PREVIEW

AssetID: 36166603

Headline: U. S. Strategic Command & National Guard Facility Floods

Caption: PICTURE SHOWS: Also flooded was Army National Guard facility Camp Ashland, Nebraska, when the levee to the north of the camp broke and water from the swollen Platte River poured thousands of gallons of water into the low-lying area trapping vehicles on the high ground and damaging buildings. ........ STORY COPY: The U.S. Air Force suffered a setback when its Strategic Command base flooded this weekend - but has defiantly stated they have preserved their "combat capability during the flood". Headquartered at Offutt Air Force Base, Nebraska, so-called USSTRATCOM is responsible for strategic deterrence, global strike, and operating the Defense Department's Global Information Grid. However, the department suffered substantial flooding on a large portion of Offutt AFB and they had expected the water to continue to rise through the late afternoon of 17 March. Also flooded was Army National Guard facility Camp Ashland, Nebraska, when the levee to the north of the camp broke and water from the swollen Platte River poured thousands of gallons of water into the low-lying area trapping vehicles on the high ground and damaging buildings. Nebraska has experienced its worst flooding ever; displacing hundreds of people and causing millions of dollars in damages to homes, farmland, and cities. The latest update from 55th Wing Commander, based at Offutt AFB, explained: "Water has remained at the same level for 12 hours now. We are not expecting water to rise but are preparing just in case. Our Army Corps of Engineer partners predict water will begin to recede on Thursday, 21 March. STRATCOM Gate remains closed until further notice. "Your great team is busy preparing our priorities for what to tackle first when water recedes. You can imagine our #1 priority is safety of life/limb and our #2 priority is generation of combat power. The Warhawks are Air Combat Command’s most deployed Wing and even a 1,000 year flood won’t change that. Your Warhawk team preserved our combat capability during the flood and we will return stronger, ready, and more lethal. Warhawks...lead the fight!"

Keywords:

PersonInImage: