Retired general: U.S. aid effort too slow

[my2sense]

Source: USA Today

WASHINGTON — The U.S. relief effort for Haiti started too slowly and cautiously, says a retired general who led the military relief effort on the Gulf Coast after Hurricanes Katrina and Rita.
"The next morning after the earthquake, as a military man of 37 years service, I assumed … there would be airplanes delivering aid, not troops, but aid," said retired Lt. Gen. Russel Honore, who coordinated military operations after disaster struck the U.S. Gulf Coast in 2005. "What we saw instead was discussion about, 'Well we've got to send an assessment team in to see what the needs are.' And anytime I hear that, my head turns red."

The problem, Honore told USA TODAY, is that the State Department and the U.S. Agency for International Development, instead of the military, take the lead in international disaster response.

Read more: http://www.usatoday.com/news/washington/2010-01-15-general-criticizes-response_N.htm

[Name removed]

1. Deleted message

Message removed by moderator. Click here to review the message board rules.

[UpInArms]

14. as a personal man-servant to Dimson? n/t

[Leopolds Ghost]

53. No, Honore was one of the "good guys." Unlike the blue dog DEMS (still not prosecuted) who shot at

people trying to escape the city on foot, on the bridge going right past the Convention Center.

Bobby Jindal's boys. White Democrats in Gretna, Jefferson Parish. RACIST SLIME.

What has Obama done? Visited once. Better to do right in Haiti than prosecute "old offenses", I guess.

[24601]

58. What's the Jindle connection? The Governor was Kathy Blanco and

the Mayor was (still is) Ray "Chocolate City" Nagin. Don't believe Jindle headed any operational forces.

And agree, Lt Gen Honore was one of the great guys.

[tabatha]

2. It is faster than Katrina.

[glowing]

3. So, the General wants troops first and resonable assessment last.

Seems to me he wants guns and military protocol on the ground first, rather than actual aid. AND until the airport was cleared up a bit, nothing could come in or out. I think the response was rather quick considering the wide-spread devastation and lack of communication at all.

[my2sense]

4. I'm still lost on why there were no food/water drops

within the first 48 hours.

[csziggy]

8. This thread explores why not, from people with experience

Air Drops, WHY NOT???
http://www.democraticunderground.com/discuss/duboard.php?az=show_mesg&forum=389&topic_id=7469383&mesg_id=7469383

[vadawg]

12. why do air drops when there is an airfield that can be patched up and used and a port

better to get the engineers in to patch them up and start aid in a major way, also you want to be able to secure that aid and make sure it gets distributed, if you just air drop it or dont secure it, it will not get to the people who need it. Its just a simple fact of life that in order to bring aid you need to bring security...

[DissedByBush]

31. Air traffic control

The first Air Force plane that landed had to secure the airport and establish basic air traffic control since none existed. It's good that they are trained to do that even under fire.

After that they have to secure sufficient space around the runway for planes and prepare resources for unloading, and refueling and prepping those aircraft for the trip back.

Once you have that then you can accept continuous incoming and outgoing cargo flights.

Haiti has a tiny one runway airport to do it all with.

[PacerLJ35]

32. Haiti's airports

MTPP (Toussaint) has a single 10,000' paved runway that's in halfway decent shape. It can handle most traffic. It's the ramp space that's lacking.

There are several other airports in Haiti...among them are:

Cap Haitien (MTCH), runway of 4,880'
Cayes (MTCA), Runway of about 3,220'
Jacmel (MTJA), runway of about 3,300'

For reference, Dallas/Fort Worth's runways are about 8,500' to 13,400' long (and there are about 6 of them). A nearby general aviation airport in Dallas, Dallas Executive (also known as Dallas Redbird airport) has two runways, 6,450' and 3,800' and is designed to handle small private aircraft, business jets and the like.

