Per the article:
The donations came from the residents of Ebina City.
I am sure we are providing what we can but come on, the place is 5000 miles from the West Coast and I sure our bases are stocked for our soldiers. Can’t let them march on an empty stomach.
It’s only been three days and the priorities are:
You can survive around 3 weeks without food.
You can survive around 3 days without water.
You can survive around 3 minutes without air.
Further, they need shelter and medical care. Those also have toe be taken into consideration and the logistics for delivering all this is staggering.
Plus, they have to clean up toxic areas and keep disease down. They can’t prevent the diseases but they can manage it to some extent, especially water borne disease such as cholera and dysentery.
That’s just the basics besides collecting the dead, identifying them and properly disposing of them to keep disease from the dead from spreading.
So everyone has more than enough on their plates to support an Island nation.
Japan is the world’s third largest economy (actually No.2 until recently displaced by China) and can, without outside assistance, supply all the humanitarian resources needed by the people ashore. But supporting all the air search and rescue efforts requires fully functional airbases within helicopter flying range. Due to the extent of the destruction, such airbasing locations in the disaster area are in short supply.
As mentioned in the article, the primary thing the USS Ronald Reagan, its CVBG and the USS Essex ATF will provide is an at-sea airfield in the immediate vicinity of the disaster area. Helicopters can base off of the two flat decks, and both have full refueling, medical, food service and billeting immediately available to support those operations. When the Essex arrives it will bring a composite helicopter squadron with CH-46 medium and CH-53E heavy helicopters. (Not to mention a 4,000 Marine MEU that could go ashore and support search and rescue efforts if the Japanese request the assistance.) Further, all this support is self sustaining; they require no assistance/support from the Japanese (other than direction) to execute assigned missions. Finally, Reagan and Essex have extensive air traffic and command and control facilities to supplement the efforts of the Japanese on the land side.
Wouldn’t be surprised if there are JMSDF liaison teams on board Reagan using the facilities right now.