NAVSUP FLC Jacksonville Sailor supports joint earthquake relief effort in Venezuela

Following two significant earthquakes that struck Venezuela on June 24, the Department of War supported State Department-led efforts to provide humanitarian assistance to communities devastated by the natural disasters.

At the direction of U.S. Southern Command, deployed military units delivered critical aid, conducted search and rescue operations, and stabilized the crisis in hard-hit areas like La Guaira and Caracas. This temporary, self-sustaining military mission was designed to save lives and alleviate suffering before transitioning long-term relief tasks to local authorities and international aid organizations.

Among the many service members who supported the relief effort was Lt. Cmdr. Johnny Quintong, an operational logistics planner assigned to Naval Supply Systems Command (NAVSUP) Fleet Logistics Center (FLC) Jacksonville. Quintong was part of a joint task force, led by U.S. Southern Command, established to deliver water, food and other humanitarian relief supplies to the state of La Guaira and the city of Caracas.

Serving aboard the USS Fort Lauderdale (LPD-28) for several days, Quintong represented the Navy as the liaison officer within the joint task force and coordinated requests for support from U.S. Naval Forces Southern Command/U.S. Fourth Fleet.

“Once up and running, I was able to integrate with them and assist with their logistic portion of their operations, assisting to move supplies in port,” said Quintong.

In addition to supporting logistics operations, Quintong helped ensure service members remained safe while conducting humanitarian assistance and disaster relief operations.

The mission presented several challenges, including limited computer access and connectivity, transportation constraints, and navigating legal considerations associated with some donated supplies provided to support relief efforts.

Despite those challenges, Quintong said being part of the joint task force was a rewarding experience.

“The best part was to be able to assist with humanitarian efforts and integrate with other commands that worked towards the same mission,” he said. “The biggest takeaway was the overall experience to represent a nation that projects hope, peace, inspiration, and sovereignty toward another. The level of care that was provided by our forces speaks volumes and it was well accepted by the locals regarding their point of view toward the United States government. There were no differences between the branches; everyone was respected and taken into consideration by everyone.”

Through NAVSUP transformation initiatives, NAVSUP FLC Jacksonville has evolved from a local storefront operation with several remote regional sites to a unified and decentralized single point provider of supply chain and logistics products and services for all Naval activities throughout Navy Region Southeast, from Texas to Cuba. For more information, visit https://www.navsup.navy.mil/NAVSUP-Enterprise/NAVSUP-FLC-Jacksonville/.