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Comfort Bids Colombia Farewell

Navy NewsStand

Story Number: NNS070829-14
Release Date: 8/29/2007 4:58:00 PM

By Mass Communication Specialist Seaman Jeff Hall, USNS Comfort Public Affairs

BUENAVENTURA, Colombia (NNS) -- Hospital ship USNS Comfort (T-AH 20) departed Colombia Aug. 28, after completing nearly a week of humanitarian work in the country.

Comfort offered services in Buenaventura, a port city on the Pacific coast, and in Bahia Malaga. In all, services were offered at the Buenaventura Coliseum and Bahia Malaga Naval Base. Those services included primary adult and pediatric care, dental services, optometry and veterinarian care.

Colombia offered a new set of challenges and continuous inclement weather. The mission required the all-hands participation of Comfort’s joint-agency crew. Members of the U.S. Army, Navy, Air Force, Coast Guard, Public Health Service, Military Sealift Command, Canadian Forces, and civilian non-governmental organization Project Hope all played a big part in this mission.

“I knew coming into Colombia there would be some challenges logistically,” said Capt. Bob Kapcio, Comfort's mission commander. “But I also know the motivation and dedication of the Comfort crew to get the mission accomplished. Colombia is another example of how this great group of individuals came together as a team to overcome adversity and get help to people in need.”

In addition to medical services the Comfort team provided, the embarked Naval Construction Battalion Maintenance Unit (CBMU) 202’s community projects in Colombia included constructing a brand new medical facility for the citizens of La Sierpe. This was the first project that Seabees of CBMU 202 built from the ground up during Comfort’s deployment.

Project Hope, a non-government organization, provided medical training to area health care professionals at Hospital Buenaventura while biomedical repair technicians repaired medical equipment throughout the hospital.

Additionally, the U.S. Navy Showband performed at the coliseum providing entertainment for patients waiting for medical care.

Comfort also offered tangible gifts, in the form of medical equipment and supplies, clothing and toys donated by Project Handclasp, a U.S. non-profit charitable organization. More than 8,000 pounds of goods, valued at more than $14,000, were donated to the people of Colombia.

Before departing, leaders at both care sites received posters commemorating Comfort’s visit to the site and the joint medical care efforts conducted there by the Comfort team and local medical providers.

Helicopter Sea Combat Squadron (HSC) 28 worked with Military Sealift Command (MSC) civilian mariners and Joint Task Force Bravo (JTF-B), based out of Enrique Soto Cano semi-permanent airbase in Honduras, to provide the transportation for the many moving parts of Comfort’s mission. HSC-28 provided helicopter logistics from onboard Comfort, while MSC personnel moved joint forces via utility boats eight-and-a-half miles to the mission landing zones. JTF-B provided additional support in Colombia, providing two helicopters for personnel movement to sites further in-country.

HSC-28 also completed a vertical replenishment with USNS Saturn (T-AFS 10) Aug. 28, moving needed supplies to facilitate Comfort’s continuing mission.

“Traditionally speaking, the HSC community has a background in logistics,” said Lt. Sol Snyder, an HSC-28 pilot. “We enjoy the opportunity to take our share of cargo movement to keep the operations moving.”

Comfort will visit Haiti next, continuing its four-month humanitarian deployment to Latin America and the Caribbean. The ship is providing medical treatment to patients in a dozen countries and will return to the United States in October.