Support agencies work to assist residents through outage

  • Published
  • By Mark Wyatt
  • 66th Air Base Group Public Affairs

HANSCOM AIR FORCE BASE, Mass. – The Military and Family Readiness Center and other helping agencies will be at the Youth Center on Saturday, Sept. 24 and Sunday, Sept. 25 from 8 a.m. to 4 p.m. to provide assistance to residents affected by the power outage.

The Youth Center has been open for privatized housing residents who need access to receive updates or charge phones since Thursday evening. The facility is open 24/7 until power is fully restored to housing.

Officials understand the outage has been a challenge for many families living on the installation and the support team is helping residents through filing claims or navigate the financial support process.

According to the base legal office, for some residents, filing claims through their insurance carriers may be an option.

“Residents are encouraged to contact their insurance carrier first to determine if they are eligible to file a claim for financial compensation as a result of food loss,” said Capt. Patrick Hoerle, 66th Air Base Group Judge Advocate Office attorney. “Air Force personnel may also have the option to file a claim through the Air Force Claims Service Center.”

Other personnel living on the installation may have the option to file through their respective service, according to Hoerle. Department of the Air Force, Navy and Coast Guard personnel can learn more about the filing process by completing DD Form 1842 and following these directions: Air Force Claims Process for Personal Property Damage or Navy Claims Process for Personal Property Loss. Members of the Coast Guard can file claims through the Coast Guard Claims Division.

According to Army Directive 2019-21, “the Army will no longer pay claims for unusual occurrences under the Personnel Claims Act when the damage is caused by flood, hurricane, earthquake, or other acts of nature or weather phenomena.”

For further information about filing claims with their branch of service, visit the Youth Center from noon to 4 p.m. Sept. 24 or Sept. 25 for assistance.

For those without renter’s insurance and require immediate financial assistance, service-specific support may also be available.

Department of the Air Force personnel may apply for financial assistance through the Air Force Aid Society.

Air and Space Force active duty, retired and Air National Guard and Reserve personnel can apply for assistance through Air Force Aid Society by registering for an account using their personal email address, according to Military and Family Readiness Center officials.

Sister services living on the installation have similar options available at the following:

Navy/Marine Corps Active Duty, Retired and Reserves
Contact the Navy-Marine Corps Relief Society at Newport Naval Station at 401-841-7342 or visit https://www.nmcrs.org/locations/entry/newport  

Army Active Duty, Retired, Reserves, and Army National Guard
Contact the Natick Soldier Systems Center at 508-206-4026 or visit https://www.armyemergencyrelief.org/

Coast Guard Active Duty, Auxiliary, Coast Guard Civilians, Reserve and Retirees
Coast Guard Mutual Assistance at U.S. Coast Guard Base Boston
Christopher M. Ricketts at 617-223-3473 or by email at Christopher.m.ricketts@uscg.mil

Food Pantries in Bedford and Lexington, Massachusetts, are also available for those requiring assistance.

Bedford Food Pantry: Visit https://www.bedfordfoodpantry.org/content/our-services or call 781-275-7727

Lexington Food Pantry: Visit https://www.lexingtonfoodpantry.org/ or call 781-861-5060

While generator power has been in place to more than 700 homes on the installation since early Friday morning, many facilities remain without power.