An SH-60B Sea Hawk helicopter assigned to the Warlords of Helicopter Anti-Submarine Squadron Light (HSL) 51 lands at Naval Support Facility Kamiseya, Japan, during the Yokohama Comprehensive Disaster Drill 2011 on August 28.
The helicopter simulated a supply drop during a natural disaster event, and the drill involved emergency personnel and military members from the communities surrounding Naval Air Facility Atsugi and Yokohama, U.S. Navy said.
In this regard, the Japanese Defense Ministry on Wednesday stressed the need to clarify the roles played by the Japanese Self-Defense Forces and the U.S. military forces when responding to a major disaster in Japan to avoid confusion at the initial stage.
According to Kyodo News, the Japanese and U.S. governments failed to smoothly coordinate the roles of their troops in rescue and other work following the March 11 earthquake and tsunami disaster, the ministry said in a report on lessons from the catastrophe.
The ministry mobilized a large number of SDF troops to rescue victims, provide food and shelter, and perform other work soon after the disaster. Despite the willingness of the U.S. military to assist in that relief work under ''Operation Tomodachi,'' a lack of planning made it impossible to immediately put the U.S. forces to best use in providing help to those in need, the report said.
In light of the delayed acceptance of U.S. support for addressing the nuclear accident, the defense ministry said it should be possible for pertinent sections of the Japanese and U.S. government to discuss countermeasures when a massive disaster hits Japan.
PanOrient News
© PanOrient News All Rights Reserved.
