Getting the USNS Comfort stocked with needed supplies before it steamed out of the Baltimore harbor and headed for earthquake-stricken Haiti was a high priority for logisticians and acquisition specialists at the Defense Logistics Agency's supply center in Philadelphia.
For Navy Cmdr. Lawrence Coleman, chief of DLA's Subsistence Customer Support Division in Philadelphia, and Michael O'Connor, a planner for DLA's Medical Troop Support stationed at Fort Detrick, Md., the support and preparation for the Navy hospital ship's departure was even more intense. Coleman and O'Connor were selected to deploy with the ship in support of Operation Unified Response.
Both were given a day's notice of their deployment, so in addition to working to fulfill orders, they were also making preparations for their quick departure.
"I was notified Thursday afternoon, Jan. 14, and I was on the ship in less than 20 hours ready for duty to provide support to the physicians, nurses and medical technicians on the ship," O'Connor said.
"With only one day's notice, there was little time to actually do much personal preparation," said Coleman. With sea bag packed, orders cut and a train ticket to Baltimore, Coleman quickly left Philadelphia to board the ship before it set sail for Haiti.
According to Coleman, shortly after the earthquake hit, the ship's supply department immediately dropped hundreds of requisitions through DLA's Philadelphia supply center for food items to arrive at the pier to be loaded onboard the ship before it departed on Jan. 16.
"The local prime vendor in Baltimore filled as many orders as possible and all other requisitions were diverted to the prime vendor in Norfolk for fulfillment," Coleman said. "The prime vendors have been outstanding in providing superb service and high-quality products."
Six-thousand cases of ready-to-eat meals and 100 pallets of bottled water were also loaded onto the ship on the last day for the ship's crew that would be going ashore during the deployment.
DLA's medical supply chain personnel worked with prime vendors and suppliers to expedite fulfilling requisitions for pharmaceuticals, vaccines and medical and surgical products. Expedited deliveries were arranged to ensure products would be delivered and loaded onboard in time for the ship's departure.
Coleman noted that distribution networks for food and medical supplies are being developed and modified rapidly to meet the evolving scale of support coming from the continental U.S. as it reaches Haiti and the ship. Operations personnel aboard the Comfort are making transportation plans for many supplies, he said.
O'Connor said building a responsive supply chain for medical material is challenging because of the unique nature of the products since narcotics must be protected, some material have a short shelf life and other items can only be stored under the strictest of temperature controls.