So as you can see, access is a problem. Some aircraft can operate out of those smaller airports, but they need to be assessed first to ensure they can handle the weight of the airplanes flying in. A C-130 can routinely operate from 3,000' runways, but it weighs anywhere from 155,000 lbs (C-130E/H) to 162,280 (C-130J-30)...far greater than the weights the runway was designed to deal with, more than likely. In any case, the USAF is supposed to survey these airfields tomorrow, and if they are deemed suitable enough, they will likely open for business to aircraft capable of getting in there.

[barb162]

16. Because you can't drop food or water in a field, some people

take all of it and the rest are still starving. The next drop, the same thing happens and the strong ones try selling to the weak ones. It has to be organized where everyone gets the food and water. Did you see photos of the strong guys going after the UN food truck today? They just push the women and kids out of the way

[Abq_Sarah]

69. That's the biggest problem

If you load up the airport with food and water as a staging area, the strong will be able to make it there and cart off the majority of supplies. We've seen this approach before and all it does is strengthen the gangs and thugs. They need an assessment of the security risk and troops to protect the aid workers. That's not an indictment of the Haitians, they are absolutely desperate. It's just the reality of aid delivery in an area where people are traumatized and already at the breaking point.

[Hansel]

74. +1

[vadawg]

5. in my experience i would side with the general in that there is often to many agencies involved

to many egos to be brushed, i say give the military the go ahead to start the ball rolling, even at worst they would get the airport up and running within the shortest time and start to put up a secure perimeter in order to safeguard the relif supplies that would follow.

[EFerrari]

7. He was,iirc, the first guy to show up that actually did anything in NOLA.

Of course, NOLA was treated like enemy territory with Black Water guys running around all over the place @ $3K per day.

[Leopolds Ghost]

35. Yes, why are people here not siding with Honore? He HATED the Katrina response and the mercs.

Hear what he said on Anderson Cooper tonight about "guys running around in body armor and M-16s because they are afraid of poor people. That's the same thing I saw after Katrina."

He said they need a military-level disaster relief response, NOT TROOPS.

He's simply arguing that the State Dept doesn't know shit about disaster relief and he's probably right.

[EFerrari]

45. After watching this State Department for the last year, I'm not impressed.

If anything, the same right wing slant as under Bush and more impunity from CIA fronts there.

[Barack_America]

10. The US Air Force did this today. nt

[XemaSab]

22. Yeah, let's put some hard-on from the US military in charge

and give the finger to the dozens of other countries who have people on the ground.

Not to mention the government of Haiti.

[vadawg]

26. no what im saying is you put that hard nosed bastard in charge of the US side

and then tell him to get it done, personally i think the hold ups are all of a political nature but that is usually what happens...

[Leopolds Ghost]

47. Hard-ons from the US STATE DEPT and FAA (not military) has siezed control of Haiti's airspace.

I'd rather have fucking Honore in charge in a quasi-military (retired) capacity than a bunch of neo-colonial pricks from the FAA and State Department directing the relief effort FROM WASHINGTON out of Haitian gov't offices. They got Haitian government to cede control of airspace to the some hard-on from the FAA instead.

[cheapdate]

18. "...airplanes delivering aid, not troops, but aid"

I think the man was saying there should have been aid first and not troops. I think either you or I are misunderstanding what he said.

[Leopolds Ghost]

49. Not troops but aid. He said the same thing after Katrina.

He commanded troops to stand down and start stepping up.

[nodehopper]

54. he said "NOT troops but aid"

[Psephos]

72. Direct quote from O.P "I assumed there would be airplanes delivering aid, not troops, but aid"

Did you read the O.P.? It directly contradicts you.

[Barack_America]

6. This region is serviced by a single airport and a single runway...

...with a single storage warehouse at the airport and no fuel with which to refuel planes.

So, yeah, I'd say it's pretty fucking important to triage what is needed most urgently and not swamp the meager resources with less urgently needed supplies.

