Details
On the morning of Saturday, November 5th, KC received a call from Mike McIntyre reporting that the field gate had been broken into. The vandals also removed several screws from the roof of our metal structure and the wind probably increased the damage. KC notified the Kitsap County Sherriff's office and the Kitsap County Parks Department. After contacting some other club members, he headed out to the field to assess the damage, take pictures, and try to effect repairs.
Greg met KC at the airfield and they examined the gate. The vandals had apparently taken a Sawzall to reach between the two lock boxes on the gate. Later, back at his shop, Greg was able to reconfigure the locking bar and return it and the gate to working order.
There were ten metal roof panels on the ground from the structure. Many of the screws that the vandals had removed were also on the ground. It appears that they unscrewed them and hoped that the high winds and rain from Thursday evening and Friday would remove the remaining roof panels.
A deputy from the Kitsap Sherriff’s office arrived to take pictures and make a report. He also indicated that on Thursday morning he drove past our gate and there was a Black Dodge truck with a flat bed trailer behind it parked in front of our gate. He thought that was very odd, but he couldn’t stop because he was responding to a robbery. He did state that he’s seen the truck before in other suspicious areas.
After the Sherriff's deputy left, Greg went home to notify the club that more members were needed to come out to make the repairs necessary to preserve the structure. We all should extend our sincerest thanks to KC, Greg Tinius, Terry Hubbard, Rick Fuller, Mike McIntyre, John Calhoun, and Duane Barrett for coming out on short notice to help. Although the wind "assisted" them on numerous occasions, they were able to complete the repairs during the dry period. They straighten many of the panels and were able to get them all back on the structure.
And in a final note, KC asked the Parks Department if they could assist us in providing better security at the gate and on Monday, they responded. A staff member was going out that morning to take a look at the gate and its locking mechanism to see if they could come up with a way to beef up its security. They will keep us informed.
Recommendations
Below are some thoughts on how to prevent, prepare for, and respond to similar acts in the future:
- If you see a suspicious vehicle near the airfield entrance, take a picture including the license number and forward it to the club president to be kept for possible future use.
- If you see any suspect vandalism or anything strange going on when you arrive at the field, please contact the club president and/or vice president immediately. And please, always be diligent when entering and leaving the field
