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WASHINGTON, April 30, 1996 – Although most U.S. service members have left Haiti, about 250 remain as part of Exercise Fairwinds, an ongoing humanitarian training mission, according to DoD officials.
The last 84 service members who served as part of the U.N. Mission in Haiti left Port-au-Prince April 17. They were transportation specialists from Fort Eustis, Va., and military police from Fort Polk, La., who stayed in Haiti to process vehicles and equipment being shipped back to the United States. Exercise Fairwinds got under way a year ago with about 250 service members assigned to the Joint Chiefs of Staff humanitarian and civic assistance training operation. It will continue through June 1997. U.S. personnel, including Navy construction specialists, Marine Corps security teams and Army medics, will help the Haitian government build base camps and improve conditions on the island nation, DoD officials said. Projects include school, hospital and road repairs. The group has also worked on larger projects funded by the Inter-American Development Bank, including a $1.1 million road renovation project near the main Haitian port and major renovations at a university hospital.
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