AEDC Information Line established to advise ATA employees of road conditions in bad weather

  • Published
  • By Patrick Ary
  • AEDC/PA
ARNOLD AIR FORCE BASE, Tenn. --  On the eve of Jan. 20, many weather forecasters were readying people for a potentially icy commute to work the next morning.

The next morning any Aerospace Testing Alliance (ATA) employee wondering what the conditions were at Arnold Engineering Development Center (AEDC) just had to call the new AEDC Information Line at 454-3600 to find out.

"This message pertains to ATA personnel only and is effective as of Jan. 21, at 0300 local," the message stated. "AEDC is open for normal operations. Road conditions are passable; however, caution should be exercised due to the possibility of icy intersections, side streets, and parking lots."

It's a welcome message for employees who drive in from counties all around the area on a daily basis and need information that could keep them safe during their commute.

In fact, the snow event on Jan. 9-10 that dropped several inches of snow across Middle Tennessee and kept some ATA employees from reporting to work was the impetus for creating the AEDC Information Line.

"This winter has been unique," said ATA Director of Resource Provisioning David Eldridge. "We experienced two significant snow/ice events by early January. Since most of these type events occur overnight, we knew employees would wonder if the base was open for normal operations and how the road conditions were before they left for work.

"An information line seemed to be the best option for making weather related emergency information available to our employees. This line can handle 40 simultaneous callers - the phone continues to ring for the next caller until one of those lines is vacated."

The line was previously used by Air Force Public Affairs as a Straight Talk line, now changed to 454-4204.

When weather-related emergencies occur, such as the recent major snow/ice events, a message will be placed on the line providing the caller with the level of impact to base operating hours, conditions of the base roadways, and any specific driving hazards that exist at the time.

There are five different condition messages a caller to the Information Line may hear depending upon the conditions that exist. They range in severity from Condition One - which was the case with the light snow on Jan. 26 - to Condition Five, which is a complete base closure.

The information for those conditions will come from AEDC police monitoring road conditions, Eldridge said. They relay the information to base police Chief Rick Trull. The chief or the director of the Support Services Department, Pat Eagan, can make the call on Condition Levels One through Three. Condition Four and Five designations must be approved by the ATA Office of the General Manager.

Conditions Four and Five, which include some level of base closure, would only be used in extremely hazardous and rare situations. Over the 60-year history of AEDC there have been only a few such events.

"We do not anticipate that we will ever need to declare Condition Four or Five but if we do, we will be prepared," Eldridge said.

Right now the intent of the Information Line is to focus on winter weather emergencies, but the line is available to disseminate information on a wide variety of emergency circumstances (tornadoes, floods, etc,) that may directly affect AEDC. It is also being used for non-weather related emergencies, such as the recent ethylene glycol problem.

"If a weather emergency arises that may have impact on the base operations or to driving conditions that would be relevant for their drive into work, then we would put that information out there," Eldridge said.

Employees should always be aware of driving hazards. Severe weather may occur at any time of the day and with little warning. Circumstances may not warrant a special Information Line message or there may be insufficient time to forewarn employees of potential road hazards. Each of us should always exercise the proper level of caution while driving during inclement weather.

To access the Information Line, ATA employees can call 454-3600. The message recorded on the line will always be prefaced with the date and time, to ensure employees get the timely information they are looking for.