Haiti: Josh Shahryar's News LiveBlog (18/19 January)

EA's Josh Shahryar with the latest from Haiti. See also his LiveBlog on humanitarian developments:

0827 GMT

More updates on Haitians trapped under the rubble even a week after the earthquake:

A source in Haiti posted this on their Facebook page:

Martine Peirre is still sending messages out! She is alive under the rubbles at Universite Caraibes at Delmas 29 with others send help

(Can someone help? Please?)

0810 GMT

As the earthquake ruins more families and shatters more lives, the people of Port-au-Prince are forced to leave their homes and try to get as far away from the disaster zone as possibel. The New York Times reports on this tragic development:

“My only hope is to return to my family’s arms.”

Ms. Verly joined thousands of others, as the exodus from the capital accelerated on Monday, by boat, bus, car and truck, in uncertain quest for shelter, fresh water and stability in the countryside. They sought to leave an anarchic city marked by acute shortages of basic goods and aid efforts hampered by bottlenecks and security fears.

“I don’t know if I’m coming back,” said Marcelaine Calixte, 20, a student whose house and college had collapsed, sitting on a crowded bus Monday afternoon headed to Les Cayes, a southern town.

Read the whole story by CLICKING HERE.

0726 GMT

The long-term damage to Haiti is going to be staggering and the country will require much more help, as this report from Reuters suggests:

Dominican Republic President Leonel Fernandez proposed to international donors on Monday the creation of a $2 billion-a-year fund to finance for five years Haiti’s recovery from a devastating earthquake.

“We’d be talking about a five-year program of some $10 billion,” Fernandez told representatives of foreign governments and international financial institutions at a preliminary donors’ conference in Dominican Republic, Haiti’s neighbor on the island of Hispaniola.

0708 GMT

TPM updates:

The FBI and the National Center for Disaster Fraud have created a hotline to report suspected Haitian earthquake relief fraud. The number is (866) 720-5721, and is staffed 24/7 by a live operator.

0606 GMT

After criticism from the French government and the Venezuelan President Hugo Chavez’accusations that the US military was ‘occupying’ Haiti and that the US military role was inappropriate, US Defense Secretary Robert Gates today attempted to quell these fears. The Associated Press reports:

Gates said he does not foresee an expanded policing role for the United States, however. The United States is chiefly involved in distributing relief and will support the United Nations in providing security, Gates said. “I haven’t heard of us playing a policing role at any point.”

There are currently 1,000 U.S. troops in Haiti while 3,000 are helping out with relief efforts from aboard their navy ships. 12,000 more US forces are expected to land in Haiti soon.

This all comes at a time when:

A joint statement Saturday from the Haitian president and U.S. Secretary of State Hillary Clinton referred to an expanded U.S. security role.

“President Preval, on behalf of the Government and people of Haiti, welcomes as essential the efforts in Haiti by the government and people of the United States to support the immediate recovery, stability and long-term rebuilding of Haiti and requests the United States to assist as needed in augmenting security in support of the government and people of Haiti and the United Nations, international partners and organizations on the ground,” the document reads.

0534 GMT

Haiti Year 0, Day 7

After the Red Cross created a page to help find survivors and Google, Inc. released a tool to help in the same cause, CNN has now also created a web page to assist in the location of lost loved ones in Haiti.

You can visit their page by CLICKING HERE.

0448 GMT

More reports coming in from Haiti give many hope of finding more survivors trapped under the rubble in the Caribbean Supermarket in Port-au-Prince. According to Twitter userfiresideint, Haitians trapped beneath the walls of the market have been able to survive this long because they had access to some food and water that was entombed with them under the concrete and metal.

(Hopefully, more rescue workers will get there in time to help these people.)

0431 GMT

A reliable Twitter source firesideint tweets about the situation in Haiti, personal feelings and comments on news, (eye-opening):

(I’m posting the tweets as is, starting from the earliest to the latest)

- Just got back from Darbonne (epicenter). Passed about 12 UN relief vehicles LOADED with rice & supplies as we were leaving. YES!

- Aid is finally being delivered in mass quantity.

- Changed my underwear today. The first time in 5 days. Someone had given my other ones away. Thanks, Kent, for bringing new ones!

- I had a COMPLETE meltdown today. My first one. Very cathartic. Talked to my kids on phone. I popped.

