Here is a letter from an Aid Worker currently on the ground in Haiti:

Hello tout moun,

It has been an interesting experience sitting here in Port-Au-Prince being part of a coalition of 25 non-profit organizations coming together to coordinate the dispensation of food, water, and medical supplies.  It hasn’t been easy because of the extreme difficulty of passing through the myriad loops that the large NGO’s require before anything will be given out. There is a 100 question form that they are passing out to communities to fill out bring back in order to receive aid.  This alone can take them a week or so.  The questions they ask are very difficult to answer and explaining location in Port-Au-Prince, is nearly impossible.  Often Haitians use directions like, next to the large tree around the corner from so and so market.  The UN wants GPS coordinates because many streets are not marked here and navigating the city has proven to be difficult.

After the one riot that took place in the worst part of the city, they are only sending out non-food items at first to see if the communities can function without a disaster taking place. I understand their concern for safety, but it seems to be quite a long process to go through before any nutritional needs are met.  It has been nearly three weeks now and communities all over the place are living on minimal amounts of food if any. The Haitian government has been completely bypassed in all of this.  The president has thrown his hands up in the air because he is not being included or informed about anything that is happening involving this process of bringing aid relief to the people.   Boats full of goods are being redirected to pass through the Dominican Republic (DR) which is a very lengthy process as well.  We actually have a boat waiting in the DR which hasn’t received any clearance by the port of Jacmel to debark.

When did it occur that our society got so disorganized?  Where paperwork and numbers are given priority over bringing actual aid to the people.  Smaller organizations have given up all over the place trying to deal with the larger NGO’s and the UN because there still hasn't been any sign of the goods being distributed.  They have warehouses full of boxes and can’t organize their dispensation to the country.  The small organizations have given up and are buying local food to distribute and/or taking trips to the DR and driving truck loads of good back to the communities they are working in.

I understand that indeed this is quite a difficult project, but how could it be so disorganized? I hope that there will be a reflective inquiry into what made this all such a mess, so in the future aid relief will arrive and actually be given out to the people in a timely manner and avoid the watching the population diminish everyday while groups run around like a chicken with its head cut off staring at piles of papers and computer screens, forgetting that behind the numbers are real people in dire need.
This has been a huge disaster, not only with the earthquake, but with the response. I only can hope that we get it together before more and more Haitians perish because the loads of aid aren’t quite ready because they haven’t been given the go by those in charge. If this doesn’t reflect the depth of our Orwellian times, and not wake us up from this great mess we have gotten ourselves into, I am not sure what will.

The Haitian people are unfortunately used to living with very limited resources including food and water and have a high tolerance for suffering. If this was to happen in the US there would have been no tolerance for such suffering. With great hope and determination we will overcome this all and Haiti will revive itself.

Thank you,
Ryan McCrory

Can Shipping Containers provide much needed housing for the million displaced Haitians? 

Why not?  Shipping containers are cheap, mobile and highly recyclable.  They’re pre-insulated and already have hardwood floors.  They’re strong, resistant to mold, termites and fire and above all they’re plentiful.   Our trade deficit has left hundreds of thousands of empty shipping containers piling up in storage yards all over the country. 

The City of Los Angeles might gladly donate hundreds of thousands of these containers to Haiti.  Please watch the videos and tell me what you think of this idea!

Mirela

I realize that several of you have nominated me for a Shorty award for my Social Media Haiti efforts.  Thank you!  …And Please Don’t!

Here’s why I DON’T WANT a Shorty Award:

1.     I am not important.

2.     I have not done nearly enough and never will be able to do nearly enough, regardless of my efforts.

3.     100% of the focus should be on the people of Haiti right now.

There is no ego in Humanitarian work.  The participants must be 100% focused on the task at hand.  No attention should be diverted away from the cause.  I am but a mere bee in my Hive of Volunteers: I can’t accomplish much alone, but my Hive works better if I participate. 

