SecNav Shocked and Dismayed at Enlisted Living Conditions
Guam Enlisted Housing
“Our people are the heart of our Navy.”
Admiral Lisa Franchetti, 2024
Navy Secretary “Shocked and Dismayed” at Condition of Base Housing on Guam
After the Secretary of the Navy inspected a block of aging barracks on Guam and was “shocked and dismayed” by their poor condition, the U.S. Navy’s top facilities officer has ordered a worldwide review of the condition of all housing for unaccompanied servicemembers.
Vice Adm. Scott Gray, commanding officer of Navy Installations Command, has ordered a global review after the “baffling” discovery of substandard housing on Guam. Photos from the site show exposed wiring, crumblng concrete and visibly corroded plumbing. While concerning, the housing block in question is not Navy-operated: it is maintained by the Air Force.
“The conditions shown in the photos are a failure of leadership across multiple echelons of command,” Gray said in an email obtained by the Project on Government Oversight.
Gray ordered each command to inspect all barracks housing by May 27, and asked them to use the “Washington Post test” to determine if the facilities are up to par – regardless of whether the housing is Navy-owned or belongs to another service.
“If the pictures you have taken or the results of your assessment conducted of a particular facility were published online tomorrow, would you be able to personally justify Sailors living there?” Gray asked commanding officers to consider.
According to Task & Purpose, Secretary Phelan was irate when he saw the condition of housing at Andersen Air Force Base’s Palau Hall, which is home to a mix of sailors and marines. Phelan suggested that the on-base golf course was in far better shape than the barracks.
To be fair, Franchetti’s quote is merely the latest in a long line of such CNO pontifications. Don’t get me started on the MCPONs- lip-service leadership and platitudes are easy.
Category: "The Floggings Will Continue Until Morale Improves", Big Navy
I remember the first time I saw the “quality of life improvement program” for the barracks in action when I was a Pvt all the way back in 93. 1SG had the two schmucks that were on extra duty paint the hallway and the common area of the barracks we lived in. I’m sure those walls had about 20 layers of paint in as many colors.
Comm Platoon, 1st Tracked Vehicle Battalion. Hack Stone and his fellow Deplorable Marines were living in the open squad bays near the front gate of Camp Schwab. Sergeant T. scored some paint, so he assigned a few Marines to paint the showers in the Squad Bay. Looked pretty good. Until the first Marine practiced some good personal hygiene by taking a shower. Yep, water based paint.
When I was in Germany our plat daddy decided our wooden wall lockers needed to be painted. We had paint, but no paint thinner, so someone was sent to the motor pool to get a gallon or two of gasoline, with which we thinned the paint. Worked fine for cleaning brushes, etc. but when they dried, the finished lockers had an interesting texture.
Yeah. Whatever.
Maybe SecNav shoulda been following TAH for the last number of years and he wouldn’t be “shocked and dismayed” at the condition of the facilities. How many times have we talked about this?
“…on-base golf course was in far better shape than the barracks.” Welp, the base is run by the Airedales so it’s good to know that they have their priorities right.
The on-base golf course runs on non-appropriated funds while the barracks rely on tax dollars. This demonstrates capitalism at it’s finest: the NAF has to provide a good product to make a living, the tax funded activity just has to meet the standard and get by.
“Standard”? What standard? It would seem the only standard these barracks meet is that it is still standing.
Only if the cockroaches hold hands. Once the weakest cockroach lets go, the whole thing collapses. In my “dormitory” at Lackland in ’75, a cockroach the size of a VW bug ran across the bay like something was chasing him. One of my buddies tried to squish it; I stopped him. I explained there are many more to follow it and if you squish it, we’ll only have to clean up the mess. We kept the “dormitory” very clean but hiring an exterminator would cost money that basic trainees could not authorize.
“the tax funded activity just has to meet the standard”
Or not.
I cannot ever remember staying in substandard barracks in the 80’s. The first open squad bay I lived in were the old Black Marine boot camp barracks at Camp Johnson. They were clean and everything worked, showers, toilets, washers etc. The heat was the old steam system that ran all over the camp. It was old and made a lot of noise but it worked. Yuma had nice barracks and Hawaii was great. I was the barracks NCO for a time in Hawaii, so I figured out how things went. Always kept the place stocked and working. I actually had a Sgt Maj (Kellogg, medal of honor) that would do shit for the Marines in his command. A salty ass Cpl showing up at base maintenance name dropping a certain Sgt Maj could get washers and dryers fixed in a reasonable time. WTF happened to my Corps ?
