Helping Haiti
Written by Mark Fitzgerald
CGF 2010 Volume: 2 Issue: 1 (Feb/March)
The U.S. Coast Guard Was One of the
First to Respond, Medically Evacuating
Hundreds of Critically Injured and
Over 1,000 U.S. Citizens
“We could see a whole hillside of houses that were leveled,” reported Coast Guard Lieutenant Commander Elizabeth Fielder following her surveillance from a C-130 on the morning after the earthquake. “We were just looking at these people’s faces, and they’re waiting for us to land and bring them supplies.”
By early February, Jean-Max Bellerive, the Prime Minister of Haiti, announced that 200,000 had been identified as dead and about 300,000 had been treated for injuries. He also estimated that 250,000 residences and 30,000 commercial buildings had collapsed or were severely damaged.
“This is quite a historic event and is very significant and serious because of the extreme loss of life and the displaced people without homes,” Captain Scott A. Buschman, chief of staff of the Seventh Coast Guard District, told this magazine. “Our thoughts and prayers are with the people of Haiti.”
As part of the recovery, the Coast Guard has evacuated more than 1,140 U.S. citizens, transported nearly 700 responders and medically evacuated at least 240 critically injured.
QUICK RESPONSE
“We were the first American force in there,” said Buschman. “It has definitely been an around the clock effort since it happened.” The Coast Guard has had to serve a number of roles; conducting medical evacuations, for example, and evacuating U.S. citizens and other people that needed to leave. It has also performed damage assessments in the ports and some of the outlying areas.
The significant damage to the port infrastructure at Port-au-Prince has made it challenging for ships to navigate within the port and move supplies into the city. The force of the earthquake knocked the cranes at Port-au-Prince into the water and a sizable portion of the pier was destroyed.
“It’s been difficult because the infrastructure just isn’t there,” explained Buschman. “Some of the roads were damaged too. There are things coming in at the main port area and other parts of the port, but it’s just not as efficient as it normally would be given the damage that’s been sustained. Getting that repaired is definitely going to be critical to long term recovery and reconstruction.”
The Coast Guard has dispatched a marine transportation recovery unit that is working with the U.S. Joint Task Force to try and reconstitute the port that was damaged. In the interim, the unit has established temporary vessel traffic systems to coordinate the flow of ships coming into and departing from the port.
“We’re trying to improve the aids to navigation so we can optimize the flow of goods and supplies coming in and out of the ports, which are really important given the overall magnitude of what’s needed now in Port-au- Prince,” Buschman pointed out.
BY AIR AND SEA
In the immediate weeks following the earthquake, the Coast Guard utilized C-130 aircraft, helicopters, cutters and small boats to transport people and supplies as part of a multi-agency relief effort.
“We’ve delivered some very highly qualified doctors and medical experts that have volunteered their time and capabilities,” said Buschman. “They have offered their help to set up temporary hospitals. In addition to the many evacuations we’ve conducted, we’ve also delivered urban search and rescue teams on aircraft.”
According to Buschman, the versatility of the C-130 Hercules (a four-engine turboprop aircraft built by Lockheed Martin) has been instrumental in the Coast Guard’s reconnaissance and transportation activities. Designed to carry troops and cargo and evacuate those needing medical attention, the aircraft is able to takeoff and land in unprepared areas.
“Our C-130s are great because we can configure them in a number of different ways,” the Captain observed. “We configured some of them for cargo, to bring supplies in, and others to bring people in and take people out. In the immediate days following the earthquake, they were essential because there were only a limited number of places you could land in Port-au-Prince.”
SUPPORT AT KILLICK
Buschman also said that the U.S. Coast Guard has offered assistance to the Haitian Coast Guard, initially by treating injured people and assessing damages to the facilities at the Killick base in the capital city. “We’ve sent some ships in there and some of our people have provided medical care at Killick. We’ve also looked at their facilities and have completed some repairs to their boats to try to get them in a more operational state.”
Based in Miami, the Seventh Coast Guard District’s responsibilities include all Coast Guard operations in the Caribbean Sea, Puerto Rico, the southeastern U.S and the U.S. Virgin Islands. According to Buschman, support from other U.S. Coast Guard districts, the U.S. Coast Guard reserve, the Joint Task Force, humanitarian groups and volunteers has been tremendous.
“The team effort and amount of cooperation we’ve received from everyone has just been phenomenal,” said Buschman. “I couldn’t be prouder of our men and women. Everyone went in and did what they had to do and provided relief to these folks.” ♦