Here’s to Haiti!  If there is monetary compensation for the Shorty Award, I hope the winner donates it all to Haiti.

Mirela

The Medevac evacuations for Haiti’s critically ill patients have recently stopped.  While a lot of finger pointing is still ongoing, no clear answers exist yet, as to how this action was taken and by whom.  We have a lot of speculation as to what’s caused this Humanitarian effort to come to a screeching halt, explanations such as: "no hospitals willing to take these patients in and no airports that would accommodate the C-130 flights needed for transport."

Since these two explanations are quoted as the main culprit for this Humanitarian stumbling block, here is an obvious solution:

We have an Air Force Base in Charleston, SC, that will easily accommodate the transports.  C-130’s fly in and out of there with regularity.   Landing problem solved!

We also have several extraordinary hospitals in the Charleston Area, Medical Facilities fully equipped with the latest and the best: MUSC, MUSC Children’s Hospital, Roper St. Francis (with 12 facilities in Charleston) and Trident Hospital, all of which are mere minutes away from the Air Force Base.

Since hospitals are already in the Humanitarian Field, is it not natural to expect them to show benevolence?  Why can’t we expect them to donate their services in such extreme circumstances?  Surely, the good PR garnered by such efforts would be worth the monetary outlay.  Part of the donation could possibly be made Tax Deductible at both state and federal levels. 

Charleston also makes sense if you look at the map.  Aside from Florida and Georgia, we are the closest to Haiti. 

We are not talking about a huge number of patients.  We only need access and treatment for several hundred patients who are critically ill and will die very shortly unless we facilitate this Humanitarian Endeavor. 

We can e-mail this blog to state, local Newspapers and TV News Organizations and to the Hospitals named above.  Those of you who are concerned could help spearhead this effort.  Time is of the essence.  You could save someone’s life today!

NPR NEWS: January 30, 2010

The United States military has halted medical evacuation flights from Haiti to the U.S.

Military planes have been flying some wounded earthquake victims to be treated in U.S. hospitals, but that practice has stopped for now because states have raised questions about the cost of such care.

Doctors with the University of Miami's Global Institute for Community Health and Development say there are 100 critically ill patients at a temporary field hospital at Haiti's international airport who will die in the next couple of days if the flights don't resume.

Two men with tetanus have already died waiting. And doctors say 5-year-old Betina Joseph, also infected with tetanus, could die within 24 hours if she's not air-lifted to a U.S. hospital and put on a respirator.

"If we can't save her by getting her out right away, we won't save her," said Dr. David Pitcher, one of 34 surgeons staffing the field hospital set up with donations to the institute.

In an effort to resolve this critical Humanitarian stumbling block, we have put together a list of actions that could be taken by our core group of VolunTweeters and other concerned citizens:

1.     Contact your Governor’s Office.  You can easily access your State Governor’s information here and send him/her an e-mail.  Here is a sample letter.   According to Allie McNeil, who has done extensive research on the subject and has vast experience in Relief work, the Governor of a state can give a waiver for humanitarian purposes, overriding other state agencies' dictum.

2.     Contact one big hospital in your state and ask if they would be willing to take in some critically ill patients from Haiti.  Contact the PR Rep or the Admissions Director.

3.     Contact your local Newspaper and TV News (the News Desk) letting them know of your efforts and asking for any information they may have on the subject. 

These are three easy steps that can be effected within less than 10 minutes.  If you wish to do more, please read Allie McNeal’s Blog.

Ever since the earthquake ravaged Haiti, I have seen such an incredible outpour of support.  This Humanitarian stumbling block is incongruous with our amazing efforts to help Haiti.  This is not who we are; there is no price to put on human life.  Please help us resolve this!

Mirela

Compiled from the Tweets of Adrian V. Barbour @ben_david68

Populate this tool and utilize as much as possible. Thanks! http://haiti.sahanafoundation.org/prod/default/index

It is important to start using all resources at disposal to clear and restart rebuilding process.

