For uncle Alan -- the St. Louis fire

[dsvirsky]

Seriously ,I was told about the s l o w m o t i o n by someone that retired from VA . He at one time worked in St Louis after the "burn ". I asked how much burned & he declined an answer. I was curious because during my 19 1/2 year fight for a legitimate claim ,I was told A--J had burned. Later I was helping a man whose name started with M & was told J -- Z burned.

As Ricky asked , " 'Splain this to me Lucy .... ".

The Fire
A fire at the NPRC in St. Louis on July 12, 1973, destroyed about 80 percent of the records for Army personnel discharged between November 1, 1912, and January 1, 1960. About 75 percent of the records for Air Force personnel with surnames from "Hubbard" through "Z" discharged between September 25, 1947, and January 1, 1964, were also destroyed.

What Was Lost
It is hard to determine exactly what was lost in the fire, because there were no indices to the blocks of records involved. The records were merely filed in alphabetical order for the following groups:

World War I:
Army - Nov. 1, 1912 – Sept. 7, 1939

World War II:
Army - Dec. 8, 1939 – Dec. 31, 1946

Post World War II:
Army - Dec. 1, 1947 - Dec. 31, 1959

Air Force - Dec. 25, 1947 - Dec. 31, 1963

Millions of records, especially medical records, had been withdrawn from all three groups and loaned to the Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) before the fire. The fact that one's records are not in NPRC files at a particular time does not mean the records were destroyed in the fire.

The above is publicly available information copied directly from www.VA.gov. The answers were there; all you had to do was look for them.

 

[uncle Alan]

How deep is your devotion ? Do you dig deeply to find ways & means to serve ?

My experiences during the ninteen & one-half years getting my legitimate claim ranged from from calendar watchers to all-out help.

After my records [ thanks for pointing out my lack of computer expertise ] burned ,VA could not find the records of a US hospital in Sapporo Japan that I was in. All they knew was that I enlisted in Jan. 1951 & was discharged in Dec. 1953, & my last duty station---period ! No Korean service,no good conduct --- nothing but the National Defense metal . No problem ?

When I had my final spinal surgery at VA Hospital,Gainesville ,Fl. My arms sustained serious nerve damage. Was I informed that I could enter a claim for disability ? NO ! The reps were too busy rehashing the football game from the night before.

When I finally got my disability & was only paid back about 18 months. When I complained that I hadn't worked since 1978 I was told that I should have kept my claim open. I knew that but was also told that " buddy affidavits " were not credible, I quit sending them.

After the fact I was told ANY thing pertinent to my case would have kept my claim alive,be it junk or something acceptable .

Through my stupidity & lack of proper guidance I was SOL . I lived at poverty level for all those years that I faught. Lost most of my teeth & grew flabby from beans ,rice & bread diets .

Just recently [ at county level ] I was told I was not eligible for "Aid & Attendance" . Guess what ? I now recieve Aid & Attendance .

I was told by a friend that worked at St. Louis records that the mind set had changed when veterans were slowly retiring from VA service.

I know this is a "sour grapes " time of reply but if you have stats on how many vets that were denied just claims, you'd be truly amazed.

Regards , Uncle Alan