US Navy en route to Haiti seaport to assess damage, help build temporary pier facilities

US Navy en route to make Haiti seaport usable

WASHINGTON — The Navy is going to try to get the wrecked seaport in Haiti’s capital up and running.

A Navy commander says the salvage ship Grasp is en route to Port-au-Prince with divers and underwater construction personnel to assess the damage to piers and other port facilities.

Rear Admiral Victor G. Guillory said Saturday the Navy will help build temporary piers and other facilities. Guillory is Navy commander for the U.S. Southern Command.

For now, the Navy is moving supplies from the aircraft carrier USS Carl Vinson, and sailors are helping to move supplies from Haiti’s airport to distribution centers, Guillory said.

Denis McDonough of the National Security Council says the destroyed port makes it harder to distribute aid.