Typhoon Haiyan Disaster in the Philippines

AssassinsMace

Lieutenant General
Ever since they built the first one, China should've built and deployed a fleet of these ships. They wouldn't have to worry about tiring out crews.
 

bd popeye

The Last Jedi
VIP Professional
A.mace, just a side note the USN has only two hospitals ships. They were saved from decommissioning some years ago. USNS Mercy is on her way to the Philippines.

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By Manuel Mogato

By Manuel Mogato

MANILA (Reuters) - The U.S. military has began scaling back its emergency relief operations in the Philippines as work shifts to recovery and rehabilitation in typhoon-hit areas, a U.S. aid agency official said on Saturday.

Typhoon Haiyan, the most powerful storm to make landfall this year, struck the central Philippines on November 8, killing more than 5,200 people, displacing 4.4 million and destroying an estimated 12 billion pesos ($274 million) worth of crops and infrastructure.

The U.S. Navy has pulled out its nuclear-powered aircraft carrier, the USS George Washington, but still has ten C-130 aircraft delivering relief supplies. Last week, the United States had 50 ships and aircraft in the disaster zone.

Jeremy Konyndyk, director for Foreign Disaster Assistance at the U.S. Agency for International Development (USAID), said the U.S. military had started to reduce its presence to allow civilian aid agencies to step up efforts.

"What we have seen, particularly over the past week, is now civilian and private-sector commercial capacity has started coming back up again and that is taking the burden off of the military actors," Konyndyk told Reuters in an interview.

"You don't want the military playing that role in the long run, they are an interim bridging capacity there, but in the long run, that really needs to be civilian role."

Konyndyk said there had been significant progress in meeting people's basic needs as more roads and ports opened in the worst-hit Leyte and Samar islands.

"Food has been distributed to 3 million people, shelter kits have been delivered to tens of thousands of families. I think the situation with immediate humanitarian needs is becoming stabilized."

Aid delivery was gathering pace as access to affected areas improved, the U.N. humanitarian office said it its latest report. However, major issues remained including the distribution of food and access to clean water and shelter material.

Konyndyk said the next step was for USAID and other international aid agencies to refocus their efforts on long-term recovery and reconstruction, giving priority to shelter and livelihoods for farmers and fishermen.

The United States has increased its typhoon aid to nearly $52 million, but latest estimates from the United Nations showed the disaster rehabilitation plan would cost $348 million. Only 38 percent of the plan is funded.

The United Nations is working to finish a blueprint for a Haiyan Action Plan reconstruction strategy by December 9. The World Bank has increased to almost $1 billion its aid to support relief and reconstruction.

President Benigno Aquino is separately seeking extra budget from Congress to finance relief and rehabilitation efforts.

(Editing by Robert Birsel)
 

bd popeye

The Last Jedi
VIP Professional
PLAN hospital ship Peace Ark is on duty in the Republic of the Philippines.

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A wounded man is transferred to Peace Ark and receives medical examination on China's navy hospital ship Peace Ark at Leyte Gulf in Philippines, on Nov. 24, 2013. China's navy hospital ship Peace Ark, the first 10,000-ton- class hospital ship in the world, arrived here on Sunday and began treating patients who were injured by the Typhoon Haiyan. (Xinhua/Wu Dengfeng)

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Wounded people wait to be transferred to China's navy hospital ship Peace Ark to receive treatment at Leyte Gulf in Philippines, on Nov. 24, 2013.

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A wounded woman is transferred to China's navy hospital ship Peace Ark to receive treatment at Leyte Gulf in Philippines, on Nov. 24, 2013.
 

Jeff Head

General
Registered Member
PLAN hospital ship Peace Ark is on duty in the Republic of the Philippines.

China's navy hospital ship Peace Ark, the first 10,000-ton- class hospital ship in the world
Say what.

The Type 920 Hospital ship for the PLAN, the Ark, is a 14,000 ton ship. It is a good ship, and is of good size.

The Ark has the following Patient Capacities:

Intensive care wards: 20 beds
Total Patient Capacity: 300 beds
Operating Rooms: 8

But it is no where near the size of some other hospital ships.

For example, both of the US Mercy Class hospital ships (USNS Mercy, T-AH 19, and USNS Comfort, T-AH 20) are 70,000 ton vessels.

The US ships have the following Patient Capacities:

Intensive care wards: 80 beds
Recovery wards: 20 beds
Intermediate care wards: 280 beds
Light care wards: 120 beds
Limited care wards: 500 beds
Total Patient Capacity: 1000 beds
Operating Rooms: 12

One US ship, and now the PLAN ship are both helping in the Philippines...and this is a good thing.

Any help of this nature is a tremendous thing, and the people being assisted do not care which country they come from as their lives and health are being saved.
 

MwRYum

Major
Ever since they built the first one, China should've built and deployed a fleet of these ships. They wouldn't have to worry about tiring out crews.

It'd need a more "outward going" policy to support building more hospital ships in this grade and capacity, meanwhile occupying shipyard slots which'd otherwise use in building new warships.
 

bd popeye

The Last Jedi
VIP Professional
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Release Date: 11/22/2013 7:30:00 AM

From Defense Media Activity - Navy

CAMP AGUINALDO, Manila (NNS) -- The Armed Forces of the Philippines and Joint Task Force 505 welcome amphibious ships USS Ashland (LSD-48) and USS Germantown (LSD-42) Nov. 20, in the concerted efforts to extend relief efforts to typhoon victims in Visayas.

Ashland and Germantown have aboard a combined total of approximately 900 Marines, elements of the 31st Marine Expeditionary Unit, based in Okinawa, Japan.

