Hunterdon County Democrat
June 19, 1888, Fiftieth Volume, No. 45

Lindsay Muse, a colored messenger in the Navy Department, died last Thursday afternoon of old age. He had the distinction of being the oldest employee in government service. He was appointed a messenger in the Navy Department in 1828, and served there continuously in that capacity to the day of his death. He served under twenty-seven different Secretaries and shook hands with every President from Monroe to Cleveland.

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On the morning of September 12, 1814, a British force of 9,000 men landed at North Point, Maryland, with the intention of marching inland and capturing Baltimore. Brig. Gen. John Stricker, commander of the 3d Brigade of the Maryland militia, was ordered to delay the British advance so that the defensive entrenchments around the city could be completed. The 5th Regiment was assigned the task of holding the American right flank. Despite two hours of artillery and rocket fire, the 5th Maryland stood their ground. After inflicting some 300 casualties, the 5th was ordered to fall back to a new position in front of the Baltimore trenches. The British army, exhausted by the fighting and surprised by the stubborn defense of the Maryland militia, withdrew, while the British navy failed to silence the guns of Fort McHenry in Baltimore Harbor. Thwarted on land and sea the British force sailed away

On land and at sea, the United States and Great Britain struggled for three years in a war that many historians see as the final chapter of the American Revolution. From 1812 to 1815, the U.S. Navy was on the front lines worldwide as it fought the Royal Navy. At home, Canada and the U.S. were both battlegrounds as capitals burned and the tides of war flowed back and forth. The War of 1812 settled the issue, once and for all, of America’s relationship with Great Britain and established the new nation as quite thoroughly independent.

The approaching bicentennial of the War of 1812 is being commemorated by the United States and Canada in a series of events to be held all along the East Coast, through the Great Lakes and down in New Orleans. The U.S. Navy sees these events as a way to highlight the events of the time and to also feature the modern Navy with its current missions and capabilities.

The first event on the 1812 calendar is a visit to the last battlefield of the war, New Orleans. From January 6-8, 2012, the National Parks Service will remember the 197th anniversary of the battle immortalized by singer Johnny Horton.

As events are developed, they will appear on the Official War of 1812 Bicentennial website. The Navy has assisted in the development of an online game titled A Sailor’s Life for Me! which allows the player to experience the life and times of a sailor in 1812.

The amphibious assault ship USS Wasp departs Naval Station Norfolk ahead of Hurricane Irene. Vice Adm. Daniel Holloway, commander of U.S. 2nd Fleet, ordered all ships in the Hampton Roads area to set Sortie Condition Alpha. Ships in the area are departing early Thursday morning, Aug. 25. Irene's current track indicates it will pass off the North Carolina and Virginia coasts late Saturday as a Category 3 hurricane. U.S. Navy photo by Mass Communication Specialist 2nd Class Eric S. Garst

Commander, U.S. 2nd Fleet today ordered all U.S. Navy ships in the Hampton Roads, Va., area to get underway in preparation for Hurricane Irene.

Twenty-seven ships got underway today, nine ships were already at sea, and 28 ships will be taken to safe havens. Ships went to safe haven for various reasons, such as being in a particular maintenance status that does not allow the ship to get underway. Safe havens are predesignated piers that offer better protection against weather than a general pier.For the ships that did sortie, it should take them until approximately 1 p.m. Eastern time, Aug. 27, to clear the path of Irene.

Vice Adm. Daniel Holloway, commander, U.S. 2nd Fleet, said that the decision to sortie the ships from Hampton Roads is based on Hurricane Irene’s current track that indicates the storm will produce at least 50 knots of wind and a five to seven foot storm surge, which meets the critiera for getting the fleet underway to avoid storm damage.

The Arleigh Burke-class guided-missile destroyer USS Oscar Austin and the guided-missile frigate USS Nicholas depart Naval Station Norfolk ahead of Hurricane Irene. U.S. Navy photo by Mass Communication Specialist 2nd Class Eric S. Garst

“Our ships can better weather storms of this magnitude when they are underway,” said Holloway. “The forecasted destructive winds and tidal surge is too great to keep the ships in port. There is a much greater potential of not only the ships being damaged, but also the pier infrastructure. Having the ships underway also makes them ready and available to respond to any national tasking, including any needed disaster response efforts in the local area after the storm has passed.”

