On Tuesday, the Pentagon confirmed that its floating pier in Gaza had broken apart. The pier, created to provide humanitarian aid to Gaza, broke apart due to strong winds and heavy seas.
In a press conference, Pentagon deputy press secretary Sabrina Singh said the pier was damaged, and sections of the pier needed rebuilding and repairing.
“Due to high sea states and the North African weather system earlier today, a portion of the Trident Pier separated from the pier currently anchored into the coast of Gaza,” Singh said. “As a result, the Trident pier was damaged, and sections of the pier need rebuilding and repairing.”
Despite the challenges, the Pentagon has assured that the pier will be repaired and assembled, and aid delivery will resume soon.
“Therefore, over the next 48 hours, the Trident pier will be removed from its anchored position on the coast and towed back to Ashod, where U.S. Central Command will conduct repairs. The rebuilding and repairing of the pier will take at least a week and must be re-anchored to the coast of Gaza.”
Why can the government execute a half baked plan to deliver aid to Gaza on a floating pier that doesn’t float and wastes +$300 million… while millions of Americas are struggling financially?
Because they don’t have to make that money. They just steal it from you, reappropriate… pic.twitter.com/fEGgjYWsxG
— Nathan Spearing (@thespearing) May 28, 2024
Singh also confirmed that four U.S. Army vessels connected to the pier disconnected on Saturday, forcing them to beach in Israel. However, the U.S. troops aboard the beached vessels were evacuated on Saturday.
“On Saturday, May 25th, four U.S. Army vessels supporting the maritime humanitarian aid mission in Gaza were affected by heavy sea states, causing these motorized pier sections, which are used to stabilize the Trident Pier. to break free from their anchors due to a loss in power and subsequently beach ashore,”
Part of the floating humanitarian pier in #Gaza detached from the main structure and drifted towards the Ashdod coast in #Israel due to high winds and rough seas. pic.twitter.com/Leco5cu4Cb
— ConflictLive 💬 (@conflict_live) May 25, 2024
The pier, which cost $320 million, had only begun operating on May 17, a week before the damage. The pier, formally called Joint Logistics Over-the-Shore or JLOTS, was initially announced by President Joe Biden on March 7, during his State of the Union address.
When questioned whether the pier is durable enough to complete its mission, Singh said the Pentagon is optimistic.
70% of the humanitarian aid transported from a new $320 million floating pier built by the U.S. military off the Gaza coast was stolen on Saturday en route to a U.N. warehouse.
It would be funny if it wasn't so predictable. Stolen by Hamas to sell to Palestinians and to starve… pic.twitter.com/YS1Obb2OKx
— Imtiaz Mahmood (@ImtiazMadmood) May 22, 2024
“I think, unfortunately, we had a perfect storm of high sea states and, this North African weather system also came in at the same time, creating not an optimal environment to operate the JLOTS,” Singh said.