OFFICER:  RYAN F. WELTMAN    

DEPARTMENT: Yellowstone National Park Service

DATE OF INCIDENT: July 3, 1994

DETAILS: Ranger Weltman died as a result of a sea kayaking accident on Shoshone Lake in Yellowstone National Park.  Ranger Weltman was conducting a public safety patrol of the wilderness lake to contact canoeists and campers on an afternoon when high winds were creating rough seas.  He apparently capsized the kayak while crossing a portion of the lake known as the Narrows, suffered hypothermia from prolonged exposure to the cold lake water, and drowned.