15 September 2008
U.S. Provides $19.5 Million to Help Haiti Recover from Storms
4th Fleet, USAID personnel coordinate delivery of emergency aid
Washington — The United States is sending $19.5 million in humanitarian aid to Haiti to help victims of four tropical storms that struck the small Caribbean nation in less than 30 days.
Tropical storms Fay and Hanna and hurricanes Gustav and Ike have affected an estimated 600,000 people in nine of Haiti's 10 departments (regions), according to the U.S. Agency for International Development (USAID).
The storms killed an estimated 328 people in the country and left 114,000 people displaced from their homes. Many of the homes were destroyed or damaged, according to a USAID fact sheet.
So far, the Navy vessel USS Kearsarge has delivered an estimated 466 metric tons of emergency food and other supplies and some 5,867 liters of water to Haiti, according to a September 13 Navy press release.
While the amphibious Kearsarge was in Santa Marta, Colombia, for Continuing Promise 2008 it was diverted to Haiti to assist USAID. Continuing Promise 2008 is a humanitarian and civic assistance collaboration of the United States, partner militaries and nonprofit groups. The Kearsarge is under the command of the Navy's Fourth Fleet.
Military personnel dispatched from the ship by landing craft to the ground unloaded supplies in Haiti's capital, Port-au-Prince. Helicopters from the Kearsarge delivered other supplies to remote areas of the country. The supplies had been stored in a U.S. emergency aid supply warehouse in Miami.
Kearsarge personnel will continue to assist USAID, the U.N. World Food Programme and other relief groups delivering supplies.
"Our entire team of military personnel are doing all they can to ease the suffering of those affected by the hurricanes," Walt Towns, the ship’s commanding officer, said in a September 10 press release.
"Our goal is to help citizens of Haiti begin to recover from this tragedy," said Fernandez Ponds, mission commander of Continuing Promise 2008.
The Kearsarge crew includes medical personnel who can provide first aid and other health care services to communities hurt by the flooding caused by the hurricanes.
The ship's medical facilities include four operating rooms, 13 intensive-care unit beds, 40 medical ward beds, a laboratory, X-ray equipment and a blood bank, the Navy said.
In coming days, the Kearsarge plans to deliver more supplies by helicopter and landing craft to the cities of Gonaïves, Port-de-Paix, Les Cayes, Jeremie, Jacmel and Saint Marc.
Gonaïves, a northern port city, has been described as the worst-hit in terms of death and destruction, the Navy said.
USAID disaster relief personnel have prioritized the areas needing the most immediate assistance. USAID continues to coordinate with U.S. diplomatic staff in Haiti, the U.S. military's Southern Command and the government of Haiti to determine priority needs and provide critical supplies to affected populations.
USAID and the Department of Defense are also collaborating on road and bridge repairs and water and sanitation services.
USAID also is providing disaster-assessment assistance to the government of the Bahamas and assessments and aid to Costa Rica and the Dominican Republic.
U.S. military assistance to help a country must be requested by the host nation through the U.S. ambassador. USAID then responds to the request and asks the Department of Defense for assistance, if needed.
USAID also is providing $100,000 in aid to nongovernmental organizations engaged in humanitarian relief in Cuba through the U.S. Interests Section in Havana.
See “Humanitarian Mission Brings Health Care to Caribbean Countries.”
