"After a careful assessment of needs, the USNS Mercy will not be deployed and is not on standby at this time," said Sea Life Commander Trish Larson.
The Mercy -- one of the Navy's two hospital ships -- was originally scheduled to depart Sept. 7 to aid victims of Hurricane Katrina. The 1,000-bed ship was last deployed San Diego on Jan. 5, 2005, to help the victims of the tsunamis that swept across the Indian Ocean on Dec. 26, 2004.The Pentagon announcement earlier in the day that it was dispatching the hospital vessel came amid growing criticism that the federal government had responded too slowly to the devastating aftermath of Hurricane Katrina. President George W. Bush conceded Friday that the federal effort so far has been unacceptable.
Copyright 2006 by NBCSandiego.com. The
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IMAGES: Mercy Deploys To Aid Tsunami Victims
Hurricane Katrina: How You Can Help
