A SPECIAL PULLOUT SECTION OF THE JULY 2003 ROUNDUP Columbia Search & Recovery

A team of search and recovery workers combs a field near Corsicana, Texas. jsc2003-00155 Photo by James Blair

OneNASA responds to tragedy in East Texas

he NASA family came together as cohesively as it ever reassembling them and working with the Columbia Accident has in East Texas this spring as workers from virtually Investigation Board to determine the cause of the accident. T every NASA center helped organize and conduct the Many of the NASA workers were friends of the seven search for clues to Columbia’s demise. lost after their ambitious 16-day science mission. “In all my years with NASA, I have never seen this Agency’s All of those involved, whether they were in Mission Control people band together as effectively as they have in responding on that fateful day or had no previous connection to America’s to this tragedy,” said Jerry Ross, who took turns space program, dedicated themselves to the cause of “bringing with fellow Astronaut Dom Gorie to coordinate the day-to- Columbia home.” day search efforts. “These people worked very long days for “While we are saddened by weeks at a time away from the events that have led to this home without fighting, activity, we are all pleased with complaining or shirking their “We owe this to the children the cooperation, coordination, duty. They set an example that dedication and hard work that our entire country should of this world who will pick are being exhibited,” said strive to emulate.” up the torch and carry it Johnson Space Center’s Allen Based in cities like Lufkin, Flynt, one of three NASA Corsicana, Palestine, into the future.” Oversight Managers directing Nacogdoches and Hemphill, efforts from the Lufkin Texas, as well as Shreveport, La., employees from NASA and Command Center. Flynt took turns overseeing the effort with its contractors worked shoulder-to-shoulder with friends from Dave King of Marshall Space Flight Center and Mike the Federal Emergency Management Agency, Environmental Rudolphi of Stennis Space Center. “We’re also thankful for the Protection Agency, U.S. Forest Service, Texas Forest Service new friendships we’ve forged as our various centers, agencies, and others. In all, more than 90 local, state and federal organizations and personnel have come together to perform organizations responded to the challenges of searching a this difficult task.” 10-mile-wide, 240-mile-long corridor in East Texas and West “We owe this to our seven brave colleagues who died on their Louisiana by land, air and water. way home,” said JSC’s Dave Whittle, who led the initial They stretched those efforts as far west as the California coast, Mishap Response Team mobilized just minutes after Mission using ingenious methods to predict where Shuttle material Control declared a contingency, and spent time in both the might have landed as Columbia broke up during reentry on Barksdale Air Force Base, La., and Lufkin Command Centers. February 1. And then they shipped the pieces back to “We owe this to the children of this world who will pick up Kennedy Space Center, where their colleagues began the torch and carry it into the future.” The Columbia search and recovery effort: An overview By the Federal Emergency Management Agency The overwhelming response of the people of EastTexas and western Louisiana and the skill with which they responded in the n Feb. 1, when the Columbia broke apart and fell across East Texas and western Louisiana, no one hours, days and weeks after the accident did not go unnoticed. Ocould envision the magnitude of the event and the tremendous number of people and agencies that would eventually become a part of the recovery effort.

