Airport terminal at risk

By Uriah A. Kiser

Published: June 6, 2008

STAFFORD — As businesses along Centreport Parkway continue to pick up the pieces from last month’s damaging tornado, an official at Stafford Regional Airport said the damage is so extensive that the airport could lose its entire terminal.

The May 8 tornado that devastated areas of the England Run subdivision in Berea, passed near the airport and lifted debris onto the terminal’s roof.
The debris, which was mostly leaves picked up by winds, clogged the gutter system on the building, causing water to seep into the terminal’s walls, according to the airport’s manager, Ed Wallis.

Because of the clogged gutters, up to two inches of standing water collected on the terminal’s floor, and left the facility with a bad case of black mold on the walls.

“It’s a serious problem here. That’s why we wanted to take care of it as soon as possible,” said Wallis.

The most affected areas of the doublewide trailer-like terminal were the training offices and administrative conference room, where the monthly regional airport authority meetings are held.

Wallis said breathing the black mold is dangerous, and the facility was closed immediately following, until inspectors could deem the facility safe to inhabit.

Once deemed safe, airport staff began removing the walls and ceiling of the affected areas, and putting plastic over them to cover the mold.

The Fed-Ex shipping facility, also located on Centreport Parkway, was also damaged by the tornado. The tornado’s winds blew out five garage doors in a 200-foot section of the building. The facility also suffered roof damage.

“It just peeled us open like a can opener,” said Dave Calabriese, manager at the FedEx facility.

Calabriese said the damage to the doors cost an estimated $18,000 to repair. He is still awaiting an estimate on the roof.

The center processes packages for both business and residential shipping. Calabriese said no packages were affected by the storm.

“In fact, our [number of packages] went up just after the storm,” said Calabriese.

The airport authority has yet to receive a total estimate on the damage it incurred at the facility.

Wallis said they are waiting on the airport authority’s insurance provider, and the insurer of the actual building, to work out an agreement on the total cost of the damage.

Wallis said losing the terminal remains a real possibility because the mold damage may be too expensive to repair.

If adjusters deem it necessary to tear the terminal down, Wallis said a temporary trailer will be constructed directly behind the old one, and airport business should not be affected.

The announcement comes at a time of sluggish economic performance at the airport, where fuel sales are down nearly 16 percent over last year.

“It’s just the slowing economy,” said Wallis.

The airport makes its money on the sale of jet fuel, sold to pilots who operate small aircraft for both personal and business use.

When contacted, Stafford County Supervisor Joe Brito, I-Hartwood, said he was not aware of such damage to the airport’s terminal.

The next Stafford Regional Airport Authority meeting will be held June 10 at 8:30 a.m. at the Stafford County Administration Center on Courthouse Road. It is open to the public.