Debris searchers playing important role

A little more than two weeks have passed since the shuttle Columbia disintegrated over Texas. Since then, thousands of National Guardsmen, volunteer firefighters, active and retired sheriff's deputies, state troopers, FBI agents and many others have painstakingly searched for debris that might hold clues for investigators into the tragedy.

The main debris field covers at least 38 counties and 28,000 square miles. The terrain includes forests, sloughs, briar patches, lakes, streams and, thanks to recent bone-chilling rains, plenty of muck.

Those who search each day as long as there is daylight understand the importance of retrieving every possible piece of evidence. But the long hours and the emotional impact of finding body parts as well as shuttle pieces are taking their toll.

The men and women who continue to search across East Texas are to be commended for the job they are doing. And they deserve our support as they look for anything that will not only help us understand what happened Feb. 1, but also keep it from happening again.