CARIB AMPHIP GROUP

ENDS CLEAN-UP TASK

The name “Inez” will long be remembered in the Caribbean. It carries with it the shocking reality of mass devastation and death. It reflects the power of nature over man, and the violent fury with which it can strike.

The U.S. Navy and Marine Corps will also long be remembered in the Caribbean. At the height of the crisis and need, they went into action, brining immediate aid and relief to the stricken areas. The sick and the injured were treated, as demolished areas were cleared and rebuilt. Food was supplied to the starving storm victims, and medical supplies were rushed by helicopters to flattened villages inland.

The nightmare began on September 29 when Inez slashed viciously into the east coast of the Dominican Republic with 150 mile- an- hour winds, brining destruction, injury or death to nearly everyone and everything in it’s path. Before it departed, hundreds were left dead and many thousands injured and homeless.

A request for assistance went out from the governments of the Dominican Republic and Haiti, and it was answered immediately by the Commander in Chief of the U.S. Atlantic Fleet. He ordered a task group to the disaster area, designating Captain G. H. Rood as the on-scene Commander. The five Navy amphibious ships comprising the task group were the amphibious assault ship Boxer, the attack cargo ship Rankin, the dock landing ship Plymouth Rock, the Tank landing ship Suffolk County, and the high speed transport Ruchamkin. A sixth ship, the dock landing ship Lindenwald, soon joined them. More than 4,000 Navy and Marine Corps personnel were attached to the hurricane relief task group.

The Boxer quickly dispatched Marine and Navy helicopters to carry food, medical supplies and survival equipment to the stricken sections of the Dominican Republic’s southern peninsula of Barahona. First reports received from returning helicopter crews indicated that damage was so severe and widespread that an accurate estimate was not possible. Everywhere people were homeless and hungry; and without food, water and shelter, mass epidemics were imminate.

Doctors and medical teams were deployed to the area to aid the half starved, poorly clad villagers. Lack of vaccine became immediate problem and the Boxer responded by flying almost all of her on board supply of vaccine into the stricken sector. An aircraft from the Naval Station at Roosevelt Roads, Puerto Rico flew to the hurricane torn Dominican Republic with a fresh supply of vaccine from the Navy dispensary in San Juan.

Meanwhile, the Plymouth Rock, Rankin, Ruchamkin and Suffolk County sent working parties ashore to clear roads, reestablish communications and rebuild public dwellings on the Barahona peninsula and in Haiti. Medical teams were deployed along the coast and into the hard hit interior. Throughout the entire operation, rain and squally weather continued to plague the navy-Marine hurricane relief teams.

In Jacmel, Haiti, the city hospital had been demolished by the violent winds and a 150 man Navy-Marine Corps working force from the Plymouth Rock and Boxer moved in to reconstruct the roof and repair five of the hospital’s flattened wards. After three days of constant work, the reconstruction was completed and thousands of hurricane victims were able to receive emergency medical treatment. At the same time, the Ruchamkin arrived in Jacmel with 30 tons of emergency rations.

During the six days that the task group was engaged in hurricane relief operations, 813 missions were flown by Navy-Marine Corps helicopters and 455 flight hours were logged. A total of 190,576 pounds of cargo, consisting of medical supplies and foodstuffs, were airlifted into disaster areas by task group helicopters. Some 2,009 passengers and 146 litter cases were airlifted to aid stations and hospitals from remote areas. Medical teams inoculated more than 6,000 persons and treated nearly 20,000 injured hurricane victims.

As a result of their valiant and determined efforts, there are thousands of extremely grateful people in the Caribbean today, people who will live to build new lives-who will not soon forget the American Military men who helped them in their hour of need.