NATIONAL PARK SERVICE
MORNING REPORT
Tuesday, July 2, 2013
INCIDENTS
Great Sand Dunes NP&P
Two Killed, One Seriously Injured In Crash Of Private Plane
A plane crash in the park near the junction of the Medano Pass primitive road and the Medano Lake Road on the morning of June 8th killed the pilot and one of two passengers. The second passenger survived and has been hospitalized.
A visitor was first on scene and called 911; a protection ranger arrived within 45 minutes. Huerfano County deputies and park staff assisted with evacuating the two passengers to regional trauma centers. The pilot's body was taken into custody by the Saguache County coroner.
The National Transportation Safety Board and the Federal Aviation Administration investigated the accident the following day. On Tuesday, June 11th, the single-engine aircraft was removed from the park and the Medano Pass primitive road was reopened. The cause of the crash has yet to be determined by the NTSB and FAA.
[Kathy Faz, Acting Chief of Interpretation and Visitor Services]
Grand Canyon NP
Hiker Dies On South Kaibab Trail
Park dispatch received a call from the emergency phone at Phantom Ranch boat beach on Sunday afternoon with a report of an unconscious hiker about three quarters of a mile above Phantom Ranch on the South Kaibab Trail.
Park rangers responding from the Phantom Ranch ranger station began CPR upon arrival, but efforts to revive her were unsuccessful. The body was flown out and transferred to the county medical examiner.
The woman was in a group of five people who were on the first day of a permitted multi-day backcountry hike. The South Kaibab is a steep, exposed trail, and the high temperature at Phantom Ranch that afternoon was 113 degrees. An investigation into the cause of her death is underway.
[Vanya Pryputniewicz, Public Affairs Specialist]
Mount Rainier NP
Suicide Victim's Body Found By Visitors
Visitors reported seeing a body lying near the Wonderland Trail north of Longmire near Rampart Ridge Trail on the afternoon of June 27th. Rangers responded and determined that the victim, a 58-year-old man, had died, and that he was a probable suicide victim. Several empty prescription pill bottles and an empty bottle of alcohol were found near the body.
The victim was subsequently identified as a Kent, Washington, man who'd been missing since the previous day. His body was turned over to the county medical examiner.
[Chuck Young, 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/):
Sitka NHP - Following in the footsteps of the park's first custodian, whose photographs documented the arrival of the park's iconic totem poles in 1906, two specially trained architects have digitally scanned many of the park's totem poles for a special collection in the Library of Congress archives.
Petrified Forest NP - Petrified Forest National Park has opened a new geology and paleontology exhibit at the Rainbow Forest Museum. The Blue Mesa ecology exhibit shows off the Late Triassic with a highly detailed mural representing a day in the life of a Triassic river.
Alaska Region - The Pride series of videos, produced by LGBT Alaska Region employees with the support of the regional leadership, are now available online. Links are provided.
Lewis and Clark NHP - “Count Me In,” a film by two graduates from Lewis and Clark National Historical Park's award-winning Teen Film Camp, premiered this summer as part of Nature Matters, a monthly speaker series held at Ft. George Brewery in Astoria, Oregon.
Southeast Region - Jorge Acevedo has been selected as the next superintendent of De Soto National Memorial. Acevedo has been the acting superintendent there since January.
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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@contractor.nps.gov" Bill_Halainen@contractor.nps.gov).
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