Plane filled with Haitian orphans among 19 flights to Sanford, FL

Jan. 19, 2010 story from the Orlando Sentinel:

An Air Force C-17 carrying 53 children rescued from a Haitian orphanage is among 19 flights from Haiti that have arrived at Orlando Sanford International Airport as of this morning.

Officials said the orphans were flown out of Haiti because their adoptions by American families had already been arranged.

On Sunday night, five orphans arrived on a flight carrying 91 other people. Those five are being adopted by one family, officials said.

The Haiti-to-Sanford airline passenger count stands at 1,916. Of those, 1,334 are U.S. citizens and 387 of them are foreign nationals, said Carrie Hoeppner, spokeswoman for Florida's Department of Children and Families.

After clearing Customs, more than 1,300 of the passengers were taken immediately by Lynx bus to Orlando International Airport to catch flights to cities where they have relatives, Hoeppner said.
Others have been temporarily placed in hotels and in some cases relatives are driving to Sanford to pick up the evacuees, officials said.
Almost all of the foreign nationals have family living in the United States, officials said.

Some of the evacuees are either injured or disabled and are arriving in Sanford in wheelchairs or on stretchers. On one flight carrying 191 people Monday night, 21 passengers were in wheelchairs, Hoeppner said.

The Seminole County Fire Department has activated an emergency operations center at the airport and is assisting with patients needing critical care, spokesman Greg Kirby said.
Firefighters have transported 15 evacuees to area hospitals for emergency treatment, he said.
The evacuees who are not injured are, for the most part, exhausted, Hoeppner said. "Most of them are telling us they have not slept for a number of days," she said. Most of them, she said, told of sleeping outdoors because they were afraid of after-shocks.

Officials in Sanford have no idea how long the flights are going to continue, but DCF, which is charged with repatriating Americans once they arrive back on U.S. soil, has made plans to staff both Orlando Sanford International and Orlando International 24 hours a day, seven days a week, for at least two weeks, Hoeppner said.

The state agency is working closely with volunteers from the American Red Cross at both airports.
Most of the government agencies are incurring overtime costs in order to increase staffing to handle the flood of passengers, but they have been promised reimbursement by the federal government, which if coordinating the flights. Evacuees are arriving in either military transport planes or commercial jets chartered by the military.
So far, 30 unescorted minors have arrived, but all of them were flown here because they have family in the United States, Hoeppner said.

Some of the minors were placed temporarily in a foster home arranged through the Seminole County Sheriff's Office, but none of them will be in long-term foster care, she said.

Late Monday, a 17-year-old girl arrived with a 3-month-old sibling. She told authorities her parents left to go to a supermarket before the earthquake hit and never returned. Arrangements were made for them to fly to relatives in New York this morning, Hoeppner said.

DCF is responsible for giving loans to U.S. citizens who need money to get home.

"They are American citizens and they are eligible for immediate assistance," Hoeppner said. "They sign a promissory note on sight." Even when temporary hotel lodging is provided, it is in the form of a loan, she said.

Seminole County Emergency Management arranges similar loans to non-American citizens.

In reality, all of the agencies are working closely together, said Seminole County Emergency Manager Alan Harris. That includes the Transportation Security Administration, U.S. Customs and Border Protection and airport services at Orlando Sanford International, he said.
Red Cross volunteers from across Central Florida have distributed food, water, diapers, blankets, baby formula, stuffed toys and comfort kits containing toiletry items. They also are providing snacks.
Seminole County is also assisting with the needs of evacuees through Harvest Time International. That organization, at 225 Kennel Road, west of Sanford, is accepting money, non-perishable food, baby formula, hygiene products and first-aid supplies, he said.

http://www.orlandosentinel.com/news/local/breakingnews/os-haiti-sanford-evacuate-20100119,0,1223381.story