The Air Force is working “around the clock” to rectify its cruddy conditions at Al Udeid Air Base, Qatar, with leaders at the base posting regular updates about the renovations to community and living areas.
Most promising is the base will receive “the first shipment of approximately 150 floor sized dehumidifiers in the next 2-3 weeks,” Brig. Gen. Darren James, commander of the 379th Air Expeditionary Wing, said in a Facebook post Monday. “Our second shipment of approximately 150 should arrive in about another 4-6 weeks.”
Because of the consistently humid environment, building materials at the base are most commonly plagued with waterfall-like streaks of black mold. HVAC units have also seen some mold growth, and need to be cleaned out daily, officials have said.
Airmen at the base, and a handful who recently returned home, told Air Force Times in February they were concerned for their health after experiencing living quarters in disrepair: collapsing roofs, water and mildew in the walls, growing mold and stale, if not contaminated, water from the plumbing.
Even members of Congress singled-out Air Force and Pentagon leadership in recent hearings to boil down the issue.
“Despite efforts by local command and repeated requests by our airmen, the situation has not been fixed,” Sen. Kelly Ayotte, R-N.H., said during the nomination hearing in March. Ayotte affirmed, “make sure our men and women aren’t being made sick.”
To reduce risk, James said other major accomplishments in recent weeks include: deep cleaning and rebuilding to dirty or broken facilities; the completion of 236 work orders in the standalone bathrooom units, called “the Cadillacs”; the addition of $17K in maintenance parts, with $151K-worth of parts the way; new shower drains and vent pipes, and reconstructing damaged interior walls.
The 379th is finalizing two contracts, one for custodial cleaning and one to replace “3 latrines and 4 shower trailers” which should arrive in 90 days to “replace what are historically the worst-performing cadillacs on AUAB,” James said. He did not specify what company or companies could be awarded the contracts.
The base is also working to move more airmen from the older Coalition Compound complex, or CC, quarters to the newer BPC living quarters, but the funding would come through the fiscal 2017 budget, James said.
“These 28 blocks would provide 2,106 bedspaces with 112 latrine/shower rooms. We are preparing the documentation to push to AFCENT to compete for possible funding next year,” he said.
Check out more from the 379th’s Facebook post below:
Oriana Pawlyk covers deployments, cyber, Guard/Reserve, uniforms, physical training, crime and operations in the Middle East and Europe for Air Force Times. She was the Early Bird Brief editor in 2015. Email her at opawlyk@airforcetimes.com.
