Please see Senator Frist's blog for the list of cricially-needed medical/ surgical supplies and where to send them.
I note the Israeli Defense Force, at least of the time of their update (23:09 today) is under the impression, along with a great many others, that Haiti's government called off the search and rescue effort. Boy oh boy. There is gonna be a flap about the UN announcement yesterday that the effort was called off. It's still on, according to the latest news.
Anyoo, the IDF is staying on Haiti and they have been doing very practical and urgent work in addition to medical relief and search and rescue. And trust the Israelis to zero in on the critical importance of clean water:
Update on IDF Activities in Haiti, 23 January 2010
The IDF aid delegation in Haiti will continue to provide assistance and support in various ways to the local population. Today, three water towers capable of holding up to 12 thousand liters of water each, were built by the delegation’s representatives in order to supply the residents with a water infrastructure.
Shelters and tents have also been constructed in order to provide refuge for those who have lost their homes. Civil engineers in The Israeli delegation in Haiti also opened central traffic routes that had been blocked in the aftermath of the earthquake.
These missions were enabled through the computer analysis of aerial photographs of the area of Port- Au-Prince, stricken by the earthquake, providing real time situation analysis.
Thus far, 720 people have been treated at the IDF field hospital, 233 life-saving surgeries were performed, 10 babies were delivered, two of which in Caesarean births. Most of the patients currently being cared for in the field hospital are considered to be in moderate condition.
Today, 15 patients from the Israeli field hospital in Haiti will be transferred to the U.S. Navy hospital ship “Comfort” in order to receive further medical treatment. This transfer was coordinated with the American delegation in Haiti. Additionally, two premature babies delivered in the Israeli field hospital will be transferred to a local hospital later today.
The Haitian government announced on Friday, January 22, 2010, that the rescue efforts in the country have officially ended. The IDF rescue teams have began to operate based on specific indications or calls for help.
Also on Friday, a 22-year-old Haitian man was saved by the Israeli Search and Rescue team from the ruins of a three-story building, near the presidential residence in the southern side of the city. The rescue was enabled due to information received by Population Management officers from the Home Front Command directed to the location of the trapped man by local residents. The man was transferred to the IDF field hospital in stable condition in order to receive further medical treatment.
On Sunday, the Home Front Command will conduct a status assessment regarding the IDF’s future activity in Haiti.
The Israeli field hospital was established in order to provide a first response to the citizens of Haiti until the arrival of additional medical forces capable of dealing with the magnitude of the situation.
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