[Leopolds Ghost]

50. You can't triage relief supplies. You need to swamp the area or you create a black market.

An expert on NGO accountability is saying this on NPR tonight. LOT of corruption in Haiti, and NGOs can play into that. The only way to get the aid is directly to the people, you can't be stingy, you have to flood in supplies and keep them coming. NO WAREHOUSES NEEDED!

What, do we have to send in fucking wal-mart to show them how to deliver supplies without warehouses?

[ronnie624]

65. *

:thumbsup:

[jmowreader]

73. Walmart doesn't know how to do that either

Apparently you have never seen a Walmart distribution center but they are huge--and EVERYTHING in a Walmart except for certain perishables goes through one.

If you want to send someone in to show them how to work without warehouses, get someone from either Home Depot or Lowe's--they both get a lot of stuff dropshipped directly from the manufacturers.

[msongs]

9. ummm, the military already is running TWO disasters with 2 more in the making nt

[avaistheone1]

46. They are stretched pretty thin. I think it is showing in their response.

[bluestateguy]

11. Then he can put his uniform back on and grab a mop

Is this Keystone cop from Katrina someone we should be listening to?

[RamboLiberal]

13. Honore did a damn good job once they let him go to New Orleans

He's right. I'm sitting here watching Countdown reporting how the food & water hasn't gotten to the people yet. You try to live 3+ hot f'ing days without water & food! They damn well need to get the water & food from the airport out to the people.

[barb162]

17. Yeah, but NOLA wasn't anywhere near as damaged as Haiti.

Most roads and the airport were still usable in NOLA, most buildings were still standing, etc.

[RamboLiberal]

21. Many of the roads and houses were underwater in NO

And Honore is much more knowledgeable about logistics than either of us. IMHO he has a good point. And NY Times seems to be pointing this out in tonight's story.

Oh and how the hell did we get supplies in to the Tsunami survivors? I remember the world's militaries using helicopters to bring pallets of food & water directly to the people.

The United States, in fact, took firmer control of the emergency operation on Friday. After three days of chaos and congestion at the airport in Port-au-Prince, Haiti’s government ceded control of it to American technicians, to speed the flow of relief supplies and personnel.

The Federal Aviation Administration, which began managing air traffic into Haitian airspace, issued a stern warning to allow aid to flow in a more orderly way: no planes from the United States, military or civilian, would be allowed to land without express permission from the agency.

[Leopolds Ghost]

36. I'm not saying wait for authorization, but does the US have authority to control Haiti's airspace?

[EFerrari]

48. Yes,the puppet government has handed over control to the US.n/t

[Leopolds Ghost]

51. ironic isn't it?

isn't this the government we (under Clinton/Bush) overthrew Aristide to set up?

[PacerLJ35]

61. I don't think the "puppet government" has much choice

If they want aid to get in quick, they need to just lift any bureaucratic nonsense and let people fly in...you make it seem the US twisted their arm to let us fly in.

[EFerrari]

64. I didn't mean it that way. The US government pretty much

controls the Haitian government. It's a fake. We didn't beg them to be let in, we probably told them when we were coming.

I'm sure at this point the people don't care who brings what as long as it arrives.

[Abq_Sarah]

67. I'm pretty sure the Haitian President

Who was worried about not having a bed to sleep in was relieved to see someone else stepping up and making the decisions.

[EFerrari]

68. The Haitian president owes his office to George Bush

and is pretty much a figurehead.

[barb162]

62. But many expressways and other wide roads were perfectly fine in NOLA.

Only certain areas of NOLA were underwater. There was nowhere near the level of destruction in NOLA as in Haiti. Also well-regarded hospitals in NOLA in the Garden District were still intact though without power. No hospitals were totally destroyed as in Haiti. In Haiti 8 hospitals were totalled. The construction standards in Haiti are nonexistent and it sure showed up in this quake. The hotels in NOLA werw all okay, except for some windows blown out and some water damage whereas in Haiti the main hotels were flattened with many dead. And because there was warning, many people did get out of NOLA before the storm came. On and on and on.

