Volume 9, No. 46 ©SS 2017
FRIDAY, OCTOBER 27, 2017
‘YOU JUST GOT TO DO YOUR JOB’
Medic receives Medal of Honor for actions in covert op in Laos more than 47 years ago
President Donald Trump presents retired Army Capt. Gary Michael Rose the Medal of Honor at a White House ceremony on Monday. MICHAEL S. DARNELL /Stars and Stripes
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COVER STORY
Medic receives Medal of Honor BY CLAUDIA GRISALES Stars and Stripes
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WASHINGTON once-secret Vietnam War mission ended with a very public display of pomp and circumstance for retired Army Capt. Gary Michael “Mike” Rose. On Monday, President Donald Trump presented Rose with the Medal of Honor during a White House ceremony. A beaming Rose stood in a packed East Room surrounded by White House officials, previous Medal of Honor recipients and 10 comrades from his heroic four-day mission to Laos. The effort comes more than 47 years after the mission, which was known as Operation Tailwind. “Mike, this is some serious stuff,” Trump said while recounting the Operation Tailwind story. “This is not a good four days.” Rose was the only medic among 16 Green Berets and 120 Vietnamese tribal fighters known as Montagnards traveling in the covert unit in September 1970. The unit, known as the Military Assistance Command Studies and Observations Group, or MACSOG, was dropped in the Laotian jungle Sept. 11. As they moved into enemy territory to a North Vietnamese encampment, they almost immediately took heavy fire with multiple casualties. In several cases, Rose used his own body as a human shield to protect members of his unit, even as he was wounded and continued to treat others. “Mike valiantly fought for the life of his own comrades, even if it meant the end of his own life,” Trump said ahead of awarding Rose with the Medal of Honor. “Your will to endure, your love for your fellow soldier, your devotion to your country, inspires us all.” In the end, every soldier was wound-
MICHAEL S. DARNELL /Stars and Stripes
Soldiers who served with retired Army Capt. Gary M. Rose stand during Rose’s Medal of Honor ceremony held at the White House on Monday. ed, three Montagnards were killed and three helicopters crashed during Operation Tailwind. Rose suffered wounds from bullets and rockets as well as his own helicopter crash during the mission. “My focus was to take care of the guys who were hurt,” Rose recalled during an appearance at the Pentagon on Oct. 20 ahead of Monday’s ceremony. “You just got to do your job and keep moving down the road.” For nearly three decades, Rose told no one about the harrowing four-day covert mission. Rose, then a sergeant and Special Forces medic, saved more than 100 lives, including a Marine crewman shot in the neck as the helicopter they rode in dropped from the sky, according to one of his award citations. Still, Rose told no one until the mission was declassified in the late 1990s. “Basically the unit did not exist,” Rose recalled Oct. 20. “And was not acknowledged for almost 30 years.” Today, Rose, 70, shares his story somewhat reluctantly. The members
who were on the ground with Rose in Laos, along with family and friends, joined him Monday. “I wish it was still secret,” a modest Rose joked Oct. 20. “I’m not used to the notoriety.” Rose, who was a Green Beret, was given the Distinguished Service Cross, the nation’s second highest medal for valor, four months after the mission in 1971. Monday’s Medal of Honor is considered an upgrade of that award. On Oct. 20, Rose reiterated the medal will belong to his MACSOG unit and others who fought at that time, and it recognizes the efforts of the troops who did and didn’t make it back from the mission. “This medal, I consider a collective medal for all of us who fought on the ground, in the Air Force and the Marines on Operation Tailwind,” Rose said. “In a greater sense, it also honors the Special Forces during this time frame.” Rose retired from the Army in 1987 and worked as an instructional designer in the private sector.
He’s now a grandfather, and his grandchildren, along with his wife and children, attended Monday’s ceremony. “From my children, I get the idea they are kind of pretty proud of their dad,” Rose said Oct. 20. Congressional action was required to allow Rose to receive the Medal of Honor since it came more than five years after the heroic actions. Congress authorized a waiver tucked into the National Defense Authorization Act that was passed earlier this year. Rose, who lives in Alabama, said his efforts were helped along by a long list of friends, Pentagon officials and legislators. Rose grew up southern California and enlisted in the Army in 1967. He has also received three Purple Hearts. Rose’s award marked the second time Trump has presented the Medal of Honor. James McCloughan, also a Vietnam War medic, received the honor on July 31. grisales.claudia@stripes.com Twitter: @cgrisales
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Veterans of Vietnam honored in Germany BY M ARTIN EGNASH Stars and Stripes
MICHAEL MC C OOL /Courtesy of the U.S. Air Force
Flight-crew airmen from the 34th Aircraft Maintenance Unit at Hill Air Force Base, Utah, re-enact the recovery of an F-35A Lightning II on Aug. 28. They were participating in the filming of a video about the integration of active-duty and Reserve airmen stationed at the base.
