VANDENBERG AIR FORCE BASE, Calif. -- Due to recent inclement weather, strong winds and heavy rain caused trees and fallen debris to cover many high traffic areas, creating dangerous situations for members of Vandenberg Air Force Base.
Fortunately, the Airmen assigned to the 30th Civil Engineer Squadron are always ready and were prepared to quickly clear roads and fix the damages. Within a 48 hour period, they were able to repair more than eight damaged electrical circuits and clear 25 tons of fallen trees and debris.
“Tech. Sgt. Manabat was an absolute machine this past weekend, filling in as Electrical Shop NCOIC and leading the response to significant electrical issues,” said U.S. Air Force Maj. Joe Wierenga, 30th CES operations flight commander. “He’s continued in that role this week, leading the long-term repairs still unresolved from the storm. The additional Airmen put in more than their fair share of hours in the rain this weekend and have been killing it this week to get the base back to normal configuration.”
To thank the Airmen for the tremendous and speedy work repairing the damages caused by the storm, the 30th Space Wing commander and command chief presented each of them with coins on March 12, 2019.
“Vandenberg Airmen continue to impress me, and it’s my pleasure to recognize their hard work,” said Col. Michael Hough, 30th Space Wing commander. “After the storm hit, these Airmen responded as quickly as possible, in severe weather, and got to work… clearing debris, repairing power lines, storm drains and much more. My coin is a token of my appreciation, because this base needs “service before self” Airmen like these to make the mission happen.”