On Monday, Feb. 6, County Commissioners and Charles County Legislative Delegation members joined Lt. Governor Aruna Miller on a tour of Naval Support Facility Indian Head.

Del. Edith J. Patterson, Commissioner President Reuben B. Collins II, Commissioner Vice President Ralph E. Patterson II, Commissioner Gilbert “BJ” Bowling, and Acting Deputy County Administrator Jennifer Ellin participated in the visit.  

Maryland Secretary of Veterans Affairs Anthony Woods and Amy O’Donnell, Navy Program Director of the Department of Commerce Office of Military and Federal Affairs, were also in attendance.

Capt. David “Donny” Wilson, commanding officer of Naval Support Activity South Potomac, hosted the base visit.

Attendees took a “windshield tour” of base facilities. They stopped at several installation areas for more in-depth discussions of various base activities, including recently signing a 50-year Utilities Privatization Contract with the Southern Maryland Electric Cooperative (SMECO).

The visit also included an overview of the base’s Chemical Biological Incident Response Force and explosive detection capabilities.

The force serves as the first defense against attacks against Washington, D.C.

Participants also visited the Expeditionary Exploration Unit One and viewed their in-theater labs, where conventional and improvised threats are exploited and analyzed in support of fleet and joint commanders.

Other visits included stopping at the Naval Surface Warfare Center’s cartridge and propellant-actuated devices (CAD/PAD) services.

The United States Navy plans to invest about $1.1 billion into the base because of its role in national security and to bolster the Navy’s research, development, testing evaluation, and manufacture of energetic materials and systems.