FORT LEONARD WOOD, Mo. - Senior Army leadership continue to outpour their support for the Soldiers, families and civilians affected by the EF-3 tornado that hit Fort Leonard Wood New Year's Eve morning. Following Army Chief of Staff, Gen. George W. Casey's visit to the installation, the Honorable John McHugh, Secretary of the Army, came, Thursday, to further evaluate what the community may need.
"I'm here to try to assess what the garrison and what the families felt maybe they needed that they weren't getting, and every reaction I've received so far, is that it's being provided," McHugh said.
McHugh toured the damaged training and housing areas on post, visited with families and received updates on reconstruction initiatives.
"(The damage) really took my breath away. From the first moment I received e-mails on New Year's, and got a better picture as to how widespread the damage was, I thought I understood it," he said. "But until I got off the plane and began to tour (the post) ... it's really hard to imagine the devastation that occurred here. To see what Mother Nature can do at the height of her fury is pretty startling."
Paying tribute to the total Army Family who, locally and nationally, has made continuous efforts to ensure total recovery for the Fort Leonard Wood community, McHugh highlights the Army's "can-do attitude."
"You talk a lot about the Army Family. We see it in our posters and see it in our literature. We believe in it very strongly, but it has to be more than a bumper sticker. If there's anything this experience has shown, it's that in times such as this, the Army Family knows how to put our arms around each other and begin to build for the future," he said.
With an estimated half billion in damage costs and joint concerns about the budget, McHugh re-emphasizes the number one priority: the people.
"I think it's clear there's hundreds and hundreds of millions of dollars in damage here. We have a back of the envelope figure, ... but it's very preliminary. We want to be able to work these figures out. But right now we're not worried about the money. We're worried about the people. We can find the resources in the near term, and do what we have to do, so this will be a process for some time. ... Right now, it's about the people," he said.
Families feel at ease knowing they have the Army standing behind them while they pick up the pieces and move forward toward recovery and a sense of normalcy, and with efforts being made to alleviate the tedious Army claims processes, families hope to be back on their feet in no time.
"It just really shows that they're watching out for Soldiers, watching out for the families. ... They're really taking care of us. It's great leadership," said 2nd Lt. Phillip Scott, after he and his wife, Michele, met with McHugh outside their demolished home.
With uninterrupted training underway, more than 85 percent of families in a new house and continued support from the USO, Army Community Services and other civilian agencies, Fort Leonard Wood has quickly begun the stages of rebuilding, and can anticipate ongoing support from senior Army leadership.
"This is not just a great garrison responding adequately with very supportive communities - although it's all of that - this is us back in Washington understanding how important this is, and what a great tragedy they've experienced, and we're going to be there for them. I just want to make sure the Army and the Army resources are being made available here and for the moment, I feel pretty good about that," McHugh said.
Social Sharing