Park News August 11,2008

Yosemite National Park

Yosemite rangers were kept busy during July and early August as they supported Madera County in a large scale search and rescue operation and at the same time dealt with a structural fire, a significant climber fall, a suicide, and a visit from Governor Arnold Schwarzenegger. They also participated fully in the suppression of the Telegraph Fire and in managing day-to-day operations in the park:

• Rescue – On July 18th, rangers conducted a high angle rescue operation for an injured climber on the 18th pitch of the Nose Route of El Capitan. Eric Ruderman, a Yosemite search and rescue staff member, was climbing recreationally when he hit the face of the rock while attempting a pendulum procedure. Ruderman was short-hauled off of El Capitan and flown to an area hospital.


• Wildland Fire – The Telegraph Fire, which threatened 2,000 homes in the Mariposa area (including those of many park employees), began on July 25th in the Merced River Canyon. Yosemite National Park participated as a cooperating agency and provided resources for the suppression effort, including Crew 7, Yosemite helitack, a dozer, division supervisors, security specialists, technical specialists, resource advisors, and others. Yosemite’s helicopter was also twice utilized for short-haul operations for injuries incurred during the firefighting effort.


• SAR – During the Telegraph Fire, Yosemite rangers also supported the Madera County Sheriff’s Office in their search for 67-year-old James Arthur, who disappeared in the Iron Lakes area of the Sierra National Forest on July 28th. Participating in the search effort were rangers and search and rescue staff, including ground searchers and dog handlers. A park helicopter was also used in the operation.


• Structural Fire – A structural fire near the kitchen area of the Yosemite Lodge caused significant damage to the roof and attic of the cafeteria building around 6 p.m. on August 2nd. NPS engines from Yosemite Valley and El Portal responded together with an engine from DNC Parks and Resorts in Yosemite, Inc., the park’s major concessioner. After fighting the fire for approximately four hours, firefighters were able to confine the blaze to the attic and mechanical rooms. The cause of the fire has yet to be determined.


• Suicide – Rangers dealt with a high-profile suicide on July 29th when a 27-year-old man jumped to his death from Half Dome. This was the second suicide this summer; the first, a 36-year-old man, occurred on June 13th and stemmed from a jump from El Capitan.

 

Wind Cave National Park

On Thursday afternoon, a Student Conservation Association (SCA) student assigned to Wind Cave was doing vegetation transects when he was bitten by a rattlesnake. The student was air evacuated to Rapid City Regional Hospital, placed on an anti-venom drip, and hospitalized overnight. At the time of the report late on Thursday, the student was doing well. He was expected to receive two more doses of anti-venom medication before being released on Friday afternoon. Ranger Jill Jaworski accompanied the student to the hospital to provide agency assistance and support.

 

Grand Canyon National Park

The park received a 911 call from a visitor near Yaki Point just after noon on Friday, August 8th, reporting that a young man had fallen from the canyon rim. Witnesses told search and rescue rangers that the man – identified as Mian Zhang, 19, a Canadian citizen – had been standing on an outcropping when he lost his footing and fell. Rangers found his body shortly thereafter about 250 feet below the rim. Zhang was with a friend when the accident occurred; the friend and two other visitors witnessed the accident. An investigation is being conducted. This is the first accidental fall resulting in a fatality that has occurred in the park this year.

 

Gettysburg National Military Park

On Monday, August 4th, rangers received a BOLO (“be on the lookout” message) for a 60-year-old man who had an involuntary mental health commitment warrant issued for him. The man had threatened to shoot both himself and law enforcement officers. One of his friends located him in the Pitzer Woods parking lot on park property and reported his location to Adams County dispatch. Two rangers responded along with units from both Gettysburg and Cumberland Township Police Departments. Two police vehicles blocked his car so he couldn’t move it, while two others blocked the parking lot’s entrance and exit. The man surrendered without incident and admitted to having a loaded weapon under the driver’s seat, which was later recovered. A search of the vehicle produced two other revolvers. The man was taken to the local hospital, then released to a treatment center.

 

Historic Preservation Training Center

Sarah J. Polzin has been selected for the position of supervisory exhibits specialist overseeing the masonry section at the Historic Preservation Training Center (HPTC), located in Frederick, Maryland.

Sarah attended the University of Wisconsin and graduated from Belmont Technical College in St. Clairsville, Ohio, in 1998 with an AAS in building preservation technology. 

She began her NPS career in 1998 as a participant in the center’s student career experience program. Following graduation from Belmont College, she worked at Manassas National Battlefield as a maintenance worker. 

A year later, Sarah successfully competed for a three-year HPTC exhibit specialist training program trainee position and returned to the center. She completed the exhibit specialist program and received her HPTC certificate in 2001, then continued at the center as a project leader on the carpentry team.

In 2006, Sarah was promoted to a GS-12 staff exhibits specialist position on the center’s carpentry team, where she was responsible for developing and overseeing numerous preservation construction projects.  In 2007, Sarah was elected as the first president of the HPTC employee recreation association.

 

Midwest Region

Dates: 08/08/2008 - 09/05/2008

Hot Springs National Park is recruiting within the National Park Service to fill their GS-0025-13 deputy superintendent position. The announcement closes on September 5th. Please go to the link below for the complete announcement and application instructions.



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