HTH -- Haiti Earthquake

February 1, 2010. One person killed in confrontation between looters and security guards in Haiti

SOURCE: Corporate Risk International

At least one person was killed when private security guards opened fire on a group of some 100 youths who began looting an appliance store in Port-au-Prince on January 29th. Haitian police reportedly detained 40 people and called U.S. troops to the scene who stopped the security guard from continuing to open fire on looters.

Separately, U.S. authorities say they are working with the Haitian government to resume civilian flights out of the Port-au-Prince airport; civilian flights have been halted since the January 12th earthquake. Reports suggest that airlines and cargo companies could resume operations out of the airport within several weeks, in which case military flights will be diverted to another airport.

Meanwhile, ten Americans were detained by Haitian police on January 30th as they attempted to bus 33 children across the border into the Dominican Republic without the proper documents. The U.S. nationals claim they were planning to set up an orphanage in the Dominican Republic and had received permission from the children's families. The Haitian government suspended all adoptions following the earthquake amid fears that parentless or lost children would be vulnerable to child trafficking.