(JEREMIE, Haiti) — Two sailors were injured in a man-overboard incident Tuesday while transferring to USNS Comfort (T-AH 20) from a small boat near Jeremie, Haiti, USNI News reported.
Nineteen personnel fell overboard during the transfer to the hospital ship, although it is not clear how many were sailors and how many were civilians. The two injured sailors were treated aboard the ship and have made full recoveries, according to tweets by the U.S. 4th Fleet.
The personnel were in a small boat being lifted to Comfort by a crane when the boat became unbalanced and tipped, 4th Fleet spokesman Lewis Preddy said.
Swells had reached a dangerous point Tuesday, making the transfer to Comfort difficult, Preddy said. Lifting personnel on a small boat via crane was an adaptive measure used to adjust for the sea state.
The overboard incident is being investigated, Preddy said.
Comfort arrived off the coast of Jeremie on Sunday as part of the Continuing Promise 2022 (CP22) mission, according to the Navy. As part of the mission, Comfort personnel planned to provide medical services, such as adult and pediatric care, dental practices and optometry, Monday through Thursday.
