US Marines began deploying into Haiti today to support earthquake relief operations and the United States was looking to set up an airstrip outside of the capital Port-au-Prince to ferry supplies into the desperate country, dpa quoted a US commander as saying. A Marine amphibious fleet arrived offshore and was expected to deliver 800 Marines in the next few days into Haiti to join the more than 2,000 Army soldiers already on the ground to provide security and move in humanitarian supplies, said Major General Daniel Allyn, the deputy commander of the US relief operation. The US military presence was expected to swell to 10,000 this week and some troops had gone to the presidential palace in Port-au-Prince to provide security at a food and water distribution point. "The security situation here in Haiti remains relatively calm," Allyn said in a briefing from Port-au-Prince. "Distribution points remain orderly throughout our humanitarian assistance efforts and feedback from the people of Haiti has been positive." Meanwhile, the military planned to set up within 24 hours an airstrip near the town of Jacmel, which was heavily damaged and lies about 35 kilometres from Port-au-Prince, Allyn said. The airstrip would allow additional flights of relief and support Canadian operations in the vicinity, Allyn said. As of Tuesday morning, the US military has brought in more than 400,000 bottles of water and 300,000 rations, and within the next several days, the United States will have more than a dozen water purification units across Haiti, he said. There were reports of sporadic looting by people desperate for food and water, he said. Some of the problems were criminal in nature, Allyn said, noting that there were prisons destroyed by the earthquake and that the prisoners had spread into the population. "We are working with the government of Haiti to ensure that we retain order and that we don't allow security to degrade and affect our ability to get emergency relief to the people of Haiti," he said.
