Park News September 29,2008

Denali National Park & Preserve

Two hypothermic hunters were rescued from the banks of the Chulitna River on Saturday, September 20th, in a joint operation conducted by the National Park Service and the Alaska State Troopers.  The two hunters, David Sapp and Jason Herring, both from Fairbanks, were swept down the East Fork of the Chulitna River while attempting to cross the river on the first day of a moose hunt. They were both able to struggle to shore, but were stranded on the far side of the river from Parks Highway and their vehicle. Sapp was able to call his wife via cell phone, and she alerted troopers in Fairbanks. Trooper Thomas Lowy and ranger John Leonard were in the vicinity conducting an aerial boundary patrol of the park at the time of the call.  In deteriorating weather conditions, Lowy and Leonard, who were aboard an NPS contracted helicopter, were able to locate the uninjured but hypothermic hunters and transport them to the Parks Highway, where they were ultimately driven to their vehicle.

 

Great Smoky Mountains National Park

When ranger Ken Davis stopped a car last November 2nd, he found that the operator – Michael Bogle of Knoxville, Tennessee – was driving on a revoked license and that he didn’t have either a valid registration or insurance. He was cited for all three violations. Bogle’s blood alcohol count at the time was 0.5%. Rangers later learned that Bogle had been classified as a habitual motor vehicle offender in the state of Tennessee and that his driving history included eleven DUI convictions, twelve instances of driving on a revoked license, and one case of reckless driving. Bogle was indicted in federal court for violating the state’s habitual motor vehicle offender act. He subsequently pled guilty to the charge and on September 17th was sentenced to 24 months in jail, followed by 180 days in a halfway house and three years’ supervised release. Southeast Region special agent Jeff Carlisle assisted in the follow-up investigation and in Bogle’s prosecution.

 

Cuyahoga Valley National Park

During the early morning hours of September 24th, a 25-year-old woman was kidnapped at gunpoint in Akron by a 52-year-old man, then taken to an area near the Akron-Peninsula Road in the park and raped. The man then let her go, and she reported the assault to police. A SWAT team found the man’s body by the side of the road with a gunshot wound in his chest. Akron PD and the Summit County Sheriff’s Office are the lead agencies, with rangers providing assistance. The county medical examiner is conducting an autopsy.

 

Sequoia & Kings Canyon National Parks

The park is seeking someone to oversee the operation of the parks' wilderness office. The person selected will be involved in a variety of administrative tasks, including budgeting, payroll, travel, and personnel actions. She/he will also lead a staff of as many as one subject-to-furlough and four seasonal employees. Other duties include gathering wilderness use data, directing the wilderness permit reservation and issuance system, developing public brochures, and updating the parks website with current wilderness information. It is advertised on USA Jobs under announcement number SEKI-212879. For a copy, click on "More Information" below.

For further information on this position, contact Gregg Fauth at 559-565-3137 or Gregg_Fauth@nps.gov . The announcement closes on October 8th.



 More Information...