[Congressional Record Volume 152, Number 122 (Tuesday, September 26, 2006)]
[House]
[Pages H7486-H7488]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




RECOGNIZING THE DEDICATION OF THE EMPLOYEES AT THE STENNIS SPACE CENTER

  Mr. HALL. Mr. Speaker, I move to suspend the rules and agree to the 
resolution (H. Res. 948) recognizing the dedication of the employees at 
the National Aeronautics and Space Administration's Stennis Space 
Center who, during and after Hurricane Katrina's assault on 
Mississippi, provided shelter and medical care to storm evacuees and 
logistical support for storm recovery efforts, while effectively 
maintaining critical facilities at the Center.
  The Clerk read as follows:

                              H. Res. 948

       Whereas, during Hurricane Katrina, some 3,700 persons 
     (including employees, their immediate and extended families, 
     and members of the general public), sought shelter at the 
     Stennis Space Center;
       Whereas the Stennis cafeteria, which normally serves about 
     175 breakfasts and 600 lunches each day, served 3,000 meals 3 
     times a day to evacuees, for a period of a week following the 
     storm;
       Whereas before, during, and in the immediate aftermath of 
     the storm, the small staff of the Stennis Medical Clinic 
     provided medical care to all who needed it among the evacuees 
     onsite, including some 20 special needs patients, and soon 
     after the storm, the Stennis clinic staff was complemented by 
     medical personnel airlifted from other National Aeronautics 
     and Space Administration Centers;
       Whereas, although commercial electrical power was not 
     available to Stennis for 10 days following the storm, 
     electrical power was maintained to all essential buildings 
     through the extensive use of diesel-powered generators and 
     the around the clock efforts of a team of individuals who 
     mechanically maintained those generators and kept them 
     fueled, also enabling the pumps on Stennis' deep-water wells 
     to provide a continuous supply of potable water for drinking, 
     cooking, and sanitation to support the 3,700 people onsite;
       Whereas a team of employees in the Stennis rocket 
     propulsion test complex protected the health of all test 
     infrastructure, employing innovative methods to ensure an 
     uninterrupted supply of purge gases to all required facility 
     infrastructure and test hardware, failure of which would have 
     resulted in untold millions of dollars of new costs to clean, 
     purge, and recertify these facilities for Space Shuttle Main 
     Engine and other propulsion system testing;
       Whereas for 10 days following the storm, logistical support 
     (including food, water, medical supplies, and personnel 
     exchange) of the National Aeronautics and Space 
     Administration Michoud Assembly Facility in New Orleans was 
     provided via helicopters operating from the Stennis Space 
     Center, along with helicopters, and flight crew and security 
     personnel, from the Marshall Space Flight and Kennedy Space 
     Centers; and
       Whereas, immediately following the storm, Stennis Space 
     Center facilitated the use of its property as the site of the 
     Federal Emergency Management Agency's Incident Command Center 
     serving a 6-county area along the Mississippi Gulf Coast, and 
     Stennis served as the central distribution hub for disaster 
     response supplies to those same counties, including, during 
     the nearly 2-months of Federal Emergency Management Agency 
     relief operations at Stennis, distributing more than 
     7,600,000 gallons of water, 41,000,000 pounds of ice, and 
     3,500,000 MREs (meals-ready-to-eat) to devastated areas via 
     the Stennis Space Center hub: Now, therefore, be it
       Resolved,  That the House of Representatives commends the 
     dedication of the employees who stayed behind at the National 
     Aeronautics and Space Administration's Stennis Space Center, 
     who, during and after Hurricane Katrina's assault on 
     Mississippi, provided shelter and medical care to storm 
     evacuees and logistical support for storm recovery efforts, 
     while effectively maintaining critical facilities at the 
     Center, including Cheryl Bennett, James Bevis, Terry 
     Bordelon, Steve Brettel, Vicki Brown, Bill Brumfield, Kirt 
     Bush, Paul Byrd, Ethan Calder, Marla Carpenter, David 
     Carstens, Jonathan Clemens, Eric Crawford, Cheri Cuevas, John 
     Davenport, David Del Santo, Isaac DeLancey, Jim Freeman, Greg 
     Garrett, Dave Geiger, Stan Gill, Don Griffith, Haynes 
     Haselmaier, Coby Holloway, Gay Irby, Manning ``JJ'' Jones, 
     Catriona Ladner, David Ladner, Richard Ladner, Stanley Lee, 
     Michelle Logan, Ron Magee, Sharlene Majors, Steve McCord, Pat 
     McCullough, Michael McDaniel, Mike McKinion, Kirk Miller, 
     John Mitchell, Ron Moore, David R. Oakes, Kevin A. Oliver, 
     Alan Phillips, John Nick Pitalo, Allen Price, Porter Pryor, 
     Margaret Roberts, Miguel Rodriguez, Jason Saucier, Dale 
     Sewell, Donald Seymore, Kathy Slade, Sue Smith, David 
     Throckmorton, Karen Vander, John Waquespack, Rodney 
     Wilkinson, Robert Williams, and Michael J. Witt.

