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TERNATE, Indonesia – The
Military Sealift Command hospital ship USNS Mercy (T-AH 19) arrived
in Ternate July 18 for a six-day visit to Indonesia in support of
Pacific Partnership 2010.
“We thoroughly enjoyed a very productive four-day visit to Tobelo
and Morotai, our first stop in North Maluku, Indonesia, and are
looking forward to working in the Ternate area,” said Commander,
Pacific Partnership 2010, Capt. Lisa M. Franchetti. “Pacific
Partnership gives all the nations involved an opportunity to share
their experiences and build critical disaster relief skills, while
providing valuable services to the local populations. Our time in
Ternate will help us continue to establish the relationships that
will help us to respond effectively in case of a natural disaster.”
Pacific Partnership 2010 is the fifth in a series of annual U.S.
Pacific Fleet endeavors conducted in Indonesia as a disaster relief
exercise aimed at strengthening regional partnerships. During her
visit to Ternate, Mercy will provide surgery, as well as conduct
primary medical/dental health care clinics in 10 different locations
in Ternate, Tidore, Mare Island, Jailolo, and Sofifi. Additionally
Engineers from NMCB-11 are nearly complete with their renovation of
a clinic in Ternate.
Pacific Partnership 2010 participants for Indonesia include medical
and engineering professionals from Australia, Cambodia, Canada,
Indonesia, New Zealand, the United Kingdom, and the U.S. military.
In addition, volunteers from the non-governmental organizations
(NGOs) HOPE worldwide; Latter-day Saint Charities; Project HOPE;
University of California, San Diego Pre-Dental Society; Vets Without
Borders; and World Vets are aboard Mercy and are integral members to
the team which will serve the medical needs of the people of Ternate
and its surrounding communities.
Mercy is also joined in Ternate by two Australian Landing Craft,
HMAS Labuan and HMAS Tarakan.
This is Mercy’s third visit to Indonesia. Following the December
2004 tsunami that struck Southeast Asia and the Indian Ocean basin,
Mercy was deployed to support the international relief efforts. In
2006, Mercy once more deployed to Indonesia as part of a five-month
deployment that included medical relief programs in Bangladesh,
Timor-Leste, and the Philippines.
Mercy has completed the first two Pacific Partnership 2010 mission
visits to Vietnam and Cambodia, as well as other stops in Tobelo and
Morotai in the North Maluku province of Indonesia. After Ternate,
the ship will be going to Ambon as part of the final leg of the
Indonesian exercise.
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