Basic food rations, filtered water should be in earthquake-ravaged Haiti late Saturday

Food, water coming to earthquake-ravaged Haiti

WASHINGTON — More food, water and relief supplies are on the way to Haiti from the U.S.

About 600,000 humanitarian daily rations — basic nutrition packages that provide 2,300 calories — were expected to be at Haiti’s airport by Saturday evening, said Tim Callaghan, the White House adviser helping to oversee relief efforts in Haiti. The World Food Program plans to distribute the rations.

Callaghan told reporters on a conference call Saturday that water purification units arrived Friday night, and officials hope they will produce up to 300,000 liters of water. More water is coming from the neighboring Dominican Republic.

Denis McDonough of the National Security Council said 180 tons of relief supplies had arrived in Haiti, but he didn’t know how much had been distributed or where it has gone. “We don’t have a good breakdown,” he said.

A U.S. Navy commander said the focus is on distributing food and other aid.

“Coordination is getting better, supplies are getting to people that need it, things will get better over time,” Rear Admiral Victor G. Guillory, Navy commander for the U.S. Southern Command, said on a separate conference call.

“We will get the data, and I’m sure that’s important,” Guillory said. “My priority is to ensure that we push supplies out to people that need it.”

The Navy is helping distribute supplies from the aircraft carrier USS Carl Vinson, which arrived in the area on Friday.

In addition, the Navy hospital ship USNS Comfort left Baltimore Saturday; it was to stop in Florida to pick up more medical staff and arrive near Haiti on Thursday.

“The ship is steaming towards Haiti now. It will be doing best speed, and we’re anxious to get it into the mix,” Guillory said.