  The SPEAKER pro tempore. Pursuant to the rule, the gentleman from 
Texas (Mr. Hall) and the gentleman from Colorado (Mr. Udall) each will 
control 20 minutes.
  The Chair recognizes the gentleman from Texas.


                             General Leave

  Mr. HALL. Mr. Speaker, I ask unanimous consent that all Members may 
have 5 legislative days to revise and extend their remarks and to 
include extraneous material on H. Res. 948, the resolution now under 
consideration.
  The SPEAKER pro tempore. Is there objection to the request of the 
gentleman from Texas?
  There was no objection.
  Mr. HALL. Mr. Speaker, I yield myself such time as I may consume.
  Mr. Speaker, I rise in support of House Resolution 948, a resolution 
recognizing the stalwart NASA employees who performed beyond their day-
to-day duties to establish the Stennis Space Center as a logistical 
emergency center for a large region of the southern Mississippi coast 
leading up to, during, and in the aftermath of Hurricane Katrina.
  The Stennis Space Center's runway, which served all of southern 
Mississippi, as well as the New Orleans area, was cleared within a day. 
This alone allowed flights with food stuffs, generators and medical 
supplies to land and also allowed for the medical evacuation of storm 
survivors.
  Nearly 3,700 persons, including employees and their families, as well 
as the local public sought refuge at the Stennis facility for weeks 
following the disaster. Despite this overwhelming tragedy, the 
employees at the Stennis factory were back to work and excited about 
their upcoming role in the Vision For Space Exploration.
  Excitement about their work and about the future shows the drive and 
ingenuity of the American people at its best. I want to join in 
expressing my admiration for those exceptional people who showed the 
strength and the spirit of America.
  Mr. Speaker, I reserve the balance of my time.
  Mr. UDALL of Colorado. Mr. Speaker, I yield myself such time as I may 
consume.
  I want to speak in strong support of this resolution, 948, which is a 
resolution that honors the dedication of the employees of the National 
Aeronautics and Space Administration's Stennis Space Center, who stayed 
at their posts during Hurricane Katrina and protected critical space 
program assets.
  In addition, they provided shelter and medical care to storm 
evacuees, and they provided logistical support for storm recovery 
efforts.
  Mr. Speaker, as you may recall during late August of last year, 
Hurricane Katrina severely assaulted southeast Louisiana and the 
Mississippi coast, resulting in massive damage and the evacuation of 
large numbers of citizens.
  Yet, in the midst of the storm there were countless examples of 
heroism. One example is the way in which employees of the Stennis Space 
Center stayed and protected the facility instead of fleeing the area.
  These great Americans deserve our thanks and praise for their 
dedication to working to preserve Stennis during Hurricane Katrina's 
passage through the region.
  Among their accomplishments was the protection of critical test 
infrastructure at the rocket propulsion text complex. The Stennis Space 
Center plays an important role in the United States space program. By 
risking their own lives, these brave individuals ensured that the 
Center was preserved as a viable facility in spite of the devastation 
wrought by this Hurricane.
  But these individuals are also worthy of recognition for their 
efforts to assist their fellow citizens who were affected by the storm. 
During the hurricane, almost 3,700 people took refuge at the center. 
The employees who remained helped feed, provide medical care and 
maintain electrical power for all of those on site. The space center 
also served as the site of the Federal Emergency Management Agency's 
incident command center for the parts of the Gulf Coast impacted by 
Katrina.
  In short, without the dedication of the employees listed in the 
resolution before us today, the consequences of Katrina's passage 
through the region would have been far worse. Mr. Speaker, it is only 
fitting and proper that we

[[Page H7487]]

