MARINE CORPS BASE QUANTICO, Va. -- By now, activities and tenant commands aboard Marine Corps Base Quantico are to have informed their personnel about which of them are considered emergency and essential personnel, expected to report to work despite severe weather.
In cases of inclement weather, the base uses a four-tiered color-coding system to let employees know who should be coming to work when.
“If conditions are so bad we have to change the base operating status to red, not a lot of people should be coming in,” said Pete Streng, director of the base Operations Division.
The base operating status should be updated by 4 a.m. and can be checked on the base website, Facebook page and hotline, and it will be disseminated via local television and radio stations.
At green status, everyone is expected to report to work on time. In a code-yellow situation, reasonable delays are excused, and unscheduled leave is authorized, but the base is open as usual. Code blue means the base will open late to allow for snow-clearing operations, and the announcement will be accompanied by the time the base will open. Under a code red, only emergency and essential personnel should come to work.
These employees are to report to work under all operating statuses, and they should have been designated by their commands by Nov. 1.
Streng said tenant commands who want to make their own decisions regarding their operating status are responsible for communicating them clearly to their employees.
Under codes yellow through red, personnel should contact their chain of command for specific guidance or direction.
Streng said the color codes apply not only to snow but to any inclement weather, such as the “derecho” wind storm of 2012. “It really is a statement about how well the base is able to support tenant activities and essential functions,” he said.
The base’s operating status can be found on the base website, www.quantico.marines.mil, on the Facebook page, www.facebook.com/marinecorpsbasequantico, or via the base hotline, 703-784-3638.
— Writer: mdicicco@quanticosentryonline.com