Lisa Murkowski: “as we approach the start of National Police Week and the annual memorial service, I would like to take this opportunity…”

“as we approach the start of National Police Week and the annual memorial service, I would like to take this opportunity once again to speak about the life and accomplishments of the late Thomas P. O'Hara, a National Park Service Protection Ranger and pilot and an Alaskan hero. Thomas P. O'Hara was assigned to the Katmai National Park and Preserve in the Bristol Bay region of western Alaska. On December 19, 2002, Ranger O'Hara and his passenger, a Fish and Wildlife Service employee, were on a mission in the Alaska Peninsula National Wildlife Refuge. Their plane went down on the tundra. When the plane was reported overdue, a rescue effort consisting of 14 single engine aircraft, an Alaska Air National Guard plane, and a Coast Guard helicopter quickly mobilized. Many of the single-engine aircraft were piloted by Tom's friends. The wreckage was located late in the afternoon of December 20. The passenger survived the crash, but Ranger Tom did not. Tom O'Hara was an experienced pilot with 11,000 hours as a pilot-in- command. He was active in the communities of Naknek and King Salmon where he grew up, flying children to Bible camp and coaching young wrestlers. Tom provided a strong link between the residents of Bristol Bay and the National Park Service. Although Tom O'Hara was a most valued employee of the National Park Service, he did not enjoy the same status as National Park Service employees with competitive career status.…”