Port Wentworth, Georgia

May 2, 2018Military C-130 Plane Crash

Actual Crash Scene

Multi-Jurisdictional Response

Who Responded & Who was in Charge

• Initially all local municipalities (Fire/Rescue/Police), GDOT, Georgia State Patrol responded along with 165th fire brigade.

• Chief Matt Libby, Port Wentworth Police, was the incident commander for approximately the first 48-72 hours.

• Crash Site was secured and locked down by locals and the Government for the multiple investigations.

Transition of Command• Airforce Took command in the 48-72 Hour

window. – Port Wentworth withdrew completely because of the

lack of coordination and communication. – Took military a couple of days for them to get

commander in charge of site.– Little to no direction on what to expect or who was in

charge. – Time lines and dates for the phases to come, were not

nailed down. Or at least as far as GDOT’s knowledge. – Multiple people in charge until the Recovery

Operations Chief (ROC) was named. Communication was a major challenge for GDOT.

Stake Holders• Military

– National Guard Bureau– Air Force– 165th Airlift Wing Air National Guard

• GDOT, EPD,GSP• CSX Railroad• AGL/Southern Company• GA Power Transmission/Distribution• AT & T

Military Control• The Military was given full control of the

scene, including remediation of the roadway. • GDOT kept one person on scene as POC for

Traffic Issues and Coordination Purposes, since the Military enforced full security. *This was critical to recovery success!

GDOT Detour

GDOT’s Resilient Actions• Maintain Detour with long term Traffic Control

devices and utilized Communications Office to keep all partners briefed on traffic conditions.

• GDOT kept one person on scene as GDOT Coordinator…

• Communication with all partners!

Military Communications

The Challenges• Initial Communication with Military not optimum.• How to accomplish the Remediation• Who was Paying for the Remediation…Military

advised they could not reimburse any of the stakeholders for recovery process.

• Who was writing the Scope of Work

• Determination of what was damaged

GDOT’s Position• Federal Government could not provide

payment to GDOT if they self performed.• GDOT had to determine next steps based on

the refund payment issue.• User Costs for the detour was approximately

$40,000 per day for each day the detour was in place.

How the Work was Accomplished

• The Savannah District of the USACOE was brought on board to utilize their contract mechanism.– They had a active contract with Omaha District

they could use to hire a contractor.– This avenue was a legal way for payment – They secured Bristol Remediation Services (BERS-

WESTON SERVICES JVA, LLC)

SITE PREPARATIONS

• R/W Determination / Access Agreements / Right of Entry

• Utility Locates (public/private) and Dig Permit• Storm Water BMP installation• Mobilization and set-up of mobile command

center/office trailer (Remediation Contractor)

INITIAL SCOPE OF WORK• Soil Screening / contamination delineation• Clear and stage burned / dead vegetation• Excavate / stockpile contaminated media• Confirmation sampling • Mill 2 inches asphalt / stockpile

SUBSEQUENT SCOPE OF WORK / MODIFICATIONS

• Load out of stockpiled wastes• Backfilling and grade restoration• Asphalt paving• Sign Replacement• Pavement Markings• Erosion Control & Grassing

Area Tarped to minimize infiltration due rain forecast - 146,000 SQ FT

Provided access for rainfall to enter the drainage system

Utility Owners on Site for Safety of Underground Facilities

Testing for Contaminants

Impact Area

Median/Impact Area

Military contract did not allow immediate backfilling…caused issues with washing

Median

Tree Damage on West Side

Back Filling East Side

Weather Challenges

Protecting underground gas mains.

Tarping helped protect gas mains.

Impact Area had highest level of contamination.

Contaminated Soil Stockpile

Lab Results Required Additional Removal

Average Mill depth was 1 ½ inches on mainline

Tree Removal Required on R/R Right of Way

Final Grading of Impact Area of Median

Erosion Control

Trees Removed and Grassing Complete

Timeline of Events• 02 May -2018 Incident happened

• 31-May-2018: – Complete paving and striping operations on Highway 21.

• 04-June-2018:– Begin full backfill / grading operations on GADOT road median and shoulders.

• 05-June-2018:– Begin load-out of stockpiled soils for disposal at Republic Services.

• 07-June-2018:– Complete load-out of stockpiled soils for disposal at Republic Services.

• 08-June-2018:– Open Roadway to traffic

• 09-June-2018:– Complete final site restoration and cleanup.

What would we do different• Possibly Self Perform the work…discuss

financial issue at later date….– GDOT could have started the remediation within

our ROW on May 12th, the road could have been opened by May 16th.

• Would not use the roadway as a storage site– This complicated the road opening, due to loading

out and truck traffic.– The contaminated soil was cleared by the

regulator and laws to direct haul.