Hurricanes Hannah and Ike

[DNall]

^ No doubt. When people's lives are wrecked and they're helpless to do anything about it, we offer that opportunity to fight back and make a difference.

I hope PAOs are taking note. That's your story line right there; followed by, "and we get to accomplish some amazing missions for America in the process, like..."

In reality, it freakin sucks that we train our butts off all year to catch a couple redcaps & routine ELTs, then the real show comes along & we're relegated to the same stuff any joe off the street is doing. If not for that short lived feel good aspect, all my members would have already quit. I'd also note that right now we're in the middle of this with those positive aspects, but eventually those members have to go back to their lives & face reality. When that happens, we're going to have problems retaining people & quals.

Myself and one of the other folks I work with on ES a lot here are in pre-planning right now. We're building a lessons-learned kind of thing from our perspective. Not so much detailed on what is happening right now, but more a vision of what the CAP response SHOULD have been. We're going to go roll that out in a joint SAREX with CG, CGAux, and ARNG Aviation assets. We're going to bring in ICs for a joint response planning table top, then run the resultant op - well, CAP & CGAux will run the op, with CG, ARNG, and our state ops center in Austin monitoring. And we're going to do it out of my guard unit's facility, which is right next to CG Air group, and with a big open ANG flight line next to it (ANG F16s got moved out, predators haven't shown up yet).

We're putting together that major SaREx as really a preemptive strike against the backlash we expect when current ops are over & members start to get pissed that they aren't under utilized. It gives them something to look forward to, it gives an expectation of what we will be doing in future major response missions, and it shows off our capabilities to those other agencies - ie relationship building we've been talking about.

[RiverAux]

From most recent CAP News Online article:

While the NWS was aloft with Civil Air Patrol, other CAP volunteers served Houston residents on the ground at Manvel High School. Dozens of ground team members passed out bags of ice, bottled water and meals to residents driving through the school's parking lot. CAP members also provided first aid to weary residents of Manvel, a community of about 7,000 just south of Houston.

The food/water handout mission isn't too surprising.  At this point after the hurricane there probably isn't much left to do in the SAR arena so this seems like an appropriate use of CAP.  Would be interested to hear more about the first aid we were performing for the public. 

[Major Carrales]

From most recent CAP News Online article:

While the NWS was aloft with Civil Air Patrol, other CAP volunteers served Houston residents on the ground at Manvel High School. Dozens of ground team members passed out bags of ice, bottled water and meals to residents driving through the school's parking lot. CAP members also provided first aid to weary residents of Manvel, a community of about 7,000 just south of Houston.

The food/water handout mission isn't too surprising.  At this point after the hurricane there probably isn't much left to do in the SAR arena so this seems like an appropriate use of CAP.  Would be interested to hear more about the first aid we were performing for the public. 

A massive aeriel recon mission is going on and has been since since last Sunday when it was out of San Antonio.  I have never been more proud to be a member of CAP, be it of the aviators, any ground team what went out or the fellows handing out food and water.

[Smithsonia]

To Maj. Joe Carrales
"Sparky"
We are ALL proud of the Texas Wing. Hang in there... there are so many people counting on you. Also, there are so many people in CAP who send you best wishes for strength and provision. With Hannah and Ike, your people have been handed much. Fortunately, for all of the Texas Gulf Coast, you have great people.

[DC]

From most recent CAP News Online article:

While the NWS was aloft with Civil Air Patrol, other CAP volunteers served Houston residents on the ground at Manvel High School. Dozens of ground team members passed out bags of ice, bottled water and meals to residents driving through the school's parking lot. CAP members also provided first aid to weary residents of Manvel, a community of about 7,000 just south of Houston.

The food/water handout mission isn't too surprising.  At this point after the hurricane there probably isn't much left to do in the SAR arena so this seems like an appropriate use of CAP.  Would be interested to hear more about the first aid we were performing for the public. 