IT infrastructure needs to be moved up on the priority to aid effective and timely communication. Any volunteer teams with IT specialties.

Are there any corporate sponsors who can provide equipment and staff for wireless routers, cables, help desk, and network support, etc.?

Start showing flow through of donations?

Follow donations from receipt to purchase to delivery to use by workers in the field.

Have ARC provide sanitation awareness classes for tenants of tent cities.

Develop daily quality of life improvement projects for locals to sign up. Tick off achievements as they are accomplished.

Provide a series of classes for residents e.g. first aid, basic sanitation, etc. Keep camp residents productively busy.

Vacancies within Haitian government should be filled by temporary appointments until original officials are confirmed to be dead or alive.

Temporary appointees should be constitutionally assigned until government is restored. Most functional and critical offices are the priority.

IT Support: SATCOM units; any ground stations for government facilities? Let's get Haitian government and police stations up to speed and self sufficient.

See what it will take for a cluster to reestablish schools within each camp.

Does the Haitian government have a situation room setup?

Provide a workshop of safe distribution practices for volunteers.

Media: in addition to general human stories, let's get more on operational players and their needs, status, improvements, etc.

Predictability of essential services delivered upon a schedule is the goal to reduce desperate violence, etc.

Tent city leadership should have regular meetings in order to share best practices and to help connect families.

They should create a standing leadership council as an advisory board to the government.

If it does not already exist, have Haitian government create a min for the Aged, to address needs of nursing home elderly & others.

They should assign staff to address their needs just like those of orphans, addressing medical care and disposition.

What international organizations address this particular population?

In each tent city, leaders should start compiling list of occupational skill sets of tenants and provide it to government for work parties

Apply dietary rules in camps as much as reasonably possible to stave off disease and infections.

Set up common area space for community meetings to share info and provide workshops, etc.

Each community should have outpatient ICUs. Once well enough, transition them to general population.

Those who are well enough should join work teams in PaP, or move out to country side.

Can Canadian combat engineers fix main road to Jamal to enhance travel?

Can we now get more aid workers through regional centers to address needs in outskirts? Replicate best practices from PaP

Establish effective real-time info sharing from there too. Let's get effective communication systems and networks up and running to reach regional locals

I will continue to cull Adrian's ideas from his Tweets.  I should have a complete list within the next few days, adding to this several times each day.  Until I do, please check out his Tweets: @ben_david68 .  Jan 23, 3:44pm   Mirela

Searchable List of the Missing in Haiti - CNN, Red Cross and Google Person Finder

ICRC List of People confirmed Alive

USAID Aid From The American People - A complete help of all aid and field conditions updated daily.  This update from 1/23/10

Valuable list of Distribution Locations , Water, Food, Hospitals and all aid locations and updates.

US Embassy in Haiti

Le3900.com - All important contact information for Haiti

Logistics Cluster Report - Feb 3, 2010

Consolidated Situation Report - Feb 4, updated Feb 5, 2010

OCHA Situation Report Mapped Out - Jan 31

HAITI - Relief Organization Presence Map (as of 29 Jan 2010)

USG HUMANITARIAN ASSISTANCE TO HAITI FOR THE EARTHQUAKE - Jan 30

US Aid Situation Report - January 28

UK Aid Situation Report - Jan 28

HHS Emergency Response in Haiti: Summary Report, Jan. 27

United States Government Haiti Earthquake Disaster Response Update

Find your representatives in Congress - just enter your address and obtain the contact information (including their e-mail addresses) for your two Senators and your US House Representative.

Tools and Resources for Post-Disaster Relief  - A most valuable Reference Guide from UNHCR with all useful and important information.