- Found out that part of the delay is the reception of expired food & meds. @ airport, they have to sort through donated items first.

- Do not believe the hype. Things are relatively stable here. I’ve been in the thick of it. But I don’t have sponsors to please, do I?

- An earthquake moves adoptions along (http://bit.ly/8TeeIr). How bad do you have to be at your job to get bested by an earthquake?

- I am not sending out my family because we are scared of Haitians. Then why? We don’t need to be using up their precious resources.

- All we need is Love… and Transparency.

- Begging stopped when the earthquake hit. A few kids begged from me today. It’s nice to see things getting back to normal.

- The other night I got stuck downtown and asked a Haitian family for a ride. They declined but then gave me money to hire one. I was humbled.

- “Some are saying” often means there is no source. Any journalist worth his weight can hand over a direct source. Be critical.

Read LiveBlog....

Comments

[Bill Phillipson]

Hello Josh,
Some of the critics of US actions in Haiti may be "Sans Frontières", but they're not necessarily "sans agenda politique", or knee-jerk criticism of anything connected with the US. The below - while perhaps a tad self-serving - nevertheless give an idea of the scale of some of the actions being taken; actions which don't make for photo ops, sound bites, or breathless commentary for the supposed edification of television audiences.
Brgds,

DOT SECRETARY LAHOOD ANNOUNCES U.S. MERCHANT MARINE
MOBILIZING FOR HAITI RELIEF
January 18, 2010
Maritime Administration Prepares Five Ships For Duty
Today U.S. Secretary of Transportation Ray LaHood announced that the Department’s Maritime Administration (MARAD) is sending five ships to assist with relief efforts in Haiti.
Gopher State, Petersburg, Huakai, Cornhusker State and Cape May are being prepared to sail to the Caribbean Ocean from different parts of the United States.
All are owned or controlled by MARAD, and will be crewed by civilian U.S. merchant mariners.

“Sending these ships will help those on the front line of this effort save as many lives in Haitias possible,” said Secretary of Transportation Ray LaHood. “These ships will add crucial capabilities by supporting operations to move large volumes of people and cargo.”

“Once again the U.S. Merchant Marine is answering the call for assistance, as it has donesince our Nation began,” said Acting Maritime Administrator David T. Matsuda. “These ships and skilled crews are ideally suited to assist in Haiti by providing unique capabilities. One cargo ship can carry as much as 400 fully loaded cargo planes.”

M/V Huakai is a new high-speed ferry capable of speeds of nearly 40 knots in the open ocean.

Petersburg, Cornhusker State, Cape May and Gopher State are part of MARAD’s Ready Reserve Force (RRF), which includes a total of forty-nine ships at ports around the country.

Additional details on the RRF, and Petersburg, Cape May, Cornhusker State and Gopher State can be found at: http://www.marad.dot.gov/documents/RRF_FLEET_PAMPHLET.pdf

The Maritime Administration is unique in its worldwide capabilities, maintaining fleets and expertise in support of the US military and emergency operations. Its mission is to promote the development of the American maritime industry, including its workforce. The agency also operates the United States Merchant Marine Academy at Kings Point, New York.

FACT SHEET ON MARAD SHIPS

M/V Huakai is a new high-speed passenger and vehicle ferry capable of speeds of
nearly 40 knots in the open ocean. It was obtained by the Maritime Administration
when a Hawaiian ferry company failed and abandoned it. Since late last week it hasbeen undergoing preparations in Norfolk, VA.

MV Gopher State is a TACS crane ship based in Norfolk, VA. The crane ships were
designed to provide the capability to load and unload containers and other cargo in ports where facilities are badly damaged or nonexistent. Their most notable features are the three independent twin-boom pedestal-mounted rotating hydraulic deck cranes. These crane ships can also carry containers, small barges, or landing craft,and recent exercises have proven their capability to discharge container ships far from any port, which enhances their military usefulness. RRF crane ships bear the nicknames of states in the United States: the Gopher State honors Minnesota.

