Military

10 February 2005

U.S. Military Tsunami Relief Operations Winding Down

Military humanitarian assistance support nearly complete

Washington -- The U.S. military has begun withdrawing personnel and equipment from South and Southeast Asian areas stricken by the devastating December 26, 2004, earthquake and tsunami as operations turn from relief support to rebuilding.

On February 12, headquarters of the Combined Support Force-536 (the U.S. tsunami task force) at the Royal Thai Naval Air Base in Utapao, Thailand, will close, the task force said in a press statement February 3.  The task force was set up after the tsunami struck to direct U.S. forces involved in relief operations.

U.S. military aircraft began flying search and rescue operations immediately following the event and military personnel were on the ground in the region three days after the tsunami struck, even before the operations headquarters in Thailand was up and running. 

The relief work began with disaster-assessment teams who worked with the government of each host country to determine the level and extent of relief needed to deal with the initial humanitarian response, the task force said.

"This assistance was spearheaded by Combined Support Groups in each country and was designed to minimize loss of life and mitigate human suffering while the resources of other U.S. government agencies, NGOs [nongovernmental organizations], and international and regional organizations were brought to bear in the affected areas,” the statement said.

The Navy aircraft carrier strike group USS Abraham Lincoln has already left the region and the support group assigned to Indonesia began closing its operations February 10, the statement said.

As of February 9, there were 3,495 U.S. armed forces personnel providing relief support with 2,813 personnel aboard Navy ships and the remainder located in Thailand, Indonesia and Sri Lanka, the U.S. Pacific Command (PACOM) said.  Those numbers are substantially below the nearly 18,000 U.S. military personnel who were in the region at the height of relief operations.

The U.S. military has delivered 24.3 million pounds of relief supplies and equipment to the region since operations began in December 2004, according to a PACOM fact sheet.  U.S. military medical teams treated 2,238 civilians.

Even though many of the original Navy ships supporting relief operations have left or are preparing to depart the region, some, such as the hospital ship USNS Mercy with its extensive array of medical and humanitarian capabilities, remain to provide continuous support, PACOM said.

In addition, the U.S. military has 25 aircraft in the region providing support, including 18 helicopters from two Navy ships.

"The deployment of U.S. military forces to Southeast Asia was part of a much larger U.S. commitment to providing long-term humanitarian assistance and disaster support," the task force said.

Assistance will continue and be directed by the U.S. Agency for International Development, which is the U.S. government's lead agency for support to the region, the task force said.

The White House announced February 9 that President Bush will ask Congress for an additional $600 million for tsunami relief efforts in Southeast Asia, bringing the total U.S. contribution to $950 million.

Additional information is available at U.S. Response to Tsunami

(Distributed by the Bureau of International Information Programs, U.S. Department of State. Web site: http://usinfo.state.gov)