Team Dover lends a hand to Sandy victims

  • Published
  • By Airman 1st Class Kathryn Stilwell
  • 436th Airlift Wing Public Affairs
Dover Air Force Base, Del. --  Superstorm Sandy's presence still lingers several weeks following the storm's initial barrage of the East Coast. Its rampant destruction was felt by thousands of New Yorkers in the form of property damage and the loss of central utilities, such as electricity.

It was because of the widespread loss of power that Team Dover rolled into action last week by uniting with Joint-Base Charleston, S.C., and Joint Base McGuire-Dix-Lakehurst, N.J. The 49-man team facilitated the movement of 1,437 short tons of cargo throughout a five-day operation that used five C-130 Hercules, 13 C-17 Globemaster IIIs and nine C-5 Galaxy's.

Because of the widespread loss of power, the team brought in utility trucks from Washington and California, said Chief Master Sgt. Robert Wright, superintendent of the 436th Aircraft Maintenance Squadron. They brought in bucket trucks, post-hole diggers and equipment to install telephone pole wires. All those trucks and electricians were brought in from all over the country to help New Yorkers get their power back.

Wright, a Lynchburg, Va., native, was part of a 12-man team from Dover that supported the C-5 mission in an operation that took place at John. F. Kennedy International Airport. As a collective group effort, they received 27 inbound missions, generated two outbound missions, processed 65 pieces of rolling stock, received 126 passengers to complete three Federal Emergency Management Agency Task Forces and directly assisted approximately two million homes and businesses that were still without power as of Nov. 4, 2012.

During the team's relief operations, several port authorities supported the service members. The chief encountered one man who had his share of troubling experiences.

I talked to one guy, I don't know his name, but he had lost some friends in 9/11 and now the hurricane came, and his house is just gone, he lost everything. He mentioned that at least with 9/11 there was someone they could hold accountable, whereas this was just mother-nature - there was nothing you could do about it. I was proud to be able to help people like him, said Wright.

Wright said the storm was one example of how the Air Force's often-overlooked stateside humanitarian mission has a profound impact on the Americans whom it supports.

"I was amazed and humbled by the fact that wherever we went people were coming up saying, 'thank-you, thanks for coming in and doing this for us.' Everyone out there was extremely appreciative of the Air Force coming up there and helping them," he said.