Honore does have some good points though.

[Hansel]

75. And the areas that were underwater were reachable by boat.

I bet they wish some of the low lying areas of Haiti were underwater. It would give them more transportation routes.

[Leopolds Ghost]

37. Y'all don't know what you're talking about, opining about Katrina without remembering the players.

Honore was one of the few "good guys" after Katrina, not that most people on DU care enough to remember or prosecute the offenses that happened there. (Obama didn't even fucking visit NOLA until a fundraising trip 9 months after being elected)

[Leopolds Ghost]

57. Mind you I don't mean to focus on Obama, I'm sure he's trying his best w/ Haiti.

But these are systemic problems that need to be addressed with disaster relief and general dumbfuckery at all levels regarding people's ideas about what the government's "subjects" (at home and abroad) actually need in an emergency. Not prosecuting past offenses doesn't make me optimistic that, say, whoever mishandled the disposal of bodies will get what's coming to them. You don't reverse systemic injustice by papering over and kicking dirt to obscure body parts sticking out of the ground and what-not.

[goclark]

59. Yes ~ we should be listening to him nt

[Warpy]

15. I don't think the military has much to brag about

since they followed the rewriting of the disaster manual by the paranoid Chertoff bunch and prevented aid from getting into the city for five days, treating a natural disaster like a biological attack.

Maybe he'd do better by keeping his mouth shut unless he wants his role to be looked at a lot more carefully.

[Tx4obama]

19. Like RamboLiberal said: Honore did a damn good job once he got to New Orleans n/t

[PacerLJ35]

24. The military was in NOLA the day after landfall

I know because our squadron sent several airplanes down there as soon as the weather cleared out, and we continued to support Katrina missions for a while afterwards.

[Leopolds Ghost]

41. Yeah, but until Honore got down there they were quarantining and maintaining a protective posture.

Translation, guarding fleets of full trucks, preventing people from leaving on foot, failing to restrain Jefferson Parish police (Bobby Jindal's boys!) from SHOOTING AT refugees attempting to leave the city on foot, and generally being assholes. Honore put a stop to all that and chewed out a shitload of people from all sorts of agencies. I believe the Mayor at the time said "they have ONE hard hitting motherfucker down here who knows how to knock heads, and that's Honore."

[PacerLJ35]

60. Day one of the relief effort we were evacuating people out

and some of the aircraft were flying injured out with aeromed crews. If the military wasn't doing anything, then how did those people get rescued and brought to the NOLA airport?

[EFerrari]

70. You know something, I'm happy that our armed forces

are no longer bearing the burden of the leadership they just endured for the last eight years. Hopefully, the deadenders who were BushCo loyalists will get their jobs in the defense industry and retire and leave the field to better men.

[jwirr]

20. He worked to "help" after Katrina. Why should we listen to him?

Read the posts above and if he is the one who actually acted on his own in NOLA than I will listen but I think he is wrong - this is much larger and we are having a really bad time getting the needed access to distribute the food and water. In NOLA it was at least accessible if anyone had wanted to help.

[Leopolds Ghost]

42. Yes, he is the one who actually acted to help people instead of shooting at them like Jindal's boys.

[Waiting For Everyman]

23. Thank goodness someone with clout is saying so.

Before too many more die there for nothing.

Btw, I saw the head of US AID on tv, and he looks like a drive-up. Somebody who knows something had better get in charge of this, and fast.

[Leopolds Ghost]

43. "drive-up"? n/t

[Waiting For Everyman]

71. UPDATE. Turns out, I was right. This is what "drive-up" means.

http://www.democraticunderground.com/discuss/duboard.php?az=view_all&address=389x7481389

[boppers]

25. No response could have been fast enough.

That being said, sending in food without people in place to protect, and distribute, the food makes a problem worse, not better.

