Hi! I had a guy in a birth preparation class I was teaching today, asking how we could notify him when his baby is born. He though we call the Red Cross and they can fax the air craft carrier he is on. He leaves shortly for duty in Iraq. Anyone have info on this? Thanks!
2007-03-24 15:52:32 · 9 answers · asked by Elizabeth M 2 in Politics & Government ➔ Military
Family has hospital contact local Red Cross Office. It is very important that the hospital be the ones to contact the Red Cross, otherwise time will be lost as the Red Cross has to verify with the hospital anyway. Local office contacts a national center that handles contact with the military. They send what is called an AMCROSS message. This is reviewed at the ships parent squadron, fleet, whatever the shore facility is that handles their administrative details while out to sea. The AMCROSS is then forwarded to the ship. Typically from the time the Red Cross is first notified until the time the AMCROSS is sent to the ship is between 2-6 hours. Depending on the Ships operational status, he may here about it even before through other channnels. Any emergency or significant information (typically of a medical nature i.e. birth, death, severe illness, severe injury, car accident) that has tro be communicated to the service member is done by an AMCROSS Message. This is the only type of official notification that the command will accept in these cases.
2007-03-24 17:58:12 · answer #1 · answered by ftn_nuke 2 · 1⤊ 0⤋
The Red Cross is the best channel to go through to get the message started. But the more the guy's command knows about what's going on the faster that message gets out.
Like on DH's sub the RC takes the message and sends it to the sub group command. Then they check their records and decide whether to forward the info to the boat captain. Then the CO has the final choice of passing it on to the guy. Sometimes they hold emergency information for a while because they're in sensitive territory and can't get the guy off the sub.
If the command has some knowledge about what's going on the information gets forwarded a lot faster and that's something the dad can take care of when he's updating his paperwork before he deploys.
Oh, and good news like a new baby goes out a lot faster than bad news might.
2007-03-25 04:44:00 · answer #2 · answered by Critter 6 · 0⤊ 0⤋
The family notifies the Red Cross in ANY emergency and they will notify the ship/command. Any other way will only delay the information. I was in Antarctica in early Feb of '72 when my son was born. Early winter there and I heard about it IMMEDIATELY because my family went through the proper channels (it helped that both sides were retired military and knew what to do)
2007-03-24 17:10:18 · answer #3 · answered by Anonymous · 0⤊ 0⤋
He's exactly right. Contact the Red Cross with news of the birth. Best for Mom to take his complete information with her to the hospital. And to know the Red Cross Military Notification phone number. If they have all that information together, they won't have to waste time hunting for it or figuring it out after the baby comes.. they'll be good to go.
2007-03-24 20:37:08 · answer #4 · answered by Amy S 6 · 0⤊ 0⤋
yes, the American Red Cross is the proper channel that must be used. he will need to provide his spouse with some information, namely his command and address on deployment as well as his rank/rate and Division on the ship. . the ARC will confirm the event with the delivering doctor and send off a message. If he gets lucky, he'll get to use the ship to shore phone home, or better yet, video conferenceing.
Unoffically, his spouse can contact the Ombudsman and have her contact the ship as well.
2007-03-25 03:55:29 · answer #5 · answered by Mrsjvb 7 · 0⤊ 0⤋
Red Cross or the Ombudsman.
Edit** The Ombudsman is usually a CO's or XO's wife. She will usually have a very quick way of contacting the ship. This guys wife should have already been contacted by one.
If not...then he can give his wife a list of numbers to contact the ship and she can have whoever is with her call.
I hope this helps
2007-03-24 15:56:33 · answer #6 · answered by twinmomm 3 · 0⤊ 0⤋
Sailors are told before they go to sea how their family can contact them. There's even ways a submerged submarine can recieve "Familygrams".
2007-03-24 16:07:10 · answer #7 · answered by Anonymous · 0⤊ 0⤋
childbirth is not an emergency and they arent sent home for it. the family emails the sailor at his ships email or they tell him when he calls home highly unlikely that the ombudsmen would contact them for this
2007-03-24 17:21:13 · answer #8 · answered by kleighs mommy 7 · 0⤊ 2⤋
short wave radio ,email.............mmm carrier Pigeon?
2007-03-24 16:01:52 · answer #9 · answered by ? 6 · 0⤊ 0⤋