Meet the Peace Ark, the first hospital ship in the world with a 10,000-tonne capacity. China independently developed and built it. It has 8 decks, 32 departments and a total of 428 soldiers, officers and medical workers aboard.
At the end of August, Peace Ark set sail from Zhoushan Port in eastern China’s Zhejiang Province to head to the Gulf of Aden on its first overseas medical mission. During the 87-day mission, the ship will provide medical treatment to soldiers and officers serving in the Gulf of Aden, according to Guan Bolin, a senior official with the logistics department of the Chinese Navy.
The medical staff aboard the ship will also provide medical treatment to people in five African and Asian countries – Djibouti, Kenya, Tanzania, the Seychelles and Bangladesh.
In addition, the ship’s staff plan to conduct various exchange programs with medical workers in the countries the ship calls at, said Guan, also the deputy commander of the mission.
Here is a video of the Peace Ark in action:
This is a rehearsal code named “Blue Ocean Angel 2010.” The main task is to rescue victims injured on a merchant ship assaulted by pirates. Guided missile carrier “Lan Zhou,” and depot ship “Wei Shan Hu,” also participated in the exercise. After receiving a rescue signal, a helicopter was sent to ferry the wounded to the “Peace Ark” for additional medical treatment. The rehearsal is aimed at further advancing the ability of naval ships to deliver medical services.
Sources: CNTV , smh and Daily Nation