[PacerLJ35]

27. I do not believe that aid to Haiti is too slow

The General should know better...it took him a while to get units into NOLA, even when many units were already on alert and prepositioned to head there. NOLA has a great airport with plenty of ramp space, something that MTPP (Toussaint L'Ouverture Airport) lacks. NOLA also has two runways, and even though it was risky, they were operating simultaneous ops on both runways, making crews land and hold short on the primary runway (I think it's 10-28). MTPP only has one runway, so that limits the amount of traffic. Additionally, there are numerous other secondary and tertiary airports around NOLA where aid could be flown in and trucked around...the next-longest runway in Haiti is MTCH (Haitien Intl) which only has a 4,800 foot runway, too short for most larger aircraft. NOLA is surrounded by airports such as Lakefront (which was heavily damaged but could support helicopter traffic), New Orleans Naval Air Station, Baton Rouge, Hammond, and even Keesler AFB (which was also heavily damaged but was able to support some flights).

I think he should just let the military guys do what they do...they gave their best when he directed the Katrina effort, he should assume (and know) that they are doing their best in this situation.

[PacerLJ35]

28. Air Force is evaluating other airfields to get them operational

Link:

Air Force officials evaluate damaged Haitian airports

[kayla9170]

29. I AGREE with the General.....

He is the SAME one that when he got the ball rolling finally on the Katrina Tragedy, the people of New Orleans finally started getting help and stop being stuck without food or water in the Saints Football Stadium. His quote on MSNBC is that "Relief Workers are to scared to get out and help the people. This should not be happening." I believe him and I will take my armchair and my Football and continue to criticize until I see so REAL RESULTS.

[PacerLJ35]

30. Glad you take pride in your armchair...at least your honest

[Barbara2423]

33. Complain, Complain.

[Leopolds Ghost]

40. Honore is right.

You'd be fucking agreeing with him if GWB was president. He said the same shit then, too.

Instead, GWB and Clinton are part of the disaster relief campaign committee. Close enough in my book!

[HiFructosePronSyrup]

34. It took 5 days before the 82nd even started arriving in New Orleans.

Fuck this joker.

[Leopolds Ghost]

38. You don't care enough to know or remember the players post-Katrina.

Tell me, what have you done / are doing on the Katrina issue? Relief efforts are ongoing there,
I assume you are pressing Obama to close the MRGO, save public and private low-income housing, or build a barrage across the gulf outlet? No, because most Dems (much less Repubs) don't give a shit enough to even think twice about New Orleans these days. They can't even remember who Honore is or what role he played.

[RamboLiberal]

76. That's cause the damn Bush Admin was asleep as usual

and also playing power games with the governor about federalizing the response. The 82nd had to wait for the F'ing Bush admin to order them in.

[WolverineDG]

39. Response in less than 24 hours = too slow?

:wtf: Does the General have access to a time travel tunnel or maybe a transporter that would have gotten relief there faster?

:eyes:

dg

[avaistheone1]

44. Haiti is a remote location?!!

:rofl: We have got a bunch of cream puffs running the military who don't want to leave their ivory towers and save the people the next door.

[Leopolds Ghost]

52. Doesn't St. Barts have only a single runway only accessible by prop planes? What would happen there?

St. Barts is the wealthiest island in the Caribbean -- 100% millionaires, billionaires and everyone else living on the island is their servants. It's in the same archipelago as Haiti, is it not? "Remote location" my ass.

[vadawg]

55. big difference i doubt st barts has 3 million people who would need to be fed

and lets be honest with the port damaged haiti is a remote location for all purposes of supplying food etc to the populace...

[Mithreal]

56. Rec for honesty even when unwelcome & especially for Leopolds Ghost's comments

[Peace Patriot]

63. Just read through this thread and I think Honore is trying to help, with pressure on

on certain powers that will help get those powers off the backs of the people who are actually getting the job done.

