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Show I VoU31no.11 JT June5,1986 Dugway, Utah ?Published in the interest of the personnel of Dugway Proving Ground" Weather makes fire outlook bad, un preventable this year by Usa Slmunacl The last three years have been bad for brush fires here and this year will doilbtfully show any relief according to Fire Chief Jack Skinner. - "We have been seeing the same cycle over the last few years," Skinner said. "When the spring season is wet, ,the June grass grows. The grass gets high and dry in the summer making good fuel for brush fires." Soldiers of Headquarters and Headquarters Company who make up the Installation Reserve Force (IRF) will soon ceive annual fire-fighti- ng re- train- ing. During bad summer fires, the IRF is called upon to back up the fire department. Working with the IRF is an unusual situation, said the fire chief. "But it's one The north fence line also poses a problem. "It's hard to that works re-supp- playing with matches and other preventable causes." "Safety is always a. major . extremely well The IRF usually works many hours and it does a heck of a job." The fire department is equipped with four vehicles and one truck. ."Getting water is always a problem and many times we use the decon trucks from Materiel Test for support." IRF members will be trained on how the vehicles operate and how to put out fires with shovels and water-fille- d backpacks. One of the main problems in controlling fires here is getting a fire break there and our main concern is not to let the fire get off post.''. The majority of, the fires here threaten the north fence line. When a fire leaves post, "it's nothing but bad news," Skinner i said. "It brings on a lot of prob-- : lems with the ranchers and sometimes has resulted in law suits against the government." The Bureau of Land Manage- ment is on standby for fires that , may go off the installation. Though Skinner expects a bad fire season he said the majority of them aren't preventable. About 75 percent are caused by lightning; testing and vehicles account for the rest of the majority. "Only about one percent concern," Skinner said. "Accidents do happen, but not often." In his six years here he recalled three injuries of IRF personnel. : ly : im The most serious was when one of the fire vehicles backed over a man and hospitalized him with serious injuries. With the presence of smoke, the large vehicles pose the great-- . est safety problem, Skinner said. "People have to be on their toes. Fighting fires in the night also decreases the safety margin." Things look different in the 1 : ; ; : access to them Skinner said. "When a fire is burning, in an area that is difficult to get to, we usually let it burn until it gets down to the valley where we can start controlling it." :f -- I dark, Skinner noted. "You the whole world's but after the hard burning up, work of putting out the fire is done, it's not so bad." might-thin- of fires here are caused by kids k Soldiers from Headquarters and Headquarters Company Installation Reserve Force turn In Are fighting equipment after battling two brush fires that broke out last July. (U.8. Arm.y photo by Lisa Slmunacl) . TechPerulibrary offers DPG knowledge ::PilliiiM;:::l 111 by Michael Having a working knowledge is the key to successfully completing an assignment in school or an assigned mission here. ' Acquiring this knowledgeable state of mind can be done at Dugway's Technical Library, located in rooms 1003 and 1125 of Building 5330. This specialized place of study holds 6,000 books, 250 periodical titles and 33,000 unclassified . technical reports, according to Duane Williamson, : Technical Library Supervisor. There are also , 16,000 classified technical reports, 2,000 foreign intelligence documents and 18,000 documents in mi-- . c I :i crofiche and microfilm form, People who use this library will find that most of the books cover the technical areas of Biology, Chemistry and Physics, said Reed Carlson, who s in charge of the circulation desk. He also pointed out that there are a number of magazines which the library carries, among them Jane's Defence Weekly, Science News, Aviation Week and Space Technology and International Defense Review. The library, which is part of the Technological Analysis and Information Office, also features many popular encyclopedias and reference guides for specialized publications. If there are journals which are not carried by the library, they can be obtained through request. "These are available through the library's loan contract with the University of Utah's main library in Marriott and medical library in Eccles," Carlson said. "If, for example, the Chem Lab or HHC wanted a certain journal, it can be obtained either by filling out a request form or by phoning in their request," he added. The information available at the library is mainly used by students, the facilities which need them and by those interested in technological - fields. Each month, library personnel list new publications which they have received in updating their '"' ' Softball in full swing Both men and women Softball teams started their season this week. Games are played on the field next to the main football field. (U.S. Army photo by Usa Slmunacl) Clinic conducts study on insect bites Over the last several weeks, the staff at the U.S. Army Health Clinic, Dugway has noticed the increasing incidence of insect bites presumed to be 'gnat bites'. In actuality, the main culprit seems to be the 'biting midge' or ' Culicoides variipennis. The syndrome produces any of the follow-in- g symptoms individually or in combination: pinpoint, raised, red, itching lesions particularly to the back of the head on the scalp and the nape of the neck and behind the '.ears tender enlarged lymph nodes to the neck and behind the '' ears low grade fever tight, sore neck muscles This particular insect has been known to be the vector of three