A dozen F-35A stealth fighters set for 6-month Okinawa deployment BY SETH ROBSON Stars and Stripes
YOKOTA AIR BASE, Japan — Twelve of America’s newest stealth fighters are headed to Japan for a six-month deployment, the Air Force announced Monday. The F-35A Lightning IIs and 300 airmen from Hill Air Force Base, Utah’s 34th Fighter Squadron, will arrive at Kadena Air Base, Okinawa, in early November, a Pacific Air Forces statement said. Kadena already has hosted F-35Bs — the “short takeoff vertical landing” version of the jet — from the Iwakuni, Japan-
based Marine Fighter Attack Squadron 121. The “Green Knights” arrived in Japan in January and landed at Kadena for the first time in June. The F-35A deployment will be the first for the aircraft in the region after its successful debut at the Seoul International Aerospace and Defense Exhibition earlier this month, the statement said. “The F-35A gives the joint warfighter unprecedented global precision attack capability against current and emerging threats while complementing our air superiority fleet,” Pacific Air Forces commander Gen. Ter-
rence O’Shaughnessy said in the statement. “The airframe is ideally suited to meet our command’s obligations, and we look forward to integrating it into our training and operations.” The F-35A is being deployed under U.S. Pacific Command’s “theater security package” program, which has been in operation since 2004. This deployment is designed to demonstrate the continuing U.S. commitment to stability and security in the region, the Air Force said. robson.seth@stripes.com Twitter: @SethRobson1
GRAFENWOEHR, Germany — More than 30 veterans of the Vietnam War living in Germany were awarded pins Tuesday by the local Veterans of Foreign Wars post in recognition of their service. The pins are part of the Vietnam War commemoration effort signed into effect by former President Barack Obama in 2012 to recognize troops who fought in Vietnam and often came home to an unwelcoming U.S. public. They were awarded at the Grafenwoehr Veterans Appreciation Day event on base. “The Vietnam veterans have gone all these years without proper recognition,” James Joyce, VFW Tower Post 10692 commander, said during a ceremony at U.S. Army Garrison Bavaria. “A lot of them still feel the country never recognized their service. This is an opportunity to show them our appreciation.” More than 1,600 veterans of wars ranging from WWII to modern-day conflicts are associated with the garrison, many of whom served in Germany during their career and decided to stay. One of them was Baldemar Guevera, who met his future wife when he was stationed here with the 2nd Cavalry Regiment in Amberg.
One of the Vietnam veteran lapel pins given out Tuesday. “Nowadays the American soldier is well-loved,” Guevera said. “But it wasn’t like that when we came home. The veterans were treated disrespectfully when they came home. And now the government and everyone is showing respect and acknowledging what we did.” During the ceremony, VFW staff spoke with veterans and active-duty soldiers stationed on base to build an understanding of what it was like for the soldiers coming home from Vietnam. “We have to pass the word on to the new soldiers, to let them know about the sacrifices (Vietnam veterans) made, and to make sure this doesn’t happen again,” Joyce said. “That our younger soldiers will not be forgotten, like so many Vietnam (veterans) were.” egnash.martin@stripes.com Twitter: @Marty_Stripes
PHOTOS
BY
M ARTIN EGNASH /Stars and Stripes
Vietnam War veterans George Quick, left, and Baldemar Guevara shake hands at the retiree appreciation day at Grafenwoehr, Germany, on Tuesday.
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Photos courtesy of the U.S. Army
A U.S. Army 1st Air Cavalry Brigade AH-64 Apache helicopter is offloaded in Zeebrugge, Belgium, on Oct. 20.
Fort Hood air cavalry to begin rotation in Europe BY M ARTIN EGNASH Stars and Stripes
GRAFENWOEHR, Germany — U.S. Army helicopters arrived in Belgium on Oct. 20 to begin a nine-month rotation providing close air support for units stationed in Europe. About 2,000 soldiers with the Army’s 1st Air Cavalry Brigade took 89 helicopters across the Atlantic to Chievres Air Base early Oct. 20. After unloading, they’ll move to locations across the Continent as part of Operation Atlantic Resolve, the United States’ commitment to deterring aggression in Eastern Europe after Russia’s 2014 annexation of the Crimea peninsula.
