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CID Corry Station Prepares for Hurricane Dennis

Navy NewsStand

Story Number: NNS050714-02
Release Date: 7/14/2005 10:20:00 AM

By Darlene Goodwin, Center for Information Dominance Corry Station Public Affairs

PENSACOLA, Fla. (NNS) -- The Center for Information Dominance (CID) Corry Station hurricane preparedness staff made last minute preparations to secure the base from Hurricane Dennis in July, while receiving the majority of an expected 2,300-plus military and civilian evacuees.

CID Commanding Officer Capt. Kevin R. Hooley said that experiences from September 2004's Hurricane Ivan resulted in a smoother transition of the facility from highly classified information warfare training base to a shelter for people seeking a safe haven from the storm.

"Our Disaster Preparedness staff did a great job during [Hurricane] Ivan," he said. "We capitalized on the lessons we learned during that hurricane, so this time, we were much better prepared to transition to this state of readiness for the storm."

According to Chief Warrant Officer Mario Vulcano, CID's disaster preparedness officer, those lessons, such as pre-staging generators at strategic locations throughout the base and storing pre-packaged meals and water at shelters, will enhance quality of life for those staying on base, and speed the effort to return to normal operations following the storm.

"We knew the critical areas on this base and outside the base [that needed power]," he said. "Having the generators in place and hooked up ahead of time [helps us] quickly bring the power up and continue on with key operations, including the pumping of fuel and keeping the telephone switchboards working properly, if the power goes out."

"We've had a set of priorities on a timeline of pre-storm, the actual event, and post-storm," Hooley said. "Pre-storm has been to make ready - we wanted to have all the support services and the safety services for the people. As we get into the storm, we have 2 priorities - preservation of life and protection of our equipment and infrastructure. Our post-storm priority is to bring the mission back on line. We've got to get right back to business to get our people out to the fleet in the global war on terrorism."