Foul weather preparations start with Sortie Condition C, with ships prepared to get underway in 48 hours. At Sortie Condition B, ships must be prepared to get underway within 24 hours. Sortie Condition A indicates the execution of the sortie.

A variety of information is available in support of family readiness during hurricane season including:

• Navy Family Accountability and Assessment System provides a standardized method for the Navy to account, manage, and monitor the recovery process for personnel and their families affected and/or scattered by a wide-spread catastrophic event.

• State of Virginia Emergency Management has many resources for planning and preparing emergency kits, developing evacuation plans and addressing specific special needs for children, the elderly and others.

• Virginia Department of Transportation Hurricane Evacuation Guide rovides more detailed information for preparing for a hurricane, hurricane evacuation and public shelters in Virginia.

• Red Cross Hurricane Preparedness Guide provides general overview of tips and guidelines for hurricane preparedness.

• Prepare Hampton Roads website provides valuable tips for preparing for high winds, evacuation.

DVIDS

A Navy Landing Craft Air Cushioned from Assault Craft Unit 4, amphibious assault ship USS Bataan, boards the ship Jan. 22, to load up with vehicles and supplies from the 22nd Marine Expeditionary Unit to be used in the Operation Unified Response relief effort in Haiti. The landing craft allows 22nd Marine Expeditionary Unit Marines to deliver heavy equipment and supplies faster and more efficiently than alternative landing craft. Cpl. Bobbie A. Curtis

From the USS Bataan Facebook page:

BATAAN-Conducted 470 pallet CONREP/ VERTREP with USNS Sacagawea; LCAC operations and flight ops iso CTF offload of 22 MEU CLB; 25 patients in medical.

Every Saturday on Bataan, the crew participates in Saturday Night Alive. SNA features musical performances, dancing, comedy and karaoke. It’s a great opportunity for the crew to gather in one location and spend time together. Tonight, we brought out a few recovering Haitian patients to watch, and some even performed. The faith and resolve we continue to witness is absolutely unbelievable. This is a lifechanger.

Earlier today: Bataan is conducting a vertical replenishment off the coast of Haiti with USNS Sacagawea. The crew is bringing on board 220 pallets of relief supplies from Project Handclasp, Operation Blessing and the American Red Cross, along with 272 Meals Ready to Eat.

GUNSTON HALL has established an unbelievable operation in Killick. They had 141 check-ins to clinic, and called in 8 medevacs for 29 patients. 5 day totals: 869 patients, 92 Medevacs carrying 347 critically injured patients. GUNSTON HALL delivered 4200 meals in Port Au Prince. Transferred 3700 boxes of food from Mexican ship Huasteca to Killick Delivered 20 cases of bottled water.

FORT MCHENRY Transported 48 Canadian sailors ashore and back at end of day for HMCS Athabaska Chaplain. 40 cleared debris from a collapsed housing site in New Mission. Conducted lillypad refueling ops for various medevac helos Supported ship-shore movement iso 22 MEU CLB offload Set up joint FT Mac/Carter Hall clinic with Doctors without Borders in Grand Goave. Medevac’d 5 critical patients plus two caretakers

CARTER HALL-Offloaded 22 MEU CLB to Grand Goave (9 MTVRs, 1 Forklift, 2 Water Trucks, various equipment, and 93 pax); Conducted VERTREP for stores; Directed all ship to shore movement as Primary Control Ship (PCS) for New Mission and Grande Goave beaches; Provided medical personnel for joint Carter Hall/FT Mac clinic established ivo Grand Goave. Departed area en route to GTMO

Medical professionals aboard the Military Sealift Command hospital ship USNS Comfort (T-AH 20) treat a six-year-old Haitian boy in the casualty receiving room aboard the 1,000-bed hospital ship. The boy transferred to Comfort by helicopter from the aircraft carrier USS Carl Vinson (CVN 70) for treatment for an injury to his bladder and a hip fracture during an earthquake that struck Haiti on Jan 12. The boy is in the intensive care unit aboard Comfort in stable condition. U.S. Navy photo by Mass Communication Specialist 2nd Class Chelsea Kennedy

The USNS Comfort lived up to its name today as the medics and crew of the hospital ship continued to provide medical aid to the residents of this devastated land.

