NEWPORT NEWS -- About 70 soldiers and three landing craft utility vessels from the 97th Transportation Company (Heavy Boat), 10th Trans. Battalion, 7th Sustainment Brigade have been diverted from a training mission off Florida to Haiti to support relief efforts.
"The 97th Transportation Company (Heavy Boat) is unique because it is equipped with the 2000 series Landing Craft Utility and it is the only unit in the active Army that has any LCUs,” said Maj. Patrick Berry, 10th Trans. Bn. executive officer. “They're a very shallow draft vessel that allows them to discharge cargo directly into an improved port, degraded port or directly onto the beach. In other words, we can go to areas hardest hit, as long as there is a beach, and we can deliver supplies and equipment directly where they are needed the most."
The LCU, typically crewed by a 12-Soldier team, is used to transport containerized cargo to conduct roll-on/roll-off loading procedures from ship to port. Taking in a 9-foot-draft, the LCU can be used to conduct Joint Logistics Over the Shore operations when there is no useable port.
The threes LCUs that are on their way to Haiti will provide heavy-lift assets and a reverse osmosis water purification unit from Fort Lee’s 49th Quartermaster Company in order to assist port opening operations for flow relief into Haiti.
A Large Tug with a Barge Derrick Crane of the 73rd Trans. Co., 10th Trans. Bn., 7th Sust. Bde. was also diverted to Haiti Wednesday from trainintraining to assist in relief operations. The Large Tug will assist with heavy towing, and the Barge Derrick Crane will assist with heavy lift services.
A Logistics Support Vessel of the 335th Trans. Co., 24th Trans. Bn., 7th Sust. Bde. is currently being loaded with supplies to leave soon.
Other soldiers from Fort Eustis already in Haiti include the 688th Rapid Port Opening Element from the Surface Deployment and Distribution Command and the 544th Engineer Dive Team of the 20th Engineer Brigade.
