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| WEDNESDAY August 1, 2001 Vol 5, # 68 |
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| WEDNESDAY August 1, 2001 Vol 5, # 68 |
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| Site Search | Support Yellowstone! Discussion $7.95 Internet, Email, More Email Newsletter | |
ROAD REPORT PUBLISHER EDITOR-IN- |
YELLOWSTONE FIRE UPDATE by National Park Service YELLOWSTONE NATIONAL PARK, Wyo. (NPS) -- Yellowstone National Park officials report that the Arthur Fire that closed the park's East Entrance Road to all inbound and outbound traffic on Sunday, July 29, is now estimated at around 900 acres and is about one mile west of the park's East Entrance. At some locations, the fire is less that 150 yards from the road; the road will remain closed until it is safe to reopen to traffic. Park staff have been in full suppression mode since the fire was first reported. Air tankers have been dropping fire retardents, and water buckets have also been deployed. As of yesterday, there were no ground crews on the fire because of safety concerns; the fire is located in rugged, steep terrain. Structural fire protection was done at the East Entrance, and an irrigation system is now operational. The evacuation of park staff and their families, less than a dozen people, has been completed; no other evacuations have been necessary or are expected in the park. The National Interagency Coordination Center (NICC) in Boise, Idaho has dispatched a national Type 1 Incident Management Team (IMT) (Frye) to the fire. Park officials remind visitors that all entrances, except for the East Entrance, remain open, as well as all visitor and park facilities, including all lodging, food services, general stores, gift shops, and campgrounds. Park visitors whose travel route takes them through Cody, Wyoming, can access the park through the Northeast Entrance. The nighttime closure (9 p.m. to 9 a.m.) between Madison and Norris for road construction remains in place. As information becomes available, updated news releases will be issued. |
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CONTRIBUTING WRITERS AND COLUMNISTS Russ Finley
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NEW WINTER
USE IMPACT STATEMENT TO BE PREPARED YELLOWSTONE NATIONAL PARK, Wyo. -- National Park Service (NPS) officials announce that preparation of a Supplemental Environmental Impact Statement (SEIS) for winter use in Yellowstone and Grand Teton National Parks and the John D. Rockefeller, Jr., Memorial Parkway is now underway. The Department of the Interior agreed to do the SEIS under the terms of a settlement agreement to a lawsuit brought by the International Snowmobile Manufacturers Association, the State of Wyoming and others, asking that the November 22, 2000, record of decision (which eliminates both snowmobile and snowplane use from the parks by the winter of 2003-2004, and provides access via an NPS-managed, mass-transit snowcoach system) be set aside. The preparation of the SEIS is deemed necessary to further the proposes of the National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA) by soliciting more public comment on the earlier decision and alternatives to it which will maintain protection of park resources. Additional information from the International Snowmobile Manufacturers Association will be considered, as well as any other new or updated substantive information not available at the time of the earlier decision. The completion of a SEIS is to follow a schedule set out in the settlement agreement. A draft SEIS is to be posted on the NPS website by January 21, 2002. A Notice of Availability for the draft SEIS is to be published by March 15, 2002. The comment period for the draft SEIS would close on May 15, 2002. Public comments are being accepted. To be most useful, and because of the tight deadlines mandated in the settlement agreement, comments should be received by August 14, 2001. Comments should be substantive, pertinent, and provide new information not available in the earlier winter use planning process. Comments may be mailed to: Winter Use Plan Comments can also be sent via the Internet to Yellowstone National park e-mail: yell_winter_use@nps.gov. Please submit Internet comments as an ASCII file avoiding the use of special characters and any form of encryption. Please also include "Attn: Winter Use Plan" and your name and return address in your Internet message. Your name and home address will become part of the public record unless you specifically request that they be withheld. Additional information may be obtained from either Sarah Creachbaum (307-739-3321) or Bob Rossman (307-739-3467) at Grand Teton National Park; or John Sacklin (307-344-2020) at Yellowstone National Park. |
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YELLOWSTONE
WOLF UPDATE YELLOWSTONE NATIONAL PARK, Wyo. (USFWS) -- The U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service and Park Service are monitoring about 17 potential dens in the Greater Yellowstone area. The latest counts are: Druid Peak (12 pups- 38 total), Rose Creek (7 pups-12 total), Tower Group (no pups- 5 total), Leopold (3 pups- 16 total), Swan Lake (2 pups- 9 total), Mollie’s (6 pups-10 total), Chief Joseph (3 pups-16 total), Nez Perce (bred but no counts-21 adults), Cougar Pack (3 pups- 6 total), Yellowstone Delta (4 pups-17total), Sheep Mtn. (# 195 bred but no counts- 2 adults), Mill Creek (unknown if bred but suspected- 3 adults), Sunlight (bred but no counts yet- 6-8 adults), Beartooth (bred but no counts yet-3 adults), Absaroka (4 pups-9 total), Gros Ventre (probably not bred- 6 adults), Teton (9 pups-12 total), Washakie (4 pups- 9-11 total), Taylor peak (bred but no count yet- 5 adults), Freezeout (4 pups-6 total), and Gravelly (6 pups-10 total [6 pups and 2 adults in TESF pen will be relocated this fall-(2 adults killed and 2 in Gravelly Mtn’s) because of sheep depredations]. To date a minimum of 67 pups in 21-22 litters (minimum 18 packs) and 153-158 adults have been documented in the Greater Yellowstone area. The Cougar Pack (new pack near west Yellowstone formed this winter by #151 from the Leopold pack) was seen with 3 pups. So far, only the Gros Ventre pack and the Tower Pack (split off from the Rose Creek pack over a year ago) appear not to have denned. The Nez Perce pack killed 2 adult bison (both probably cows) and likely killed a brown bear cub. The cub’ carcass was examined and canine puncture wounds indicated wolf or lion, however, they are no lions near where the cub was found, whereas the Nez Perce commonly uses that area. |
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| GRAND CANYON RESCUE by National Park Service GRAND CANYON NATIONAL PARK, Ariz. (NPS) -- On the evening of July 16th, park dispatch received a 911 call via satellite telephone from a commercial river trip on the Colorado River. The trip leader reported that one of the two motor rafts on the trip had gotten hung up on a rock in the upper granite gorge near river mile 105. The stranded raft had 11 people on board. There were no beaches in the area, and the second boat was secured downstream. Just before sunset, rescuers David Rhinehart, Bryan Edwards, Mike Flynn and Carl Helquist were inserted via helicopter about a quarter mile upstream from the stranded raft. Edwards and Flynn swam down to the rafts to stabilize them and spent the night on board. At first light, the water flow in the Colorado River increased, and the raft gained buoyancy. The rescuers were able to maneuver the raft off the rock; they were flown out later that morning. |
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