Most 1ACB soldiers and helicopters will be based at headquarters in Illesheim, Germany, but smaller detachments will go to Latvia, Poland and Romania, where Atlantic Resolve is focusing much of its deterrent effort. The soldiers, whose home base is Fort Hood, Texas, brought 12 CH-47 Chinooks, 38 UH60 Black Hawks, 15 HH-60 Black Hawks for medevacs and 24 AH-64 Apaches to Europe. The soldiers are scheduled to take over Army air operations from the 10th Combat Aviation Brigade on Nov. 7. The outgoing brigade, from Fort Drum, N.Y., is wrapping up its nine-month mission. egnash.martin@stripes.com Twitter: @Marty_Stripes
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Memorial to airmen killed in WWII raid unveiled in Germany BY WILL MORRIS Stars and Stripes
KAISERSLAUTERN, Germany — When John Torok was a child, the reminders of his uncle’s fate in World War II made him feel as if he were growing up with a ghost. When Torok was a young boy, his uncle, a nose gunner on the Pregnant Peggy, a B-24 Liberator, was killed during a bombing raid in Germany. His parents turned inward and bore their grief in silence, but through the artifacts and people he left behind, Sgt. Geza Torok was a constant presence in his nephew’s life. “My parents always talked very highly of him. He was very much missed when he was killed in combat,” Torok said. “It was something I was always very interested in — finding out what exactly happened to him. I missed out on a huge part of my life. I know it would have been a close relationship for sure.” On Oct. 19, Torok and family members of the Pregnant Peggy’s crew unveiled a monument in Germany to honor the sacrifice of the 14 men who died during a bombing run in 1944. The attendees included Dennis Lithander, a nephew of 2nd Lt. Lee Lithander, pilot of the Pregnant Peggy; and Tom Burton, whose uncle, Staff Sgt. Robert Butler, was Pregnant Pregnant Peggy B-24 Liberator crewmembers, from left, 2nd Lt. Lee Lithander, pilot; Staff Sgt. Robert R. Butler Jr., engineer; and Sgt. Geza Torok, nose gunner. Photos courtesy of the Lithander, Butler and Torok families
Peggy’s flight engineer. The monument is located within forested hills 6 miles west of the southwest German town of Edenkoben, a few hundred feet from where one of the plane’s buried debris fields begins. Lithander said that while growing up, he experienced many of the same feelings about the incident as Torok. “No one would ever talk about it,” he said. “We’d have family gatherings and no one would ever talk about it. It was such a painful subject. But when I would go to my grandmother’s house I would ask to see his medals and my grandmother would show them to me. “As I got older, I wanted to know more and more, and I just felt I had to do something for these 14 men who died,” Lithander said. On Oct. 19, 1944, the crews of Pregnant Peggy and Bomber’s Moon, from the 844th Bomb Squadron, 489th Bomb Group, 8th Army Air Corps, were sent with their squadron to Mainz to bomb a railroad yard. In the weeks prior to the attack, the 844th had hit Germany hard, bombing industrial areas in 10 cities and striking Cologne three times. At 12:56 p.m., according to
WILL MORRIS/Stars and Stripes
From left: Tom Burton, whose uncle was Pregnant Peggy’s flight engineer; Mary Burton; Edenkoben Vice Mayor Angelika Fesenmeyer; Uwe Benkel, leader of Searching for the Missing; Edenkoben Mayor Olaf Gouase; John Torok, nephew of nose gunner Sgt. Geza Torok; and Dennis Lithander, nephew of 2nd Lt. Lee Lithander, attend the Oct. 19 unveiling of a memorial for 14 servicemembers who died Oct. 19, 1944, during a B-24 bombing raid in Germany. eyewitness reports, Pregnant Peggy got caught up in the prop wash of another bomber and the pilots lost control in the ensuing turbulence. As they struggled to maintain control of the 33,000pound plane packed with thousands of pounds of bombs, the Pregnant Peggy slipped back, banked left and dipped down over the Bomber’s Moon. It continued losing altitude and struck Bomber’s Moon’s tail section with its left wing tip. The wing disintegrated and the engine and prop fell off the Pregnant Peggy. The Pregnant Peggy, now overpowered on one side, went into a lateral spin some 20,000 feet
straight to the ground. The Bomber’s Moon didn’t fare any better. “The rudder started to break, and then it sheared off completely at the waist,” Sgt. Robert Olsen wrote in an after-action report. “The (Bomber’s Moon) seemed to stand for a moment in the air, and then began to fall and went into a spin. I saw one chute, but I can not ascertain from which ship it came.” The two aircraft crashed in the hills of the Palatinate Forest some 300 yards from each other. Of the 18 men in the two planes, 14 died. The German Red Cross and local officials buried them in a cemetery in a mass grave. Four men were held as prisoners of war. After the war, the bodies were disinterred and reburied according to the family’s wishes — at home, in Arlington National Cemetery or in the Lorraine American Cemetery in France. The effort to set up the monument and the funding for its placement was led by the families of the victims. Local efforts to bring the families to the crash site were led by Uwe Benkel, leader of Searching for the Missing, a volunteer organization dedi-
