MercoPress. South Atlantic News Agency
Chilean team rescue 23 survivors from the rubble of Haiti’s main hotel
The once majestic Hotel Montana Rescuers dug out 23 survivors out of the rubble of the biggest hotel in Haiti's capital, which collapsed in this week's quake, the head of a Chilean team at the site said Friday.
“Chilean specialists arrived overnight with search dogs and worked with teams from other countries, and 23 survivors emerged” from the Hotel Montana, Juan Gabriel Valdes, a former head of the UN peacekeeping force in Haiti, told Santiago's Radio Cooperativa.
He did not give their nationalities.
The Montana Hotel, located in the hills overlooking the capital Port-au-Prince, was a 98-year-old luxury property used by many foreign aid staff and tourists.
French and US rescue teams on Thursday had already saved a dozen people from its shattered remains.
“Some sectors of the hotel have caved in more than others, but there were these developments overnight, and without any doubt they were pretty extraordinary,” Valdes said.
Around 200 people were reported missing in the hotel hours after the quake. It was feared they were trapped under the rubble of the hotel.
Valdes also said that the rescue work at the headquarters of the United Nations will be suspended, as the building was completely destroyed and there are very few possibilities of finding more people alive.
The Haitian authorities estimate that there are at least 100,000 deaths and 3 million victims caused by the devastating earthquake. An estimated 300.00 homes have also been destroyed.
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Read all commentsONLY ARGENTINE HOSPITAL IS STANDING!
Jan 18th, 2010 - 03:21 am 0AN Argentine-staffed hospital is the only one operating in Haiti’s earthquake devastated capital, and is struggling to cope with huge numbers of injured, its director told Argentine television.
People dug through rubble, rescuing survivors and recovering bodies. The bodies were laid out in the streets, some in piles. During the night, many people digging through the rubble used flashlights. The Argentine Air Force field mobile hospital, already deployed at Port-au-Prince, was the only medical facility still open.[114] Argentine helicopters from the United Nations force were helping evacuate the gravely injured people to Santo Domingo.
El diputado demócrata por el estado de California, Sam Farr, aseguró que tanto el presidente de los Estados Unidos como el ex mandatario reconocieron que la Argentina llegó al país caribeño inclusive antes que los Estados Unidos
Tanto Barack Obama como Bill Clinton, “fueron ambos muy elogiosos con el hecho de que Argentina fue el primer país, inclusive antes que los Estados Unidos en llegar al lugar”, comentó Farr al describir lo sucedido en la reunión que convocó en el Congreso a los máximos líderes demócratas del país para tratar la situación en Haití.
”Argentina estaba ahí con la unidad médica; fue el primer país en responder en el cuidado médico para los haitianos ”, insistió el congresal sobre los comentarios realizados.
http://www.clarin.com/diario/2010/01/16/elmundo/i-02120924.htm
http://www.clarin.com/diario/2010/01/16/elmundo/i-02120924.htm
http://www.clarin.com/diario/2010/01/16/elmundo/i-02120924.htm
http://www.clarin.com/diario/2010/01/16/elmundo/i-02120924.htm
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