In the past week, more than 230 American citizens were evacuated from Haiti by helicopter to the Dominican Republic, said State Department Deputy Spokesperson Vedant Patel (130 Americans in Port-au-Prince since March 20 and counting of 100 citizens to leave Cap-Haïtien since March 17).

"We will continue to monitor demand from U.S. citizens for assistance in departing Haiti on a real-time basis," declared Saturday March 23 Vedant Patel, deputy spokesperson for the State Department, who reiterated that American citizens should not travcel to Haiti and should leave the country when transportation options are available and it is safe to do so.

Vedant Patel said several flights are planned each day to help as many people as possible leave the country, stressing "of course, the situation on the ground is one of the biggest factors into determining the frequency at which we can do this."

Another official later said the State Department intended to facilitate the departure of about 30 Americans via two helicopter flights each day for the duration of the mission and that government personnel would be on hand in the Republic Dominican Republic to help compatriots book commercial travel to the United States upon landing.

But the official warned that the department's ability to continue operating these flights would depend on security conditions in Haiti and the availability of commercial charters, as well as the demand for evacuations.

Members of the State Department's Diplomatic Security Service were working with the Department of Defense to ensure the security of departing citizens and the helicopter landing zone (which is very close to the embassy) but Americans must travel at their own risk and by their own means to the departure points.

The United States organized a charter flight from Cap-Haïtien to Miami on Sunday March 24 with 30 Americans on board.

See also :

https://www.haitilibre.com/en/news-41935-haiti-department-of-state-helicopters-began-to-evacuate-american-citizens.html

https://www.haitilibre.com/en/news-41919-haiti-flash-nearly-1-000-americans-in-haiti-request-help-from-the-state-department.html

https://www.haitilibre.com/en/news-41902-haiti-flash-the-state-department-will-evacuate-americans-in-haiti.html

SL/ HaitiLibre