cated to finding the remains of those lost in World War II and reuniting them with their families. Benkel acted as a liaison with local governments to obtain permits for the monument. Benkel, who started the organization in 1989, was inspired partly by his father, who lost two brothers in the war on the Eastern Front. All he has left of them is two photographs. “(My father) is 80 now and he still talks about his brothers, and it is his wish before he dies to know what happened to them,” Benkel said. For Lithander, going to Germany for the dedication brought decades of emotions to the surface. “I feel like [my uncle is] there. When I walked up to the crash site I feel like they are still there,” Lithander said, wiping tears from his eyes. “I have been battling cancer for two and a half years. I didn’t know if I was ever going to make it over here. All my life no one ever talked about it.” “But now I can do something about it. I felt so proud, so proud.” morris.william@stripes.com Twitter:@willatstripes
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Incidents have 7th Fleet facing a ship shortage USS O’Kane deployment extended to ‘provide uninterrupted mission support’ BY T YLER HLAVAC Stars and Stripes
YOKOSUKA NAVAL BASE, Japan — A Hawaii-based destroyer’s upcoming deployment to the 7th Fleet will last longer than planned because of a ship shortage caused by deadly collisions and maintenance issues. The USS O’Kane, which belongs to the San Diegobased 3rd Fleet, was previously scheduled to deploy to the Western Pacific but will stay in the area longer to provide additional support to the fleet, 7th Fleet spokesman Lt. Paul Newell told Stars and Stripes on Oct. 18. “[O’Kane] will extend their time here to help sustain the naval presence in 7th Fleet and provide uninterrupted mission support following the recent collisions involving USS Fitzgerald and USS John S. McCain,” he said. The McCain and Fitzgerald collisions, which killed a total of 17 sailors, were among several accidents involving U.S. warships in the region this year. In January, the USS Antietam ran aground and spilled roughly 1,100 gallons of hydraulic fluid into Tokyo Bay; in June, a collision between the Fitzgerald and a merchant ship killed seven sailors; and in August, a collision between the McCain and an oil tanker killed 10 sailors. Maintenance issues have also taken a toll on the 7th Fleet’s ship inventory. In July, Navy officials announced that the destroyer USS Milius’ forward deployment to Japan had been pushed to 2018 despite a need for additional
ships in the busy Asia-Pacific region. Naval Surface Forces delayed the Milius’ arrival to complete its maintenance and modernization. “I am concerned about the number of ships that we have out here,” Pacific Fleet Commander Adm. Scott Swift said in an interview with Stars and Stripes on June 26, prior to the McCain collision. “Milius was coming out to help get us down to the (operations) tempo that we can really sustain. We’ve got such an incredible amount of work out here that I need Milius plus another ship.” Navy officials also announced last month that unexpected engineering problems will keep the USS Blue Ridge, the 7th Fleet’s flagship, in dry dock through early next year — months past its scheduled completion date of August 2017. The O’Kane deployment extension comes at a time when the 7th Fleet is grappling with a high operational tempo, a fact that some attribute as partly to blame for the recent mishaps in the Pacific. Seventh Fleet Commander Vice Adm. Phil Sawyer, who took charge of the fleet in August after his predecessor was relieved for the incidents, told Singapore media earlier this month that the 7th Fleet’s operational demands were so high that training and preparation suffered, The Straits Times reported. Sawyer added that even if he had the entire Navy’s assets he “still would not be able to do all the things that everybody would want me to do,” and that as commander he would “prioritize those and execute those things that we can execute.”
Courtesy of the U.S. Navy
The guided-missile destroyer USS John S. McCain departs Singapore on the heavy-lift transport MV Treasure on Oct. 11.
USS McCain diverted to Philippines due to new structural issues, typhoon B T H ‘ Once pierside, Y
YLER
LAVAC
Stars and Stripes
YOKOSUKA NAVAL BASE, Japan — The collisiondamaged USS John S. McCain — en route from Singapore to Japan via a heavy-lift vessel — has been diverted to the Philippines because of new structural issues and a typhoon. The guided-missile destroyer developed a 4-inch-long crack along its starboard side while transiting to Yokosuka Naval Base aboard the MV Treasure, 7th Fleet spokesman Cmdr. Clay Doss told Stars and Stripes on Saturday. Weather conditions associated with Typhoon Lan had already slowed the McCain’s journey back to its homeport in Japan, and the crack’s discovery led to the diversion to Subic Bay, Philippines, Doss said. “Once pierside, experts will inspect the crack and determine if any additional repairs are needed before continuing to Yokosuka,” he said. The cause of the crack and
experts will inspect the crack and determine if any additional repairs are needed before continuing to Yokosuka.
