Hospital ship/disaster relief vessel

P-2848 is a design for a hospital ship that can be deployed for disaster relief, or which can offer medical aid in inaccessible areas. This ship is a further example of the multifaceted skills at ‘Merwede’. The stern can be ballasted, so that the docking area in the stern is submerged. The stern door can then be opened, to allow landing craft to sail in and out. The bow is strengthened for beaching, allowing access via the bow door and a foldable ramp. On the aft deck, there are helicopter facilities, including a hangar, for 2 large helicopters. The hospital offers a range of facilities, which include a central operating theatre, a dental area, an X-ray room, a maternity ward and various laboratories. Sixty hospital beds are also spread amongst the hospital departments and there is space for a further forty patients on stretchers. A number of reception areas have been equipped for receiving injured and displaced persons.