Winter comes calling to Joint Base Lewis-McChord

By Mr David Poe (IMCOM)January 24, 2012

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JOINT BASE LEWIS-MCCHORD, Wash. -- Servicemembers, civilians and their Families continue to rebound from a winter weather wallop which hit Joint Base Lewis-McChord, along with the greater Puget Sound region last week. Since then, troops and civilians alike worked around the clock to re-stand up an installation which was closed to non-essential personnel Jan. 18 through 20.

Snowfall which rivaled averages which usually takes a year to accumulate in this area may have been no match for the freezing rain which reeked havoc on utilities. Approximately 900, most of which were centered at McChord Field, of the almost 5,000 public-private venture homes at JBLM were without power for more than 24 hours.

As of the weekend, with exception to individual home issues which may continue to affect utility service, teams from JBLM's Directorate of Public Works and 627th Civil Engineering Squadron (which are aligned under joint base statutes) restored "main" power to all joint base neighborhoods.

With just over a year as a joint base, Todd Vasko, managing director for Equity Residential, managing company for JBLM's privatized housing, whose company managed both Fort Lewis and McChord Air Force Base before their re-designations, said joint basing meant streamlined communication, and therefore quicker incident response times.

"During this storm we had one or two points of contact, not four or five," he said. "That's where joint basing works. To have the Army, the Air Force, and our assets come together and be in constant contact with streamlined communication was important for my maintenance team."

With direct support from JBLM's Directorate of Family and Morale, Welfare and Recreation to JBLM's garrison command, once Greta Powell, DPW's Housing chief, and her team saw some serious utility issues for her off-installation military Families, she said she recommended alternative options which took shape in two "warming centers."

The makeshift centers, both FMWR facilities located on Lewis North and McChord Field, served the joint base community for comforts such as a quick warm-up, a hot shower, or even warm beds for Families which needed them. FMWR also had financial specialists and other Army Community Service-related counselors on hand to serve those in need.

While utility service has returned to JBLM communities in a neighborhood-by-neighborhood sense, Vasko said he realizes that not all of his residents are at 100 percent.

"Debris is going to be the big thing," he said. "We're estimating half a million tons of debris being hauled off in the next few weeks." He added that while he expected a backlog of maintenance calls to continue throughout this week, he said he projected high-priority calls to be back on track by the weekend.

Powell said three Jackson Barracks facilities, in the vicinity of Old Madigan, lost power during the inclement weather. While two were brought back online quickly, 26 Madigan Healthcare System Soldier-students housed in Bldg. 9906 were relocated to other quarters for a day until repairs were completed.

Headed by JBLM's DPW, snow removal of main thoroughfares and critical areas such as McChord Field's flight line continued throughout the week. Steve Perrenot, DPW director, said in addition to sanding, some JBLM roads were treated with flight line-grade chemicals which lowered the freezing point of the pavement before the chilly temperatures stuck.

Equity personnel also started snow removal preparation approximately two days before any serious accumulation.

"We started the Saturday before the holiday and continued for eight straight days of snow removal and sanding," said Vasko. "Some of our guys didn't go home for four days. On Thursday we asked for people to come in and they did, realizing our residents had a need and they were concerned. They did the same thing on Saturday. They answered the call and we're proud of our team."

Like Vasko, Powell credited streamlined, organized communication and cooperation across a wide array of organizations for successes in the face of adversity.

"In a very difficult set of circumstances people came together and not only helped themselves and their neighbors," she said, "but worked with us to make sure priorities were met; clear roads, preserve life and safety, and get to debris removal."

Equity employees have been joined by 555th Engineer Brigade Soldiers and other servicemembers and civilians in the ongoing clean-up effort.

Powell said any lack of sleep she experienced last week was rewarded by the type of character she saw at JBLM during adverse conditions.

"There's plenty of examples but I'll give you one: I saw crews working on trees with limbs

that were infringing on roofs, and despite having no power a Family brought hot chocolate for the workers made by using a kerosene lamp," she said. "Sometimes difficult circumstances bring out the best in people and that's definitely true about the past week."

As normal operations resumed Monday, Col. Thomas Brittain, JBLM's garrison commander, expressed his gratitude for the installation's team effort, and said the clean-up effort will continue.

"We've had dedicated men and women, civilian and military, working around the clock," he said. "We have plenty of clean-up remaining, but we're fully able to perform all of our misisons."

Related Links:

Joint Base Lewis-McChord Flickr page

Northwest Guardian

Joint Base Lewis-McChord Facebook page