Navy Supplies Yokosuka City Emergency Fuel
U.S. Fleet and Industrial Supply Center (FISC) Yokosuka dispensed emergency diesel fuel to sustain emergency city generators through dawn March 12, hours after the most powerful earthquake ever recorded in Japanese history knocked power out to the city of Yokosuka.The previous evening’s devastating earthquake had sparked a fire at a refinery near Tokyo, creating power outages throughout the Kanto Plain, including Tokyo, Yokohama and dozens of other municipalities.
When power outages occurred, emergency generators flipped on to maintain local sewage treatment facilities.
Due to the anticipated length of the power outage and the unprecedented fire and damage at the refinery, it was estimated that the generators did not have the fuel capacity to remain running while alternative sources of diesel fuel were located elsewhere in Japan; local roads and toll-ways were too crowded, damaged or shut down.
Operating at about a seven-hour fuel capacity, it was estimated that one Yokosuka treatment plant generator would have run out of fuel at about 2 a.m., causing raw sewage to flow directly into Tokyo Bay.
Yokosuka city officials made a request for assistance via the Commander, Naval Forces Japan Regional Operations Center (CNFJ ROC), of which FISC Yokosuka is a part.
FISC’s fuels teams sprang into action and, by midnight, commercial diesel trucks were taking on the necessary fuel to be transported to the fuel-diminished sewage plant diesel generators.
With one of the generators threatening to run out of fuel within the hour, diesel trucks made their way carefully but quickly to the generator station, and where it was replenished the fuel with minutes to spare.
“This was a successful case of our emergency contingency plans coming into play smoothly and effectively,” said FISC Yokosuka Fuels Director, Lt Cmdr. Mike Lorrain. “And, it is very gratifying that we were able to come to the aid of our host community right here in Yokosuka. That gives all of us a tremendous feeling of pride.”
A component of the Naval Supply Systems Command, headquartered in Mechanicsburg, Pa., FISC Yokosuka is one among seven FISCs under COMFISCS headquartered in San Diego, a worldwide network of more than 22,500 military and civilian personnel providing combat capability through logistics.
By H. Sam Samuelson
Fleet and Industrial Supply Center Yokosuka Public Affairs
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This entry was posted on Saturday, March 12th, 2011 at 7:49 pm and is filed under Disasters, Disasters, Earthquake Japan, Military, Humanitarian Assistance, Military. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. Both comments and pings are currently closed.
