Sailors and families are returning to Naval Air Station Kingsville, Texas, in the wake of Hurricane Harvey, but officials are still assessing storm damage at Naval Air Station Corpus Christi and will notify personnel when it’s safe to return.
NAS Kingsville was not damaged and has returned to full operations, according to Bill Dougherty, spokesman for Navy Region Southeast.
There was some roof damage and water leakage, but not flooding, in buildings at NAS Corpus Christi, Dougherty said. Teams from Naval Facility Engineering Command Southeast are determining the extent of damage and repairs needed. The installation has electricity; officials are working to restore the installation’s flight operations and other mission capabilities.
A number of service members and families evacuated to Naval Air Station Joint Reserve Base Fort Worth, but the exact number is not available. All but 53 mission-essential personnel were evacuated from the Corpus Christi installation; 62 mission-essential personnel stayed behind at NAS Kingsville.
As of Sunday afternoon, Navy-Marine Corps Relief Society officials had helped 24 military clients with more than $11,000 in assistance related to the effects of Hurricane Harvey, spokeswoman Shelley Marshall said.
They expect more requests throughout the week as people return to their homes to determine the extent of their losses, she said. The Navy-Marine Corps Relief Society office at NAS Corpus Christi is closed, and will reopen when authorized by the command.
Officials with that relief society are also closely monitoring the situation in the greater Houston area and are working with the American Red Cross to provide assistance to any eligible client living in that area, she said. Those who aren’t near a military installation or need assistance after hours can call the American Red Cross at 877-272-7337. This applies to any military family, regardless of branch of service.
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NMCRS provides assistance to all active-duty and retired sailors and Marines, eligible family members, and eligible widows and widowers.
The NMCRS branch at NAS JRB Fort Worth at that base is working with families, as are the offices of NMCRS at Joint Base San Antonio at Fort Sam Houston, and at NAS JRB New Orleans. Information for those locations:
- NMCRS Fort Worth: 1515 Chennault Ave., Fort Worth, TX, 76127-1053; open 9 a.m.-3 p.m. Monday-Friday; phone: 817-782-6000.
- NMCRS San Antonio: JBSA Fort Sam Houston, Building 131, 1st Floor, 2414 Stanley Road, San Antonio, TX, 78234; open 9 a.m.-2 p.m. Monday, Wednesday and Friday; phone: 210-221-9819.
- NMCRS New Orleans: NAS JRB New Orleans, 400 Russell Ave., Building 555, New Orleans, LA, 70143; open 9 a.m.-2 p.m. Monday-Thursday; phone: 504-678-4652.
Karen has covered military families, quality of life and consumer issues for Military Times for more than 30 years, and is co-author of a chapter on media coverage of military families in the book "A Battle Plan for Supporting Military Families." She previously worked for newspapers in Guam, Norfolk, Jacksonville, Fla., and Athens, Ga.