Isn't providing First Aid, unless an emergency, a major CAP Healthcare No-No?

[Major Carrales]

To Maj. Joe Carrales
"Sparky"
We are ALL proud of the Texas Wing. Hang in there... there are so many people counting on you. Also, there are so many people in CAP who send you best wishes for strength and provision. With Hannah and Ike, your people have been handed much. Fortunately, for all of the Texas Gulf Coast, you have great people.

Thank you, I will relay the message to the "front," I, when I was there for three days this week, saw CAP at its finest.  From creating the Stinson Mission base in San Antonio until the "buggout" for Houston where were "changed shifts" and provided our Aircrews.

If you have seen the photos of Galveston, you will see the full extend of the destruction.  It is, in many ways, 1900 again to some degree.  The Photo recon we are doing is part of the first step to rebuilding.

[Major Carrales]

From most recent CAP News Online article:

While the NWS was aloft with Civil Air Patrol, other CAP volunteers served Houston residents on the ground at Manvel High School. Dozens of ground team members passed out bags of ice, bottled water and meals to residents driving through the school's parking lot. CAP members also provided first aid to weary residents of Manvel, a community of about 7,000 just south of Houston.

The food/water handout mission isn't too surprising.  At this point after the hurricane there probably isn't much left to do in the SAR arena so this seems like an appropriate use of CAP.  Would be interested to hear more about the first aid we were performing for the public. 

Isn't providing First Aid, unless an emergency, a major CAP Healthcare No-No?

I would think that a person who was certified in First Aid, be they in CAP or not, might be bound by an obligation to render that aid.

[Eclipse]

Isn't providing First Aid, unless an emergency, a major CAP Healthcare No-No?

We're all allowed to provide emergency care to the limits of our training, basic first aid is generally not an issue, its when you start getting into BLS-type situations that CAP is going to back away from insurance coverage. etc.

Tags - MIKE

[DNall]

From most recent CAP News Online article:

While the NWS was aloft with Civil Air Patrol, other CAP volunteers served Houston residents on the ground at Manvel High School. Dozens of ground team members passed out bags of ice, bottled water and meals to residents driving through the school's parking lot. CAP members also provided first aid to weary residents of Manvel, a community of about 7,000 just south of Houston.

The food/water handout mission isn't too surprising.  At this point after the hurricane there probably isn't much left to do in the SAR arena so this seems like an appropriate use of CAP.  Would be interested to hear more about the first aid we were performing for the public. 

Some lady coming thru line was having an asthma attack. Nurse/CAP: member calmed her down, cooled off, took vitals/etc, handed off to ambulance. Couple bandaids, nothing serious. Was out there again today, bit slower traffic. They aren't opening tmrw - national guard is also running a distribution point a few miles away & gas is more readily avail now.

Distribution support was really all about PR & is on a corporate mission number. No agency ever requested our support, we just created the mission thru contacts. CAP specifically wasn't really needed, just warm bodies & they had those. There's also dozens of other sites around the area that we didn't help at & they operated just fine w/o us.

Most serious GT folks are pissed off cause there never was a SaR mission for us and still isn't (we're finally running some routine ELTs in the major impact area w/ 18+). That's a major retention issue for our ES folks.

The air mission isn't massive either. It's average ops tempo for most redcaps, it's just going on for longer. It's also primarily a state mission, not federal. That speaks well of our relationship with the state, but not for CAP nationally.

[DNall]

if you got houston local news, you'll want watch abc13 tonight. Primetime reporter spent the whole day at our ICP. Just got some first hand back on the GTs that were on Galveston today. Sounds worse than it looks on TV.

[PHall]

if you got houston local news, you'll want watch abc13 tonight. Primetime reporter spent the whole day at our ICP. Just got some first hand back on the GTs that were on Galveston today. Sounds worse than it looks on TV.

Yeah, 20 foot walls of water, i.e. storm surge, are kinda hard on the real estate values.