honor those brave individuals for their heroic deeds. I strongly urge 
the passage of House Resolution 948.
  Mr. Speaker, I reserve the balance of my time.
  Mr. HALL. Mr. Speaker, I reserve the balance of my time.
  Mr. UDALL of Colorado. Mr. Speaker, I yield such time as he may 
consume to my good friend, Congressman Taylor, from the coast of 
Mississippi who firsthand experienced the effects of Hurricane Katrina, 
and who himself is a hero for the way he stood tall and was there on 
the ground helping people who were affected by the Hurricane.
  I think it is only suitable and only proper that Congressman Taylor 
shares his point of view with us.
  Mr. TAYLOR of Mississippi. Mr. Speaker, let me being by thanking my 
colleagues in the Mississippi and Louisiana delegations for 
cosponsoring this.
  Mr. Speaker, I could spend the remainder of this year's session 
naming south Mississippians who on an individual basis rose to the 
occasion and performed heroic deeds. Tonight we want to thank the 
employees of the Stennis Space Center for the phenomenal job they did 
in Hancock County, a county that 90 percent of the homes were either 
destroyed outright or severely damaged, a county where the vast 
majority of it was underwater for at least a substantial portion of the 
day.
  Mr. Speaker, one of the interesting sidelights, my colleague and 
friend, Congressman Hall mentioned, the Stennis Space Center runway, a 
10,000 runway that was open the next day after the storm in order to 
bring in vital supplies.
  What the Congressman probably would never guess is that the person 
who opened that runway was the 13-year-old son of the airport manager, 
a young man by the name of Billy Cotter. His family had lost their home 
in Bay St. Louis. Knowing that the home was gone, they had gone out to 
the Stennis Space Center, moved into the dad's office. The dad's office 
had taken about waist-deep water, had about 6 inches of mud on the 
floor.
  And realizing that that runway was the vital link in a county that 
almost all of the bridges coming to and from it had been destroyed, 13-
year-old Billy Cotter hops on the street sweeper, gets out there, and 
the next day cleared the runway of, I am told, snakes, branches, trees, 
and had the runway up and running by Tuesday afternoon, which is 
absolutely remarkable for anyone, but in particular a young boy.
  A reporter passes through the next day, and in trying a write a good 
news story of Katrina, looks over and notices that the helicopter that 
he was traveling in was being refueled by this little kid. And thinking 
it is pretty remarkable, goes up and hands the kid a $20 bill. The kid 
runs over to the refueling truck, opens the door and his pet dog is 
sitting in the driver's seat.
  The kid is so thrilled to get the $20 bill, he shows the 20 to the 
dog. And of course OSHA and every other agency of occupational safety 
in America probably would have gone berserk.
  But again here is Billy Cotter, 13 years old, running the street 
sweeper, refueling helicopters that are bringing in the life-saving 
goods. Billy really epitomizes the work that was going on out there, 
and the people pitching in doing what had to be done.
  Mr. Speaker, the other person I want to mention also, in addition to 
great work of Stennis employees, on the day after Easter, a convoy of 
the 155th Mississippi National Guard was attacked in Iraq.
  One of the drivers, a young Mississippi State student who had been 
activated for the war, a fellow by the name of William Brooks was 
severely wounded, lost both legs. He spends a lot of time at Walter 
Reed.
  In the course of that, I had asked the folks at Mississippi State 
University if William was up to it, if he would do an internship, would 
they give him credit for his studies. For whatever reason, William 
chose not to take me up on that offer until the day after the storm.
  The day after the storm, after many months of recuperating at Walter 
Reed Hospital, William finds some money for a cab fare, has the cab 
bring him to Capitol Hill, shows up at my office, says something to my 
staff that is kind of overwhelmed at this point, and says: ``I figured 
you all could use some help.''
  And for the next couple of weeks, since the phones are down in 
Mississippi, and when a Mississippian can finally get to a phone and 
make a call looking for some assistance, almost all of those calls came 
to the Washington office.
  Young William Brooks, who had been severely wounded in Iraq, was 
there answering the phone helping people. Again, I know the hour is 
late and I could tell 8,000 stories like that. But tonight we want to 
talk about the great work of the Stennis Space Center, so many of whom 
had lost their own homes, so many of whom retreated to the Space 
Center.
  First thing, here is a place to take care of their families, but then 
pitching in and taking care of approximately 4,000 other south 
Mississippians who found themselves in the same predicament. So we want 
to commend the staff at the Stennis Space Center, Admiral Donaldson, 
who was in charge of leading the space center at that time, and all of 
the people out there for doing a phenomenal job of taking care of 
themselves, their families and the people who had retreated to the 
Stennis Space Center looking for hope in the aftermath of the storm.
  What is really remarkable about my fellow south Mississippians is 
that the extremely high percentage of people who had lost their own 
homes, be their firemen, policemen, civil servants, the airport 
manager, fill-in-the blank, but who kept going to work, taking care of 
others, knowing that there really was not much that they could do for 
themselves, but they were in a position to help someone else.
  That is the kind of spirit that has gotten Mississippi going back in 
the right direction. We still have a heck of a lot of work to do, but 
because of the good work done by the folks at the Stennis Space Center, 
William Brooks, Billy Cotter and so many others in south Mississippi, 
we are at least heading in the right direction.
  I thank you very much for bringing this bill to the floor.
  Mr. HALL. Mr. Speaker, I just want to say that it hurts my heart to 
hear the story that Mr. Taylor has told us. And from the very first day 
he hit this Congress, I intercepted him, and he has been one of my 
dearest friends. Never knowing that he would go through the 
vicissitudes of nature and the hardships that they have undergone, we 
need still to have and invoke the power of prayer for those people and 
for the Taylor family. God bless you, Gene. Thank you for your 
testimony.
  Mr. Speaker, we yield back the balance of our time.
  Mr. UDALL of Colorado. Mr. Speaker, I yield myself such time as I may 
consume.
  Mr. Speaker, I just want to associate myself with the comments of my 
good friend, Representative Hall. And I think I speak for him and every 
other Member of this body when I express the opinion that there is 
nobody that is more respected than Congressman Taylor.
  And we are all in a sense examples of the people in our district. And 
when we watch and work with Congressman Taylor, we know that there are 
thousands of other people in his district that have integrity, that 
have a work ethic that makes us proud. And it is his leadership and his 
courage, I think Judge Hall would agree that have helped the Congress 
continue to do the right thing, although we have much more to do for 
the people of Louisiana and Mississippi to put things to right after 
this terrible natural disaster.
  Ms. JACKSON-LEE of Texas. Mr. Speaker, I rise in support of H. Res. 
948, recognizing the dedication of the employees at the National 
Aeronautics and Space Administration's Stennis Space Center.
  I cannot honor and commend these employees enough for their heroism 
during and after Hurricane Katrina's assault on Mississippi. The 
Stennis Space Center employees provided shelter and medical care to 
storm evacuees and logistical support for storm recovery efforts, while 
effectively maintaining critical facilities at the center.
  During Hurricane Katrina, some 3,700 persons, including employees, 
their immediate and extended families, and members of the general 
public, sought shelter at the Stennis Space Center.
  The Stennis cafeteria, which normally serves about 175 breakfasts and 
600 lunches each day, served 3,000 meals 3 times a day

