Commander, U.S. 7th Fleet Public Affairs
PHILIPPINES, Nov. 17, 2013 – U.S. Navy Patrol Squadrons 26
and 62, home-based in Jacksonville, Fla., and currently based at Kadena Air
Base in Okinawa, Japan, with Commander, Task Group 72.2, are contributing to
disaster relief efforts in the Philippines.
As the typhoon approached the Philippines Nov. 8, these
aircrews were placed on alert in preparation for search and rescue missions.
When the government of the Philippines requested assistance
and declared a national state of emergency on Nov. 11, the aircrews were able
to reposition to the Philippines in just a few hours. Immediately upon arrival,
they began working with the 3rd Marine Expeditionary Brigade, which was placed
in charge of the U.S. military effort as part of Operation Damayan, to ensure
every hour flown provided benefit to disaster relief operations.
The P-3C aircrews have been flying missions over the
hardest-hit areas of the Philippines since Nov. 11, assessing damage and
searching for populations cut off from sources of food, clean water and medical
care.
The geography of the Philippines makes the determination of
where to focus relief efforts particularly difficult. The archipelagic nation,
comprised of more than 7,000 islands, includes countless remote and isolated
populations in desperate need of relief. P-3C aircrews help solve this problem
by searching for and reporting high-need areas so rescue and relief efforts can
arrive as quickly as possible.
Among the hardest-hit areas is the small island of Homonhan.
In the province of East Samar, the 12-mile-long island was directly in the path
of Typhoon Haiyan and was devastated by winds that measured more than 200 mph.
A CTG 72.2 P-3C was the first aircraft on scene and the first to make contact
with those on the ground in Homonhan.
The P-3C mission commander, Navy Lt. Cmdr. Jace Dasenbrock
of VP-62, described what his crew witnessed on Nov. 12 as they first approached
Homonhan Island.
“We arrived on scene at approximately 0400 Zulu time [noon
in Philippine Standard Time] and immediately saw devastation throughout the
entire island,” Dasenbrock said. “Our first pass around the island saw no sign
of life below. Buildings were destroyed, with few structures surviving at all.
The only building left intact was the church, which stood on the southeastern
edge of the island.
“A sailboat was in a tree about 20 feet off the ground,” he
continued. “After a second pass, a few heads popped out. A third pass around
the tiny island saw about a hundred residents sending SOS signals. A fourth
pass was made to give hope to the survivors. With roads washed out, relief
needed to be brought in by air. We were able to identify several areas suitable
for helicopters and [MV-22B] Osprey to land.”
This discovery was the first of several like it for the CTG
72.2 aircrews. The information and photographs they collect are sent in-flight
to intelligence specialists who collate the products and provide them to the
Marines coordinating U.S. military relief efforts on the ground. This enables
American and Filipino commanders and government officials to identify and
prioritize humanitarian assistance requirements.
Within days of the first P-3C flight over Homonhan Island,
the USS George Washington Carrier Strike Group repositioned close enough to
bring relief to the island’s citizens as well as other communities in the
region.
SH-60 Seahawk helicopters and MV-22B tilt-rotor Osprey
aircraft fly countless round-trip sorties carrying 20-pound bags of food, water,
and medical supplies ashore. The air space has become so crowded with relief
aircraft that E-2C Hawkeye aircraft are now flying overhead to direct and
de-conflict air traffic. The P-3C and E-2C aircrews are coordinating to pass
locations of suitable landing zones as well as locations of more unreached
disaster areas to relief aircraft in real time.
The magnitude and wide geographical footprint of the
destruction to remote areas like Homonhan Island make restoring infrastructure
and rebuilding communities a slow process, but for now the U.S. Navy and Marine
Corps, with their forward maritime presence in the Asia-Pacific region, are on
station bringing needed aid and hope to the people of Homonhan Island and other
devastated areas in the Philippines.
The VP-26 Tridents and the VP-62 Broad Arrows were among the
first to provide critical information about where to best focus relief efforts
in response to this crisis. The commander of CTG-72.2, Cmdr. Mark Sohaney, is
extremely proud of the opportunity to support this effort.
“Our thoughts and prayers are with the Philippine people,
and we are honored to help them in their time of need,” Sohaney said. “We are
postured to remain as long as the Philippine and U.S. governments need us
to."
The people of the Philippines are responding to this setback
with their characteristic resilience, aided by the effective measures taken by
their government to help prepare them for the storm.
The United States stands strongly beside the Philippines in
the midst of this terrible natural disaster.
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