From what I've seen in Latin America, the State Department has totally fucked up Obama's stated policy of "peace, respect and cooperation." If you've been following events in Honduras and Colombia, you will understand what I mean. U.S. policy has alienated, and, indeed, infuriated much of the leadership of Latin America. It's as if Jim DeMint (Puke-SC) was Obama's real secretary of state.

And USAID is a cauldron of Bushwhack and corpo-fascist corruption, still funneling multi-millions of our tax dollars to rightwing groups in Latin America, including the coup participants in Honduras ($43 million from John McCain's "International Republican Institute" via the USAID to those murderous SOBs).

So it would not surprise me in the least if the State Department has been fucking up aid to Haiti.

That said, please understand that this situation if far, FAR worse than Katrina. I've discussed this in other threads. But just consider this: All the existing on the ground aid supplies and infrastructure of groups like the Red Cross, the UN, Oxfam and Doctors Without Borders went down with the earthquake. These are the people who get initial aid out to people and who coordinate in-coming aid when a disaster hits. The entire UN office building collapsed, killing the head of the UN mission and about a hundred of their personnel! The surviving staff then found their food warehouse damaged. All communications were down. Most bridges were down; all roads were blocked. Hundreds of thousands were dead or dying under collapsed buildings, and a couple of million people were wandering around--dazed, injured, traumatized, homeless, looking for relatives. How do you call for trucks and truck drivers to move the food out of the damaged warehouse to distribution points? How do you even know what you have in your damaged warehouse--since all information (inventory lists, distribution sites, plans) are buried under the rubble? All the existing, on the ground aid staff and available aid were in this condition, more or less. ALL of the hospitals were down. ALL of the churches were down. All or most of the schools were down. Most of the government ministry buildings were down. Not to mention apartment buildings, private homes and the massive slum housing on mudsliding hillsides. Nobody had safe shelter--including the surviving staff of aid groups who provide the first level of aid and who help coordinate and receive in-coming aid.

What this means is that there was virtually NO infrastructure for in-coming aid to be delivered to. The in-coming aid givers had to set up all of the infrastructure for getting the aid to 2 to 3 million homeless, starving, traumatized people--starting with the airport (which was damaged) and the road from the airport to Port-au-Prince (which a seriously blocked)--and given an airport that was seriously inadequate to begin with, and a country that did not have a whole lot of heavy equipment and what it had was likely smashed up in the earthquake. So you get some heavy equipment out there (from where?) and get that road unblocked and the inadequate airport up and running, and aid supplies and doctors, etc., start landing at the airport. Then what? Where do you transport them to?

Basically, the in-coming aid organizers have to set up a temporary city--for 2-3 million people! Tented hospitals, tented offices, tented warehouses for storing supplies, tents for all your personnel to sleep in, tented kitchens and cafeterias to feed them, routine medical care tents, tents to shelter those recovering from surgery, tents for orphaned children, tents to shelter several million homeless people. They have to create the destinations for the aid--because the city at the receiving end of the aid is in ruins.

As for an airlift of aid, where are the helicopters? (The Carl Vincent just got there with 19 helicopters.) Where is the fuel for the helicopters? Where are the safe landing sites in a ruined city? How to inventory and haul the aid into the helicopters--all at a chaotic, inadequate airport? And if it's a drop, you need to be damn careful where you drop boxes of food in a city of 2 million people, all of them out in the open!

I know the whole story of Haiti and how prior U.S. policy has made this situation far worse than it need have been. But I also have to say that we are looking at the worst natural disaster than we will likely ever witness--with a 7.0 earthquake striking at the heart of Haiti's major city. Haiti's luck could not have been worse. The dimensions of the tragedy are such that, at least for the next week or so, we should hold off criticism of the people on the ground in Haiti--and send them our prayers and donate money.

Criticism of aid, and use of our tax dollars and donation dollars, is absolutely appropriate and necessary. But not right now, with at least a hundred thousand bodies to be buried, many people still trapped under the rubble, rampant disease from corpses and lack of potable water a grave threat to the surviving population, and virtually an entire nation to feed, house and provide medical care for, under "Dante's Inferno" conditions.

