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Marines Fly Taiwanese Rescuers to Stable Ground in Philippines

23 February 2006

Heavy rains halt multination search-and-rescue effort in Leyte

By Jacquelyn S. Porth
Washington File Staff Writer

Washington -- U.S. military personnel will continue to provide humanitarian assistance in the Philippines until their services no longer are needed, a Defense Department spokesman says.

Army Lieutenant Colonel Brian Maka said February 23 that there are 4,129 service members in the air, at sea and on land supporting the ongoing rescue effort following the February 17 mudslide on Leyte Island.  Much of the U.S. effort has focused on delivering supplies and digging at the site, especially where a local school and government building are thought to be buried, he said.

Initially, the U.S. military sent in floodlights and acoustical equipment, among other items, to aid the ongoing Filippino rescue effort, Maka said.  There are 343 U.S. service members at the site of the landslide, he said.  Steady rain has made the search-and-rescue mission, which is supported by Spain, Indonesia, Malaysia, and Taiwan as well as the United States and local officials, delicate and difficult.  (See related article.)

U.S. Marine helicopters were called on to pull out a half-dozen Taiwanese workers from mud and rushing water February 23.  After the CH-46E helicopters brought the Taiwanese to safe ground, local officials suspended the search efforts for safety reasons. Personnel -- and even the helicopters -- were unstable in the deep mud.

These types of activities are all part of the job for U.S. military personnel who may be fighting terrorism one minute and rescuing villagers another.  Maka said American service personnel were able to arrive on the scene in southern Leyte very quickly because they were already working with the Philippine armed forces as part of an annual bilateral exercise called “Balikatan ’06.” 

Joint Chiefs of Staff Chairman Marine General Peter Pace told reporters in Washington February 21 that U.S. government officials are thankful that American service personnel were available to aid the government of the Philippines and said they would continue to do so “in any way” possible.

At the time of the mudslide, the Marine general said, the United States had three ships, 5,000 service members, landing craft, bulldozers and other relevant heavy-lift equipment in the region. 

More than 1,000 individuals have been reported missing following the landslide; many dozens of bodies have been pulled out from under the accumulated mud and rock.  U.S. Marines have been building bridges and roads needed to bring heavy equipment to clear boulders and other debris dislodged by the disaster.

Marine Lieutenant Colonel Michael Ramos said February 19 that the close, long-standing, existing U.S.-Philippine relationship – in concert with forward deployed U.S. military assets – “enabled us to respond very quickly and efficiently to this tragedy.”

For more information see International Security.

(The Washington File is a product of the Bureau of International Information Programs, U.S. Department of State. Web site: http://usinfo.state.gov)