The USS Iwo Jima is bringing health care to Latin America and the Caribbean and will dock here between October 18-26, the US Embassy here says.
It will provide medical care and construction support. The medical teams will be at Rosehall from Oct. 18-26, Moraikobe on Oct 20, Orealla/Siparuta Oct 18-19, Kwakwani Oct 21 and Edinburgh Oct 22-26
The construction projects include repairs to a health care incinerator in Berbice, construction on the Central Corentyne Secondary School and improvements to an agricultural packaging and storage facility at Mibicuri, Black Bush Polder.
The US embassy says “For this deployment, USS Iwo Jima was configured with special medical equipment and manned with a robust multi-specialized medical team of uniformed and civilian health care providers to provide a range of services.
The medical/dental/veterinary crew includes medical professionals from the U.S. military and U.S. Public Health Service, non-governmental organizations (NGOs) and other international partners.”
It added ”A team of Navy Seabees from the Norfolk, Va.-based Construction Battalion Maintenance Unit (CBMU) 202, along with detachments from Jacksonville and Key West, Fla., and Kings Bay, Ga. will support community construction and repair projects. They will provide local communities with building repairs and improvements, new small construction projects, utility system repairs and other projects depending on the host nation’s needs.”
USS Iwo Jima is an amphibious assault ship. These large amphibious ships resemble a small aircraft carrier and are typically the cornerstone of any amphibious group. For this deployment, USS Iwo Jima is outfitted with 10 helicopters (eight CH-46 E Sea Knights & two MH-60S Knighthawks) and 2 Landing Craft Utility (LCUs) which will play a key role in transporting personnel, patients and equipment to and from shore.
