Aid Workers in Haiti Face 'Logistical Nightmare' (Concise Summery of Conditions)

[tekisui]

Source: DailyMe/AP

GENEVA — Roads full of hungry, homeless people. A ruined port and an overwhelmed airport. Hundreds of crumpled buildings and little heavy machinery. Few working phones.

Relief supplies and emergency experts started pouring into Haiti from around the world Thursday but aid groups said the challenge of helping Haiti's desperate quake survivors was enormous.

"It's chaos," U.N. humanitarian spokeswoman Elisabeth Byrs told The Associated Press. "It's a logistical nightmare."

Aid deliveries by ship were impossible to Port-au-Prince because the Haitian capital's port was closed due to severe damage from Tuesday magnitude-7 earthquake. The city's airport was open but damaged, laboring mightily to handle a flurry of incoming aid flights.

Fearful of going near quake-damaged buildings, Haitians stood or rested on the roads, slowing the transport of food and other crucial aid.

Severe damage to at least eight Port-au-Prince hospitals made it nearly impossible to treat the thousands of injured or prevent outbreaks of disease, said Paul Garwood, spokesman for the World Health Organization.

Read more: http://dailyme.com/story/2010011400001039/frequent-victim-past-asia-aid-haiti.html#ixzz0cc60UnDE

[peacetalksforall]

1. I just heard that aircraft landings are difficult because there is no fuel for the outgoing flight.

Couldn't they carry enough fuel to take off again?

If crossing an ocean, couldn't they refuel at San Juan or Curacao or Caracas or even Miami before going to Haiti?

[Warpy]

2. That's why staging areas in Cuba, Jamaica, and the Dominican Republic

are so absolutely vital right now. Facilities are intact there, although they'll soon be overwhelmed.

At least they finally got a working temporary tower at the airport in Port au Prince last night. That will make things considerably easier.

[blondeatlast]

4. I hadn't heard that they got a tower; whew. That will help a lot;

especially getting planning done.

[blondeatlast]

3. Ports are severely damaged, the main airport lost its control tower.

It's remarkable that any aid is getting through, but it is.

We humans can work our own miracles when it's necessary.

[DevonRex]

5. And that airport only has ONE runway. ONE. Think about that.

Flights can't land or take off like they could if there were more runways. There's a problem with fuel, too. Even with staging in airports that are somewhat close by on other islands, there is still only ONE runway to land on in Haiti.

[Gregorian]

6. Our military engineers can lay out a runway pretty damned fast.

I feel awful. Here I am on my heavy equipment this morning, and I would much rather be down there helping. :(