Sailors return to Naval Station Norfolk
Frederic DeBarge
Tuesday, March 09, 2010, 10:16:51 PM
More than 130 sailors that were among the first responders to the crisis in Haiti returned to Naval Station Norfolk this week with hundreds more scheduled to return today, as the U.S. begins to lessen its presence in the devastated island nation.
The Sailors, predominantly from the Navy's construction battalion known colloquially as the Seabees, are returning from a five-week stint in Port Au Prince in which their primary purpose was the offloading of vehicles and relief supplies from military and commercial vessels, according to the Associated Press.
Sailors returned aboard the U.S.S. Carter Hall, which will now head to Joint Expeditionary base Little Creek after completing its official mission in Haiti which included delivering 177,600 rations, 345,000 bottles of water and medical supplies less than a full week after the January 12 earthquake.
Soldiers were happy to be home, though some expressed disappointment that they could not see the project through to completion.
"There's a lot left to go, but we could also see a lot of progress," Chief Petty Officer Daniel Chavez told the Virginian-Pilot. "When we got there, there were no lights at night anywhere. When we left, it was a lot brighter."
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