I was rather fond of the barracks at Camp Johnson. I was there for Supply School in 1976.
Camp Casey, 1994, we lived in H relocatable hooches we called the ghetto, crumbling, no AC, had one catch fire brcause of the boiler, our NCOs lived in a 2 story metal building we called The Crackhouse that was rusting away. HHC maint had one of the two story buildings, guy was taking a shower and the floor of the shower stall gave way and he fell down to the first floor shower.
Got to Hood in 95, large open rooms living 3 and 4 deep, we had a communal latrine down the hall, 2 each showers/shitters/pissers and 4 sinks. Hygiene after PT was a blast.
The “best” barracks I had was at Ft Stewart, 2000, we lived in condemned family housing townhouses while the unit barracks were getting remodeled. 1SG would drive by once a week just to make sure we cut the grass.
My experience with this shit goes back to 1980. Nothing’s changed.
That period of time, I would have to say barracks and quarters were pretty decent even if some were older. Germany, Ft. Benning, and Ft. Bliss. Worst we saw was transient married on Ft. Bliss – cockroaches. Everything else seemed reasonable, with the caveat that I mostly did not live in barracks full time.
Not in the Navy, especially in the Fleet. Many were total shitholes. Stayed in more than a few when waiting to pick up a ship.
Benning 78 was decent as was Drum 79-80…but that’s just my experience…never left CONUS so no idea about overseas, but all these barracks today with mold visible are simply an abomination.
Once again proving the thanks of a grateful nation are often little more than words to make the folks saying them feel better while doing nothing of real value.
First start with MCPON Honea. He should be relieved for cause.
First, he claims to be the voice that advocates for enlisted sailors but spends all of his time touring the world visiting them, making excuses, and taking no action.
When sailors ask about quality-of-life issues (such as barracks), he says things like “…at least you’re not in a foxhole with the Marines…” or “…you sailors have become spoiled…”
Whatever the Navy does will prove to be as effective as the Marine Corps initiative “Barracks 2030”.
Pathetic.
“at least you’re not in a foxhole with the Marines”
Having spent a fair amount of time living in foxholes I would rather do that than live in the barracks in that picture. Except in the rain, of course. Then I would need a tent.
Or, join the air force, call down to front desk and ask why is there a tent in my room.
Don’t forget to leave a wakeup call either while you’re at it.
Now do SecDef, SecAF, SecSF, SecArmy, and SecCorps next….
Make them eat at the Chow Hall too…..AND do CBTs and go to Medical, Personnel and FINANCE!!!
Then kick them out and make them go to the VA. LMFAO….
See what happens THEN!!!
(nothing)
He’s seen it, he’s said something, now it’s time time for deeds, not words!
Good luck with that.
First off what happened to commanders walking the barracks and checking conditions. Second off hold unit and base commanders feet to the fire for barracks and messhall conditions. Third off stop higher commanders from siphoning off the money that is supposed to be used for barracks maintenance and feeding troops. They all do it and they all act surprised when stuff like this shows up in the news. God it isn’t rocket science, all it takes is leaders who actually know how to lead and are willing to risk it all to take care of people.
When I was a 1SG I walked the barracks almost daily. While I could not fix everything, there was no way I was going to tolerate mold, broken appliances, and dirty buildings. And yes, all troopers participated in repairs, etc.
A few years later the story about the barracks for Walter Reed broke. I did not need the SMA to spin it for me. I knew who would be at fault–the 1SGs and CSMs. Period.
Getting repairs and new equipment could be tough, but good Sr NCOs know how to work the system–or at least they did. It was an important part of the old 1SG Course back then.
Today, idk who is in charge of the barracks, but it does not sound like anyone really is.
Once upon a time the Army, in Germany anyway, had annual IG (Inspector General) and CMMIs (Command Maintenance Management Inspection). They were a pain in the ass to prepare for but the ossifers took them very seriously; bad marks on the inspections did not look good on their OERs and could even get a commander relieved. Evidently the shiny new all volunteer Army doesn’t require such things since the new breed of leadership is better educated, better trained, better motivated, and just all around better than the old breed.
I did a weekly barracks walk through as a PSG. No white glove inspection, I just wanted clean, neat, and orderly. One fine monday morning, I told the platoon I would be checking their rooms that day. One of my wiseasses says “According to the single Soldier initiative program, you have to give us at least 24 hours notice”. So I changed tactics. Every friday at COB formation, I would announce that I would be walking through the barracks and checking rooms on a day and time of my choosing next week. There’s your 24 hour notice, dickhead.
