HMS Lancaster in Montserrat Water’s
by Bennette Roach
When Commander Steve Moorhouse the Royal Navy’s Frigate HMS Lancaster left the Little Bay port on Saturday July 14, following a three-day visit, it was after they engaged with the island in several, if not only with some sporting defeats, useful involvement in various areas. They worked with the youth and others, carrying out some upgrading of the elderly homes, along with training of the Police marine unit.
The ship hosted and even entertained several visitors to the ship, including the media who heard Commander Steve Moorhouse say, “…we competed poorly in Cricket, Volley Ball, we came second in both of those, so my fingers and toes are crossed for the football,” which he said they were coming off a winning streak having beaten the last three territories. “So we’re feeling quietly confident…” he said.
He confirmed: “we’re primarily here for humanitarian and disaster relief whatever those are -particularly an island like this where you actually got both sort of ends of that spectrum from the hurricane to the volcano…” adding that narcotic patrols are also part of their detail, which would commence following the tour to Montserrat.
Media Personnels on the boat
He reported, confirming the activities that had been planned, expressing their reaction to the visit. “The experience of the last three days has been truly magnificent Lancaster and my ship’s company have been made to feel extremely welcome by everybody on the island… I’ve got a really good understanding now of the uniqueness of Montserrat from the volcano, considerations for disaster relief and also the opportunity to put 50 to 60 of my people ashore working in the community on a number of projects…”
He said working on the projects has also been invaluable, “…and the sailors have come back with a real smile and a sense that actually they have made a little difference to the quality of people’s lives on the island.”
Commander Steve Moorhouse of HMS Lancaster
The Governor’s office had informed that the Old Peoples Welfare association identified four homes of people in need, elderly people in need, homes that are in need of repair homes without bathrooms, homes with leaking. “…So the project that we are going to do for the year is the Navy are going to send 60 men ashore and we found sixty volunteers to work with them from youth groups, Rotaract, Community college, Cadet core and Secondary school, Catholic youth organization, matching the number of sailors that are coming to shore,” Richard Aspin had reported.
The Commander responded briefly about his ship, himself and the Royal Navy, advising “every branch, job opportunity in the Royal Navy that’s in the dark blue service, is open to females, with recruiting policy across the Commonwealth. “We have had sailors, from Fiji, Kenya, Caribbean, Commonwealth islands…there is a broad spectrum of Commonwealth nations in the armed forces. From engineers, through navigators, through chefs, stewards.” He informed there are females around the world, doing those roles hand in hand with their male counterparts and that the sister ship HMS Portland, is commanded by a female.
Press Conference with the Media
He said he came to Montserrat in March 1992 on the HMS Fraser, “as an officer under training,” anchoring off Plymouth. “I went to shore in the ships sea boat, onto the new jetty to call on the governor.”
“The Lancaster has been here previously doing this deployment and I believe our sister Frigate Ian Duke was here 2008,” he also informed.
He explained that ships like the Lancaster and the Wave Knight operate separately, “so we can spread out more within the Caribbean potentially though in the events of a natural disaster of whatever format,” he said, adding, “we can come together,” further explaining his ship, “provide most of the man power,” while most of the stores are on the Wave Knight.
those disaster relief stores are all there but actually what
upgrading of the elderly home
After welcoming some other visitors on board, during his brief, the Captain said that while the visit was routine, they were, “here to do is facilitate what you want us to do. It’s very much what the islands tell us what to do here,” to do whatever the Governor and Government wished them to do.
The ship’s men participated in a training exercise with the Police Marine Unit, the Commander commenting that he recognized the limitations of the ‘MV Shamrock’
