The air force command has sent the personnel of the location in Dongen home. Due to the appalling working conditions, the management no longer considers it responsible for people to work there. Ron Segers of military union AFMP welcomes the closure: “It is crazy how people have to work there.”
The 982 squadron is located at the complex on the Kanaalstraat. The 200 people who work here deal with technology systems and mission support.
According to the management, working conditions are no longer acceptable in the heavily outdated complex. Suspending work should prevent accidents. The buildings and facilities at the location suffer from too much overdue maintenance and defects. According to a spokesperson, problems were increasingly being worked around. “If floor slabs were crooked, we shut them off. If there was a thunderstorm, we stopped working because the lightning conductors didn’t work and the basement filled with water when it rained.”
The air force management wants to get rid of all patchwork, because work still needs to be done in Dongen until at least 2026. The situation is now being carefully mapped out. This is done to see what measures are needed to improve some of the deteriorated facilities. For example, the air force wants to exclude unsafe situations as much as possible so that the squadron can resume its work.
The complex also houses buildings of other defense units such as the army and the defense support command. They will remain open though. It is still unclear how long the Air Force personnel will be unable to return to work. This will become clear in the near future when a plan of action is drawn up.
To move house
The 982 squadron is part of the Logistics Center Woensdrecht of the Royal Netherlands Air Force and has been nominated to move there for some time. That move has been postponed several times due to financial shortages at the Ministry of Defence. Now the move will also depend on permits and nitrogen emissions.
Ron Segers of the AFMP military union welcomes the temporary closure. “It is crazy how people have to work there. The mold is on the walls. That’s why I’m glad that the commander stands up for his staff and has temporarily closed the location. The air force command will now have to take action.”