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News | Sept. 14, 2017

USNS Spearhead Picks Up Supplies In Route to St. Martin

By U.S. Naval Forces Southern Command/ U.S. Fourth Fleet Public Affairs

GUANTANAMO BAY, Cuba (NNS) -- USNS Spearhead (T-EPF 1) stopped at Naval Station Guantanamo Bay, Sept. 13, to pick up humanitarian relief supplies to support Joint Task Force Leeward Islands (JTF-LWI) on the Franco-Dutch island Saint Martin.

JTF-LI is composed of elements from Special Purpose Marine Air-Ground Task Force - Southern Command, Joint Task Force - Bravo, and elements of other U.S. Southern Command (USSOUTHCOM) components to provide humanitarian assistance / disaster relief (HADR) support to the island of St. Martin. U.S. Agency for International Development and Office of U.S. Foreign Disaster Assistance requested Department of Defense support to relief efforts after the island's infrastructure sustained heavy damage from Hurricane Irma.

Capt. Steven Stacy is Southern Partnership Station-Expeditionary Fast Transport 2017 (SPS-EPF 17) Mission Commander and is onboard Spearhead supporting Navy humanitarian relief support in St. Martin.

"Hurricane Irma dealt a terrible blow to St. Martin," said Stacy. "There have been fatalities, and much of the island's infrastructure has been destroyed. Our thoughts and prayers are with the families and communities that were affected by this storm. We are providing the heavy lift to support USAID and the French and Dutch governments' humanitarian responses."

While in port Guantanamo Bay, Spearhead onloaded 50,000 gallons of fuel, 81,000 bottles of water and 1,000 Meals Ready to Eat (MRE's). The fuel is to be used for reverse osmosis water purification systems being sent to St. Martin.

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