US Ship Brings 100 Marines, Helicopters to Lanka

 
Amphibious vessel USS Duluth has brought about 100 marines and three helicopters to the southern coast of Sri Lanka for relief work before heading on to Iraq, a US official said yesterday.
"The ship will be anchored off the coast of Galle for a week or so and later head to its final destination, which is Iraq," US embassy spokesman Chris Long said.
He said the Austin-class ship is carrying three helicopters that will be used for relief work in Sri Lanka as well as a range of heavy engineering and earth moving equipment.
Long said the USS Bonhomme Richard, which was to arrive in Galle to carry out relief work in the tsunami-hit island, has been diverted to Indonesia.
The ship had been due to bring 1,500 US marines to help rebuild tsunami-ravaged Sri Lanka.
"It is unlikely (now) that those many marines will be stationed in Sri Lanka as other tsunami-affected regions also need attention," Long said.

 "A smaller force will be committed to Sri Lanka. At the moment we have around 300 marines at Galle."

The US relief operations would focus on clearing debris and rebuilding some 30 bridges washed away by the earthquake-whipped seas. (AFP).