Terri Stansell, 5th Maintenance Group key spouse mentor, and Michelle VanBemmelen, 5th Operations Group key spouse mentor, volunteer June 25, 2011 at the Emergency Family Assistance Control Center at Minot Air Force Base, N.D. The EFACC is operating 24-hours a day to support base personnel affected by the flooding situation in the nearby city of Minot and other local communities. (U.S. Air Force photo/Airman 1st Class Jose L. Hernandez)
Airmen from various squadrons at Minot Air Force Base, N.D., volunteer their time June 25, 2011, to help organize accommodation rooms at the emergency shelter established to help support displaced base-affiliated Defense Department families affected by the flooding situation in the nearby city of Minot and local communities. (U.S. Air Force photo/Senior Airman Aaron Forrest Wainwright)
by Capt. Genieve David
Minot Air Force Base Public Affairs
6/26/2011 - MINOT AIR FORCE BASE, N.D. (AFNS) -- The count has increased to a total of 1,142 displaced Airmen and their family members as a result of the Souris River flooding which began June 20.
Base officials continue to offer emergency shelter to displaced base-affiliated Department of Defense employees and their families. An estimated 4,000 homes are expected to be lost as a result of the flooding in the nearby city of Minot and the local surrounding communities.
"Our Airmen remain actively engaged in flood prevention operations" said Col. James Dawkins Jr., the 5th Bomb Wing commander. "The city of Minot, Burlington and our surrounding communities are not facing this disaster alone. We are here to assist in any way possible. We are simultaneously transitioning to flood recovery operations and have begun planning for long term care of our displaced Airmen and their families."
On June 20, Colonel Dawkins activated the Emergency Family Assistance Control Center, the central hub for displaced Airmen and their families to seek shelter or other family services assistance. The E-FACC reception area is located at the Airman and Family Readiness Center here.