On Thursday, Offutt Air Force Base hosted a groundbreaking ceremony for the 55th Security Forces Squadron’s new campus. Almost four years to the date after the 2019 floods brought 720 gallons of water onto the southeastern portion of the base, Offutt personnel and local leaders gathered to break ground on a new 100,000+ square foot facility for the squadron.
Colonel Jasin Cooley, Commander of the 55th Mission Support Group, spoke to those gathered at the groundbreaking, “55th Security Forces lost everything in the flood. All of their facilities. As the largest career field in the Air Force and the largest squadron on base, it is the job of security forces to protect, defend, and fight. This squadron is tasked with providing a safe and secure operating environment for the 55th Wing and our partner units that enables them to execute their assigned tasks.”
The $68.4 million campus will bring the defenders back together again as they have been spread across the base in multiple facilities since the March 2019 flood.
The new campus will be comprised of three facilities totaling approximately 105,000 square feet of space. This includes an operations control center, combined combat arms training and maintenance facility, military working dog facility, and mobile logistics storage area.
The 55th SFS suffered some of the worst damage from the 2019 flood, including a total loss of their headquarters building, combat arms training facility, and military working dog kennels and training area. They are currently spread out in multiple buildings around base.
Construction is estimated to be completed in April, 2025.
