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USS Sampson Sailors assist in New Zealand

Commander, U.S. Pacific Fleet

Nov. 18, 2016 | 1:23

Members of the USS Sampson crew provide fresh water, meals and other assistance at the Takahanga Marae in the town of Kaikoura. One team of Sailors visited residents to determine the level of need while others set up a food distribution center in an elementary school, and delivered toilets with self-contained sewage systems to homes without plumbing to alleviate the sewage issue. The area surrounding the town recently experienced a 7.8-magnitude earthquake that caused widespread destruction of infrastructure, leaving much of the area cut off from other parts of South Island. While the situation is now stable, many are still without power and running water. Sampson, originally scheduled to pull into Auckland's Waitemata Harbour, diverted course at the request of the New Zealand government to render assistance to those affected by the earthquake on the South Island. The ship joined an international task group comprised of ships from New Zealand, Australia, and Canada, Sampson's crew has flown helicopter flights and brought manpower and supplies ashore to assist the New Zealand responders leading the charge on the ground.