Jeff Heller, a systems administrator with the U.S. Army, woke up as usual on Oct. 1 at about 6:30 a.m. to get ready to work at Redstone Arsenal. He normally begins work at 8:30 a.m. and finishes at 4:30 pm.

But that day was different.

“We went in and they (management) said put your time in; here is a special code for being on furlough,” he told AL.com this weekend.

Heller is one of those sent home after the government shutdown, now in its 27th day, due to Congress’s inability to reach a funding deal.

About 750,000 federal workers have been furloughed nationally, according to The AP. It’s unclear how many of those work at Redstone Arsenal in Huntsville , which has about 45,500 federal and contract workers, though the Huntsville Business Journal estimated an extended shutdown cou

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