European Stars And Stripes (Newspaper) - July 6, 1987, Darmstadt, Hesse                                Monday july 6, 1987 the stars and stripes Page 9 there s no time for emotion Here clerks collect reports of a deaths by Brenda Hosier stiff writer death in t a worry of most service members especially during peacetime. Bui sgt Rezic Blevins is faced with death almost every Lime his phone rings. When Blevins and other casualty clerks in the 1stpersonnel come casually and congressional division answer the phone it s usually someone Catling to report the death of a Soldier or family member. When i get a phone Call Aboul a a Cash it s my As much information from that one Cal Job to get a that 1 possibly can Blevins said. The Deric s initial report ii a basis for providing maybe going through most of our people Are Able to information to the nest of pm in the suites said u. Develop this kind of attitude and realize they re real they i son said. The division s noncommissioned officer in charge Sec. Gilbert Morales said there has to be a Point when the clerks must detach themselves from the names that come across their desk. There s no time for emotion Here. They have to Check Check and recheck the information being passed on and follow the procedures to the letter because we can t be giving out bad information. They can t dwell on the suffering that the family col. William Gibson the division s chief. The clerk has to get As much information about the Soldier and the incident As  along with the initial information the clerks have 61 questions to get answered before a casually report is Soiu dered Complete. The clerk s responsibility is to ensure the casualty by helping the  when enough information is received it is passed to the department of the army casualty operations Center in Alexandria a. That office reports the death to the casualty area command responsible for the state in which the next of Kin at residing. The command then assigns an officer or no from the base closest to inc next of Kin to make the notification in person. If the next of Kin Are residing overseas with the Soldier then the notification process is a bit differ ent Gibson  those cases the clerks notify the casualty area command in charge of the base where the Soldier was assigned. That command then notifies the Community commander. The Soldier s unit is called and. In most cases the unit commander Ibea notifies the family in person Gibson said. The procedure is much the same for the air Force a Safe spokesman said. Gibson admits that reporting a death or even a serious illness or injury is no easy task but his peo ple Are up to the Job. Blevins said his secret is not to work it like a Normal Job and to not Lake Home Al night what Hap pens during the  just anyone can work in the casually Branch  Blevins said. You have to have it feel for Chi Job. You can t let it gel to  form 93 the Bottom line is accuracy by Brenda Hosier staff writer Schwet Zingen Germany when 248 Soldier Tost their lives in the Gander air crash in december i9s5,the army had problems notifying the next of Kin in is percent of the cases. In another Case it took the army two weeks to notify a father that his Soldier son had died. The problems May have been less ened or eliminated if the soldiers had kept their record of emergency data card do form 93 updated army casualty reporting officials said. We Are obligated to exhaust a pos sible Means to find these people said Sec. Gilbert Morales noncommissioned officer in Chai be of the casually Branch lit personnel come. When the Soldier fails to update that 93, in ukes us much longer to notify the next of Kin of a death serious illness or in jury. We need that information but we need Illo be As accurate As  copies of the card Are kept in serv Iceme Ben military personnel records and at military personnel centers inthe slates. Each service uses the card As its first reference to gel the names and locations for the Servic member s primary next of Kin. Parents also Are notified of deaths when they Are listed As the secondary next of Kin. The casually Branch turns to a sol Dier s personnel records to help find information nol on the card Morales  there Are other documents in a Soldier s records thai can give us a Lead or More information in which to locate the next of Kin he said. We also May have to look through the Soldier s personal effects or talk with his or her  but those methods take time an Morales said the Bottom line is for sol Diers 10 Check their form 93 at least once a year to make sure the inform lion is current. It s not just a matter of a person s name address and phone number he said. If you think the army needs instructions on How to gel to the place where the next of Kin arc living then put the directions  it. Col. William Gibson chief of 1st personnel come casualty and congressional division emphasized the need for details. It s nol uncommon for a Soldier Mohave a family that does t have a phone or that lives in an isolated area. If the have to Tell us logo to the third dirt Road and turn right at the red Mailbox then that s what they should include on the card. That s the Type of information that s  airmen also arc encouraged to up Date their cards and realize that All in formation they can provide is important in the notification process and