different viruses but their role in the spread of actual disease states in humans has, to date, not been well documented. The clinic staff, together with the Center for Disease Control are currently studying this phenomenon in order to offset and identify any particular health hazard to our community. The community participation in the study is critical. Should one decide to participate in the study, we will request the following: ' : : complete a questionnaire about your current symptoms v. v examination by the doctor for these bites and associated hmph nodes 2 or 3 tubes of blood for cell profile and viral titer In approximately six weeks after your initial evaluation, we ' 't current collection. The UJS. Army established this library back in 1952, said Hazel Solomon, secretary in die Document Section. Erica Salomon also of the Document Section stated, "Everything in the library is becoming automated; we are placing the information from our paper documents on computer." This automation is in keeping with a trend cur- . will ask you to return for a second blood draw for a convalescent viral titer. Cooperation in the study is vital and will be most appreciated. VA Med Center holds POW meeting The Salt Lake City VA Medical Center is conducting discussion for former Prisoners of War every other week at the Center. to share their These groups are designed to encourage friends and talk with make like new with others them, experiences someone who understands what happened in the POW camps. ex-PO- The next meeting is scheduled for June 16, 1986 at two p.m. with subsequent meetings every other week. Meetings are held at the VA Medical Center in Salt Lake in Building 13 on the second floor. For further information, please contact Dr. Tom Aikins or Lucille Illeat 584-126- 4. Army celebrates 21 1 birthday "On June 14th the army celebrates its 211th birthday. As in past years, all of us on this day should stop for a moment to reflect on the tradition of our institution in which every one of us in the total army plays such a vital role. "The army's heritage is older than the country we proudly serve. Since colonial days we have answered the call, when freedom has been threatened. Wherever and whenever necessary, we have defended the rights promised in the Declaration of Indepen- k rently taking place in other libraries. With their new technology, personnel at the library will have access to information data bases of other libraries, in addition to other communication data bases, which will provide an unbeliev- able range of information, Williamson said. There is one more plus to this automation the technical library is planning. "An LCLC system will allow the library access to the Library of Con- gress, one of the most comprehensive libraries in the United States. This system will provide the ability to get into both, information data bases of the Department of Defense and other non-defen- se oriented government data bases," Williamson said. Library information will be made available to mission test.Bites at Ditto, Baker and English Village through computer terminals, once the auto- mation phase is completed in an estimated years. This library is diverse in that it not only serves mission needs oh post but also provides for other qualified users within the Department of Defense and other service components as well, Williamson two-and-a-h- alf said. "What tends to make the library valuable is the composition of our collection," Williamson said. "We have a number of different library holdings. Another factor which makes it unique is this is probably the single best collection dealing with open-a- ir testing." This shows the library's orientation of its collection- with regard to chemical .warfare testing and biological defense information, he added. Personnel are also working to supplement the library's collection this fall when they pick up documents from the Naval Biological Science Laboratory in Oakland, California. Other additions to this extraordinary collection will be documents from the old Deseret Test Center at Fort Douglas in Salt Lake City and holdings from Fort Dietrick, Maryland, which include Biological and Defense documents, Williamson said. In addition to the extensive information already available, automation plans and the obtaining of additional material should make Dugway's Technical Library a definite point of interest to all who are concerned with the knowledge it has to offer. dence and guaranteed by the constitution. During these 211 years soldiers have served proudly, knowing that at any time they might be asked to make the ultimate sacrifice to preserve the way of life that they and their countrymen cherish. "Our country has remained strong because men and women of the total army have been willing to give so much. As we approach the bicentennial year of our constitution, all of us can be deeply proud of the army's heritage which we celebrate on this 211th birthday. Let's rededicate ourselves to making the army an even better place to serve and a stronger institution for protecting -- freedom." Anderson commends TECOM Upon my departure as commander of the U.S. Army Test and Evaluation Command, I pass to all of you my sincere appreciation for the support provided to me and my staff over the past 25 months. It has been an extremely val- ued team effort. . and resources personnel turbulence, Despite dwindling the team never waivered. Through their efforts, we are providing today's soldier with the best equipment possible and a capability that will assure their success and survival on any potential battlefield. We are also providing a quality of life for their families that is the best the Army has seen. I commend you all for your assistance and I pass my thanks to the total workforce and its family members. Your efforts have made this assignment my most memorable. Thank you, again, for your support. Test for the best Maj. Gen. Andrew H. Anderson |