TFHA01: HAITI EARTHQUAKE TASK FORCE SITUATION

UNCLAS SECTION 01 OF 02 STATE 008629 SENSITIVE SIPDIS E.O. 12958: N/A TAGS: AEMR ASEC CASC KFLO MARR PREL PINR AMGT HA SUBJECT: TFHA01: HAITI EARTHQUAKE TASK FORCE SITUATION REPORT NO. 44 STATE 00008629 001.2 OF 002 VIP TRAVEL -------------- ¶1. (U) No updates at this time. SEARCH AND RESCUE (SAR) -------------- ¶2. (U) A French team rescued a 16-year-old girl in Port-au-Prince January 27. (washingtonpost.com) COMMODITY FLOW -------------- ¶3. (SBU) $20 million of Haitian funds held at the U.S. Federal Reserve are scheduled to arrive January 29 aboard a UN flight. (TF1/Interagency Conference Call) AMERICAN CITIZEN WELFARE/WHEREABOUTS/EVACUATIONS -------------- -------------- - ¶4. (SBU) As of 0500 EST January 28, 29 American evacuees and family members departed Port-au-Prince; a total of 13,077 have been evacuated to date. There are 30 Americans and family members inside the Embassy and 1200 individuals total, mostly local nationals, outside the Embassy. A total of 21,200 Americans have been accounted for. As of 0500 EST January 28, no Americans were at the airport alternate landing zone, and a total of five evacuation flights departed since 2000 EST January 27. USTRANSCOM has temporarily halted the evacuation of non-U.S. personnel from Haiti pending resolution of reimbursement questions raised by the State of Florida. TF1/Embassy Port-au-Prince e-mail, TF1/DOD, DCO Conference Call) MEDICAL RESPONSE -------------- ¶5. (SBU) As of 0300 EST January 28, USN ships had treated 114 patients over the last 24 hours and 491 of 1066 beds are occupied. Warehouses storing medical supplies and staff for these facilities are insufficient, especially pharmacists and logisticians. (TF1/Interagency Conference Call) (TF1/DOD, DCO Conference Call, TF1/Interagency Conference Call) INTERNATIONAL COORDINATION/REQUESTS -------------- ¶6. (U) No updates at this time. DEPLOYMENT OF U.S. GOVERNMENT ASSETS -------------- STATE 00008629 002.2 OF 002 ¶7. (SBU) Fifteen WFP food distribution sites planned for Port-au-Prince and its suburbs will be established based on population and other factors, instead of operating in spontaneous settlements. Each distribution site will be assigned to an NGO, which will manage and coordinate food distribution. U.S. or MINUSTAH troops will provide security for each site. (TF1/Interagency Conference Call) HUMANITARIAN/SECURITY/INFRASTRUCTURE -------------- ¶8. (SBU) Reduced demand for slots at the Port-au- Prince airport has created additional landing opportunities. Preliminary aerial assessments confirm reports of erosion along Jimani road, one of the two main thoroughfares between Haiti and the Dominican Republic. JTF will conduct a more detailed inspection. Miami River shipping companies, which regularly service Haitian ports, have made themselves available to deliver assistance to smaller ports outside Port-au-Prince. Three electrical substations in Port-au-Prince have been tested and are available for service, and testing for other substations is ongoing. Access Haiti, the country's largest Internet Service Provider, is operating at 90 percent capacity, with 12 of its 60 towers down. The company plans to have four or five additional towers operational in the near future. Many neighborhoods are forming "committees" of local residents for security and distributing assistance. Haitian-American troops from civil affairs teams are going to some the city's poorest neighborhoods to help assess needs. The teams are also identifying local leaders who can help ensure fair distribution of assistance. (TF1/Interagency Conference Call, DHS SitRep #30, DHS Guardian Special Report #40) POLITICAL DEVELOPMENTS -------------- ¶9. (SBU) The Haitian Parliament continued to re- establish operations but with no clear direction. Parliamentarians and other commentators have expressed concern about the ability of the GOH to manage the recovery effort and several parliamentarians have approached embassy officials about tourist visas to leave the island. To date, neither President Preval nor Prime Minister Bellerive have addressed the nation. President Preval announced that Haiti will indefinitely postpone February 28 parliamentary elections and that he would not seek to stay in office after his term expires in February 2011. (Port-au-Prince SitRep Day 14, Reuters) CLINTON