USNS Mercy departs the Port of Los Angeles as cargo operations continue to thrive

As the USNS Mercy departed thePort of Los Angelesthis week for its home port of San Diego, City of Los Angeles officials praised her crew and frontline staff for boosting the city’s preparedness combatting theCOVID-19pandemic over the last seven weeks.

“We owe a debt of gratitude to the sailors and medical staff of the USNS Mercy for their selfless service,” said Los Angeles MayorEric Garcetti. “This crisis is far from over — and we will continue to work with our local, state, and federal partners to deliver resources that will save lives.”

The Naval hospital ship arrived at the Port on March 27 to serve as a referral hospital for non-coronavirus health cases, handling acute trauma case overloads and other urgent health care needs so local-area hospitals could focus primarily on treating coronavirus patients.

The Port of Los Angeles remains open with all terminals operational during the COVID-19 pandemic. North America’s leading seaport by container volume and cargo value, the Port of Los Angeles facilitated $276 billion in trade during 2019. San Pedro Bay port complex operations and commerce facilitate one in nine jobs in the five-county Southern California region.