[[Page H7488]]

to evacuees, for a period of a week following the storm.
  Before, during, and in the immediate aftermath of the storm, the 
small staff of the Stennis Medical Clinic provided medical care to all 
who needed it among the evacuees onsite. This included some 20 special 
needs patients, and soon after the storm, the Stennis clinic staff was 
complemented by medical personnel airlifted from other National 
Aeronautics and Space Administration Centers.
  Although commercial electrical power was not available to Stennis for 
10 days following the storm, electrical power was maintained to all 
essential buildings through the extensive use of diesel-powered 
generators and the around the clock efforts of a team of individuals 
who mechanically maintained those generators and kept them fueled. This 
also enabled the pumps on Stennis's deep-water wells to provide a 
continuous supply of potable water for drinking, cooking, and 
sanitation to support the 3,700 people onsite.
  These brave individuals include: Cheryl Bennett, James Bevis, Terry 
Bordelon, Steve Brettel, Vicki Brown, Bill Brumfield, Kirt Bush, Paul 
Byrd, Ethan Calder, Marla Carpenter, David Carstens, Jonathan Clemens, 
Eric Crawford, Cheri Cuevas, John Davenport, David Del Santo, Isaac 
DeLancey, Jim Freeman, Greg Garrett, Dave Geiger, Stan Gill, Don 
Griffith, Haynes Haselmaier, Coby Holloway, Gay Irby, Manning ``JJ'' 
Jones, Catriona Ladner, David Ladner, Richard Ladner, Stanley Lee, 
Michelle Logan, Ron Magee, Sharlene Majors, Steve McCord, Pat 
McCullough, Michael McDaniel, Mike McKinion, Kirk Miller, John 
Mitchell, Ron Moore, David R. Oakes, Kevin A. Oliver, Alan Phillips, 
John Nick Pitalo, Allen Price, Porter Pryor, Margaret Roberts, Miguel 
Rodriguez, Jason Saucier, Dale Sewell, Donald Seymore, Kathy Slade, Sue 
Smith, David Throckmorton, Karen Vander, John Waquespack, Rodney 
Wilkinson, Robert Williams, and Michael J. Witt.
  Thank you, to all of these employees, for their selfless and 
honorable actions. I urge my colleagues to support this measure.
  Mr. UDALL of Colorado. Mr. Speaker, I yield back the balance of my 
time.
  The SPEAKER pro tempore. The question is on the motion offered by the 
gentleman from Texas (Mr. Hall) that the House suspend the rules and 
agree to the resolution, H. Res. 948.
  The question was taken; and (two-thirds having voted in favor 
thereof) the rules were suspended and the resolution was agreed to.
  A motion to reconsider was laid on the table.

                          ____________________