Any word on Keesler AFB

Anybody have any word on our fellow Blue Suiters at Keesler AFB? I've seen pictures from Biloxi and it doesn't look good at all, not at all. From accounts reported the storm surge was 30'+ that reached up to six miles inland! That puts Keesler in a bad situation! The back bay bridge is gone! I've followed storms for many years and this is the worst. My wife's family were spared in Lake Charles, LA. Montgomery, AL had some tornados but the wife and I were spared in Millbrook, AL. This #&*% sucks! My prays and thoughts are with all that are affected!

Pete

Anyone heard from friends or family in the 738th at Maltby Hall?

I urge all wiredawgs to assist with recovery any way you can.
Monetary donations to the American Red Cross can be made from our home page or here https://www.redcross.org/donate/donation-form.asp

Photos of Keesler courtesy of Joe Quirk and Bo Kraus

[url]../downloads/katrina1.pps[/url]

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webmaster@wiredawg.net

More Photos

[url]../downloads/katrina2.pps[/url]

85 EIS (old 738 EIS) has survived pretty well! All our heavy equipment, and trucks have survived, as well as the buildings. Maltby Hall has some roof damage, but it is currently being repaired. Our new marina that was built after George went through is basically destroyed as well as the BX and commissary having 6 feet of water in them...no word on those opening.

The local area wasn't as lucky, there are areas that look like a bomb went off. The news really hasn't shown the destruction this area has sustained. I rode through south D' Ville off Lemoyne Rd and it is destroyed, neighborhoods sit gutted out without a person in sight...looks like a warzone. Shrimp boats are in neighborhoods that are almost a mile from the water.....its a shame...a total lose! On a good note though...

Nearly everyone in the Cable/Antenna shop has done well through the storm. SSgt Jimmy Norton is the only Cable Dawg that lost everything....home, belongings....everything. The insurance company told him they'd replace his roof....that was the only thing basically left...so fello Cable Dawgs keep him and his family (wife and son...which are ok) in your thoughts and prayers.

Keesler made it through with wind and rain damage to areas of the base. A lot of housing units were flooded along with the commissary and bx facilities, hospital, etc. But, the base is back to business as usual. No casualties, but a lot of people lost everything. The storm surge was devastating-- relocating some of the casino barges across hwy 90 onto homes and hotels.
Houses around the back bay area are totaled. Went to what used to be my supervisors home in Pass Christian and it looked like Hiroshima. I know New Orleans got most of the media coverage because of the flooding and the trapped people, but if you could see the beach areas in south MS you couldn't believe it. My hats off to the community around the base. Eventhough a lot of people lost everything they are still courteous and willling to help the next person. Of course our blue suitors have made a great impression with the local community with the help we've offered.
If anyone was familiar with how Hwy 90 used to look they wouldn't recognize it now. Everything from Biloxi to Bay St. Louis is just about gone. Familiar shops like Sharkheads, Beuvoir, McElroys and such have been wiped clean or just gutted bldgs remain. For anyone interested go to WWW.WLOX.com and they have streaming video of before and after pics.
Sorry if the reply was long in the tooth.


Anybody have any word on our fellow Blue Suiters at Keesler AFB? I've seen pictures from Biloxi and it doesn't look good at all, not at all. From accounts reported the storm surge was 30'+ that reached up to six miles inland! That puts Keesler in a bad situation! The back bay bridge is gone! I've followed storms for many years and this is the worst. My wife's family were spared in Lake Charles, LA. Montgomery, AL had some tornados but the wife and I were spared in Millbrook, AL. This #&*% sucks! My prays and thoughts are with all that are affected!

Pete
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Here's a report from a guy at Keesler during Hurricane Katrina.

Command. There's no better job in the world. After seven years in jobs with "command authority" and two squadron commands, I figured I had a good idea what command was all about. I was wrong. What changed my mind? Four words--"Shelter Commander" and "Hurricane Katrina."
From 28 Aug - 2 Sep, I lived with 730 of my "closest friends" in 50-year old Bryan Hall at Keesler AFB, MS. It was my third stint as a shelter commander, but it was unlike anything I had experienced before. As life slowly returns to normal on the Gulf Coast and I reflect on the experience, I've come to appreciate the unpredictability of command and how much an event like Katrina can change people and communities.
First, you have to understand some basics. My shelter is a unique animal on Keesler. Most shelters here are dedicated primarily to one unit. Mine is not. I have all the active duty and family members from a wide variety of units--two training squadrons, CE and Security Forces (and prisoners), 100+ Marines, communications students (NCOs and roughly 60 Lt's), 150 NCO Academy students and their faculty, and 50 international officers and their families. The building is an old nuclear fallout shelter, with no windows and no shower facilities. With that setting in mind, I offer the following memories and thoughts on Hurricane Katrina.

25 Aug (Thu): One of my sharpest young MSgt points out Katrina "may grow into something over the weekend" and suggests we update our shelter/evacuation data sheets. I admire his enthusiasm, tell him "that's not a bad idea", then promptly forget to do anything because Katrina's not headed our way at all and I've got other things to do besides worry about a piddly Category 1 storm.

27 Aug (Sat): Two CAT meetings. Katrina has strengthened and is headed our way, due to arrive Monday afternoon. Tentatively plan to open shelters Monday morning. I remember the MSgt's words and begin repeating every officer's golden rule--"Never ignore a SNCO.Never ignore a SNCO."

28 Aug (Sun): Turn on CNN before heading to 0800 CAT. Radar picture shows Katrina is Category 5, taking up the whole Gulf of Mexico and headed straight for us, due to arrive before dawn Monday. "Never ignore a SNCO.Never ignore a SNCO."
- 1000: Initiate full recall and order all personnel to evacuate or shelter NLT 2100. Many people out of town for the weekend. Accountability is a nightmare.
- 1700: Open the shelter. People/families begin arriving. Have to stop two refrigerators, one 21" TV set, and three mattresses at the door. Students (of all ranks) drafted to help carry bags into the shelter. People told to bring food and water for three days. Most bring food for two days; smokers bring cigarettes for twenty days. Have to break the news--no smoking inside the shelter and once you're checked in you can't go outside (Hotel California rules).
- 2200: Doors locked and boarded up from the outside by CE (one door in an alcove left uncovered).

29 Aug (Mon):
0500: Winds howling; can hear them best through vents in bathrooms at the end of the hallway (It didn't sound like this during Hurricane Ivan)
0800: Shelterees (hereafter referred to as "the Natives") start moving around 0800. Smokers looking for nicotine fix, but remain calm.
1000: Local news reports indicate rising waters, violent winds. Plywood ripped from external doorways (I start getting uneasy; plywood has never moved in previous storms, much less flown away).
1200: News reports 20+ feet of water in local mall. Natives getting anxious. Smokers getting jittery.

Afternoon:
- Power goes out; generators kick in. Not good. CE told us power can only go out if high-tension cables that survived 200-mph winds during Hurricane Camille go down. A/C stops working; ventilation fans stop working. No windows, no open doors, 731 nervous people.in Mississippi.in August. Ask for generator fuel status an