Category: US Navy

Source: United States Navy (Medical)

It’s not a matter of if, but when.

Seismologists have long affirmed that there will be a sizable earthquake to rock, rumble and roil across the Puget Sound region.

Again.

To take complete account of any such seismic upheaval, NHB simulated a major earthquake the morning of Oct. 15, 2024, and focused a training exercise on conducting a full-scale evacuation with ensuring the whereabouts of all staff, patients and visitors.

“We have to know where everyone is. It’s absolutely crucial. We need 100 percent accountability, whether they are here in the building or off duty or deployed or on leave. It’s crucial. Should the building collapse or portions fall, we have to account for everyone. If we can’t, they could possibly be in those damaged areas. We would then determine if we needed to send fire and rescue or first responder teams to search in that location,” explained Terry Lerma. NHB emergency manager.

The exercise scenario – held in conjunction with Commander Naval Installations Command Citadel Rumble and Operation Dynamo 2024 – featured a mock 7.2 magnitude earthquake that followed a string of faux small tremors since the start of October. There have actually been more than 70 minor seismic events registered over the last several weeks.

“Some seismologists say those little quakes are releasing pressure while others say they could compound stress along a fault. Either way, it’s our responsibility to be ready,” said Lerma. “We have to account for everyone, make sure they’re okay so that they – our physicians, nurses and corpsmen – can care for any casualties.”

Lerma noted that the threat presented from any large quake will present a challenge not only to the staff, but also the actual structure. A military treatment facility hospital provides essential services.

“Earthquakes are on the hazard vulnerability analysis that pose a real potential threat to the building, our staff and patients. An actual quake could very well mean there are mass casualties to deal with. We’ve trained on how to respond to such a need and to do so we have got to know where all our people are,” Lerma said.

The 2001 Nisqually earthquake – with an epicenter approximately 55 miles south of Naval Hospital Bremerton – measured a strong 6.8 magnitude and shook the entire Puget Sound region as the Juan de Fuca Plate shifted deeper into the earth. That upheaval invoked NHB to become the first Navy Medicine and Defense Health Agency hospital to become seismic retrofitted in 2007 to withstand future sizable earthquakes.

The objectives of the exercise were aligned with the six critical areas of the Joint Commission emergency management standards, which were to evaluate the staff’s initial response of drop, cover, and hold, followed by a full-scale evacuation and muster, which included security personnel going from floor by floor, office by office, cubicle by cubicle, of the main hospital building to account for all personnel.

“Did everyone get out safely? Is anyone missing,” openly questioned Lerma to remind others to watch out for their co-workers.

The hospital command center staff were also evaluated for their response. NHB Facilities and Safety department were appraised on their activation and implementation of the rapid emergency assessment plan within 45-60 minutes of when the exercise started. “We’re looking at structural integrity. We’re looking to see if gas lines, or sewer lines, are severed. Is the water main broke? We have to check for a lot of possibilities,” Lerma said.

Command communication with Naval Base Kitsap was measured along with the timely use of the command’s mass notification system to inform staff to evacuate the medical treatment facility. “Maybe our internal public address circuit is out of service. Maybe cell towers are knocked down. We’ll use multiple ways to inform and update our staff. We even have satellite phone and ham radio capability,” noted Lerma.

There was even a mock press conference held with the incident commander and acting commanding officer.

“It gave our incident commander and commanding officer the experience of having to deal with the media if there is a real emergency event, not just an earthquake,” explained Lerma. “Just as we train to respond to any actual incident, we also prepare on how to properly reply with timely, accurate information, which is key to getting the command’s actions, intent, and status to staff and patients.”

As Lerma attests, preparation is key before any emergency. Even though there were no reported injuries in the mass evacuation, Urgent Care Clinic staff were proactive to bring medical treatment gear and a casualty tent was still set up to handle any casualties.

“And disasters are emergencies we weren’t prepared for. Drilling on what to do when an earthquake strikes, and then how to safely and correctly evacuate will build that muscle memory so when a significant earthquake happens, the staff will react as they are trained to do,” Lerma stressed.

Descriptor Richter Magnitudes Earthquake Effects

Micro Less than 2.0 Micro earthquakes. Not felt. It’s estimated there’s approximately 8,000 a day.

Very minor 2.0-2.9 Generally, not felt but recorded. About a thousand a day.

Minor 3.0-3.9 Often felt, rarely causes damage. Estimated about 49,000 happen each year.

