Sorry for not including very many pictures... Kofi has much more patience than I do!! Also, the internet out here has been AWFUL! This is my 4th attempt in 2 days for uploading this blog.
Since arriving back from my MEDCAP, the ship life has been
somewhat quiet but definitely not dull!
One of the islands in which one of the MEDCAPs was stationed
had an active volcano. From the ship I could see the smoke steadily streaming
out. I found out that the volcano had actually erupted a few weeks ago but it
was determined to be safe for the MEDCAP to go out still. The scene was still
pretty incredible to see.
The first few days back on the ship, I was very appreciative
of the things I missed. Hot showers, real toilets, and hot food were so
spoiling! The only thing was that the ship was rocking bad. And after being on
land for 6 days, I was not feeling so hot with all the swaying. I simmered down
after about 2 days and then I adjusted back fine.
One night, the Captain came over the loud speaker saying all
decks were closed due to inclement weather. This is unusual since the smoking
deck is always open at-your-own-risk so I knew it must be bad. Of course,
everyone in the pharmacy immediately jumped up and swarmed at the windows in
the hall. The sky was completely gray and you couldn’t even see the water it
was raining so hard. After the storm passed, it remained windy the rest of the
night. Apparently during the night, one of the transport boats was severely
damaged by the wind and being smashed into the Mercy. Also, the ramp used to
get patients from the Mercy to the transport boats was destroyed and now sits
at the bottom of the ocean. It remained very windy for the next few days and
therefore all plans to leave for closing ceremonies were cancelled. Everyone
getting off for flights as well as patients getting off after treatments, had
to be lowered down to the transport boats by the life rafts. It was quite the
ordeal for all the people to get off the boat. Helo ops were not an option due
to the winds.
In our downtime for the rest of Indonesia, we watched movies
and played games in the pharmacy pretty much all day. We did take some time to
palletize the Philippine MEDCAP medications on some mornings.
Four of the girls I met when we got on in Guam left on the
14th. I was sad to see them go since I started my journey here with
them and wouldn’t be finishing it together. They were some pretty amazing
people that I will definitely be friends with for a long time. And I’m glad I
got to spend an amazing few weeks with such great people.
That Saturday, the 16th, we got an official
holiday routine! Finally, we got to sleep in since we didn’t have to muster
until 0930 instead of the usual 0700. We even had abbreviated meal schedule
since they served brunch. Some of the Project Hope people still here and I
decided to rent a Wii and some games from MWR. We spent the day playing Mario
and Just Dance, which was definitely a great break from everything. After
dinner I brought the Wii down to pharmacy to store for the night but we
actually ended up playing for hours! It was hilarious to see our Commander and
all the Navy guys (and girls) to play Just Dance and actually be in to it. We
had a great time with everyone and it was definitely nice to relax and hang out
together.
As we began our 3-day journey to the Philippines, we
received a news release warning us of a typhoon currently hammering the
location we were headed to. As we got close to the Philippines, the weather picked
up and it was extremely windy outside and therefore the ship was swaying bad.
On one of the days we were in transit, there was a
‘frocking’ ceremony held. This is a formal ceremony in which people eligible
for promotions are pinned and recognized. There was one young man from our
pharmacy department being promoted so we all went to support. It was pretty
neat to see the official changing of ranks and formal dress of the ‘frockies.’
There was also a birthday celebration one afternoon during
transit. The Army turned 237 years old! They made a huge cake and celebrated
all the Army personnel on board. It was pretty cool seeing all branches of the
military hang out together and celebrating.
After leaving Indonesia, some people started getting sick.
As it became more prevalent, officials determined we had Viral Gastroenteritis
spreading on the ship. As of yesterday, at least 30 people have been
quarantined on one of the wards to prevent further spreading, if possible.
Preventative Medicine also decided to remove all self-service food items from
the Mess Decks since they thought that might be a possible source of the virus.
So no salad, no fresh cut fruit, and any sandwich bread has already been
pre-saran-wrapped to prevent hands touching everything. It’s been weird at
meal-time since our options are so limited now. So far, 2 people in the
pharmacy department have come down with the virus and are in isolation down in
one of the Wards with the other contaminees.
Yesterday, the USNS Richard E. Byrd came up next to us for a
few hours to refuel us and restock some of our supplies. It was an amazing
sight to see! The helicopter was lifting pallets of supplies off the ship and
dropping them off on the Mercy while they refueled. The whole process took
hours but was very cool to watch. Kofi and I stood on the outer deck for awhile
talking to one of the Navy guys about how the whole process works and some
facts about the ship. He was very friendly and helpful.
Well, that’s all I have for an update! Hopefully I’ll update you all again
soon now that we’re in the Philippines.
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