Haiti - Population Movements out of Port-au-Prince as of 24 January 2010

Relief Web - Latest Updates on Haiti - This has every piece of critical information

Port-au-Prince Road Damage Assessment Map - Road Damage Assessment Maps & other essential information

Port-au-Prince Temporary Shelter Locations

Make Donations Based on Needs - Feb 1

Medical:

A List of all Hospitals, their contact information and locations - this list is updated regularly.

A Basic List of Hospitals & Phone Numbers

A Map of Doctors Without Borders Hospitals

Map of IDF Field Hospital in Haiti

Hospitals and Field Mediacal Locations - Jan 26 Map

Haiti: Operational Biosurveillance

Doctors Without Borders MSF - an international medical humanitarian organization working in more than 60 countries to assist people whose survival is threatened by violence, neglect, or catastrophe.

Physicians For Human Rights - Partners in Health Volunteer Bulletin - Health workers & Logisticians needed right now.

Health Cluster Report of January31

The Pan Am and World Health Organization Daily Report

Communications:

Public release of Haitian Creole language data by Carnegie Mellon

Information for Radio Broadcast

Relief Web - Situation Reports from the ground in Haiti and everywhere else.

Haiti News Feed - All the latest News on Haiti from every source.  To enter your RSS Feeds into this Form.

Hope for Haiti Now - Twitter Dashboard rolling info on #Haiti

Updates from aid workers and journalists in Haiti

Live Broadcast and chat room with Pierre Côté

Project Epic - Standadizing Twitter to aid in a more expedient response

Haitian Creole app for the iPhone (free) - a wonderful tool for volunteers on the ground.

Gaia GPS For Haitian Disaster Relief - a Lifesaver for the volunteers on the ground (free)

Haiti Earthquake Support Center -The Extraordinaries has created this support page to harness the power of the crowd to help locate and identify missing persons with just a few minutes of your time.

 List of Twitter users currently involved in helping Haiti (all the local movers & shakers, relief workers, volunteers, news organizations, military, government and of course journalists and their producers).

Twitter grows up in the aftermath of Haiti earthquake - I certainly would not have been able to help without Twitter and neither could many others.  "Twitter 4 Haiti" has been a constant refrain on the microblogging site, with #Haiti in the top 10 trending topics since the quake.

Latest News on Twitter - We all know Twitter is up to the second...

White House Haiti Earthquake Disaster Response Update 1/21/10

Crisis Commons - A Clearinghouse of Information - How Can I Help? Check here for the answers.

Logistics Cluster Software @ Online Logistics Tools

Mapping/Communications:

Ushahidi.com , a GPS Emergency Locating system, has been invaluable after the quake, helping volunteers locate many of the calls for help.  With Port au Prince devastated by the earthquake, addresses have been useless.  By employing Twitter or by simply texting 4636, emergencies could be entered into the system and mapped out by a volunteer via the Internet.  Volunteers located all over the World have been able to help coordinate rescue operations on the ground in Haiti, saving many lives.  Volunteers like my Tweep, Rachelle Houde, who has worked tirelessly since shortly after the quake, deserve much praise. 

Disaster Response Portal - Situation Mapping, Organization Registry, Assistance Requests and Volunteer Information.

Open Street Map - Volunteers are building a basemap of Haiti, using satellite imagery, old maps from the CIA and military, and other sources.  Open Street Map Tutorial & Info.

Haiti Live - Help Map what's happening in Haiti

Google Satellite Maps of Haiti - the National Palace is shown here, but you can zoom in and out to view all areas around Port au Prince and beyond.

GeoEye - Geospatial Revolution Project - Remarkable Satellite Imagery

Haiti 360* - Interactive Videos taken on the streets of Haiti

Aid and Relief:

White House Haiti Relief Page - The official dictum and resources.

We Have / We Need - We Have We Need is a place where relief organizations can quickly post their most urgent needs and have them matched by generous donors during a time of crisis.

Haiti Volunteer Network - a platform for people who wish to donate services or goods to connect with relief and humanitarian agencies that are helping Haiti...

