Connect with us

News

Tensions Over Aid Grow In Haiti As Quake’s Deaths Pass 2,000

Published

on

Relief for the victims of a powerful earthquake and tropical storm began flowing more quickly into Haiti on Thursday, but the Caribbean nation’s entrenched poverty, insecurity and lack of basic infrastructure were still presenting huge challenges to getting food and urgent medical care to all those who need it.

Private relief supplies and shipments from the U.S. government and others were arriving in the southwestern peninsula where the weekend quake struck, killing more than 2,100 people. But the need was extreme, made worse by the rain from Tropical Storm Grace, and people were growing frustrated with the slow pace.

Adding to the problems, a major hospital in the capital of Port-au-Prince, where many of the injured were being sent, was closed Thursday for a two-day shutdown to protest the kidnapping of two doctors, including one of the country’s few orthopedic surgeons.

Advertisement

The abductions dealt a blow to attempts to control criminal violence that has threatened disaster response efforts in the capital.

READ ALSO: U.S Struggles To Speed Kabul Airlift Despite Taliban, Chaos

Haiti’s Civil Protection Agency late Wednesday raised the number of deaths from the earthquake to 2,189 and said 12,268 people were injured. More than 300 people are estimated to still be missing, said Serge Chery, head of civil defense for the Southern Province, which includes the hard-hit small port city of Les Cayes.

Advertisement

The magnitude 7.2 earthquake damaged or destroyed more than 100,000 homes, leaving about 30,000 families homeless, according to official estimates. Hospitals, schools, offices and churches also were demolished or badly damaged.

The U.S. aid effort has been building since the initial hours after the earthquake. On Thursday, 10 U.S. military helicopters ferried in search and rescue teams, medical workers and supplies that had been pre-positioned in Haiti by the U.S. Agency for International Development after the devastating 2010 earthquake.

A Navy ship, the USS Arlington, was expected to arrive this weekend, said Adm. Craig Faller, who oversees the military response as commander of Miami-based U.S. Southern Command.

Advertisement

“We’ve got the momentum now,” Faller said. “We’ve got the assets in place. We’ve figured out logistics.”

The U.S. government is still working with Haitian authorities and others to determine the extent of the damage and casualties. Faller said a U.S. Geological Survey assessment projected there could be more than 10,000 deaths.

One of the U.S. helicopters landed Thursday in Les Cayes with equipment, medicine and volunteers, including some from the aid group Samaritan’s Purse. Monte Oitker, a biomedical technician with the organization, said volunteers were prepared to operate a self-contained hospital unit, capable of handling a variety of orthopedic procedures.

Advertisement

Distributing aid to the thousands left homeless could be more challenging.

Chery said officials are hoping to start clearing sites where homes were destroyed to allow residents to build temporary shelters.

“It will be easier to distribute aid if people are living at their addresses, rather than in a tent,” he said.

Advertisement

While some officials have suggested an end to the search for survivors so that heavy machinery can clear all of the rubble, Prime Minister Ariel Henry appeared unwilling to move to that stage.

“Some of our citizens are still under the debris. We have teams of foreigners and Haitians working on it,” he said.

READ ALSO: Soccer-loving Pope Francis Gets New Toy, Foosball Table

Advertisement

He also appealed for unity.

“We have to put our heads together to rebuild Haiti,” Henry said. “The country is physically and mentally destroyed.”

Tension over the slow distribution of aid has become increasingly evident in the area hit hardest by Saturday’s quake. At the small airport in Les Cayes, people thronged a perimeter fence Wednesday as aid was loaded into trucks and police fired warning shots to disperse a crowd of young men.

Advertisement

Angry crowds also massed at collapsed buildings in the city, demanding tarps to create temporary shelters after Grace’s heavy rain. Also in Les Cayes, 22 prisoners escaped from the jail after the quake hit, said National Police spokeswoman Marie-Michelle Verrier.

International aid workers said hospitals in the worst-hit areas are mostly incapacitated, which is why many patients need to be moved to the capital for treatment. But reaching Port-au-Prince from the southwest is difficult under normal conditions because of poor roads and gangs along the route.

Even with a supposed gang truce following the earthquake, kidnapping remains a threat — underscored by the seizure of the two doctors working at the private Bernard Mevs Hospital in Port-au-Prince, where about 50 quake victims were being treated.

Advertisement

And another problem emerged in the quake-damaged southern provinces, where national police said villagers put up barricades on the roads to prevent aid from getting through, arguing that they need help too.

“For those people who are blocking roads at their leisure to stop it (aid) from getting through to the people, you need to wait until the aid comes to you,” Verrier said. She said special police units would escort aid shipments.

So far, the U.S. military has found the roads it needs to be open and has encountered no security issues from gangs, Faller said in an interview with The Associated Press. The Arlington will come equipped not just with a surgical team to treat victims but a Marine Corps rapid reaction security force that will stay on the ship unless needed.

Advertisement

“They are an insurance policy, frankly,” Faller said. “Marines are trained for that and they’re trained for the appropriate use of force. And there’s a deterrent value to having them in the area, as well. And we intend to be ready.”

Jerry Chandler, the head of the national civil defense agency, said the Haiti National Police presence has also been “an important step to help us move the aid.”

Chandler said his agency also has boats and helicopters “to bring aid and bring it quickly” to certain areas.

Advertisement

A group of 18 Colombian volunteer search-and-rescue workers had to be escorted out of the quake-hit city of Jeremie under police protection after a rumor circulated that they had been involved in the July 7 assassination of President Jovenel Moise. The workers took shelter Wednesday night at a civil defense office, and police escorted them to the airport on Thursday.

