Letting the soldiers in before the medicine...

[bcholmes]

The World Food Program finally was able to land flights of food, medicine and water on Saturday, after failing on Thursday and Friday, an official with the agency said. Those flights had been diverted so that the United States could land troops and equipment, and lift Americans and other foreigners to safety.

"There are 200 flights going in and out every day, which is an incredible amount for a country like Haiti," said Jarry Emmanuel, the air logistics officer for the agency’s Haiti effort. "But most of those flights are for the United States military.

He added: "Their priorities are to secure the country. Ours are to feed. We have got to get those priorities in sync."

— "Officials Strain to Distribute Aid to Haiti as Violence Rises", New York Times