USNS Comfort is underway

[James48]

The Hospital Ship USNS COMFORT left Norfolk, Virginia harbor a short time ago, carrying 552 medical personnel, and 70 crew. Comfort is underway now, and headed for Puerto Rico.


http://wtvr.com/2017/09/29/usns-comfort-to-puerto-rico/

[Cattledog]

1. 4 days to reach PR

[GeorgeGist]

2. So it will arrive almost 2 weeks AFTER Maria hit.

Helluva Job, Donnie.

[cwydro]

3. I'm glad they're on the way.

But this is too little, too late.

That ship draws 33ft and the PR harbor is 34.

I imagine they'll have to anchor offshore.

Please and hoping against hope that we have helicopters ready to transport those in need.

[gladium et scutum]

10. Most Probably

Doubt the San Juan water system is back in operation or if a sewage treatment plant is back in operation. USNS Comfort will have to anchor off the coast so she can distill fresh water for the crew and patients. Every few days, she will have to get underway and go out to sea far enough to pump her sewage holding tanks and bilge tanks out.

[ghostsinthemachine]

4. Absolutely disgusting

Last edited Fri Sep 29, 2017, 09:00 PM - Edit history (1)

Why wasn't this ship, or one like it, in the area that can be hit by hurricanes, during hurricane season. On edit, it was in Virginia, but why not based in Florida?

[GP6971]

5. To keep them out of harms way

Home ported in Norfolk gives them adequate time to leave port and ride it out at sea.

[procon]

6. The question to ask is why the USNS COMFORT wasn't restocked, fueled,

fully crewed, and ready to get underway immediately after the Maria moved away from PR.

Its not like the island wasn't already suffering massive destruction after getting hit by Hurricane Irma on September 7, leaving a 1 million people without power. News of Maria's path and speed was already in the news and Puerto Rico was hit again on September 18. Yet here we are on September 29 -- 11 days later -- and the hospital ship is only leaving port today, and won't arrive for another 4 days... 2 weeks after Maria.

The order to deploy that ship has to come from our civilian government:

But a Defense Department official, speaking on condition of anonymity, said the Comfort was not deployed before because the Federal Emergency Management Administration (FEMA), which is overseeing disaster relief on the island, had not requested it.

https://www.usnews.com/news/top-news/articles/2017-09-27/us-navy-to-deploy-hospital-ship-comfort-to-hurricane-battered-puerto-rico

Fema would have gotten the order to deploy the ship from the president, but Trump didn't give any such command. He was far too occupied in bashing football players and going to his feel good, ego rallies, to be concerned about the plight of Americans in Puerto Rico.

[ghostsinthemachine]

8. Thank you, that's excellent..

[JustABozoOnThisBus]

11. The Prez shouldn't need to know details like the name of a hospital ship.

FEMA should have just blown the dust off an old checklist that they developed over the years, and there would be a line item: Island? Send ships. Lots of them, including a hospital ship.

If FEMA is making this shit up as they go along, someone has not been doing their job. For years. If they're not actively handllng an emergency, they should be planning to handle emergencies.

The president should be able to simply wave his imperial hand, say "save Puerto Ricans", then proceed to his second scoop of ice cream.

[DK504]

7. 1 week to late. Shame on the Navy.

The former Sec of State had to nudge them to get off their asses. Shame.

[procon]

9. Not the Navy, they have to get the order to go from the govt. Trump dropped the ball.

See my post above for a link.