MIAMI – The U.S. Coast Guard continued to provide support, Wednesday, to the U.S. Government’s humanitarian assistance and disaster response efforts after the devastating earthquake in Haiti. Drawing on assets from as far away as Michigan, the Coast Guard has devoted 3 HC-130 Hercules aircraft, 1 HC-144A Ocean Sentry aircraft, 1 HU-25 Falcon jet, 3 MH-60 Jayhawk helicopters, 2 MH-65 Dolphin helicopters, 1 210 foot cutter and 3 270 cutters to assist in the response.
Two crews of C-130 Hercules fixed-wing aircraft from Coast Guard Air Station Clearwater are evacuating nearly 140 U.S. personnel to Santo Domingo, Dominican Republic. Nine people who are critically injured, were taken to the U.S. Naval Hospital Guantanamo Bay, Cuba.
The aircrew of a Coast Guard MH-60 Jayhawk helicopter medically evacuated four critically injured U.S. citizens from the U.S. embassy Wednesday morning and a second medevac of five personnel to Guantanamo Bay is in progress.
The Coast Guard Cutter Forward arrived in the waters off Port Au Prince, Haiti, at about 8 a.m., Wednesday, and together with Maritime Intelligence Support Team 0410, assessed some of the damage caused to the Port Au Prince port. Coast Guard personnel observed multiple oil and fuel spills as well as possible sewage spills in the area of the port about one to one-and-a-half miles from the coast. They also reported seeing multiple small fires along the shoreline and significant damage to or destruction of infrastructure at the port.
Responding to the area are:
- Three MH-60 Jayhawk helicopter crews from Coast Guard Air Station Clearwater.
- The crew of the HC-144A Ocean Sentry aircraft from Coast Guard Air Station Mobile, Ala.
- Three HC-130 Hercules fixed-wing aircraft from Coast Guard Air Station Clearwater.
- An HC-130 Hercules fixed-wing aircraft from Coast Guard Air Station Elizabeth City, N.C.
- The crews of two MH-65 dolphin helicopters from Coast Guard Air Station Borinquen, Puerto Rico and Coast Guard Air Station Detroit, Mich.
- The crew of an HU-25 Falcon jet from Coast Guard Air Station Miami.
- The crew of the Coast Guard Cutter Valiant, a 210-foot medium endurance cutter homeported in Miami.
- The crew of the Coast Guard Cutter Mohawk, a 270-foot medium endurance cutter homeported in Key West, Fla.
- The crew of the Coast Guard Cutter Tahoma, a 270-foot medium endurance cutter homeported in Portsmouth, N.H.
- The cutter Forward is a 270-foot medium endurance cutter homeported in Portsmouth, Va.
