NATIONAL PARK SERVICE

MORNING REPORT


Tuesday, January 29, 2013


INCIDENTS


Grand Teton NP

Park Trails Worker Nick Gillespie Dies In Avalanche


Rangers began a recovery mission yesterday morning for the body of a backcountry skier who died in an avalanche on Sunday, January 27th. Nick Gillespie, 30, of Jackson, Wyoming, was caught in an avalanche on the southeast face of Survey Peak in the northern Teton Range about 5 p.m. Sunday and died as a result of injuries suffered in the slide. Gillespie was a long-time seasonal employee of Grand Teton National Park who'd worked on the park's trail crew for the past six years and before that had worked for Rocky Mountain NP and the Willamette and Lassen National Forests. There were three people with him at the time of the accident, one a fellow seasonal trails worker at Grand Teton, but none was injured. Rangers enlisted the assistance of the Teton County Search and Rescue contract helicopter and crew for the recovery mission. Teton Interagency helitack personnel assisted with a temporary helibase established near Colter Bay, 25 miles north of Moran Junction. Four rangers were inserted into Berry Creek canyon on Monday about 11 a.m. Recovery of Gillespie's body and an investigation into the details of the incident are ongoing. The avalanche danger on Sunday, January 27th, was listed as low in the morning, rising to moderate in the afternoon at elevations between 9,000 and 10,500 feet. Moderate danger means that natural avalanches are unlikely, but human-triggered avalanches are possible. However, the report also reported, “At upper elevations new snow and winds overnight and expected snow today will create the potential for backcountry users to trigger soft slabs or sloughs to a foot in depth by the afternoon.” Additional information will be provided as soon as it is available. [Jackie Skaggs, 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/):


Northeast Region - Over recent months, Hudson River Valley NHA has been awarded major regional grants, applauded for its significant contribution to regional economic development, and named one of the top 20 places in the world to visit by a major national magazine.


Office of Communications - The National Park Service's Rivers, Trails and Conservation Assistance program has announced that it will help more than 250 communities with projects that improve local access to nature.


Intermountain Region - The Intermountain Region's retiring wilderness coordinator and wilderness-focused staffers at four parks and the regional office have been named winners of the IMR director's annual Wilderness Stewardship Awards for 2012.


Big Bend NP - Catoctin National Park and Big Bend National Park join together to mark the passing of a remarkable volunteer, Robert E. “Bob” Wirt, a recipient of the Hartzog Award for his work. 


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The Morning Report is a publication of the Division of Law Enforcement, Security and Emergency Services, Washington Office, produced by the Office of Communications with the support of the Office of the Associate Director for Information Resources. Edited by Bill Halainen ( HYPERLINK "mailto:Bill_Halainen@nps.gov" Bill_Halainen@nps.gov).


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