AFOATS organizations hit hard by Katrina

  • Published
  • By Ann Easterling
  • Air Force Officer Accession and Training Schools Public Affairs
Air Force Officer Accession and Training School officials here are assessing the damage to Air Force ROTC detachments and Junior ROTC units affected by Hurricane Katrina.

Twenty-five Air Force Junior ROTC units located in high schools in Mississippi, Louisiana, Florida and Alabama are potentially affected. Of the 70 instructors assigned to those units, only 25 have been accounted for. Reports have confirmed that at least 13 of the 25 high schools were destroyed.

"We are assessing what it is going to take to re-establish those units in terms of uniforms, textbooks and supplies, but our primary concern right now is locating those instructors we have not heard from," said Capt. John McIntyre, operations officer for Air Force Junior ROTC headquarters here.

Captain McIntyre said the units in and around the New Orleans area have seen the most devastation. Only a few of the instructors assigned to those units have reported in.

"We are concerned about the safety of our instructors and their families and hope when they have an opportunity they will be in touch with us by either telephone or e-mail," he said.

Six Air Force ROTC detachments within the area were affected by the hurricane with Tulane University in New Orleans being hit the hardest. Classes were set to begin at Tulane on Aug. 31, which meant that only about half of the cadets had reported to the detachment. The detachment staff has been accounted for as well as about 80 percent of the 45 to 50 cadets they were expecting.

Col. Ben Anderson, Tulane's Air Force ROTC detachment commander, said efforts are ongoing to make contact with everyone. He also said reports from the university indicate it will be closed for at least two months. Colonel Anderson said he is assisting cadets with temporary transfers to other universities.

Other Air Force ROTC detachments affected were Jackson State and the University of Southern Mississippi in Mississippi, Louisiana State University in Baton Rouge, University of South Alabama in Mobile, and the University of Alabama in Tuscaloosa. These universities sustained minor to medium damage and all hope to be operational in about two weeks.

"Our thoughts and prayers are with the thousands of people who have lost loved ones and homes in the hurricane,” said Brig. Gen. Ronnie D. Hawkins Jr., Air Force Officer and Accession Training Schools commander. “We are especially concerned for the Junior ROTC instructors and ROTC cadets we haven't been able to make contact with and hope to hear from them soon."

To contact AFOATS headquarters, people can call toll-free at (866) 235-7682, ext. 3-7513 for Junior ROTC, and ext. 3-9410 for ROTC. (Courtesy of Air Education and Training Command News Service)