"Having amphibious ships here, along with the 31st MEU, brings more logistical capability and capacity to augment our ongoing relief operations in Visayas," said Armed Forces of the Philippines Vice Chief of Staff Lt. Gen. Alan R. Luga.

Ashland and Germantown, both dock landing ships, replaced USS George Washington which had been operating in the area since Nov. 14.

"We are very thankful to the United States Armed Forces for sending one of their aircraft carriers to the Philippines and immediately supporting our humanitarian assistance and disaster relief operations following the devastation of super typhoon Yolanda," Luga said.

Luga added that USS George Washington played an important role in air transport when most airports are non-operational in critical areas in Eastern Visayas and the amphibious ships have a more robust ship-to-shore movement ability.

Ashland and Germantown carry landing craft, both air cushioned and utility, for moving large amounts of cargo and equipment ashore, and the 31st MEU brings heavy equipment which could be used to move debris.

"In addition to the enhanced capabilities of the Ashland and Germantown the Japanese Navy will be surveying the Eastern Coast of Samar and identifying additional impacted areas for relief support," said U.S. Marine Lt. Gen. John Wissler, JTF-505 commander.

"These are more suitable assets, and combined with the naval vessels from Japan, Australia, and other nations, we continue to be postured to help wherever the Philippine Government and the Armed Forces of the Philippines needs us and we will remain here until our unique capabilities are no longer necessary," Wissler said.
 

Blitzo

Lieutenant General
Staff member
Super Moderator
Registered Member
I wonder somewhere in my mind if China had offered to send naval ships to Aquino and if it was declined, or if China had simply decided not to send naval ships due to the potential negative perceptions both at home and abroad.

They'll seriously have to be a little more determined in flexing their military power in future even if it doesn't directly benefit their interests and if they're afraid the world would see it as China "projecting" its power. It took a UN mandate for China to even send naval vessels to Somalia!


In the meantime, it's good they have a dedicated and modern hospital ship, that while technically naval, doesn't carry the connotations of sending in an LPD or a destroyer or something.

Pictures below

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Jeff Head

General
Registered Member
In the meantime, it's good they have a dedicated and modern hospital ship, that while technically naval, doesn't carry the connotations of sending in an LPD or a destroyer or something.

Pictures below

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Those are awesome pictures. It's efforts like this that will do more to win the hearts and minds of neighbors over to a more friendly PRC.

The more she can do this...the better. IMHO, the PLAN should build a couple of more such vessels, and then have one for each fleet...and then use them more often like this.


PeaceArk.jpg

 

Blitzo

Lieutenant General
Staff member
Super Moderator
Registered Member
I agree, having a couple more of these ready to go would definitely be beneficial.

I'm not sure what their top speed is, but they are based off the Type 903 AOR hull with probably similar propulsion, so they should make fairly decent time. Being a purpose built hospital ship would also confer various advantages in transferring patients from boat or helicopter as the case would be.

But unfortunately building one of these peace arks would be equivalent to building another Type 903 AOR, and I don't think PLAN have the time and money to afford to sacrifice a potential AOR for a hospital ship. Maybe in a few years time.


In the meanwhile, I'm left to ponder what the PLAN response would have been if the typhoon had struck a nation with no dispute with no significant territorial dispute with China, perhaps some of the other SCS countries, or maybe even bangladesh. I could imagine an 071 and a destroyer or two being despatched in that scenario. Deploying the peace ark to the phillippines will be and has been portrayed as only something done in response to foreign criticism.

Oh well, until the next natural disaster I suppose (I kid)
 

plawolf

Lieutenant General
I agree, having a couple more of these ready to go would definitely be beneficial.

I'm not sure what their top speed is, but they are based off the Type 903 AOR hull with probably similar propulsion, so they should make fairly decent time. Being a purpose built hospital ship would also confer various advantages in transferring patients from boat or helicopter as the case would be.

But unfortunately building one of these peace arks would be equivalent to building another Type 903 AOR, and I don't think PLAN have the time and money to afford to sacrifice a potential AOR for a hospital ship. Maybe in a few years time.


In the meanwhile, I'm left to ponder what the PLAN response would have been if the typhoon had struck a nation with no dispute with no significant territorial dispute with China, perhaps some of the other SCS countries, or maybe even bangladesh. I could imagine an 071 and a destroyer or two being despatched in that scenario. Deploying the peace ark to the phillippines will be and has been portrayed as only something done in response to foreign criticism.

Oh well, until the next natural disaster I suppose (I kid)

I'm not sure it would have been that different. What the western media has not addressed at all is this disaster struck in the middle of the most important political meeting of the Chinese leadership for their entire term. Historically, the third Plenum has always been by far the most important one in terms of a new set of Chinese leaders announcing their primary policy initiatives for their entire time in power, and that would have taken up pretty much all of the attention of the most important people in China and their staff.

In addition, even though Haiyan was widely known to be of unparalleled force, I don't think many people seriously expected the kind of devastation it did cause before it struck. I mean the Philippines get hit by Typhoons every year, so its almost became routine.

I think those two factors combined are the most likely cause of China's slow response rather than because of China's frosty relationship with the Philippines. The initial Chinese aid pledge may well have been decided before the Typhoon even struck, and a mid level functionary left to keep the house in order might have bulked at the idea of intruding on the most important meeting of his superiors' careers because of a Typhoon that had been tracked for some time and for which a preprepared response had already been made hit another country.

Had it been any other natural disaster, or if it happened at any other time, I think the response from China would have been far quicker and better prepared.
 
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