NATIONAL PARK SERVICE

MORNING REPORT

Monday, October 18, 2010

INCIDENTS

Olympic NP

Hiker Fatally Injured In Encounter With Mountain Goat

Hiker R.B., 63, of Port Angeles died on Saturday afternoon after sustaining injuries in an encounter with a mountain goat. The incident remains under investigation. Park staff were on scene shortly after the initial report and provided emergency medical assistance. R.B. was transported by Coast Guard helicopter to Olympic Medical Center in Port Angeles, where he was pronounced dead. Rangers responding to the incident were able to locate the goat, confirm its identity, and kill it. The goat will be transported to a veterinary pathologist for full analysis. The incident occurred on Klahhane Ridge, which is located near Hurricane Ridge, about 17 miles south of Port Angeles. [Colin Smith, Chief Ranger]

Rocky Mountain NP

Climber Falls To His Death From Taylor Glacier

Rangers received a cell phone call just before noon on Saturday reporting that a climber had fallen on Taylor Glacier. They reached the climber's body late that afternoon and determined that the man had taken a tumbling fall of more than a thousand feet to his death. The climber, J.P., 54, was ascending with two companions and took their rope when he fell, leaving the others stranded near the top of Taylor Glacier just below the ridgeline between Taylor Peak and Powell Peak. They were able to anchor themselves in place until help arrived. Two rangers reached the ridgeline above the pair late on Saturday afternoon and belayed the two climbers up to their location. The cause of the accident is under investigation. This was the park's fifth falling fatality this year. [Kyle Patterson, Public Affairs Officer]

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/):

Museum Management Program - A new multimedia virtual museum exhibit of Death Valley and an associated virtual tour of Scotty's Castle have been launched. The online exhibit showcases the park and its collections.

Learning and Development Division - Applications are now being accepted for the 2011 Albright-Wirth grant program, They are due by October 22nd.

Wilderness Stewardship - A new multimedia virtual museum exhibit of Death Valley and an associated virtual tour of Scotty's Castle have been launched. The online exhibit showcases the park and its collections.

Fire and Aviation Management - Brit Rosso has been selected as the new Wildland Fire Lessons Learned Center manager. He replaces Paula Nasiatka, who retired last January. Photo.

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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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