New Caledonia, which had previously been spared from the spread of SARS-CoV-2, identified on September 6, 2021, positive cases among individuals who had not traveled outside the territory in recent weeks and who were not connected to one another. The number of COVID-19 patients hospitalized in intensive care and general wards has been rising sharply for several days, raising fears of hospital system overload.

In response to this situation, the High Commissioner of the Republic in New Caledonia and the President of the Government of New Caledonia have asked the Minister of Solidarity and Health to mobilize the Health Reserve to reinforce hospitals, primarily intensive care, critical care, and COVID-19 wards. Since its creation in 2007, this is the first time the Health Reserve has mobilized volunteers for New Caledonia.

A team of 104 healthcare reservists departed for New Caledonia on September 24, 2021. They include nursing assistants, healthcare managers, bed coordinators, nurses, logistics specialists, physical therapists, doctors, pharmacy technicians, psychiatrists, midwives, laboratory technicians, and mission coordinators, all of whom have agreed to serve for three and a half weeks to support local teams.

Forty-one pallets of gowns, masks, and oxygen concentrators were also loaded onto the plane. In total, nearly 220 tons of supplies were shipped (gowns, hairnets, gloves, masks, oxygen concentrators, hemofiltration equipment, and oxygen masks).