Kiwis in Haiti with happier faces

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DOING HIS PART: Sub Lt Nick Foster in Haiti.

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One of two New Zealand Navy officers working disaster relief in Haiti is reporting good progress in helping the recovery there.

Two New Zealanders, Sub Lieutenant Nick Foster of Whakatane and Ensign Kendra Titheridge of Blenheim were servicing with the Royal Canadian Navy when disaster hit Haiti last month.

Sub Lieutenant Foster aboard HMCS Athabaskan, a 38-year-old gas turbine ship, was directed to send people ashore in the town of Legoane near Port au Prince, close to the epicentre of the quake. 

"As the sun rose on Tuesday 19 January the mountainous coast of Haiti became visible and a flotilla of small fishing vessels began to fill the bay - it was clear that contact avoidance was going to make this a busy forenoon watch," he reported back to New Zealand. 

"'Big Dawg' - our Sea King helicopter - lifted off on a reconnaissance mission while members of the boarding party and the other 'away team' closed up."

They identified a landing zone and the ship's boats headed for shore.

"On Day One the objective was to establish ourselves ashore, make contact with the locals and identify areas where we could make a difference.

"Members of the away team helped clean up a school, set up security for a first aid centre, and provided light engineering. The crew who remained on board found themselves in frequent rotations, to cover for those who were ashore.

"Reports back to the ship were positive, with our teams well-received by the locals, and no signs of the looting that had been reported in Port au Prince.

"The shore parties felt aftershocks all day, with one reported as 6.1.  Much to our surprise we could even feel the shocks while on the ship," Sub Lieutenant Foster writes.

- © Fairfax NZ News