InterAction - a regularly updated list of agencies responding to the crisis and accepting donations.

All For Good - Find out what you can do to help in your neck of the woods.  From Haiti to local programs, this organization shows all altruistic activities available all over the World.  Just put in your zip code and connect with your cause.  "Be the difference you want to make in the World!" AllForGood.org

A List of Charitable Organizations active in Haiti

Snoops.com on Haiti - Debunks the rumors of free UPS shipments, free Jet Blue and American Airlines flights for volunteers.  Find out just how texting donations actually work.

Quick Review of current International Relief Efforts

Help Age International - Help for the Elderly in Emergency Situations

Adoptions of Haiti Orphans:

HumanitarianParole.com - known as "We Want Humanitarian Parole for Haitian Children Being Adopted!!", a Facebook Fan Page proving to be a wonderful resource for the prospective parents of these children.

Operation Pierre Pan - in an exercise dubbed Operation Pierre Pan, the Catholic Church in Miami is drawing up plans to rescue thousands of Haitian orphans, mirroring the Operation Pedro Pan airlift of 1960 in which 14,000 Cuban children were taken to the city.

Bethany Christian Services - To Start A Haiti Adoption Process

White House Adoption Update - Humanitarian Parole - Secretary Napolitano Announces Humanitarian Parole Policy for Certain Haitian Orphans.

Rainbow Kids - A Clearinghouse of Information for Haiti Adoptions.  List of Agencies Placing Children from Haiti.

Using the Family and Medical Leave Act for Adoption

*This List is updated several times per day with the latest information available.  

Day 9 after the Haiti quake:

It has become evident that if we are going to help the people of Haiti, we are going to have to do it ourselves.  Planes loaded with much needed medical staff and supplies have been repeatedly re-routed to the Dominican Republic, creating an extraordinary strain on several Relief Organizations. 

The amazing Rescue teams from all over the World have accomplished the impossible, extricating survivors after over a week of being buried in the rubble.  Their feats of heroism have been sabotaged by the lack of medical care and supplies created by this logistical bottleneck.  It is maddening to expend so much effort to save people, only to watch them die because they have no medical care.

I started following the situation in Haiti on Twitter shortly after the quake.  I created a list of Twitter users who are involved in providing help on the ground in Haiti.  It started with a handful of people and it now contains over 200 names: local citizens, volunteers, relief workers, and journalists. 

Following this Twitter List gives you a very good idea of what’s going on in Haiti, all in actual time.  This morning when CNN announced that a second after shock had taken place, I had knowledge of a third one that had occurred mere seconds before that announcement, all via Twitter.

This Twitter Haiti list has given me a beat by beat account of everything happening in Haiti since the quake.  Here is my understanding of the situation after having partaken in exchanging thousands of Tweets for the past 9 days:

While the World has shown an extraordinary outpour of support, donating millions upon millions to helping Haiti, more than a week after the quake, many Haitians are still without water, food and medication.  Witnesses on the ground report that boxes upon boxes of medical supplies are just lying there at the airport, while doctors are performing amputations without anesthesia and, having run out of supplies, some are sanitizing equipment by using hard liquor.  Dr. Sanjay Gupta and his producer, Danielle Dellorto, finally took matters into their own hands this morning and went to the Port au Prince Airport demanding answers:  Here is her Tweet posted around 11am:

At the PAP airport demanding answers as to why these med supplies are just sitting here.  http://twitpic.com/z2ppt

The visit was successful and they left the airport with several boxes of medical supplies and a videotaped explanation made by one of the US Military brass in charge stating that “we just don’t have the infrastructure to distribute these supplies”.

Meanwhile, another star journalist, Soledad O'Brien and her producers, embarked on a trip with two buses loaded with young orphans headed toward the Dominican Republic.  They had to turn back and leave many of the babies behind, several of them too sick to travel, because the embassy indicated they did not have clearance to exit yet.  After almost missing the plane, Soledad and her team finally managed to take 22 of these orphans into Miami.  

