Body of Air Force major in Haiti during quake found in rubble of his hotel

Body of missing Air Force major found in Haiti

MIAMI — The body of a U.S. Air Force officer visiting Haiti at the time of last month’s earthquake has been found in the rubble of a hotel in the country’s devastated capital, military officials said Tuesday.

Maj. Kenneth Bourland’s remains were recovered Sunday from the Hotel Montana in Port-au-Prince by a military search team, according to a military news release.

“Our thoughts and prayers go out to both Mrs. Peggy Bourland and their three sons,” said U.S. Air Force Gen. Doug Fraser, commander of U.S. Southern Command. “Ken was a tremendous Air Force officer and a family man.”

Bourland, a 37-year-old Alabama native, was visiting Haitian defense and security officials when the earthquake hit Jan. 12. Three other members of the military on the trip survived.

The Hotel Montana attracted an international clientele of tourists, aid workers and diplomats with its sweeping views from the hills above Port-au-Prince. None of the capital’s ruins has been more thoroughly searched. Crews from the U.S., Brazil, France, Mexico, Canada and Haiti have all combed the debris, which pancaked so dramatically that the roofline comes within inches of the ground.

As of late last week, some 100 people were believed buried there including a dozen presumed to be Americans. It could take six to eight weeks for workers to find and identify the remains of all who were lost there, according to U.S. military officials in charge of the recovery effort.