The helicopter carrier Diksmuide of the French Navy is to leave this Friday, April 3, the naval base of Toulon to join the Antilles-Guyana zone, where it will provide logistical support in order to fight against the epidemic of Covid-19, said this Thursday the maritime prefecture.
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" The departure of Diksmuide is scheduled for tomorrow (Friday), it must take about 13 days to arrive in the area, " said AFP frigate captain Christine Ribbe, spokeswoman for the maritime prefecture in Toulon. " Depending on the evolution of the epidemic ", the military ship will first sail off Guyana or, on the contrary, to the French Antilles. There, the boat will not be used to accommodate patients of the Covid-19 but can, if necessary, offload hospitals in the area by taking care of " classic " patients, said another military source.
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Diksmuide takes on board four helicopters (two from the army, one from civil security and one from the gendarmerie), which can be mobilized among other things for medical evacuations, but also medical equipment, including masks and a scanner, at least a fire truck, according to the maritime prefecture. In total, it will transport nearly 120 tonnes of freight, including 4.5 tonnes of medical freight and 58 tonnes of food freight (water, rations, food).
The crew, usually made up of 200 sailors, was reinforced with 150 additional people. A dozen members of the medical staff of the military health service (SSA) will be on board, it was said military source. " We will try to best meet the needs on the spot, " insisted Captain Ribbe.
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The overseas territories are for the moment less affected than mainland France with more than 720 cases and 11 deaths, according to the latest report on Wednesday, but the fragility of their health infrastructures, their insularity (for the majority of between them) and their distance raise fears of a health catastrophe.
In addition to Diksmuide in the Antilles / French Guiana area, the amphibious helicopter carrier Mistral is to join it on Reunion Island in the Indian Ocean, not far from Mayotte, as part of the military operation "Resilience" launched last Wednesday by the President of the Republic Emmanuel Macron.
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While many overseas elected officials question whether these two military buildings can be used to decongest resuscitation services overseas if they were saturated, government spokeswoman Sibeth Ndiaye said Wednesday that " these two helicopter carriers would not be used as hospital ships ”.