Those of you who are connected to me via Active Rain, Facebook or Twitter, know of my desperate pleas for help on behalf of another group of orphans left to die in Haiti.  My followers re-tweeted my cries for help over and over yesterday.  Help finally came today, also from a journalist on the ground in Haiti: Adam Housley, correspondent for Fox News.  He became the hero who facilitated the rescue of these desperate orphans.  You can watch that feat on Fox tonight at 10 tonight.

(I will continue this blog in a little while; stay tuned for more).

Here is my Haiti Twitter list:

http://twitter.com/MirelaMonte/haiti

UPDATE ON THE HAITI ORPHANS CRISIS:

I.  The following Emergency Bulletin is from Kristen Hammond, the creator of http://www.HumanitarianParole.com

It's time to contact our members of Congress/White House/State Department/DHS AGAIN to bring these children home to the US.

Sample letter Addressing the Health and Safety of Children in Haiti:

On January 18, 2010, Secretary of Homeland Security Janet Napolitano granted humanitarian parole to many of the Haitian children being adopted by United States citizens. While I applaud this measure, many of these children are still in Haitian orphanages which to date have not received any humanitarian aid such as food, water or a safe area to sleep. These children will not survive if they do not receive help. I ask you to contact the State Department and the USCIS on my behalf and request that:

1. Aid be directed to orphanages that have made repeated requests for assistance and are in dire need, 2. A safe staging area be identified where children in the adoption process may wait for processing for humanitarian paroles and immigrant visas so that their medical needs may be met, 3. That those children already processed with a humanitarian parole or an immigrant visa be given immediate assistance in leaving Haiti, and 4. That the State Department and USCIS detail additional personnel to the Embassy in Port au Prince to facilitate faster processing.

We are already beginning to lose children in Haiti due to the delays. Please act swiftly so we do not lose more.

Here is a link where you can find your State Representatives' Contact Information

By the way, if you only have a few minutes, you can just copy & paste this letter and e-mail it to your two senators and your congressman.  Their e-mail addresses are included in the contact information provided by the link.  I just did mine and it took less than five minutes.

II.  The following is another idea from another member of the group, Mark Howerton:  Call your County Social Service office, Governors office, and Congressmen offices and tell them you'd be willing to 'take in' and/or 'Foster' a Haitian child who is in the US on HP. There's no doubt that one of the main questions lawmakers are asking is "where will the children go who are not already place...d in an adoptive home?" Your call may help them answer that question and expedite getting these children to safety.

III.  For those who are interested in adopting Orphans from Haiti right now these two organizations seem to the best way to go:

a. Bethany Christian Services - To Start A Haiti Adoption Process

b. The Archdiocese of Miami

Jessica Zerwas Brockardt And the Archdiocese of Miami says "People willing to provide resources or are interested in adoption or foster care for this disaster can email Catholic Charities of the Archdiocese of Miami at info@ccadm.org."  Here is a link to the Archdiocese of Miami.

Here are a couple of blogs explaining this extreme emergency:

CHILDREN ARE DYING IN HAITI - PLEASE HELP BRING THEM HOME!

URGENT PLEA FOR HELP AT THIS HOUR - HAITI BABIES NEED WATER NOW!!!

I have received several e-mails and comments from many of you wanting to help.  The support of the Active Rain Community has been incredible.  I am proud to be part of this amazing community, my Active Rain Family!  What can I say?  I love you guys!  You give me Hope!  Thank you! 

Mirela

ORPHANS DYING – THEY NEED WATER NOW!!!

These are desperate cries from several people reporting babies and young kids (orphans) dying as I write these lines.  Here are their cries for help on Twitter, which came within the past few minutes and hours.  Please help!  I’m listing a few resources I know of at the bottom of this blog.  Please call your representatives, your pastors, the pope, God…  anybody!

1.

