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A14 LOCAL
Monday 9 SepteMber 2019
Netherlands send Dutch Navy Ships to Bahamas for humanitarian

aid and disaster relief

NASSAU, BAHAMAS unit specialized in civil-
— The Kingdom of the military actions and two
Netherlands will be specialized diving teams.
providing humanitarian aid HNLMS Snellius is a
and disaster relief to the hydrographic utilization
Bahamas. At this moment vessel. The ship features
navy Ships HNLMS Johan advanced sonar
de Witt and HNLMS Snellius equipment that can chart
are in Saint Martin and the seabed. In this way sea
preparing to extend help charts can be made up,
as soon as possible to the plus coastal areas can be
island group. charted.

The Dutch navy ships after a request for help ships are expected to the budget that Minister Hurricane Dorian has
are already present in from the Bahamas came depart within a few days of Foreign Trade and had a devastating effect
the Caribbean Area in in, through CDEMA and will be on site on 11th Development Cooperation on the Bahamas. The
accordance with the (Caribbean Disaster of September to provide has made available. category 5 hurricane
large humanitarian aid Emergency Management humanitarian aid. The HNLMS Johan de Witt is an has claimed many
and disaster relief exercise Agency). actual aid these ships will amphibian transport ship victims and, according
named Caribbean Both Dutch naval ships provide is currently being which serves as a harbor, to the Red Cross, around
Coast. This exercise is are in Saint Marten at coordinated by the Dutch airport and a storage area thirteen thousand houses
now cancelled and this moment to make the Defense and the CDEMA. in one. It has a large deck have been destroyed or
making place for the real logistical preparations for The emergency assistance for vehicles and relief goods severely damaged. The
emergency assistance, the aid operation. The will be financed from and medical personnel of first estimates of the World
the Land Forces, with an Food Program are that
interior dock from which 76.000 people need help.
ships can enter and leave. Large parts of the islands
On board there are also are under water and the
2 Cougar-helicopters, of infrastructure is suffering
the Defense Helicopter heavily from the situation.
Command, a Marines The population urgently
unit with two FRISC boats needs help. With the
(fast raiding interception presence of several naval
and special forces craft), vessels in the Caribbean,
and four landing vessels, the Netherlands is well able
members of the military to offer humanitarian aid
engineers unit, a Marine and disaster relief.q