Light 4.0-4.9 Noticeable shaking of indoor items, rattling noises. Significant damage unlikely. Some 6,200 a year take place.
Moderate 5.0-5.9 Can cause major damage to poorly constructed buildings. 800 yearly. Example: The 1987 Whittier Narrows 5.9 quake in southern San Gabriel Valley caused $358 million in damage. A 5.5. magnitude quake on the Quebec-Ontario border in Canada caused little damage.

Strong 6.0-6.9 Approx. 120 a year, each can be destructive in areas up to about 100 miles across in populated areas.
Example: The 1994 Northridge earthquake, registered 6.7, considered a moderate quake, but the ground acceleration (earth shaking) was the highest ever instrumentally recorded in an urban area in North America. As a result, the damage caused was extensive – $35 billion.

Major 7.0-7.9 Can cause serious damage over larger areas. Estimated there’s 18 per year.
Example: The Great Hanshin Earthquake on Japan in January 1995 measured 7.2, caused 6,433 deaths, and cost 10 trillion yen (exchange rate then was 98.58 to US$1) to repair all the damages.

Great 8.0-8.9 Can cause serious damage in areas several hundred miles across. Frequency of occurrence is one per year.
2006 quake registering 8.1-magnitude struck an area in the northern Pacific, in an area claimed by both Russia and Japan, and caused a series of small tsunami waves to hit Hokkaido, forced locals to evacuate, yet did not swell higher than 23 inches. Yet a similar sized-quake struck off the coast of Mexico in 1985 and caused at least 9,000 people deaths, with over 30,000 injured, and 100,000 left homeless.

Rare great 9.0 or greater Rare devastation writ large
Example: Dec. 2004: The Indian Ocean quake, which registering a magnitude of 9.1-9.3. The epicenter was off the coast of the Indonesian island of Sumatra, caused a series of gigantic tsunamis that caused more than 229,000 fatalities in many nations along the Indian Ocean from Thailand to East Africa. Waves of approximately 30 meters (98 feet) slammed into Banda Ache on the extreme northwest corner of Sumatra.

Source: United States Navy (Medical)

Navy Medicine Training Support Command (NMTSC) Detachment Camp Lejeune is developing tactically proficient, combat-credible medical forces by providing quality training programs that support the Defense Health Agency and Navy Medicine mission.

One of the three NMTSC detachments, Naval Medical Center Camp Lejeune (NMCCL), along with Naval Medical Center San Diego and Naval Medical Center Portsmouth, provides support for the clinical phases of the advanced Corpsman “C” schools.

“NMCCL supports the clinical phases of advanced Corpsman schools which is divided into two phases,” said Hospital Corpsman First Class Christopher Rivera, leading petty officer for NMTSC Detachment Camp Lejeune. “The four clinical specialties that we provide support for here are ultrasound technologist, surgical technologist, physical therapy technologist, and medical laboratory technologist.”

“For ultrasound technologist students, phase one begins with 70 days of didactic training in Fort Eustis, Texas, and phase two is 117 days of clinicals at NMCCL.”

Hospital Corpsman Second Class Wraeshaun Golden from Dallas, Texas is already a qualified radiological technologist and decided to pursue an additional modality as an ultrasound technologist.

“I’ve always had an interest in anatomy,” said Golden. “When I joined the Navy in 2013 after graduating high school, I knew that I could further my education of anatomy and health care through the Corpsman rate.”

“After earning my American Registry of Radiological Technologist certification, I knew I wanted to pursue an additional modality. Out of all the modalities, I found ultrasound the most interesting when going through phase two of radiology technologist school.”

The NMTSC Ultrasound Technologist Program at NMCCL provides the education and preparation for the student to not only successfully complete the “C” school, but also prepares the student for certification as an ultrasound technologist. This compounding knowledge approach ensures the military is not only receiving quality healthcare across the naval force, but also ensures there are incentives to recruit and retain Navy Medicine Sailors.

“It’s important that we ensure our Sailors are staying relevant, engaged, aligned, and are listening, learning, and leading throughout their careers by providing technical and institutional competencies,” said Rivera “These technical competencies in advanced medical fields provide the backbone in building teams that can render assistance in both peace and combat conditions while providing a more comprehensive approach for Sailors and Marines to return to their full warfighter stance.”

Golden graduated October 16, 2024, and is excited to apply her newfound knowledge to her next duty station.

“The instructors here are amazing; they really took the time to ensure that you are comprehending what you’re doing, and they give you the freedom to overcome obstacles when scanning on your own” said Golden. “I’m excited to get to my next duty station and become an individual tech with full autonomy.”