Talk is cheap.
I’ll begin to grant SecNav et al a modicum of credence
whenif things get better for the enlisted. Bonus points of the O’s get docked pay for every year they had the chance to do something and sat on their hands.As Kipling said:
If the above pic from the article was a picture of some dilapidated Third World barracks our guys/gals are staying in, I’d be appalled that the leadership allows these conditions. Just making maintenance request is kicking the can down the road kind of bullshit instead of a solution. Even if I had to do myself, something would BE DONE.
When my son was in A-School at Corry Station, his barracks was showing some age, but nothing that bad. He’s at Palmer Hall at NS San Diego now, and the pictures below are from when he moved into in. Not too bad. My nephew’s college dorm he shelled about a grand month is in the same ballpark.
“Not too bad”? That’s fookin’ incredible! I didn’t have anything that nice even as a senior NCO in 2004 at ANCOC. Washer and dryer? Holy chit!
Those are OUTSTANDING quarters!
You have to share the common area kitchen & bathroom with one other person. He just made PO2/E-5, so he’s eligible to move to a nicer place with an actual kitchen and a common room with seating at The Beacon.
Oh, the humanity!
Air Force is suppose to have the nicest stuff—oh, this is for sailors so it’s tenant housing.
Even the old WWII barracks they stuck us in in ‘93 when we went to Bragg TDY were clean and not falling apart and they were fifty years old and made of wood!
My uncle built a beautiful home using wood he salvaged after buying a barracks. That house has survived direct hits of tornados.
About thirty years ago I helped renovate a building that was almost a hundred years old and had been empty for about 20 years. It was in better shape than the barracks in that picture. Actually, most of the town was that old and was in better shape. There are houses in Portsmouth, New Hampshire that are about two hundred years old and are still lived in. Many other towns and cities can make similar claims.
I was taught from an early age that the priorities of an officer was 1) the mission 2) the men and, lastly, themselves. If the officers quarters are not in worse shape than those enlisted quarters there should be some courts martial in the near future. This is just a symptom.
USNDC Portsmouth N H was my last duty station. It is a shame how the old Castle has been let to rot.
Went thru Paris Island in 67 wooden double decker barracks were old but very solid and clean and sturdy. No AC so hot as hell but could probably withstand a hurricane. Upon return from Nam was sent to 8th Engineers at Lejeune . They were very new and very nice built of bricks.
I have tried to attach photos of our more upscale housing in Nam. Hope they come out.
Ah, memories.
“The conditions shown in the photos are a failure of leadership across multiple echelons of command,”
A bit of an understatement, that. Also across a couple of decades of time; deterioration like that is a long term process.
With leadership like that, how can we lose?
“Navy Secretary “Shocked and Dismayed””
Hmmmm. sounds familiar. Could he be related to the legendary Capt. Renault?
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I swear, this stuff works for Texas cockroaches, German cockroaches, fire ants, scorpions and a host of other species of non AI bugs.
Go to Home Depot, or wherever, get a big bag of Fire ant killer, the granulated kind. Then go to Wally World and get a couple pounds of white sugar. Get an old wide mouth jar, large one works best because it never goes out of date.
Mix the two things together and shake them up so they are indistinguishable and put a few spoonful’s behind the fridge, under the cabinets, under the kitchen sink, behind the stove and outside near the entryways.
Mix up some of the poison and put it in a spray bottle and spray it wherever you see bug trails.
Bugs can’t resist the sugar and as they consume that the powder coats the legs. The cockroaches take it back to the nest and pretty soon they are all gone.
My first apartment here in Austin had rats and one was doing his best to gnaw through my under sink cabinet and let a huge infestation of cockroaches join him for the party.
Three weeks and they were gone. They never returned and it works against fire ants and all kinds of other creatures that outnumber us by about ten quadrillion to one…
Make sure you keep the poison away from kids, angry exwives, law enforcement and the EPA. Label it as poison to protect others.
BTW…
The bugs have won…
Keep pets away too.
I had a problem with fire ants that were attracted to the spillage under a bird feeder. Scattered a healthy dose of Amdro under the feeder. Took care of the ants. Apparently, pigeons are fond of the stuff too. Didn’t have a pigeon in the yard for a couple years.