the entire personnel system a Safe personnel spokesman said. The accurate and timely completion of form 93 is the commander s and the military personnel office s responsibility As Well As the Soldier s responsibility Gibson said. But if lie Soldier comes in and is asked to review his 93 and does so without checking inc information on it there s no Way the Milo can know whether or nol it s  he  Soldier has 10 take  Lime in look at what could very Well be his or her last will and  the air Force has a system of checks that helps to keep record data current the Safe spokesman said. There s a lot of interaction Between personnel and finance which helps inthe updating process. But it s still very important for the airman to keep his card As current As  an outdated form 93 also causes de lays in awarding death benefits to loved ones because it directs who should get the j 3,000 death gratuity payment or servicemen s group life insurance up to 150,000. The form also gives serv  members the Opportunity to direct the disposition of their remains. Of warns whistle Blower to sign secrecy form Washington a the air Force has told Veteran whistle Blower a. Ernest Fitzgerald that he will lose his Security clearance and right to work with a congressional oversight panel if he does nol sign a new secrecy agreement within 30 Days. That could end the whistle blowing Days of Fitzge Rald 60, who Row to National prominence in 1969for disclosing Cost overrun in the a a cargo plane was fired the same year and was reinstated under a court order in 1982. And it could also Force a showdown Between the Pentagon and members of Congress who have pro tested the new secrecy agreement. The critic by it would have chilling effect on All whistle blowers by allowing the government to Daify material after it had been disclosed to Law makers or the Public and to punish the offender without Appeal. Although he remains on the air Force payroll Fitzgerald has refused since last december to Sig the Reagan administration s new Cui sifted into Marioni non disc outre form 189," which he de scribe u "1 fag  u. Gen. Claudius e. Wall 111, the air Force comptroller informed Fitzgerald in letter delivered Jum before the dote of Busineau thursday that failure to Lin the new form within 30 Dayi will result in suspension of your Accel to classified in formation and continuation of procedures leading to re vocal Ion of your Security  the court order reinstating Fitzgerald to his jobs air Force management systems Deputy in 1982 specified that the Job requires Access to lop secret information "1 already have a Security clearance and i Haven t done anything to warrant ill removal Fitzgerald said in a Telephone interview Friday air Force official were nol available on Friday a Federal Holiday to comment on the Walls letter but they said last month that 1.5 million Federal employees had signed the secrecy agreement since 1985. In a separate Tetter also delivered on the eve of the Independence Day weekend wans said he was revoking an agreement reached in 1985 by then air Force Secretary Verne Orr and rep. John Dingell,d-micb., allowing Fitzgerald to work unhindered with Dingell t House Energy and Commerce sub committee on oversight and investigations. Fitzgerald Taid the second letter appeared aimed at hampering Dingell s investigations into such pro Grams As the army s Bradley armoured personnel Carrier and the air Force s stealth bomber and my Muile. They Are clearly furious at the activities of chairman Dingell. Said Fitzgerald. Wingett he said has been doing exactly Whit we Are supposed to be doing which is rooting out waste and getting More defense for the taxpayer s  Fil Ferald said be has been working with Ding Ell i panel off and on line 1980 on nuclear Energy mailers and since 1984 on Pentagon matters under the agreement Between Dingell and the air Force Secretary. In hit letter Walts noted thai previous secretarial agreements . With the air Force Secretary have permitted Luch assistance however. I will not include congressional assistance As a performance element in your work plan meaning that work Fitzgerald does for the oversight committee will nol be counted in annual evaluations of his perform  and other members of Congress have criticized the Reagan administration for requiring fed eral employees to sign the disclosure form because in allows the government to classify material after in has been released to the Public and punish the of . Charles e. Grassley a Lowa warned air Force Secretary Edward c. Aldridge in a Tetter on june 18 that the new secrecy agreement could have a chilling effect. On legitimate disclosures of non classified information to Congre by govern ment  a May in letter Dindl quoted Sleven Gar Finkle the Federal official in charge of the program As saying during a meeting that the new form was Desi Fried 10 simplify going after  Dingell asked the House panel on the civil serv  to look into this sordid matter and quoted Garfinkle As saying the White House authorized the form to prevent  note ism i or. Garfinkle did not say Ille Gal leak or classified leaks just leaks " Dingell wrote in his letter to rep. William d. Ford d mich., of the Posl office and civil service Commil  chairman of the civil service panel. Rep. Gerry Sikorski a Minn. Has ordered an investigation