Moise’s killing, still unsolved, is suspected of being carried out by a group of Colombian mercenaries. Despite what happened to the Colombian rescue workers, Haiti is welcoming “everyone who is coming to bring assistance,” Chandler said.

Henry said Wednesday that his administration will try not to “repeat history on the mismanagement and coordination of aid,” a reference to the country’s devastating 2010 earthquake, when the government and international partners struggled to channel help to the needy amid the widespread destruction and misery.

Advertisement

The Core Group, a coalition of key international diplomats from the U.S. and other nations that monitors Haiti, said in a statement Wednesday that its members are “resolutely committed to working alongside national and local authorities to ensure that impacted people and areas receive adequate assistance as soon as possible.”

(AP)

Advertisement
Advertisement
Comments

News

Navy Opens Recruitment For Basic Training School Batch 38

Published

on

The Nigerian Navy has opened applications for its Basic Training School (BTS) Batch 38 recruitment exercise, scheduled to run from October 2 to October 31, 2025.

According to an official statement, the recruitment process is free, and interested applicants must submit their applications online at https://www.joinnigeriannavy.navy.mil.ng/https://www.joinnigeriannavy.navy.mil.ng.

Successful candidates will undergo basic military training before being officially enlisted as Ordinary Seamen.

Advertisement

The Navy stressed that eligibility is restricted to Nigerian citizens by birth with a valid National Identification Number (NIN). Applicants must have no criminal record and must not be affiliated with secret societies, cults, or fraternities.

READ ALSO:NUC Begins Nationwide Recruitment, Opens Application Portal

Educational and age requirements were clearly outlined. Candidates applying with O’level results must be between 18 and 22 years old as of December 31, 2025.

Advertisement

Those with OND/NCE qualifications must be aged 18 to 26, while Chaplain/Imam Assistants and Drivers/Mechanics must fall within the 18 to 28 age bracket.

In all cases, applicants are required to have at least five credits, including English Language and Mathematics, obtained in not more than two sittings in WAEC, NECO, GCE, or NABTEB, with certificates not older than 2015.

The Navy added that special professions, such as Medical Assistants and Nurses, require proof of registration with relevant professional bodies.

Advertisement

READ ALSO:Air Peace Announces Recruitment For 1,000 Fresh Graduates [SEE How To APPLY]

Applicants for technical trades including tailoring, plumbing, carpentry, welding, and electrical works must present valid Trade Test certificates in addition to academic qualifications.

Similarly, candidates applying as sportsmen and women are expected to provide certificates and medals as evidence of their sporting achievements.

Advertisement

The recruitment examination is scheduled for November 29, 2025, at designated centers nationwide.

READ ALSO:UK Bars Over 100 Job Roles From Foreign Recruitment To Curb Migration

Candidates are required to bring their Attestation Form, duly signed with a passport photograph of the signer, along with valid identification such as a Driver’s License, International Passport, or National ID Card.

Advertisement

Applicants have been cautioned against multiple applications, which will lead to disqualification.

The Navy further advised candidates to seek clarification only through official communication channels provided on the recruitment portal.

Advertisement
Continue Reading

News

BREAKING: Gov Fubara Dissolves Rivers Pension Board

Published

on

Governor Siminalayi Fubara of Rivers State has dissolved the State Pensions Board with immediate effect.

Rivers State Head of Service Mrs Inyingi Brown made this announcement on Friday in Port Harcourt.

READ ALSO:Why I Visited Tinubu —Gov Fubara

Advertisement

According to the governor, the office of the State Accountant General will handle the functions of the board until a new one is constituted.

Continue Reading

News

FAAN Launches Cashless Payment System Across Airports

Published

on

The Federal Airports Authority of Nigeria (FAAN) has launched the cashless system of payment across all airports.

FAAN in partnership with Paystack, is proud to announce the roll out of OPERATION GO CASHLESS, a cashless contactless payment solution across all airports beginning with Murtala Muhammed International Airport, Lagos, and Nnamdi Azikiwe International Airport, Abuja,” the agency said in a communique on Thursday.

Effective September 29, 2025, all payments at FAAN’s revenue points, including airport Access Gates, Car Parks, FAAN VIP and Protocol Lounges will go cashless which means the agency will be phasing out the collection of cash at these points.

Advertisement

FAAN added that travelers and airport users will now enjoy fast and seamless services by using a secure contactless payment option.

READ ALSO:Account For Airport Toll Gate Revenue Since 2015, Court Orders FAAN

This initiative, it stated, is a response to the growing demand for safe, modern, and transparent payment systems while ensuring Nigeria’s airports remain aligned with global digital trends.

Advertisement

By reducing reliance on cash, FAAN said it aims to enhance efficiency, improve revenue assurance, and deliver a better customer experience at our airports.

To ease the transition, trained brand ambassadors have been deployed at access gates and around the terminals to guide users, assist with onboarding, provide demonstrations, and answer questions they may have.

READ ALSO:FAAN Clears Air On Plane Seen On Lagos Road

Advertisement

In addition, passengers have been directed to obtain a FAAN Go Cashless Card at any airport access gate in Lagos and Abuja.

After collection, users are encouraged to activate and fund their cards immediately by visiting www.gocashless. faan.gov.ng.

FAAN added that it remains committed to continuous improvement and will expand this cashless policy to other airports nationwide in phases.

Advertisement

For inquiries, airport users have also been advised to contact FAAN’s support line at 0700 CBS FAAN (0700 227 3226) or email the agency at gocashlesssupport@faan.gov.ng.

Continue Reading

Trending