The USNS Mercy was however only expected to be fully operational in the next few days as many of its staff were still to arrive, said Captain Rick Morrison, deputy surgeon for the US Pacific Fleet.

"Today the Mercy is in the process of receiving additional medical personnel on board. Once they start coming up tomorrow, we will be starting to receive patients in a regular manner," he told AFP.

"We will start operating on a small basis and then each day, as we get a few more people in, we will be coming increasingly capable to receive more patients," he said.

The ship had been in the area since it was deployed to Indonesia in the aftermath of the devastating December tsunami caused by an even bigger quake than one on March 28 that killed hundreds in Nias and its surrounding area.

Morrison said food, water and shelter needed after such a disaster was getting into the area and some people seemed to be picking up their lives.

"They are digging out, they are smiling, they have high spirits... you see some markets open, you see kids going to school, so things are starting to pick up," he said.

UN relief groups have estimated the March 28 quake killed about 1,300 people, most of them on Nias but with fatalities also reported on the neighbouring Simeulue island and the nearby Singkil district.

Authorities say more than 600 bodies have been recovered on Nias.

More than 3,000 people were injured, 430 of them seriously, according to police. Nearly 7,000 buildings were destroyed.

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