I hope that Honore's criticism is helpful in that effort. I think he has the qualifications to speak, and I don't think he would have spoken out, at this point, if he didn't think it was necessary to support people who are on the ground in Haiti who needed his support.

I KNOW that there are potential perils of abuse of aid, and abuse of the poor people of Haiti. We've already seen headlines calling starving people "looters." Katrina certainly taught us what these perils are. But we really, really need to understand the magnitude of this disaster and the extreme difficulties of getting aid set up--and try to provide some support for the people doing it. These are just people like you and me--soldiers, doctors, nurses, rescue team members, organizers--from many countries. Hope and pray that any politics and egos in the situation get put aside. Hope and pray they succeed. Support President Obama in sending massive aid ($100 million) amidst our own financial difficulties. And send money to the organizations who are on the ground in Haiti.

Also, there has been an emergency call for NURSES to go to Haiti. See
http://www.calnurses.org/media-center/press-releases/2010/january/largest-rn-union-issues-urgent-call-for-nurse-volunteers-to-assist-earthquake-ravaged-haiti.html

Here is a thread with a lot of aid information
http://www.democraticunderground.com/discuss/duboard.php?az=view_all&address=405x29147

If you want to better understand criticism of prior U.S. policy in Haiti, there are many threads about it in the DU Latin American Forum (see Mika's and Downwinder's threads in particular).
http://www.democraticunderground.com/discuss/duboard.php?az=show_topics&forum=405

[EFerrari]

66. Honore is definitely right about the State Department.

And I'll leave it at that.

[wordpix]

79. I totally agree - it's easy to sit in the easy chair & be the "quarterback" when

you're not in the situation.

Just as important as getting the food, water, shelter and medical aid to survivors is burying the dead. Without that and in Haiti's hot climate, there will be a massive outbreak of all kinds of disease that could kill thousands of survivors. :scared:

[treestar]

77. Using this for political reasons is so low

Arguing about how it's not good enough?

I can't believe this shit!

[wordpix]

78. with multiple wars going on in the ME, I'm amazed we could send troops at all

seriously, we're stretched thin, folks. This is a major reason to BRING THE TROOPS HOME NOW!

[my2sense]

80. So better people die of starvation/dehydration than disorder?

I don't think so. I call BS on this. Our forces SHOULD have been able to drop food/water at a quicker pace.

[w8liftinglady]

81. vaccination table for Haiti-many must be taken before admittance to country

The only reason I keep harping on this is that SO many people are rushing to help-they need to be aware of the public health risks."Big Pharma" could do their part by donating vaccinations,anti-malarial drugs and antibiotics.

Home / Travel health / Country guide
Haiti
Region: Caribbean

Vaccine recommendations
Disease Recommendation When to see a doctor
Typhoid Vaccination recommended 10 days before travel
Hepatitis A Vaccination recommended 2 weeks before travel
Diphtheria *Vaccination sometimes recommended 3 months before travel
Tuberculosis *Vaccination sometimes recommended 3 months before travel
Hepatitis B *Vaccination sometimes recommended 2 months before travel
Rabies *Vaccination sometimes recommended 1 month before travel
Meningococcal meningitis Not required
Cholera Not required
Yellow fever Certificate of vaccination required if arriving from an infected area 10 days before travel
Japanese B encephalitis Not required
Tick-borne encephalitis Not required

* Recommendations that are marked "Vaccination sometimes recommended" should be considered as "Vaccination strongly recommended" if a person is travelling frequently or spending extended time in that country.

All travellers are advised to ensure that tetanus and polio vaccinations are kept up to date.

Recommendations do change from time to time and it is important to discuss your personal requirements with your doctor.