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Cmdr. Clay Doss 7th Fleet spokesman the extent of the structural issues are unknown, Doss said. The majority of the crew has already returned to Yokosuka, with only about 10 sailors remaining aboard the ship. The McCain departed Singapore earlier this month after a deadly collision with an oil tanker on Aug. 21 killed 10 crewmembers. Sailors, families and base workers held a memorial ceremony at Yokosuka on Oct. 4 for those who perished in the collision. The McCain’s command-
ing officer, Cmdr. Alfredo Sanchez, and executive officer, Cmdr. Jessie Sanchez, were relieved earlier this month for what the Navy called a “preventable” collision. Alfredo Sanchez displayed “poor judgement” while Jessie Sanchez “exercised poor leadership of the ship’s training program,” a statement said. The Navy intends to fix the McCain at Yokosuka, while its sister ship, the USS Fitzgerald, will be sent to Ingalls Shipbuilding in Pascagoula, Miss., for repairs. Although the McCain collision was deadlier, the ship suffered less damage, allowing it to be repaired at its homeport, officials said. “Damage is less significant; impacted fewer systems compared with [Fitzgerald],” Doss previously told Stars and Stripes. “For example, there was no significant damage to the superstructure, which is more likely to require U.S.based shipyard repairs.”
hlavac.tyler@stripes.com
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MILITARY
It’s a girl! Crew of USNS Comfort delivers first baby onboard since 2010 BY STEPHEN CARLSON Stars and Stripes
WASHINGTON — Tania Rodriguiz Ramos was pregnant and due any day as Hurricane Maria barreled toward Ponce, the second largest city on Puerto Rico located on the southern coast of the island. Puerto Rico suffered catastrophic damage to its electrical power and health infrastructure from the storm when the hurricane made landfall Sept. 20. Ponce was ravaged with massive flooding that left the local hospital severely overcrowded when Ramos arrived there for a scheduled doctor’s appointment to plan for the delivery of her baby. Unable to receive care in Ponce, Ramos was evacuated to the hospital ship USNS Comfort due to the impending birth of her child. On Oct. 14, Sara Victoria Llull Rodriguiz was born, weighing 6 pounds, 8 ounces, Navy officials said. Ramos had been aboard the Comfort for five days and she and her daughter were discharged Oct. 17, according to the Navy. The Comfort arrived in Puerto Rico on Oct. 3 as part of the federal response to the widespread destruction. Basic necessities such as food, water and medical care are still difficult to access, despite more than 13,000 military and federal personnel, nearly 100 aircraft and Navy ships such as the Comfort responding to
the crisis. But despite U.S. response and the success of Sara’s birth, getting patients from Puerto Rico aboard the ship for medical treatment has been difficult. The Comfort is a Level III ocean-going medical facility capable of initial treatment, surgical operations and postoperative care. Its mission, along with its sister ship USNS Mercy, is to support combat military casualties and provide medical services during humanitarian and disaster relief operations. The ship has 250 hospital beds, but only 33 are being used, despite being positioned off Puerto Rico’s coast for two weeks, said Lt. Cmdr. David Lloyd, a spokesman for the Comfort. Comfort mission commander Capt. Kevin Robinson told CNN that they have the capacity but are waiting for Puerto Rican health officials to forward them more patients. “Every time that we’ve been tasked by (Puerto Rico’s) medical operation center to respond or bring a patient on, we have responded,” he said. Puerto Rican Gov. Ricardo Rossello said in the CNN report that there is a serious breakdown in communications and that referrals to the Comfort will improve. “I asked for a complete revision of that so that we can now start sending more patients over there,” he said. “The breakdown was in the
‘ With every birth, there is a unique
story and we are glad to be a part of their experience. Now everyone just wants to see the baby! ’
Lt. Karri Washbon labor and delivery nurse
ERNEST R. SCOTT/Courtesy of the U.S. Navy
Sailors aboard the hospital ship USNS Comfort say a prayer for Sara Victoria Llull Rodriguiz, the first child born aboard Comfort in more than seven years. Comfort is in San Juan, Puerto Rico, to provide medical services to those affected by Hurricane Maria. original protocol,” Rossello said in a video conference Oct. 17 with CBS. “Whatever was acute and was sort of an overflow would go to the boat. In my estimation that was really not the best use of the Comfort. We really need to maximize the use (of the Comfort). “The hospitals have to play more of a role in this, allowing and facilitating patients to go,” the governor said in the video, acknowledging the widespread confusion of the referral process to get patients access to the hospital ship. The Comfort’s first mission was Operation Desert Storm in 1990 and the ship has been involved in multiple humanitarian missions including the
aftermath of the 2010 earthquake in Haiti, which was the last occasion a woman gave birth on the ship. The ship was also activated for Operation Noble Eagle in the aftermath of the 9/11 attacks, helped respond to Hurricane Katrina and was deployed during Operation Iraqi Freedom. “We stood up the labor and delivery ward prior to getting underway,” said Lt. Karri Washbon, a labor and delivery nurse aboard Comfort who assisted with Sara’s birth. “We expected to see a lot of patients, but we weren’t sure how often we’d get to utilize this aspect. With every birth, there is a unique story and we are glad to be a part of their
experience. Now everyone just wants to see the baby!” Sara’s 6-year-old brother Alonzo and 4-year-old sister Sofia stayed with family on the island during their baby sister’s birth, and Ramos was eager to get back to Puerto Rico to see them again, despite poor conditions in Ponce. “They are so excited to meet her,” Ramos said. “I got the chance to call my family and let them know that I am OK and that the baby is healthy and happy. It’s a huge blessing for Sara to be here. I owe everything to the doctors and nurses and everyone on board.” carlson.stephen@stripes.com Twitter: @swcarlson1
