Photo By Rachel Larue | People on Joint Base Myer-Henderson Hall's Whipple Field wait for the fireworks to...... read more read more
JOINT BASE MYER-HENDERSON HALL, Va. - Along with picnic baskets and lawn chairs, active duty personnel, retirees and Department of Defense workers and Arlington County residents entering Joint Base Myer-Henderson Hall the evening of July 4 to watch the National Mall fireworks display from Whipple Field are being asked to pack an additional item.
Joint base officials are asking attendees to pack a couple of hours of patience in order to exit the base during the final hours of Independence Day.
Joint Base Myer-Henderson Hall police officers and other emergency service personnel will patrol the joint base, Arlington National Cemetery, Fort McNair and the Air Force Memorial on Independence Day. Moreover, one of the police squad’s most visible presence takes place at the end of the day when they handle traffic control to guide close to 2,500 Whipple Field visitors out of three JBM-HH gates when the National Mall fireworks display is finished.
While crowds scatter from the National Mall, the joint base police squad’s work shifts into another gear to safely funnel traffic into the Virginia night, but preparations for the fireworks require hours, according to joint base police.
“Let’s draw the picture real quickly – we have an event that starts at 9 p.m., it lasts 30 minutes and the majority of us start setting up about noon, so we’re here literally nine hours before the event actually starts,” said JBM-HH police department’s Sgt. Michael Curtis. “That’s how significant this is for us.”
From 9:30 p.m. until the traffic dissipates usually takes an average of two hours, according to the squad. The goal is to safely move vehicles and passengers from the Tri-service parking lot to Interstate 395 or other Arlington streets or highways.
And joint base police have the post fireworks traffic direction down to a science. During an interview with the Pentagram, JBM-HH Police Department lead Sgt. Stephen Brant explained how a segment of traffic is moved toward Hatfield Gate and other traffic is routed to the Henderson Hall portion of the joint base.
“Once the traffic gets to the intersection by the PX, that’s Carpenter and McNair [Roads], there will be two [officers] out there,” Brandt explained. “We will keep sending traffic toward Hatfield [Gate], but once that traffic backs up, drivers will not have an option, they will be forced to go out toward Henderson Hall.”
Brandt mentioned that the Henderson Hall alternative is a decent plan B for drivers heading home.
“That way will probably be a lot faster than going through Hatfield Gate,” he said. “That is the fastest way to recede traffic on post. Wright Gate isn’t even an option because it shuts down at 3 p.m. Henry Gate will be another option if you want to shoot straight on [Route] 50.”
Henry Gate will be open for departures only following the fireworks.
On Independence Day, parking at the Tri-service parking lot is available on a first-come, first-serve basis, and Whipple Field opens for active-duty, retirees and Defense Department card holders to prepare for the fireworks show at 5 p.m. Joint base police remind those visiting that no pets, alcoholic beverages, grills or fireworks (including sparklers) are allowed. All coolers and containers will be checked, and all alcoholic beverages will be confiscated or owners of the spirits will be allowed to return the drinks to their vehicles.
Authorized items include: coolers of any size, strollers, chairs and phones.
On the Fort McNair portion of JBM-HH, fishing is prohibited in accordance with post policy.
For additional information on July 4 viewing guidelines and restrictions on JBM-HH, visit www.facebook.com/jbmhh. Finally, Arlington County road closures in the Fort Myer and Henderson Hall vicinities of the joint base will be posted to the JBM-HH website. These road closures can also be found at http://police.arlingtonva.us/.
| Date Taken: | 07.03.2014 |
| Date Posted: | 07.03.2014 10:35 |
| Story ID: | 135249 |
| Location: | JOINT BASE MYER-HENDERSON HALL, VIRGINIA, US |
| Web Views: | 197 |
| Downloads: | 0 |
This work, Post-fireworks traffic control is handled like a science, by Jim Dresbach, identified by DVIDS, must comply with the restrictions shown on https://www.dvidshub.net/about/copyright.
No keywords found.
