1 NJ church group gets plane ride out of Haiti following quake; other group safe at US embassy

1 NJ group gets out of Haiti after earthquake

HACKETTSTOWN, N.J. — One of two New Jersey church groups who were in Haiti when the earthquake hit have gotten out of the country.

Pastor Joe McCarthy of Trinity United Methodist Church in Hackettstown says the 15-member group was airlifted Wednesday by an Icelandic plane that delivered supplies to Port-au-Prince. They were taken to the Bahamas and hoped to be home Thursday or Friday.

He says when the earthquake hit, the missionaries were driven from an orphanage where they were staying to the airport in the capital and spent Tuesday night in a park.

Another church group, from Mercer County, is safe at the U.S. embassy.