A network of teamwork time searched 12 hours a day, seven days a week. Camp crews were located at sites near Hemphill, Nacogdoches, Palestine and Shortly after the tragedy, President George W. Bush issued Facts concerning the Columbia emergency declarations for Texas and Louisiana. Within hours, Corsicana. Their goal was to find as much material as possible federal and state agencies deployed teams to the disaster area to before spring vegetation growth made the search more difficult. Shuttle recovery efforts* assist local fire, law enforcement and emergency management The U.S. Navy supervised the water search activities in Lake authorities. Initially, more than 60 agencies – including Nacogdoches and Toledo Bend Reservoir, located at the eastern After three months, search Under the FEMA Public Assistance volunteer and private groups – responded with personnel, end of the 2,400 square-mile search area. Beginning on Feb. 22, personnel recovered more than program, $10 million is the supplies and equipment. Disaster Field Offices (DFO) opened at 60 divers from the Navy, Coast Guard, EPA, DPS, Houston and 82,500 pieces of Shuttle debris amount projected for Texas to Barksdale Air Force Base in Louisiana and in Lufkin, Texas, and Galveston police and fire departments, and Jasper County equaling a total of 84,800 reimburse eligible costs associated a satellite DFO was established in Fort Worth, Texas. The Sheriff’s Department combed the lakes using sophisticated pounds, or almost 40 percent with the recovery effort. As of Lufkin DFO was the regional center of all search-related -equipped boats to help identify Shuttle material. of the total dry weight of the May 1, $3.98 million has been operations. Shuttle. obligated. For Louisiana, projected Search challenges reimbursable payments are The Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) Ground, water and air searches $500,000 while $396,000 has coordinated the response and recovery operations. NASA, with As in any operation of this magnitude, the for all the combined covered more than been obligated. the assistance of the Texas Forest Service (TFS), the U.S. Forest searchers were challenging. Ground crews slogged though mud, 2.28 million acres. Service (USFS), the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) dense vegetation and rocky areas; faced wild hogs, snakes and Water operations successfully Outside Texas and Louisiana, and many others, supervised the search for Shuttle material. other vermin; and dealt with the ever-changing weather. Divers identified more than 3,100 targets searches have been concluded reckoned with the murky waters of the East Texas lakes, along and covered 23 square miles. in New Mexico and California. From the beginning, the priorities for the agencies were three- with underwater forests and various submerged hazards. More than 16,500 ground search Searches continue in Nevada fold: ensure public safety, retrieve evidence – pieces of the personnel and their support and Utah. Shuttle that could ultimately determine the cause of the The crash of a Bell 407 helicopter on March 27 was a tragic personnel searched an More than 130 federal, state and tragedy – and reimburse expenses of state and local governments reminder of the inherent risks confronting Shuttle disaster unprecedented 680,748 acres. local agencies have participated in and private citizens who may have sustained property damage as workers in the field. Two members of the air search crew, Texas the recovery effort. a result of the accident and search. Forest Service employee Charles Krenek of Lufkin and pilot Total man-hours utilized in the Jules F. “Buzz” Mier, Jr. of Arizona, died while searching for recovery effort amounted to The operation was supported NASA quickly identified potential hazardous materials, such as debris over the Angelina National Forest in San Augustine approximately 1.5 million, by more than 270 organizations tanks containing toxic substances or unexploded pyrotechnic County, Texas. Three other crewmembers – Matt Tschacher, performed by approximately such as businesses and devices, and once found, the EPA secured and removed USFS from South Dakota; Richard Lange, United Space 25,000 personnel. volunteer groups. *as of May 5, 2003 hazardous material immediately. The EPA also worked with state Alliance, Kennedy Space Center; and Ronnie Dale, NASA, and local authorities to quickly clear school campuses and public Kennedy Space Center – were injured. access areas, and tested air and water samples taken along the flight path for Shuttle contaminates. Using the resources of the Air operations were suspended until it was determined that Emergency Response and Removal Service (ERRS) contractors flights could resume under the safest possible conditions. Air and the U.S. Coast Guard’s Gulf Strike Team, EPA found no searches resumed April 10. evidence of hazardous material in the atmosphere or drinking Saying thank you water supplies. The overwhelming response of the people of East Texas and Early in the recovery effort, teams from NASA, the Federal western Louisiana and the skill with which they responded in Bureau of Investigation, National Guard, Urban Search and the hours, days and weeks after the accident did not go Rescue organizations, the Department of Public Safety and unnoticed. NASA Administrator Sean O’Keefe and other others conducted a successful search in East Texas to recover and officials made several trips to the area and spent time with bring home Columbia’s crew. community leaders and search crews in all of the operations. Three days after the accident, local fire, police, volunteers, Texas The Deputy Secretary of the U.S. Department of Agriculture, Department of Public Safety officers (DPS), Louisiana State Jim Moseley, and Dale Bosworth, Chief of the U.S. Forest Police, and EPA, USFS, TFS and National Guard units from Service, toured the sites, spending time in the field and thanking Texas, Louisiana, Oklahoma and New Mexico began clearing everyone for their help. Shuttle debris in high-traffic areas. A one-page set of guidelines Astronauts, who lost their friends and coworkers in the Shuttle prepared by the State of Texas, NASA and EPA enabled the tragedy, made themselves available for numerous evening teams to collect, document, tag and transport non-hazardous presentations at the base camps and tirelessly signed autographs debris without prior EPA or NASA clearance. These initial into the late evening hours. They also gave educational talks at teams ended their search operations Feb. 17. schools and attended city council and other community Air Force representatives to the Columbia Recovery Task Force are seen working at the Barksdale Air meetings. At each event, their presence underscored the Force Base’s Incident Command Center. The TFS, under the direction of NASA, now assumed jsc2003e08406 Photo by Ed Wilson responsibility for search activities in the field, which involved importance of the recovery mission, and they continually extensive air and ground searches in a 10-mile by 240-mile thanked each and every person for their tremendous support in corridor along the projected Shuttle flight path. The TFS – all areas of the recovery process. through the Texas Interagency Coordination Center – called The Columbia Recovery Recognition Event, cosponsored by upon experienced management and firefighting crews from across NASA and FEMA, marked the end of this phase of the search. the nation and Puerto Rico. The air operations, managed by The dinner was held at the Lufkin Civic Center on April 29 and CLOCKWISE FROM TOP TFS, included up to 36 helicopters and 10 fixed-wing aircraft. was attended by almost 700 people. Representatives from state Astronaut Michael Lopez-Alegria talks with fellow volunteers in the evidence cage at Camp Corsicana. Also involved in the air search, but not managed by TFS, were and local emergency management agencies and volunteer jsc2003-0014 Photo by James Blair motorized paragliders, an ER-2 (similar to the U-2), a specially services, along with elected officials, were recognized for their Volunteers arrive at Carswell Naval Air Station in Fort Worth, Texas. equipped DC-3, and the Civil Air Patrol (CAP), among others. participation in the recovery operations. sts107i-306-020 Photo by Bill Stafford CAP volunteers put in more than 800 search-days of flying in A search and recovery worker scans a field for debris. On April 28, NASA opened a Columbia Recovery Office at jsc2003-00154 the weeks just after the accident and covered the flight corridor Johnson Space Center to continue search operations on a Volunteers in Lufkin, Texas, share a meal. A worker sorts bags of debris. area west of Fort Worth to the New Mexico border. jsc2003e26419 Photo by James Blair jsc2003e37944 NASA Administrator Sean O’Keefe shakes hands with local officials in Lufkin, Texas. smaller scale, and to respond to any future discoveries of jsc2003e2635 Photo by James Blair The USFS, Bureau of Indian Affairs, Bureau of Land Shuttle materials. Space Shuttle Program Manager Ron Dittemore talks with volunteers in a hanger in Lufkin. Management, National Park Service, and U.S. Fish and Wildlife Individuals suspecting that they may have discovered a piece of jsc2003e26397 Photo by James Blair Service, along with state forestry organizations and contractors, Columbia material should call the toll-free Columbia Recovery Michael Sarafin (left) of the Systems Division of JSC’s Mission Operations Directorate, along with John provided the greatest number of crews – drawing from their Office hotline at 866-446-6603. Casper of the Space Shuttle Program Office, check over search data at the Lufkin Command Center. expertise in wildland firefighting. More than 4,000 people at a jsc2003e26339 Photo by James Blair Barbara Zelon, Deputy Director for Space Flight Awareness in the Safety, Reliability and Quality Assurance Office, logs data at the Lufkin Command Center. jsc2003e26343 Photo by James Blair A dedicated team of workers Native American firefighters take part in the search and recovery efforts in Hemphill