Source: United States Navy (Medical)

NOTRE DAME, Ind. – Capt. Franca Jones, commander, Naval Medical Research Command (NMRC), met with scientists and directors of Notre Dame University on October 9 to discuss ongoing command work and future collaborations.

Jones visited with Notre Dame experts in infectious disease, vaccine development and biomedical applications to identify areas for NMRC and the university to work together on future research ventures.

“The Eck Institute for Global Health was honored to organize and host NMRC leadership’s first visit to Notre Dame,” said Tim Weber, associate director of the Institute. “The University of Notre Dame and the Department of the Navy have a proud tradition of working together in many research areas. NMRC’s visit was an excellent opportunity to bring two world-class research organizations together to tackle important global health problems while improving the health and readiness of our country’s Sailors and Marines.”

Jones also spoke on the impact of infectious disease on global health and U.S. military readiness during a presentation to undergraduate and graduate students. Military readiness in response to infectious disease outbreaks requires constant efforts on the part of research and development organizations. Illness caused by infectious diseases, which can spread rapidly in close-quarters, such as those found in the shipboard environment, can take service members out of their roles for prolonged periods of time, negatively effecting the military’s capabilities.

Jones, who joined the U.S. Navy as a microbiologist in 2001, highlighted the role of organizations within the U.S. Navy, such as Navy Medicine Research and Development (NMR&D), in effectively identifying and curbing the negative effects of infectious disease outbreaks.

“It is critical that NMR&D collaborate with scientists in academia and industry to achieve our goal to ensure warfighter readiness,” Jones observed. “In particular, our collaboration with Notre Dame on bio surveillance will ensure that our warfighters and the medical providers who take care of them understand the infectious disease threats that may impact readiness.

“Expanding on this partnership with Notre Dame to areas such as wound care, drug and diagnostic development, and detection of environmental exposures may serve to improve warfighter readiness in the future,” Jones added.

Jones also discussed the negative impacts of infectious disease outbreaks on global health. Infectious diseases impact the health security of our nation and other nations but increasing morbidity and mortality and destabilizing health infrastructure.

Outbreaks of Infectious disease can also cause, directly or indirectly, contamination of food and water. These contaminations can cause additional sickness and erode confidence in food security. Infectious disease impacts on workers in the food production and transportation industries can further erode food security on a national scale, in addition to broader consequences for the economy and individuals’ job security, as demonstrated by the COVID-19 pandemic, which resulted in closing borders, closing stores and layoffs, among other outcomes.

Jones’ presentation was part of the Eck Institute for Global Health’s Global Health Colloquium, a recurring program of speakers in the health sciences who address topics relevant to Global Health.

NMR&D, led by NMRC, is engaged in a broad spectrum of activity from basic science in the laboratory to field studies in austere and remote areas of the world to investigations in operational environments. In support of the Navy, Marine Corps, and joint U.S. warfighters, researchers study infectious diseases, biological warfare detection and defense, combat casualty care, environmental health concerns, aerospace and undersea medicine, medical modeling, simulation, operational mission support, epidemiology and behavioral sciences.

Source: United States Navy Pacific Fleet 1

SAN FRANCISCO – Sailors assigned to amphibious assault carrier USS Tripoli (LHA 7) received a Flag Letter of Commendation (FLOC) for helping future Sailors enlist in the Navy as part of the ‘Every Sailor a Recruiter’ (ESAR) program, Oct. 11, 2024.

Source: United States Navy Pacific Fleet 1

by Joseph Millar

21 October 2024

The two-week competition highlights professional and athletic skills while enhancing camaraderie and team building among the Surface Force. About 1,000 Sailors, Marines and Department of the Navy civilians are expected to participate.

“This year’s motto is Stronger Together – Fight and Win! Surface Line Week provides an opportunity for our sailors to showcase their skills and training while building bonds and relationships across the waterfront,” said Lt. Jazzmine Ennals, SLW coordinator.

SLW consists of seven athletic, five professional, and two additional events, such as Damage Control Olympics, Marksmanship, Navigation Olympics, and Shiphandling. Activities culminate with an awards ceremony, Friday, October 25.

Participants are active duty, regularly assigned Navy Reserve or other military personnel and government civilians formally attached to a Navy command. Commands earn points as they compete in the different events to determine large, medium and small unit winners.

The mission of CNSP is to man, train, and equip the Surface Force to provide fleet commanders with credible naval power to control the sea and project power ashore.

CNSP will post highlights and updates on Facebook at https://facebook.com/surfacewarriors

For more news from Naval Surface Forces, visit https://www.surfpac.navy.mil/ and www.dvidshub.net/unit/COMNAVSURFPAC.