Moving things and people is an important part of the humanitarian work. Getting resources when and where they are most needed is a difficult task that is usually completed with help of special means of transportation.
Humanitarian action is first a matter of logistics. It might not seem obvious, but the essence of humanitarian work often boils down to moving resources from an A point to a B point, within a short amount of time and before it is too late. However, humanitarian logistics is quite frequently hindered by the terrain. One does not simply use a road or an airport’s track to bring first help and bare necessities to people that may be exposed to war, natural disaster, epidemic and so forth. Logistics requires a tremendous amount of thinking, efforts and material when it comes to humanitarian activities. Hence, specialists sometimes require and rely on special vehicles to get where they have to.
Going through difficult terrain
Any humanitarian expert will tell you that terrain is a major question and one of the first problems to be solved when planning an operation. “In many crisis situations there are logistical and infrastructure problems, such as difficult terrain and inadequate roads, which prevent humanitarian organisations from reaching affected populations”, Head of the British Overseas Development Institution, Sara Pantuliano says. Logistics is a fundamental issue for humanitarian specialists because it puts the success of their work at stake every time they launch a new project. Lack of logistical solutions undoubtedly has serious effects on the efficiency of an intervention.
Think about the situation in Haiti. After the 2010 earthquake and after hurricane Sandy stroke the country in 2012, most harbours and roads in the country were destroyed. For a while, Haiti was cut off from the rest of the world and help from the outside hardly reached the Haitian population. Today, Haiti has not recovered yet. This little territory lost in the middle of the Caribbean Sea is still subject “food insecurity”, “inadequate sanitation”, and “cholera epidemic” according to the Jesuit Refugee Service. A situation that the JRS mostly attributes to “the destruction of transport infrastructure” that especially hinders “the ability for humanitarian workers to assist those in the worst affected areas of the country”.
Wherever humanitarian aid is required, the way to reach that place might be impracticable. This is part of the humanitarian challenge. Hence the question of equipment is an inevitable one. Armies around the world, NGO’s, associations use special equipment and means of transportation to get where they are needed. They use vehicles with unique features to come rescue people all around the world. And these vehicles are besides fascinating pieces of technology. It takes more than a mere engine to cross a devastated landscape or reach an isolated land.
Technologies help logistics
Swiftness and cargo capacity are obviously the most important specifications that a vehicle designed for humanitarian intervention has to possess. Hence cargo helicopters often come in handy during humanitarian action too. In 2011, the World Food Programme “has launched a helicopter air service to deliver urgently needed food assistance to camps in Ethiopia hosting Somali refugees”. During a few weeks a MI-8 helicopter made return trips between Gode and Dolo Ado, carrying up to three tons of food supply. The whole operation illustrated the exceptional capacities of this aircraft. “Heavy rains and a flooded airstrip have frequently prevented the regular UN Humanitarian Air Service flights using fixed-wing aircraft from landing in Dolo Ado”, the WFP explains. Replacing airplanes with helicopters was therefore a matter of elementary logistical logic, even if helicopters have a low payload and a limited operating range.
In the maritime field, the main difficulty is often to find proper port infrastructures, especially after natural disasters. For instance, taking action on an island is sometimes more complicated that it seems. But a new ship concept – the L-CAT by CNIM French firm – could be one of the more effective solutions. Whereas most vessels must land on a proper deck, a ship like the L-CAT is able to land on almost any type of terrain, which makes it especially useful for humanitarian operation purpose. The L-CAT, or landing catamaran, was designed by CNIM and features two hulls and central deck that can be lowered to the ground or water level. That unique system allows the L-CAT to disembark people, vehicles or material on any coastal site at sea level. “30 meters long and 12 meters wide, it can carry a maximum payload of 80 tonnes at a speed of approximately 18 knots, while the empty speed is up to 30 knots”, defence-aerospace.com says.
Success of humanitarian activities and actions depends a lot on means of transportation. In some circumstances, vehicles make a crucial contribution to the plan. Hence the humanitarian sector too has an interest in technology. Top-notch boats, aircrafts, and other vehicles enable humanitarian workers to go wherever they are needed and to step into action as quickly as possible. Means of transportation partly determine the very ability to go on the field and start an operation. Helping out with a crisis situation is hardly a matter of routine and everyday commuting. Managing an emergency takes special resources in skills and equipment. Such requirements are a challenge as well as a call for hope because technology and knowledge are rare. But they also carry development with them, and this is, after all, the whole point of humanitarian work.