NATIONAL PARK SERVICE
MORNING REPORT
Wednesday, February 20, 2013
INCIDENTS
Saint Croix NSR
Snowmobiler Disappears In St. Croix River
On the evening of Saturday, February 16th, the Pine County Sheriff's Department received a report that a snowmobiler had broken through the ice on the St. Croix River south of Danbury, Wisconsin, and had disappeared in its waters. Two people who were riding with the 43-year-old Minnesota man told officers that they were traveling on the frozen river in the dark when the man hit a large patch of open water and was thrown from his snowmobile into the river. The park was notified and an interagency search was begun. Deputies soon found his snowmobile partially submerged in the river on the edge of a large open area of turbulent water, which search managers determined was too dangerous to enter that evening. A search by foot, snowmobile and helicopter was conducted, but no sign of the missing man was found. Efforts resumed the following morning, but were suspended shortly after noon due to dangerous ice conditions. The man's body has not yet been recovered. He may have been swept downstream or he may be lodged under an ice pack. Search efforts will continue using NPS personnel and cadaver scent dogs and volunteers from a local search and rescue group. [Scott Carrigan, Acting Chief Ranger]
Independence NHP
Rangers Prevent Violent Assault
On the afternoon of February 4th, two rangers were patrolling Washington Square, a busy section of the park during rush hour, when they saw a man threatening another man with a large knife. The rangers quickly drew their weapons, confronted the assailant, and commanded him to drop his weapon. He immediately complied with the ranger's commands and was taken into custody. Further investigation revealed that the weapon he was observed to have been holding was a folding knife with a pistol grip and six inch blade. The assailant, who was found to be a juvenile, also had several other weapons in his possession, including a 10 inch serrated knife, a prison style shank, and a claw hammer - all located in his backpack. Because the suspect was a juvenile, the Philadelphia Police Department provided assistance with his detention and prosecution. He was released to parental custody and faces numerous local charges. No one was injured during the altercation. [Patrick Suddath, Chief Ranger]
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/):
Lake Mead NRA - The Alan Bible Visitor Center reopened to the public last week following the completion of a $2.9 million renovation. It had been closed since September of 2010. The remodeled building qualifies for a LEED silver rating due to its use of sustainable products.
US Park Police - Major Martin L. Zweig, national law enforcement specialist for the NPS Office of Law Enforcement, Security and Emergency Services in WASO, will retire from the United States Park Police on February 23rd.
Fire and Aviation Management - The National Park Service is recruiting for natural and cultural resource specialists to serve on post-wildfire Burned Area Emergency Response (BAER) teams. Applications are due by March 6th.
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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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