JS ''Hiuchi'' is a ''Hiuchi'' class Auxiliary Multi-purpose Support (AMS) ship of the

Japan Maritime Self-Defense Force The , abbreviated , also simply known as the Japanese Navy, is the maritime warfare branch of the Japan Self-Defense Forces, tasked with the naval defense of Japan. The JMSDF was formed following the dissolution of the Imperial Japanese Navy ( ...

(JMSDF). The ship was built by

Mitsui is a Japanese corporate group and '' keiretsu'' that traces its roots to the ''zaibatsu'' groups that were dissolved after World War II. Unlike the ''zaibatsu'' of the pre-war period, there is no controlling company with regulatory power. Ins ...

Tamano Tamano City Hall Aerial view of Tamano city center Shibukawa beach in Tamano is a city located in southern Okayama Prefecture, Japan. , the city had an estimated population of 55,889 in 27087 households, and a population density of 540 person ...

and commissioned into service on 27 March 2002.Global Security
AMS Hiuchi Class, ship list
/ref> The primary mission of the ''Hiuchi'' is to support training exercises of other ships, including shooting practice and torpedo launching practice.

Service

This ship was one of several in the JMSDF fleet participating in disaster relief after the

2011 Tohoku earthquake and tsunami Eleven or 11 may refer to: *11 (number) * One of the years 11 BC, AD 11, 1911, 2011 Literature * ''Eleven'' (novel), a 2006 novel by British author David Llewellyn *''Eleven'', a 1970 collection of short stories by Patricia Highsmith *''Eleven'' ...

. ''Hiuchi'' was the first of two JMSDF ships which towed barges of fresh water from

Yokosuka is a city in Kanagawa Prefecture, Japan. , the city has a population of 373,797, and a population density of . The total area is . Yokosuka is the 11th-most populous city in the Greater Tokyo Area, and the 12th in the Kantō region. The city i ...

to the

Fukushima I nuclear accidents The Fukushima nuclear accident was a major nuclear accident at the Fukushima Daiichi Nuclear Power Plant in Ōkuma, Fukushima, Japan, which began on 11 March 2011. The cause of the accident was the 2011 Tōhoku earthquake and tsunami, which ...

. The water was used to replace the seawater being used in cooling efforts at the plant.Schmitt, Joe
"U.S. Navy to Provide 500,000 Gallons of Fresh Water to Fukushima Power Plant,"
''Navy Compass'' (US). March 25, 2011; retrieved 30 March 2011

Notes

References

* Werth, Eric. (2007). ''Naval Institute Guide to Combat Fleets of the World: Their Ships, Aircraft, and Systems.'' Annapolis: Naval Institute Press. ;

External links

* JMSDF
AMS-4301 ひうち Hiuchi
*

Ministry of Defense A ministry of defence or defense (see spelling differences), also known as a department of defence or defense, is the part of a government responsible for matters of defence and military forces, found in states where the government is divided ...

Press Conference by the Defense Minister (11:11-11:26 A.M. March 25, 2011)
{{DEFAULTSORT:Hiuchi (AMS-4301) Hiuchi-class support ships 2001 ships Ships built by Mitsui Engineering and Shipbuilding