Haiti port pivotal to aid operations

Food, water, medical aid, humanitarian supplies – the bulk of the aid to Haiti should be arriving by sea, the most effective way of delivering the truly massive amounts of aid needed by the victims of the earthquake.

Robert Gates: sending harbour-clearing ships As US Defence Secretary Robert Gates pointed out: “You cannot fully meet the needs of over 2m people just using helicopters.” He had just signed the orders for the deployment of harbour-clearing ships and other vessels, Bloomberg reported yesterday.

The harbour at Port-au-Prince has been devastated by the quake. Of the two piers, one has been completely destroyed while sections of the main wharf have toppled into the water and 40ft containers are strewn along its whole length.

The single container crane has also been badly hit by the quake and is partially submerged after falling forward into the water. News reports from the BBC also point out that the damage probably continues under the water line, so Jamaica’s shipload of supplies had to moor several miles out at sea as the captain didn’t want to endanger his vessel; small launches have had to ferry the goods in. Divers and sonar equipment have been deployed to assess the damage along with a crane to clear debris.

Humanitarian aid has already arrived at the port. A shallow draft US barge with 150 containers of food and supplies was the first ship to be piloted into the harbour by tug – although it had to wait for equipment to unload. There has been frustration at delays in getting it out to the streets although the US military seem upbeat, saying the port should be reopened for deep sea vessels any time now and aid is beginning to get through. Whatever happens, the port remains key to the relief efforts.

(Source: Port Strategy)