By Carol Coultas,Staff Writer

Damage is still being tallied at Ingalls shipyard, where floodwaters submerged much of the Pascagoula, Miss., shipbuilding facility.

Perched on the edge of the Mississippi Sound, the shipyard remains closed after Hurricane Katrina pounded it with winds of 110 miles per hour and nearly 12-foot floodwaters.

“It’s a gradual process, learning how bad things are,” said Brian Cullin, spokesman for Northrop Grumman, the defense contractor that owns the Ingalls shipyard.

Ingalls and Maine’s Bath Iron Works are the only shipyards capable of making the Navy’s next generation destroyer, the DD(X). The two yards have been collaborators and competitors over the years for Navy contracts. A proposal from the Department of Defense is calling for the consolidation of DD(X) work at one yard – a situation that could cripple the losing yard.

Pascagoula is already reeling. Last week the Base Realignment and Closure Commission called for the closure of the Navy base at Pascagoula, where 2,000 military and 200 civilians work.

Then Monday’s hurricane blew through, reducing homes, businesses and marinas to matchsticks. A six-block section of the city’s downtown has been destroyed, according to the Sun Herald, the local newspaper.

According to press reports, as of Wednesday there still was no power, and phone lines were down. Cullin, a former Navy captain, said he’s communicating with Northrop Grumman personnel in Pascagoula via satellite phones like the ones used in remote military operations. Although the yard has been closed, some personnel are reporting to begin the cleanup work, but operations won’t resume soon.

“We won’t be open until power is restored and that’s unlikely this week,” he said. A Northrop Grumman press release issued Wednesday said, “Personnel who can report to work should bring their own food and potable water if feasible as shortages currently exist.”

The yard has four ships afloat and under construction. One Navy destroyer suffered a breach to its hull, but that had been repaired by Tuesday. And much of the yard’s rolling fleet – forklifts and trucks – were flooded and need to be repaired, said Cullin.

Help is on the way. A caravan has left Northrop Grumman’s Newport News facility in Virginia and is expected to bring vehicles, fuel, water and food to Pascagoula.

“We’ve got some real basic challenges right there now,” said Cullin.

The Navy has offered the use of one of its Pascagoula destroyers as a base for repair operations, providing food and generators. It’s also deploying a group of ships from Texas to help the battered Gulf Coast.

Also on the upside, Hurricane Katrina caused none of the losses of the gigantic cranes at Ingalls, as had happened during previous hurricanes.

While Northrop Grumman isn’t even close to coming up with a damage estimate from the hurricane, the human toll is evident, said Cullin.

“The biggest problem is having a work force that’s been displaced,” he said. Many workers have lost their homes.

“We’re trying to take care of people and, at the same time, get the business back up,” he said.