conducted by four firefighters who were able to knock down the blaze with only minimal usage of water and damage to the apartment. The fire was confined to the kitchen and living room, where there was almost a total loss of personal belongings. Only minor smoke damage was found in the remainder of the building and personal belongings were salvaged. One occupant suffered from minor smoke inhalation. NPS chief fire officers, firefighters and rangers from other areas of the park also responded to assist in the suppression effort. The fire was caused by the ignition of splattered grease from a pan of donuts that were being deep-fried on the stove. The building contains six apartments and is 3666 square feet in size. Damage was limited to approximately 450 square feet. The estimated current replacement value for the building is $1,501,296 and the fire damage is estimated at $75,000. [Deron Mills, Deputy Fire Chief - Operations]
Yosemite NP
Seriously Injured Teen Extricated From Under Bridalveil Falls
Park dispatch received a 911 call from a visitor at Bridalveil Falls on the afternoon of August 5th, reporting that a 16-year-old boy had fallen 30 to 40 feet and was unconscious. A number of visitors had seen him scrambling on the large boulders below the falls, then slip off the face of one of them and out of their view. Rangers, Medic 3 ambulance and a SAR carryout team responded. An air ambulance was also requested based on the visitor report that the boy was unconscious. Rangers found that the boy, who was at the edge of one of the pools directly under the 640-foot waterfall, was gravely injured. The first park medics to arrive in the area immediately called for a short-haul extraction, based on the terrain and seriousness of the boy's injuries. Helicopter 551 with pilot Richard Shatto and a spotter were flown to the scene. Shatto positioned the helicopter in the spray of the giant waterfall, then slowly lowered medic Keith Lober, dangling from the 150-foot short-haul line, down to the site. SAR personnel helped Lober hookup the teenager, who was already packaged in a litter. He was flown out just a bit more than an hour after the initial call for help. The boy was flown to the trauma center at Memorial Hospital in Modesto, where he was treated for his life-threatening injuries. The IC was ranger Chris Bellino. [Ed Dunlavey]
Mount Rainier NP
Eleven-Year-Old Boy Drowns In White River
An 11-year-old boy and a 51-year-old man lost their footing in the White River yesterday morning and were swept downriver. The incident occurred just inside the north boundary of the park near the US Forest Service Silver Springs guard station. The two had been camping in the area with the boy's uncle and friends. They had crossed the White River. but were unable to find a suitable log to get back across the river. They were attempting to ford the river to cross back, with each holding onto opposite ends of a walking stick, when the boy lost his footing. The man grabbed the boy's sweatshirt, but they were both swept downstream and under several logs. The man held onto the boy for approximately a quarter mile before he lost his grip. He was able to get to shore and begin a search, but the boy continued to be swept downriver, where search crews later found his body. NPS rangers worked with Pierce County Sheriff's deputies, Greenwater Fire Department volunteers, and Mount Baker-Snoqualmie National Forest rangers on this incident. Uwe Nehring was incident commander. [Patti Wold, PIO]
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/):
Home of Franklin D. Roosevelt NHS - On August 15th, the Franklin D. Roosevelt Presidential Library opens a new exhibition entitled “Our Plain Duty: FDR and America's Social Security.” The exhibit commemorate the Social Security Act's 75th anniversary, featuring rare photographs, film footage and documents from their archives.
Climate Change Response Program - The August 2010 issue of the Climate Change Response Program's newsletter is now available. A link is provided.
Upcoming Training and Conference Calendar - A compilation of upcoming training courses and conferences across the nation. Added to this week's listing are the following - concession management training for superintendents in Utah, fee supervisor training at Albright, three courses being held in conjunction with ANPR's annual rendezvous and professional conference (interpreting critical issues, operational leadership and a new leader seminar), two one-day training sessions on privacy issues in Denver, and training on the Park System Resource Protection Act at Zion.
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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