By Joanne Hale

group of about 60 Native American firefighters made Coleman assured the search and recovery teams that the crew of their way up the stairwell quietly, deliberately marching STS-107 was doing what they loved the most. “I can tell you with toward Johnson Space Center’s Mission Control Center absolute confidence that the crewmembers of STS-107 were having (MCC). Once there, they gathered together, paying the time of their lives,” Coleman said. attentionA to every detail of MCC’s history – just as they have paid Many members of the group expressed their excitement over having meticulous attention to the woods of East Texas. an opportunity to visit JSC. “I am happy to be here. I really like Tears could be seen in their eyes as Astronaut Catherine Coleman meeting the astronauts and seeing JSC,” said Shawn Malevolence, told them how they have played an important role in the future of second-year firefighter from Fort Duchesne, Utah. “I hope our spaceflight. They were honored to be here – to get a firsthand view efforts help the space program and the future of NASA.” of NASA. Justin Romero, a member of the Bureau of Indian Affairs from JSC hosted several groups of firefighters and search and recovery Eagle Butte, S.D., described the significance he feels at finding even workers in the weeks following the Columbia tragedy to show the smallest pieces of debris. appreciation for their ongoing dedication and hard work in the “I am happy to be involved in the recovery effort. When I find search and recovery efforts in East Texas. The group on this pieces of the Shuttle I think to myself that I am holding a piece of particular day was comprised mostly of Native American firefighters history in my hands – all the way down to the little pieces – they are who were dispatched to Hemphill from South Dakota, North all important,” Romero said. Dakota, Utah and Wyoming following the crash of STS-107. There were more than 1,000 search and recovery workers located in The group toured key areas of JSC including MCC, the Neutral Hemphill, a town of only 800 residents. The workers were trained Laboratory and the Shuttle Viewing Room with their on site in search and recovery skills by several organizations final stop culminating at Space Center Houston. including the Forest Service of Pierce County, WA. “We started our tour of Building 9 on the catwalk at the Space Dan Hudson, search coordinator for the Forest Service of Pierce Station end,” said Barbara Tomaro, IMPASS contract supervisor of County, arrived in Hemphill the first week of February to train Protocol and Information Services. “There was a good deal of volunteers. Hudson said that he has never seen a more dedicated excitement and picture-taking and general living-in-space questions.” team of workers. As they moved down the catwalk, the Shuttle full-fuselage trainer “We have never participated in something with such a huge came into view. At that point, there was a break in the conversations significance. This is a fabulous group of people – they are very hard and picture-taking. “Each one silently tried to put what they had workers,” Hudson said. “It was hard to get them to space farther seen in the field in perspective with the enormity of apart during their search because they were afraid they would the vehicle mockup before them. They seemed to be miss something. It was phenomenal.” in awe,” Tomaro said.

She heard them saying they had no idea how big a Shuttle is and how the “large pieces” they had found in the field now seemed small in comparison.

Coleman addressed the group while they were touring the MCC and thanked them for their help in getting NASA back into spaceflight.

“I am here to represent the astronauts and to say thank you for what you are doing for the space program,” Coleman said. “Without the pieces of the puzzle, we can’t get back into spaceflight as quickly. You are part of the team working to get us back into flight.”

Top, Hemphill Search and Recovery workers tour Mission Control. jsc2003e20079 Photo by Bill Stafford

Right, Native American firefighters, who took part in the Search and Recovery efforts in Hemphill, arrive at JSC. jsc2003e20077 Photo by Bill Stafford