NO Hospital Ships are moving! He lied! Again!

[moonseller66]

In an article from balloon-juice.com:

[link:https://www.balloon-juice.com/2020/03/19/covid-19-national-security-part-ii-the-usns-mercy-and-the-usns-comfort-are-not-afloat-they-are-not-making-steam-for-new-york-and-the-pacific-northwest/|No Ships are coming
]

He's lying to us again and it looks as though the media hasn't even bothered to check.

[FiveGoodMen]

1. "it looks as though the media hasn't even bothered to check"

Do they ever?

[soryang]

2. they're in the yards

both of em at the same time. Now that's readiness and advance planning! It's almost impossible to conceive of greater incompetence.

[gldstwmn]

3. Yes. The Pentagon says the Comfort

is being repaired in Norfolk. Of course Carnival called and offered the use of their ships this morning which I am sure we will pay a pretty penny for.

[drray23]

4. that was predictible by anybody who knows how these work.

These ships are not meant to be operational on a moment's notice. When they get activated, they have to assemble a crew of medical experts. This typically involves calling back reservists and/or drawing from navy medical facilities and the process takes a couple of weeks (i think).
Right now it's a bit worth because it happens thatthe hospital ships were undergoing maintenance.


Hence the need for competent leadership who can plan ahead. Trump is not providing that.

[global1]

6. Be Prepared....

obviously Trump wasn't a Boy Scout.

[The Velveteen Ocelot]

5. Of course he lied. He was speaking.

[DinahMoeHum]

7. Consider this, though. I think Randi Rhodes said this the other day. . .

Last edited Thu Mar 19, 2020, 05:49 PM - Edit history (1)

. . .that even if there were hospital ships available, they would NOT necessarily be there for the COVID-19 cases, but rather for just about everything else a hospital treats for.

The ships are designed to handle mostly accidents, trauma cases, and non-contagious diseases, the sort of things one suffers during wartime or natural disaster; not for a pandemic, which would spread rapidly through such close quarters on a ship.

Shifting other hospital functions to a hospital ship would mean freeing up beds in the shoreside hospitals so that the latter could concentrate on and contain the COVID-19 cases.

Just speculation. YMMV.



#newrostrong

[IcyPeas]

8. neither of the 1,000-patient ships are ready to go anywhere (time.com)

However, neither of the 1,000-patient ships are ready to go anywhere. Both are currently in-port undergoing maintenance work and lack medical crews. It will likely take weeks, before both ships set off to their destinations. And even when the floating hospitals do arrive at their berths, they will not be taking on COVID-19 patients.

....

The USNS Comfort, which is being worked on in Norfolk, Va., is not expected to arrive in New York Harbor until sometime next month. The USNS Mercy, which is in San Diego, Calif., can be prepared sooner but it takes several days to bring aboard staff and medical equipment — and its final destination has yet to be identified.

more:
https://time.com/5805900/hospital-ships-coronavirus/

[Chainfire]

9. When both ships are fully activated

It will add around two thousand beds when more like 200,000 may be needed. Where will they take them, who will have the clout to get then moored in their city. Do you send them to the East coast of the West coast? Of course, anyone treated on them will be grateful for the help, but deploying them is a feel-good measure.

I just checked the Navy's fact sheet, they claim the ships can be deployed on five days notice.

[The empressof all]

10. It's going to be a while

It's also my understanding that the ships are not equipped to handle the virus but will handle the regular medical emergency overloads like heart attacks and strokes. The ships are normally staffed with volunteers so they need to staff up. The ship that is based on the west coast is out for maintenance so that one will not be available for even longer.