Security breach prompts calls for change

Associated Press

DAYTON

A recent security breach at Ohio’s largest military base prompted renewed calls from officials for security improvements.

U.S. Rep. Mike Turner, of Dayton, said he wants more guards at Wright-Patterson Air Force Base gates, the Dayton Daily News reported. He said he’s met with Secretary of the Air Force Deborah Lee James and Gen. Ellen Pawlikowski, the base commander.

“I have specifically asked Secretary James to increase the funding in the area of personnel and infrastructure at our gates to increase the safety and security of the people who work at Wright-Patterson Air Force Base,” said Turner, a member of the House Armed Services Committee.

Turner said Wednesday he asked the Air Force to improve security even before a man who wasn’t authorized on the base drove past a guard Nov. 24. Base officials say the man entered a building, but employees stopped him because he lacked a security badge.

Some employees evacuated the Dayton-area base then returned that day. Base spokesman Daryl Mayer said the man showed no “ill intent” and was released. He said an investigation of the breach could stretch into next week. Wright-Patterson authorities haven’t released the man’s identity.

Troy Tingey, president of the American Federation of Government Employees Council 214, which represents thousands of Wright-Patterson employees, also said security should be improved at base buildings.

“I don’t think any base is completely foolproof, and we may have more of these incidents the way things are going,” he said.

Wright-Patterson is the largest single-site employer in the state, with more than 26,000 workers.