The Ash Warriors C. R. Anderegg The Ash Warriors C. R. Anderegg Office of PACAF History Hickam Air Force Base, Hawaii 2000 C. R. Anderegg is a retired USAF fighter pilot. He lives in Northern Virginia with his wife, Jean. The Ash Warriors is his first book. Printed in Hawaii by Valenti Print Group ii Foreword In November 1991 the American flag was lowered for the last time at Clark Air Base in the Philippines. This act brought to an end American military presence in the Philippines that extended back over 90 years. It also represented the final act in a drama that began with the initial rumblings in April of that year of the Mount Pinatubo volcano, located about nine miles to the east of Clark. The following pages tell the remarkable story of the men and women of the Clark community and their ordeal in planning for and carrying out their evacuation from Clark in face of the impending volcanic activity. It documents the actions of those who remained on the base during the series of Mount Pinatubo’s eruptions, and the packing out of the base during the subsequent months. This is the story of the “Ash Warriors,” those Air Force men and women who carried out their mission in the face of an incredible series of natural disasters, including volcanic eruption, flood, typhoons, and earthquakes, all of which plagued Clark and the surrounding areas during June and July 1991. The author of The Ash Warriors knew the situation first hand. Col Dick Anderegg was the vice com- mander of the 3rd Tactical Fighter Wing when the volcano erupted, and he was at Clark throughout the evacu- ation and standing down of the base. He brought his own personal experience to bear in writing this story. He also conducted extensive research in the archives of the Pacific Air Forces and Thirteenth Air Force, utilized scores of interviews of those who witnessed and participated in the events, and visited Clark in 1998 to see in person how the installation had changed in the eight years since the Americans left. This story is one of courage, resourcefulness, and dedication to duty on the part of Air Force men and women called upon to respond to one of the great natural disasters of the Twentieth Century. As the following pages reveal, the Ash Warriors were up to the challenge in every respect. PATRICK K. GAMBLE, General, USAF Commander Pacific Air Forces iii iv Preface After years of encouragement from family and friends to write this book, I discussed it with Richard P. Hallion, the Air Force Historian in March of 1998. He was enthusiastic that the story be told. He was well aware of the accomplishments of the Ash Warriors and knew that their story would be interesting to military and civilian readers alike. During our discussions, I told him what the eruptions looked like from a close-up view. When I finished the story, he said, “Tell it just like that. Don’t change a thing.” If the great historian, Stephen Ambrose, is correct, history is the story of those who are leaders and those who are followers. I have tried to make this book just that, the story of the Ash Warriors who faced a killer vol- cano on the other side of the world. Some were leaders and some were followers, but they all did their duty in the face of terrible conditions and frightening uncertainty. I served as 3d Tactical Fighter Wing vice commander from July 1, 1990 to August 8, 1991, so many of the observations in this book are from a personal perspective. Where statements of fact or assumption are not attrib- uted to another source, the reader may assume I am speaking from personal experience. Of course, I am solely responsible for any errors of commission or omission. Research for the book was conducted in several areas. I had been collecting surveys from Ash Warriors for several years. Although the surveys were not particularly useful for the book, the network that resulted from the surveys proved invaluable. During April to August 1991, I kept a small notebook from which many events were recalled for the book. After the eruptions, I transcribed the notes onto the only operational computer I could find, and subsequently printed them out as a record of thoughts and events during the crisis. The PACAF Command Historian’s Office at Hickam Air Force Base, Hawaii, provided a wealth of infor- mation. They possess about 20 four-inch binders of information about Clark and its closure. The binders con- tain all situation reports (SITREPS) from both the 3 TFW and JTF-Fiery Vigil as well as the American Embassy in Manila. Without the friendly assistance of Al Miller and Anne Bazzell, I never could have waded through the chaff to find the wheat. After leaving the PACAF office I journeyed to Guam, the present site of Thirteenth Air Force where Deryl Danner helped me immensely by setting up some interviews and leading me through his files. During my visit to Clark, Miss Cefey Yepez set up my whole visit there, and I am deeply indebted to her for showing me the “new” Clark. Thanks to Skip Vanorne and Jim Goodman for providing many personal pho- tographs. Perhaps the richest vein I mined were personal interviews I conducted, of which there were nearly 100. Everyone I approached wanted to tell me his or her story, and it did not take me long to realize that the inter- view was a catharsis. People would talk for hours about what they had seen and done. Frequently there were tears and deep emotions bared to the tape recorder. To all those who submitted to my questioning I offer my deepest thanks. You are the Ash Warriors and I did my best to show the world your incredible accomplish- ment. Many helped me research and find other Ash Warriors. Col Mike (Air) Jordan was my main source of per- sonnel locators. He and his friends could find anyone, and they frequently spent hours looking for people who had “disappeared.” From the US Geological Survey, Chris Newhall and Rick Hoblitt were invaluable. They pro- vided valuable technical advice where I had missed some point in Volcanology 101. No author produces a book without great editors and mine were Pati Wilson and Tim Keck from the PACAF Command Historian’s Office. I know there were many moments when Pati repeated the mantra, “patience is a virtue, patience is a virtue” while she tried to repair an old fighter pilot’s butchery of English. Additional thanks go to my friends Bob Tone and Helen Puckett who read every word of the manuscript and offered suggestions and corrections. My last and biggest thanks goes to Jean, my wife, who, while struggling with a serious illness, not only found the time to encourage me, but also to teach all around her the true meanings of courage and love. v vi Contents Foreword ................................................................................................................................................................iii Preface ......................................................................................................................................................................v List of Illustrations..................................................................................................................................................ix Chapter 1: Pacific Jewel .........................................................................................................................................1 Chapter 2: Volcano? What Volcano? .....................................................................................................................9 Chapter 3: Drum Watch .......................................................................................................................................21 Chapter 4: Frogs in a Cooking Pot .......................................................................................................................33 Chapter 5: Black Saturday ...................................................................................................................................43 Chapter 6: Nuclear Winter ...................................................................................................................................53 Chapter 7: The Evacuees ......................................................................................................................................65 Chapter 8: Packing Out ........................................................................................................................................79 Chapter 9: Turn Out the Lights ...........................................................................................................................95 Chapter 10: A Disaster is a Disaster ..................................................................................................................101 Afterword: Clark, 1998 ......................................................................................................................................107 Appendix 1: Clark Air Base Closure Report .....................................................................................................109 Appendix 2: Volcano Evacuation Plan Pamphlet ............................................................................................121 Appendix 3: Mission Essential List as of 20 July 1991 ....................................................................................125 Glossary ...............................................................................................................................................................141 Bibliographic Notes .............................................................................................................................................145