US Begins Airdrops of Food, Water Into Haiti

Effort intended to ease bottleneck at airport
By Kate Seamons,  Newser Staff
Posted Jan 19, 2010 7:35 AM CST
US Begins Airdrops of Food, Water Into Haiti
People watch as a Navy helicopter flies off after dropping off soldiers from the 82nd Airborne Division to secure an area to drop in food and water supplies near the Cite Soleil area.   (Getty Images)

The US began airdropping food and water into Port-au-Prince yesterday in an attempt to unclog the aid bottleneck that continues to thwart relief efforts. The Pentagon, wary of triggering riots among hungry Haitians, had ruled out drops, but finally gave them the go ahead as congestion at the airport hampered aid distribution. The Air Force dropped 14,000 packaged meals and 14,000 quarts of water into a secured landing zone just outside the city; it's unclear if more will follow, reports USA Today. (More Haiti stories.)

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