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MILITARY
Florida colonel convicted of soliciting teen BY COREY DICKSTEIN Stars and Stripes
WASHINGTON — A Florida Air National Guard colonel was convicted Oct. 17 in federal court of soliciting a minor for sex, according to the U.S. Department of Justice. Air Force Col. Michael Shawn Garrett, 45, arranged to meet with an undercover police officer who he believed was a 14-year-old boy to engage in sexual activity, according to evidence U.S. attorneys presented during a two-day trial in Panama City, Justice Department spokeswoman Amy Alexander said Oct. 18 in a prepared statement. Garrett is set to be sen-
tenced Jan. 11. He faces at least 10 years in prison and a maximum of life imprisonment without parole. Panama City police officers announced Garrett’s arrest in May after he responded to a Craigslist advertisement and engaged in an extensive conversation with the undercover officer. Police took Garrett into custody without incident May 15 after he drove to a location that he believed was the child’s home, according to a Panama City police statement at the time. Alexander said the online conversation lasted 90 minutes. “Garrett discussed the sex acts he wished to perform with the boy,” Alexander’s state-
Navy lauds Fitzgerald sailors for efforts after June crash BY T YLER HLAVAC Stars and Stripes
Col. Michael Shawn Garrett ment read. “Through his email communications, Garrett repeatedly requested the physical address of the boy, offering to pick up the boy to engage in the sexual encounter.” The case was part of an online investigation to identify child predators that included the Panama City police, the North Florida Internet Crimes Against Children Task Force and the Federal Bureau of Investigation, according to the Justice Department. Garrett is assigned to the 101st Air and Space Operations Group at Tyndall Air Force Base, near Panama City, according to the Air Force. He has served in the Air Force since 1991 and has been assigned to Tyndall since 2015. dickstein.corey@stripes.com Twitter: @CDicksteinDC
YOKOSUKA NAVAL BASE, Japan — The Navy lauded a number of USS Fitzgerald sailors Oct. 20 for their emergency response efforts after a deadly collision on June 17. Seventh Fleet Commander Vice Adm. Phil Sawyer awarded the Navy and Marine Corps Commendation Medal to 36 crew members “who distinguished themselves for their bravery and contributions to damage control efforts,” a Navy statement said. The crewmembers “fought back against progressive flooding across 19 spaces for more than 16 consecutive hours” while working under hazardous conditions due to flooding and noxious fumes, as well as the risk of electrocution, the statement said. An initial report into the collision released by the Navy in August detailed the terror sailors experienced in the moments after the accident, along with the heroic efforts sailors took to save lives. The collision happened
about 1:30 a.m. when the destroyer was struck by the ACX Crystal, a Philippine-flagged merchant ship. The Fitzgerald was struck on its starboard side, tearing an approximately 13-by-17foot hole that flooded a berthing area housing 35 sailors. Twenty-eight escaped, and seven perished. Investigating Officer Rear Adm. C.F. Williams said in the report that the flooding of Berthing 2 was unavoidable, but that sailors prevented an even worse tragedy. “The sailors assigned to Berthing 2 should be commended for their response to the dangerous and deadly threat they faced,” Williams wrote. “They fought hard in the dark of night to save their ship. Through their swift and in many cases, heroic actions, members of the Fitzgerald crew saved lives.” The Navy relieved the Fitzgerald’s commanding officer, Cmdr. Bryce Benson, in August for what it called an “avoidable” collision. hlavac.tyler@stripes.com
Report: Work remains to address base water contamination BY CLAUDIA GRISALES Stars and Stripes
WASHINGTON — A federal watchdog has found most military bases have caught up on reporting about concerns of water contamination, but plenty of work remains to have more bases come into compliance and end future fears of water pollution. The findings from the U.S. Government Accountability Office come in the wake of reports earlier this year that contamination was found in water in or at dozens of military bases. The report found 77 military installations informed the Defense Department of violations, while a remaining 16 bases had yet to reveal their compliance standings. “One of the things that stood out most is, generally, the
installations are pretty close to being in compliance,” said Brian Lepore, GAO’s director of defense capabilities and management. However, concerns remain that polluted water in and around military bases could continue to be an issue, according to the report released Oct. 18. An estimated 3 million people in the United States receive drinking water from Defense Department public water systems, which must comply with U.S. Environmental Protection Agency and state health-based regulations. The report released Oct. 18 was ordered under the 2017 National Defense Authorization Act, which assigns funding and policy standards for the Defense Department. The EPA and DOD have found elevated levels of
contaminants in the drinking water at or near installations. The contaminants — perfluorooctane sulfonate, or PFOS, and perfluorooctanoic acid, or PFOA — are found in firefighting foam used at Air Force and Navy installations. Another water contaminant found in the water, perchlorate, is a chemical found in rocket fuel. The military is working now to find alternate firefighting foam without PFOS and PFOA, but haven’t found one yet, Lepore said. “The biggest thing left to do is to try to solve the question: Is it possible to develop firefighting foam that meets DOD performance standards and doesn’t contain PFOS or PFOA?” he said. “That’s the biggest, outstanding thing.” The Defense Department, for now, has initiated actions