In short, it was a very busy day as the medics tended to some of the most challenging cases caused by the magnitude 7 earthquake that struck Jan. 12. By mid-afternoon today, more than 160 Haitian patients were admitted to the floating hospital.

Surgeries were performed almost around the clock. There were nine yesterday — the first day — with the last finished at 4:30 this morning. The operating room personnel began work again two hours later.

The intensive care units and wards were beginning to fill to capacity of 1,000 beds. “We have never had that number on the ship, but we can do it,” Navy Dr. (Capt.) Jim Ware, the medical group commander, said.

More medical professionals are arriving, and all are highly motivated. “We had critical care nurses show up today, and after they signed in, they put their scrubs on and went to work,” said Command Master Chief Chip Collins, the Comfort’s top enlisted sailor. “They said, ‘I can put my stuff away later. Where do you need me?’”

Two medical professionals aboard the USNS Comfort hospital ship treat a Haitian woman in the casualty receiving portion of the ship, Jan. 21, 2010, off the coast of Haiti. DoD photo by Jim Garamone

And the help is needed. On the main deck, litter bearers bring patients to the casualty receiving area after they are unloaded from helicopters on the flight deck. The elevator door opens and litter bearers come onto the red deck of the receiving area.

“Six,” says Navy Lt. Cmdr. Dan D’Aurora, who “owns” the area. D’Aurora is a nurse and a force of nature. All of the medical personnel in CASREC have their names and ranks printed on surgical tape on their shirts or scrubs. D’Aurora’s shirt has another across the back with the word, “Bulldog.”

The litter bearers bring the litter to Bay 6 where they are met by doctors, nurses and corpsmen who transfer the patient from the litter to the bed. “Get the bed the same height,” says a nurse as corpsmen crank the bed up to transfer the patient. “On three. One, two, three – lift!”

Some patients have breathing tubes and a corpsman presses a bladder to ensure air gets in the patient’s lungs. Other corpsmen and nurses hook the patient to monitors.

The doctor looks at the patient and any records. All check over the patient to ensure some injury hasn’t been overlooked. If X-rays are ordered, a technician brings a portable machine over and the lifting – or turning — process begins again.

Treatment takes many forms. One doctor performed a spinal tap on a young Haitian boy. Another read an X-ray and sent the patient immediately to the operating room. Still another looked to see that the broken leg was set correctly, then sent the patient directly to one of the wards.

Sailors who serve as translators are an integral part of the team. Most were born in Haiti and emigrated to the United States with their families. They are the conduit that doctors and nurses use to communicate with the Haitian patients.

“They have been nothing short of fantastic,” D’Aurora said. “When we were here last year for [Exercise] Continuing Promise, we did half the patients because we couldn’t communicate. We learned.”

While there are some cries of pain, the patients are pretty stoic. “Again, it helps there’s someone there who speaks their language,” D’Aurora said.

There are a number of bays in CASREC, and several times today, they were all filled. The process works quickly and smoothly and is getting smoother as the medics gain experience.

“This isn’t ‘ER,’” said Navy Dr. (Cmdr.) Tim Donahue, the chief of surgery. “People work quietly and quickly. This is real life. Not TV.”

The medics sometimes move quickly. “Running man!” yells one corpsman as a nurse comes into CASREC at a full sprint with needed equipment.

The patients come in all shapes, sizes and ages. A baby was born on the Comfort today. Both mother and daughter are doing well.

In another bay, Charlene, who is five, hugs a teddy bear she received when she got to the ship. She has a bandage on her left foot, but medics are concerned about her sight. Navy Dr. (Capt.) Terence McGee places eye drops in to dilate her pupils. She is a brave young lady as the doctor looks in her eyes. When he finishes the examination, she begins to cry so he picks her up. He asks if she has an escort – her mom or dad – and is told no.

“Five years old and alone,” he says, and continues to rock her back and forth.

DoD
By Jim Garamone
American Forces Press Service