MV Cornhusker State is also a TACS crane ship based in Norfolk, VA. The
Cornhusker State honors Nebraska. It previously served in Haiti during Operation
UPHOLD DEMOCRACY in 1994.OPDS Petersburg is an Offshore Petroleum Discharge System tanker based in Alameda, CA. It has been specially modified to deliver petroleum products to military forces in areas where port facilities are damaged or non-existent. Within 48 hours of arrival on station, OPDS can be installed and commence pumping 1.2 million gallons per day from up to four miles off shore and at water depths down to 200 feet. If theship is moored within two nautical miles of the shore, two different products may be pumped simultaneously through two separate conduits.

The SS Cape May is a Norfolk, VA-based sea barge clipper class (SEABEE) vessel, so that its characteristic cargo is barges, as well as sections of causeway, and other materials used by the Construction Battalions (Seabees) of the U.S. Navy. SEABEEs are militarily useful vessels capable of lifting outsized objects, such as 90-foot causeway sections or 110-foot Coast Guard patrol boats.
Their most notable feature is the 2,000-ton submersible elevator at the stern.
SEABEE ships are unique because of their ability to carry a vast array of military
cargo.

SEABEE barges, causeway sections, and lighterage comprise the usual cargo; SEABEE barges can carry bulk and containerized cargo. Each barge has a capacity of 834 long tons.

During the Haitian crisis in 1994, a total of 15 MARAD ships were activated for operation UPHOLD DEMOCRACY. In 2005, nine Maritime Administration ships supported support relief efforts in the aftermath of Hurricanes Katrina and Rita.
The ships provided meals and shelter for workers, emergency response teams and longshoremen, providing about 83,000 berths and 270,000 meals over 6 months.

[Source: DOT/MARAD Website ]

MILITARY TACKLES HAITI LOGISTICS
January 18, 2009
Divers seek ways to clear damage at Port-au-Prince Seaport
U.S. military forces are leading efforts to punch through sea, air and road bottlenecks slowing the delivery of food and supplies to earthquake-ravaged Haiti.
The USNS Grasp, a rescue and salvage vessel of the Navy’s Military Sealift Command, arrived Monday with Army divers to assess underwater obstacles and damage that have closed the seaport at Port-au-Prince. The vessel had been off the coast of Belize and diverted to Guantanamo Bay, Cuba, to refuel and collect food and relief supplies before heading to Haiti. Air Force Gen. Douglas Fraser, commander of the U.S. Southern Command, said reopening the port is crucial.
He said the first priorities were quickly reopening the Port-au-Prince airport and clearing anoverland route from the neighboring Dominican Republic but scale of the disaster requires resumption of seaborne shipments.

“We’re getting supplies in through the air. But the airfield by itself will not sustain the long term requirement because there are so many people in need,” Fraser told reporters at a Miami briefing. “That’s why we’re bringing in the capability in ships, why we’re looking at how we get supplies across the shore.”
Another official, Brigadier Gen. Michael Dana of the J4 Logistics Directorate, told Reuters the military hopes to have Port-au-Prince seaport open in two or three days for shipments of emergency relief supplies. Having visited Haiti only three months before the earthquake, Fraser said he knew before receiving damage reports that the logistical challenges would be immense. “We knew that
there was a single airfield where we could use capacity,” he said. “We had a limited capacity, even when the port was running, of what the port could support.”

The 7.0-magnitude earthquake wrecked the port’s pier and toppled its container crane and two smaller cranes. The extent of the underwater damage won’t be known until divers can take a look.

Meanwhile, military helicopters have been ferrying water and other supplies from the aircraft carrier Carl Vinson and other Navy vessels anchored offshore. More than 100,000 bottles of water were delivered Sunday, officials said.
Other vessels have been dispatched to Haiti, including the Navy hospital ship Comfort, due Jan. 21 from Baltimore, and two oceanographic survey ships due to arrive this week. Also due this week are the Navy cargo ships Lummus, which can offload cargo without a port, and Sacagawea.
Military officials said the flow of air traffic was improving, with only three of 67 incoming flights rerouted Saturday and only two flights diverted Sunday.
But air traffic continues to be restricted by the lack of fuel, which requires incoming planes to have enough fuel for their return trip, and inadequate ground space.

The airport has a single operating runway, and the airport apron can handle only one widebodiedplane and five narrow-bodied planes at a time, plus other aircraft that can be parked on the grass. The control tower was knocked out by the earthquake, forcing U.S. military air controllers to operate from a radio post on the airfield grass.