to address the concerns with its firefighting foam, restricting the use of the foam and funding new efforts to use foam without the contaminants, the report states. Also, the department has shut down wells, provided alternate water sources or installed water treatment systems at 11 military installations. The report set out five recommendations for the Defense Department to improve its reporting and follow up on those findings when it comes to compliance with health regulations. Among the recommendations, the agency said the department officials should coordinate to clarify their reporting requirements. Also, the report suggested the secretaries of the Army, Navy and Air Force should boost understanding and com-
mand reporting requirements at its installations, which could be done through better communication and training. Executing those recommendations, and better reporting requirements, should go a long way in addressing the concerns of polluted water at military bases, the report suggested. The department “has not internally reported all data on compliance with health-based drinking water regulations or used available data to assess compliance,” the report said. “Until DOD takes steps to increase the clarity and understanding of its internal reporting requirements, it may not have the data it needs to fully oversee compliance.” grisales.claudia@stripes.com Twitter: @cgrisales
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MILITARY
VA is soliciting private donations for facilities BY NIKKI WENTLING Stars and Stripes
WASHINGTON — The Department of Veterans Affairs is soliciting donors, such as nonprofits, to provide funds to construct, expand or renovate VA health care facilities. The agency posted a request on the Federal Business Opportunities website Oct. 19 for information from nonprofits, corporations or individual donors wanting to help with one of hundreds of possible capital projects. The VA is allowed to accept outside donations for health care facilities under a pilot program approved last year by Congress and signed by former President Barack Obama. The program made it possible for a nonprofit backed by business leaders in Omaha, Neb., to commit $30 million for a new ambulatory care clinic at the Nebraska/Western Iowa Health Care System. “Our strategic partnerships are one of many valuable tools that allow us to provide assistance to our veterans,” VA Secretary David Shulkin said. “Donations … will help us deliver health-care facilities for our veterans in a faster, more cost-effective manner.” Shulkin has said divesting old, unused VA facilities and modernizing others is one of his top priorities for the department. About 57 percent of
the thousands of VA facilities nationwide are more than 50 years old, and there’s a growing list of capital improvement projects. The new law, titled the Communities Helping Investment through Property and Improvements Needed for Veterans, or CHIP-IN, Act, will be in effect for an initial five years to test how effective the public-private partnerships work. It authorizes only five donations during that time. The Omaha project is the first of those five. Nebraska’s congressional delegation fought for the legislation after years of attempting to modernize the aging Omaha VA hospital, the Omaha World-Herald reported. The Senate appropriated $56 million to start the project in 2011, but plans were delayed by cost overruns on other VA construction projects. The overruns caused a funding shortfall that created a backlog of VA construction projects, and the Omaha facility languished. The CHIP-IN Act was a bipartisan effort to bypass the congressional appropriations process and jump-start progress on the facility. Walter Scott Jr., the cofounder of the nonprofit helping to pay for the Omaha clinic, told the Omaha WorldHerald that the donation was “born out of duty to help those
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who have risked so much to save our country.” The VA has four years left to have nongovernment entities help with four other projects. Potential projects listed on the Federal Business Opportunities website were separated into three categories: primary and mental health care, inpatient and long-term care, and research facilities. They are located in almost every state, and they range in purpose from a new women’s clinic in Loma Linda, Calif., to the renovation of a community living center in Des Moines, Iowa, and a spinal cord injury ward in Manchester, N.H. Anyone interested in helping is asked to submit a questionnaire with financial strategy, donation amount and other information to the VA through the fbo.gov website by Jan. 15. According to text of the CHIP-IN Act, donations can come in the form of property or the construction of a VA facility. The law requires the donor to initiate environmental and historical preservation reviews, comply with local zoning requirements, obtain construction permits and stay within the building standards of the VA. The Government Accountability Office is required to report every two years on the program and how it’s being used. wentling.nikki@stripes.com Twitter: @nikkiwentling
This publication is a compilation of stories from Stars and Stripes, the editorially independent newspaper authorized by the Department of Defense for members of the military community. The contents of Stars and Stripes are unofficial, and are not to be considered as the official views of, or endorsed by, the U.S. government, including the Defense Department or the military services. The U.S. Edition of Stars and Stripes is published jointly by Stars and Stripes and this newspaper. The appearance of advertising in this publication, including inserts or supplements, does not constitute endorsement by the DOD or Stars and Stripes of the products or services advertised. Products or services advertised in this publication shall be made available for purchase, use, or patronage without regard to race, color, religion, sex, national origin, age, marital status, physical handicap, political affiliation, or any other nonmerit factor of the purchaser, user, or patron.
