A large-scale US military and civilian aid operation gained momentum with Washington sending rescue teams, ships, helicopters, planes, a floating hospital, emergency supplies and more than 5,000 ground troops.

"To the people of Haiti, we say clearly and with conviction, you will not be forsaken, you will not be forgotten," Obama said.

The president offered "every element of our national capacity, our diplomacy and development assistance, the power of our military and most importantly, the compassion of our country" following the disaster.

As rescuers raced to find survivors among thousands of corpses in Haiti, Obama recalled two top deputies from foreign trips.

Defense Secretary Robert Gates cancelled a weekend visit to Australia and Secretary of State Hillary Clinton returned to Washington early Thursday to help coordinate US efforts after Haiti's worst earthquake in more than a century.

Search and rescue teams from Florida, Virginia and California were on the ground Thursday in Port-au-Prince, as was a group of US Air Force experts working to restore air traffic control at the airport -- a vital hub for international aid.

The leading role for the humanitarian effort fell to the United States, Haiti's wealthy neighbor, which has deployed troops and aid in the past to the impoverished Caribbean nation amid refugee crises and political unrest.

"The extent of the planning that has to go into this to make sure we do the maximum good possible is something that the United States is taking the lead in," Clinton said, while also praising the relief efforts of several other nations.

Washington was "providing a lot of the glue that is keeping people communicating and working together as we try to assert authority, reinstate the government and begin to do what governments have to do to rebuild and reconstruct this damaged country," Clinton told Fox News.

The US Army ordered a brigade of 3,500 troops from the 82nd Airborne Division to Haiti to ensure a "safe environment" for relief efforts, said Pentagon spokesman Bryan Whitman, with the first 100 soldiers to arrive later Thursday.

The Navy deployed three large amphibious ships with 2,000 Marines on board and an aircraft carrier, the USS Carl Vinson, was expected to reach Haiti by Friday.

Navy officers said the aircraft carrier will serve as a "floating airport" for a fleet of helicopters ferrying emergency teams and aid to Haiti,

Two other warships and several Coast Guard cutters with helicopters were also bound for Haiti while a large hospital ship, the USNS Comfort, was being loaded with medical supplies at its port in Baltimore and due to arrive next week.

The Pentagon rejected criticism that it may have acted too slowly to deploy its military might in the first 24 hours of the disaster, saying it moved in assessment teams quickly and identified what resources were needed.

The relief effort faced serious challenges, Obama said, with roads in Haiti impassable, communications rudimentary, and aftershocks still rattling the country.

The country's damaged airport was stretched to the limit and Haiti asked the United States and other countries not to authorize any more flights to Port-au-Prince for now, US officials said.

Part of the US effort was aimed at helping many of the 45,000 Americans Clinton said were in Haiti, some of whom were injured in the disaster.

Over 160 US citizens were evacuated out of Haiti Thursday and 370 more were to be rescued later in the day, the State Department said.

Clinton, who cut short her trip to Asia and flew back from Hawaii, warned of a horrific death toll.

"We know it's going to be in the tens of thousands," she told MSNBC.

US officials were acutely aware of the need to try to stem any mass panic or attempts to flee Haiti by sea to reach the United States.

Over the years, hundreds have made the perilous 1,000-kilometer (625-mile) journey in leaky boats, and many have perished on the way.

del.icio.us	Digg	Reddit
YahooMyWeb	Google	Facebook

Memory Foam Mattress Review

SPACE MEDIA NETWORK PROMOTIONS Solar Energy Solutions Tempur-Pedic Mattress Comparison ... Newsletters :: SpaceDaily :: SpaceWar :: TerraDaily :: Energy Daily XML Feeds :: Space News :: Earth News :: War News :: Solar Energy News