56 BABIES DEAD,74 BABIES DYING Notre Dame de la Nativité 8 bis rue Delvas fontamara 27 5092344754 Port. 50.94045154 #URGENT!

Actual #'s in Orphanage: 56 Dead, 1 Dead Caretaker, 74 dying babies, ONE LONE Caretaker

dead & dying babies @ Foyer Notre Dame Nativite in Fonta Mara Orphanage FONTAMARA 27, RUE DOUYON #76

Searching for GPS coordin's for Foyer Notre Dame Nativite in Fonta Mara Orphanage FONTAMARA 27, RUE DOUYON #76 #Haiti #HELP !!

2.

have to report another forgotten orphanage BBDF 38 Joseph GUIDE Clercine 22 Tabarre food meds water

3.

george st. delmas 32 between marcdieu street and delams 40 b URGENT NEED dying of hunger and thirst

US Embassy in Haiti

http://haiti.usembassy.gov/contact-us.html

White House Adoption Update

http://adoption.state.gov/news/Haiti.html

How to find your representative in Congress:

http://www.contactingthecongress.org/

The earthquake that hit Haiti 6 days ago left behind it a path of destruction.  According to official estimates, there are 330,000 Orphans in Haiti right now.   Some of these kids are in the process of being adopted by parents from the United States and other countries.  

Many of these orphanages are in dire need of food and water.  Some of these babies are dying from dehydration as I’m writing these lines.  The situation is desperate.   These kids are dying while their adoptive parents are doing all they can to rescue them. 

After several days of pleas, the US has finally granted Humanitarian Parole to some of these kids, but to my knowledge, only seven of them have made it out of Haiti so far.  Soledad O’Brien has been sending out distress Tweets all day today.  She is at orphanages with babies who are dying, many of whom are in the process of being adopted by American parents, but so far the airlift seems like a fantasy. 

We need to get these kids out as soon as possible.  We also need to get the rest of the orphans out before they perish.  Please help!

With tears in my eyes, but hope in my heart, I humbly ask for your assistance.  Please spread the word and contact your US Representatives about this crisis!  Every hour counts…

Mirela

Here is an organization you can connnect with.  They have specifics on what you can do to help:

http://www.HumanitarianParole.com

Here is information about Operation Pierre Pan.

Here is the Latest White House update on this issue.

A pregnant nurse, Jean Batiste, 43 years old, was found alive under a destroyed building.  After three hours of painstaking work, Brazilian Army Soldiers from the UN Peace and Stabilization Mission (MINUSTAH) finally rescued her from the rubble.  This incredible video captures it all, from the moment she's discovered under the rubble till she is being tended to in a makeshift hospital.  Bravo! 

Yesterday there was a lynching on the streets of Port au Prince.  Dump trucks are picking up the dead, like human garbage.  The smell of death is everywhere.  People are wearing masks.  Many have not had any food or water for days.  Aid is piling up and not being distributed for fear of riots.  Unnecessary deaths are occurring all over the place, due to the lack of medical attention. There is a mass exodus of desperate people fleeing the capital.  Here is a raw video of it all:

Five days after the quake in Haiti, questions are increasingly being asked now about the coordination of the mission which is being led by the US Military and the United Nations.

Although we've had some major accomplishments today - like an MSF (Doctors Without Borders) plane full of much needed medical supplies finally landing after being turned away, and water trucks distributing clean water, we still have total chaos and disorganization on the ground in Haiti today.  Here is the latest update:

Visit msnbc.com for breaking news, world news, and news about the economy

Visit msnbc.com for breaking news, world news, and news about the economy

Why can’t we expedite these adoptions?  Please contact your US Representatives!

Please watch this video and help!

Adoption Alert: News from the White House:

http://adoption.state.gov/news/Haiti.html

We now have a Facebook Fan Page with over a thousand members.  Please help spread the word!

http://www.HumanitarianParole.com

Day 4 - Food Distribution in Haiti