Glenn Mahone/Doc Mirelson Feb. 19, 2003 <br />Headquarters, Washington<br />202-358-1600<br /><br />Eileen M. Hawley<br />Johnson Space Center, Houston<br />281-483-5111<br /><br />RELEASE: 03-076<br /><br />SPACE SHUTTLE COLUMBIA SEARCH AND RECOVERY ENTERS NEW PHASE<br /><br /> The search for materials from the Space Shuttle <br />Columbia accident is entering a new phase. NASA is <br />consolidating two of the primary search coordination field <br />offices and establishing four incident command posts and <br />base camps. <br /><br />The search is intensifying based on initial success with <br />grid-search techniques, and because spring vegetation growth <br />is expected to make recovery efforts more difficult. <br /><br />Immediately after the accident, NASA established several <br />different local command and coordination field offices at <br />Barksdale Air Force Base at Shreveport, La., the Lufkin <br />Emergency Operations Center in Lufkin, Texas, and Naval Air <br />Station, Joint Reserve Base (Carswell Field), Fort Worth, <br />Texas. The Lufkin, Barksdale and Carswell operations will be <br />consolidated at Lufkin this week.<br /><br />The consolidation at Lufkin is designed for better <br />coordination of search and recovery operations. Barksdale <br />will continue to be the receiving and shipping point for <br />Columbia materials being sent to NASA¹s Kennedy Space Center <br />in Florida for final identification.<br /> <br />Four interagency command posts and base camps are being <br />established in Corsicana, Hemphill, Nacogdoches and <br />Palestine, Texas, to direct intensified ground searches. <br />Inter-agency management teams are being deployed to the <br />camps to conduct searches. Up to 3,500 searchers, made up of <br />personnel from a variety of federal and state land <br />management agencies, and fire departments, will operate out <br />of the camps under a management structure typically used in <br />support of wildfires. Teams of approximately 20 trained <br />wilderness firefighters will operate out of the camps, and <br />each team will conduct grid searches.<br /><br />In addition, air search assets are being increased to 35 <br />helicopters. The helicopters, provided by land management <br />agencies and the 3,500 searchers will be working in an area <br />that is 240 miles long. The area runs from Ellis County, <br />south of Dallas, to Toledo Bend Reservoir on the Texas-<br />Louisiana border. Air searches will concentrate on a 10-<br />mile-wide corridor five miles on either side of that line. <br />Ground searches will concentrate on a four-mile-wide <br />corridor two miles on either side of that line. Air searches <br />will be conducted from Lufkin and Palestine, Texas.<br /><br />The U.S. Navy is continuing to manage water recovery <br />operations in East Texas reservoirs, including Lake <br />Nacogdoches and Toledo Bend Reservoir. The underwater search <br />is using side-scanning sonar and dive teams from the Navy <br />and other organizations.<br /><br />NASA continues to encourage citizens to report finding any <br />materials suspected to be materials from the Columbia <br />accident. Citizens are reminded Shuttle materials may not <br />look like typical aircraft components. Pictures of examples <br />of Shuttle debris may be viewed at the following website:<br /><br />www.nasa.gov/columbia/COL_debris_pix.html<br /><br />Anyone who discovers material suspected to be from the <br />accident is urged to avoid contact, because it may be <br />hazardous as a result of toxic propellants aboard the <br />Shuttle. <br /><br />Telephone debris reports should be made by calling, toll-<br />free:<br /><br />1-866-446-6603<br /><br />Text reports and images should be e-mailed to: <br /><br />columbiaimages@nasa.gov<br /><br />All debris is U.S. Government property and is critical to <br />the investigation of the mishap. All debris from the <br />accident should be left in place and reported to Government <br />authorities. Unauthorized persons found in possession of <br />accident debris will be prosecuted to the full extent of the <br />law. <br /><br /><br />-end-