[DNall]

Lonestar flight museum down there had 5ft of water in it during the storm. Most planes didn't get evac'd whole museum section is a pile of trash. All the ELTs are going off, which is why our folks were there. They're just notifying owners to come turn them off when they can get back on the island, which is apparently Wed, but there may be some 1hr look & leave going on.

I'm either on ops or heading down to the island tmrw.

[RiverAux]

Let us know if that station puts any of the video from their vist on their web page. 

[DNall]

This is the POD we've been working all week (we were at that church prior to their Mayor whining on TV):
http://abclocal.go.com/ktrk/story?section=weather/hurricane&id=6403230

They haven't posted the video from last night's news. It was good though. I'll keep an eye out for it.

Air Photos:
http://magic.csr.utexas.edu/Storm/08Ike/Imagery.php

[DNall]

I've been running ops yesterday & today, sitting at ICP now. Got gillions (yes that's a word) of ELTs right now & little GT personnel left to sortie. Turned off 4 yesterday, one so far today, 8 more assigned to the one GT I have on Galveston Island. Lots of work to go around. We'll be done w/ photo missions probably Wedensday. Guess we'll keep running ELTs till they go away.

[Larry Mangum]

For those of you wondering why there might be so many ELT's going off, not to mention EPRIB's check this link out and paying close attention to photos 30, 36 and 70.   In regards to EPRIB's, commercial fishing boats I believe are required to carry one.

http://www.chron.com/news/photogallery/MAKE_UP_A_GREAT_AERIAL_TITLE_HERE.html

[AlphaSigOU]

I've been running ops yesterday & today, sitting at ICP now. Got gillions (yes that's a word) of ELTs right now & little GT personnel left to sortie. Turned off 4 yesterday, one so far today, 8 more assigned to the one GT I have on Galveston Island. Lots of work to go around. We'll be done w/ photo missions probably Wedensday. Guess we'll keep running ELTs till they go away.

Good seeing you again, Dennis. I was the 'voice of High Bird' working the radio relay aircraft comms on Sunday, flying a 10-NM racetrack pattern at 9500 feet between Ellington Field and Texas City along I-45. Nearly 5 hours in the air.

[Major Carrales]

I've been running ops yesterday & today, sitting at ICP now. Got gillions (yes that's a word) of ELTs right now & little GT personnel left to sortie. Turned off 4 yesterday, one so far today, 8 more assigned to the one GT I have on Galveston Island. Lots of work to go around. We'll be done w/ photo missions probably Wedensday. Guess we'll keep running ELTs till they go away.

Good seeing you again, Dennis. I was the 'voice of High Bird' working the radio relay aircraft comms on Sunday, flying a 10-NM racetrack pattern at 9500 feet between Ellington Field and Texas City along I-45. Nearly 5 hours in the air.

Keep 'em flyin', Chuck!!!  I used three Personal Days from the School at the start of this, I have to conserve the rest for other activities that might arise; but I wish I was there now. 

In fact, I have been having dreams of being at mission base.  Its freaky, the yearning of the soul to be amid my brother and sister aviators.  It had been a long time since I had deployed to anything for CAP ES-wise more than a a single overnighter in a long time...and frankly, I liked it a great deal.

[DNall]

well little update from the field. Took a TV crew from ABC-13 out with us on GT today to Tiki Island. This is their third story on CAP since Ike started. They did an awsome report!!! It was in general extremely good coverage of CAP in action and as a professional organization. However, it was especially super awsome cause I was pretty much the star of the show. Yall will really love this one, assuming they ever put freakin video up on their website. If not, we're waiting on a dvd copy.

[AlphaSigOU]

Photo of the elusive Captain Corway now on www.capchannel.com !



I'm in the background, sitting in my blue flight suit, looking over the crew briefing.

Foreground: 1st Lt John Theiss, 2d Lt Michelle Weisskopf, Maj Russ Miller.