Approximately 14,000 people returned to work at NASA’s
Kennedy Space Center (KSC) this week, following an 11-day
closure due to Hurricane Frances.

During the closure, the KSC Damage Assessment and Recovery
Team (DART) completed initial damage assessments. KSC
weathered sustained winds greater than 70 mph and gusts as
high as 94 mph. A thorough assessment of KSC’s 900 facilities
and buildings continues and could take weeks or months to
complete.

NASA’s three Space Shuttles, Discovery, Atlantis and
Endeavour, the Shuttle launch pads and critical flight
hardware for the orbiters and the International Space
Station, were not damaged by the storm. Also, the SWIFT
spacecraft in Hangar AE on the Cape Canaveral Air Force
Station was unharmed.

The Vehicle Assembly Building (VAB), the Thermal Protection
System Facility (TPSF) and the Processing Control Center
(PCC) received significant damage. The Operations and
Checkout Building, Vertical Processing Facility, Hangar AE,
Hangar S, and Hangar AF Small Parts Facility received
substantial damage.

The VAB lost nearly 850 aluminum panels (14 feet by 6 feet
each) on the exterior of the building, leaving approximately
20 percent of the interior open to outside conditions. The
roof of the VAB also was also damaged. There was no damage to
the two External Tanks stored inside or to the Shuttle
Columbia debris housed on the 16th floor of the A Tower.

VAB Recovery Efforts

  • Netting was placed above flight hardware to ensure no additional debris would fall and cause damage
  • Roof was inspected and is safe for contractors to begin repairs
  • High-crew rigging was moved to the south side for workers to begin inspection, panel replacement and repair

The TPSF, where all of the orbiter Thermal Protection System
tiles and blankets are manufactured, lost nearly 35 percent
of its roof. This caused significant water damage, making the
second floor where the blankets are sewn unusable for
processing activities. Critical equipment has been moved from
the TPSF to a hangar at the Shuttle Landing Facility, so
processing can resume as soon as possible.

The first floor of the TPSF had some water intrusion, but
none of the critical manufacturing elements, such as the
ovens, were damaged. Tile manufacturing should resume as
early as next week.

TSPF Recovery Efforts

  • Workers are installing a temporary roof
  • Clean-up and water removal activities are well under way
  • Grid is complete at the hangar, so workers can begin to process TPS blankets
  • The equipment from the second floor, as well as the raw materials needed to manufacture the blankets, was moved to the hangar

The PCC processes the Shuttle’s software and houses numerous
KSC computers and networks. Although the facility lost a
significant part of its roof and had water damage, hurricane
preparations, helped minimize damage to electronic equipment.

PCC Recovery Efforts

  • Temporary roof installed
  • Clean-up and water removal activities are well under way
  • Wet tiles removed from the facility, so work stations and offices can be cleaned

Hurricane preparations began on Aug. 30 to protect KSC
facilities and flight hardware from the storm that arrived
over the Labor Day weekend. KSC Director Jim Kennedy closed
the center Sept. 2 to non-essential personnel. Once the
hurricane passed, DART personnel entered the center on Sept.
6. The center reopened on Sept. 13.

For information about NASA and hurricane images on the
Internet, visit: http://www.nasa.gov