Malaria recommendations
The risk of malaria varies throughout the regions of South America, Central America and the Caribbean but in some areas appropriate preventive medicines are needed. Measures should always be taken to avoid mosquito bites, such as nets and creams.
Last updated 22.07.2009

http://www.netdoctor.co.uk/travel/caribbean/haiti.shtml



these facts are from 2002-if you can imagine their presence after >100,000 deaths:
http://www.paho.org/English/DD/AIS/cp_332.htm


Vector-borne diseases: Plasmodium falciparum malaria is endemic, causing 59 deaths in 1999 (with 90% underregistration and data from only 4 departments) and a total of 973 cases reported to the MSPP. Epidemiological data are insufficient to estimate the magnitude of the dengue problem in Haiti , but in 2000, 59 clinical cases of dengue were reported. The Aedes aegypti vector is present throughout the country. Lymphatic filariasis is widespread in urban areas, especially in the Department of the North. In some cities of the North and of the Center, the rate of microfilaria carriers exceeds 30%.

Diseases preventable by immunization: As a result of the discontinuation of vaccination efforts during 1995-1999, an epidemic of measles occurred in the city of Gonaïves in March 2000 (990 confirmed cases, most of them in the area of Port-au-Prince , during that year). Despite immediate vaccination efforts, cases were confirmed in various municipalities. By the end of 2000, measles vaccination coverage had reached 75% in the country. Unsatisfactory vaccination coverage resulted in a case of acute flaccid paralysis reported in 2000 in a 2-year-old girl. Virologic studies identified a poliovirus derived from the Sabin type 1 vaccine. Seven more cases occurred in 2001, the last one in July. Vaccination coverage after the epidemic was 100%. Eight cases of diphtheria were reported in 1999, and 60 cases of neonatal tetanus in 2000. However, the true number of cases is thought to be greater.

Intestinal infectious diseases: Diarrhea and gastroenteritis are the second leading cause of death in the general population, especially in children. Typhoid accounted for 67 registered deaths in 1999, although it is not subject to surveillance.

Chronic communicable diseases: In 1999, the estimated prevalence of tuberculosis - the sixth most important cause of death in the country - was 114 per 100,000 population . The network of health services observing the WHO DOTS strategy is incipient. The AIDS epidemic has aggravated the tuberculosis situation. It can be said that leprosy is still endemic in Haiti , although its true prevalence is not known.

Acute respiratory infections: According to the 1999 death certificates, there were 209 deaths attributable to acute respiratory infections, 97 of them in children under 5 years of age.

Zoonoses: During 1995-2000 there were 22 reported cases of human rabies and 44 cases of laboratory-confirmed canine rabies, most of them in the Port-au-Prince metropolitan area. Prevention measures such as canine vaccination have been stepped up. Anthrax is endemic in the departments of the North, Southeast, and the Artibonite , but no data is available.

HIV /AIDS and sexually transmitted infections: HIV/AIDS infection affects 4.5% of the Haitian population. It is estimated that every year there are some 13,000 pregnant women who are HIV-positive, and that 30 % of their children will be born with the infection. In 2000, a study showed prevalence rates in pregnant women of 5.6% for syphilis and 3.8% for hepatitis B. In 1999-2000, the screening of prospective blood donors showed that 1.4% were positive for HIV, 3.6% for hepatitis B, 0.1% for hepatitis C, and 0.8% for syphilis.

Nutritional and metabolic diseases: According to a survey, overall malnutrition in 1995 was 67.3%. Malnutrition ranks eighth among the causes of general mortality, 76% of cases being in children under 5. Prevalence of anemia is believed to be high. A 1997 study of household and maternal determinants of vitamin A and iron status showed severe stunting in 31% of the sample, and wasting in 4%. Ninety-two percent had vitamin A deficiency. Numerous foci of iodine deficiency have been found and cases of cretinism reported. In 2000, the prevalence of exclusive breast-feeding for 0-5 months was 49% and non-exclusive breast-feeding 99%.
Emerging and re-emerging diseases: In 1999, there were 56 cases of meningococcal meningitis with a case-fatality rate ranging between 20 and 30%.