The exercise was concluded on Saba last Sunday with a visit onboard the French Naval vessel BSAOM Dumont d’Urville. This was at the invitation of Commanding Officer Lieutenant Thomas Chauveau. Persons present for the visit included Island Governor Jonathan Johnson, Island Secretary Bram Streppel, Head of Public Order and Safety Walle Bos, Crisis Advisor Shalini Bisram, as well as the Commanding Officer of the HNLMS Pelikaan Max Borsboom.
The BSAOM Dumont d’Urville can be considered the equivalent of the HNLMS Pelikaan and is used for overseas offshore support and assistance. The vessel is usually stationed in Martinique and was part of the exercise as part of the French entities.
By conducting an exercise like ‘Calm Horizon’ in the Windward Islands, the military is optimally prepared to provide emergency assistance, support civil authorities, and maintain public order immediately after a hurricane threat has passed. This is one of the three core tasks of the Netherlands Ministry of Defence in the Caribbean Region.
