Haiti Earthquake: Airlift to Port Au Prince

January 22, 2010 2

This is the 3rd report in a series of daily blogs. The 2nd report is here.

Like all days, today was both promising and difficult.  As well as surprising: as I draft this, we just felt another earthquake.

Today a few of us flew by helicopter to Port Au Prince to deliver supplies to an orphanage, and also to gather information about patients that can be brought to our hospital.  The view over Port Au Prince is disheartening.

We flew at dawn because of dangers in flying.  The area is increasingly under control by military, but still relatively chaotic in the air.  Helicopters are everywhere.  And in the Port Au Prince airspace, planes also crowd the situation.  Landing in indiscriminate sites can spell disaster due to starved Haitians mobbing the helicopter, so landing anywhere is not an option.  The natural tragedy is that help is needed everywhere.

Note the crumbled buildings.

Military Presence

At the Port Au Prince airport, the US military has a huge presence that appears to have established a great deal of needed order.  Aid is pouring in and being distributed, largely by helicopters.

The aid is not coming fast enough yet, however.  The US military presence seems to be limited to the airport. With the volume of supplies on the ground and still coming in, it’s apparent order needs to be established in Port Au Prince proper so that ground transportation can be utilized.

The effort is working

Despite still being grossly overcrowded, teams continue to still arrive from across the world.  The effort at this location is becoming more organized, and is staffed by increasingly large teams of people.  Aid is coming in through coordination efforts, people are being hydrated, fed, treated, and some are being transported to more specialized care facilities.  It’s all very moving.

More smiles

While I am gladly with Operation Rainbow, it’s prudent to say this effort is truly international.  So many, from so many places, are here for one motive: to help strangers.  An outpouring of humanitarians, all are making conditions better for Haitians who’ve endured loss that nearly all of us cannot comprehend.

We still need more help.  An Operation Rainbow team is arriving tomorrow (Saturday the 23rd), and additional supplies are needed.  This is a long term effort, and we need your help.  Please donate.