© Stars and Stripes, 2017
JENNIFER SVAN /Stars and Stripes
First-graders gather around Ramstein Elementary School teacher Janet Bridges on Aug. 28, the first day of school.
2 bases adopt late-start school days permanently BY JENNIFER H. SVAN Stars and Stripes
KAISERSLAUTERN, Germany — Late-start Thursdays that began earlier this month on a trial basis at all Kaiserslautern Military Community and Baumholder schools now will be permanent after the first two weeks, during which the adjusted schedule went smoothly, school officials said. Last month, school administrators told parents they would use October to assess the program — aimed at giving teachers more time to work with and learn from their peers — and would make adjustments as needed. But just two weeks into the late start, “administrators and district leadership were able to determine that there were no significant issues that would preclude continuing the schedule as part of normal school operations,” Department of Defense Education ActivityEurope spokesman Will Griffin said Oct. 19 in a statement. “During that period, there were no reports of negative feedback from parents or community partners.” Oct. 19 was the third late start for students at Kaiserslautern-area and Baumholder schools since the pilot program began Oct. 5. Last week, school officials began informing parents by email that the late start would become a regular part of the school schedule. Multiple parents said during
informational sessions before Oct. 5 that they would prefer the decision on the program’s status “be made sooner, rather than later,” to avoid upsetting new routines midsemester or midyear, Griffin said. Kaiserslautern and Baumholder schools were among the last in DODEA to set aside at least 45 minutes per week during the school day for teachers to collaborate with their colleagues. Most military schools in the Pacific, the states and elsewhere in Europe have either a weekly late arrival or an early departure for students, DODEA officials have said. The “focused collaboration” — a requirement of all schools from DODEA headquarters — is designed to give educators a chance to discuss practices, to analyze student data and to design instruction aligned to standards, DODEA says. Those standards have been revamped with the introduction during the past several years of College and Career Ready Standards in core subject areas such as math and language arts. In the Kaiserslautern area, adjustments to child care were made to accommodate working parents on late-start mornings. Before-school programs were extended by an hour on Thursdays, while parents also were given the option of signing their children up for in-school supervision if needed. svan.jennifer@stripes.com Twitter: @stripes.ktown
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5:30pm - 1am Jack-O-Lantern Jubilee
Georgia Avenue, North Augusta A family-friendly festival that will include live entertainment on two stages, food, arts and crafts vendors, a car show, cornhole tournament, amusement rides, activities for kids and more. Continues 10 a.m.-1 a.m. Saturday. The headliner on Friday night is The Charlie Daniels Band, and the headliner on Saturday night is Robert Randolph and The Family Band. Call 803-441-4311 or visit jackolanternjubilee.com.
Sat Oct 28
Friday, October 27, 2017
8pm - 1am Black Cat Carnival
Le Chat Noir Fall fundraiser for Le Chat Noir a surreal mix of Halloween party and carnival. Music by DJ Codec. No cover. VIC passes $30 each or $50 for a pair, limited to the first 50. Costumes preferred but not required. Visit lcaugusta.com or call 706-7223322.
8pm - 12am Rocky Horror Picture Show Tribute
Sky City A Misfit Theatre Group performance in which the pre-show will begin at 10:30 p.m. with a costume contest. $10. Visit skycityaugusta.com.
8am - 10am Monster Mash Canal Dash 5K and Fun Run
Sun Oct 29
9am - noon CSRA Buddy Walk for Downs Syndrome
Julian Smith Casino A CSRA Humane Society event that will feature costume contests, silent auctions, raffles, a bake sale, refreshments, vendor tables, pet microchipping and more. Call 706261-7387 or visit csra-hs.com.
Savannah Rapids Pavilion Get your costumes ready for this family-friendly race. $10-$30. Benefits the Air Force Sergeant’s Association at Fort Gordon. Visit active.com.
The Quad, USC Aiken In addition to the walk, this free event will feature games, prizes, an auction, other activities and more. Registration begins at 9 a.m., and the walk starts at 10. Visit aikenupsidedowns.org/2017-csrabuddy-walk.html.
Noon - 4pm Pet-A-Fair
Wed Nov 1
7:30pm Chicago
Bell Auditorium $56-$96. Call 877-4AUGTIX or visit georgialinatix.com.
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