Hopes were dimming that survivors could be found under the rubble nearly a week after the devastating temblor that leveled Port-au-Prince and surrounding areas, leaving up to 200,000 people dead.

"We fully expect that we will transition very soon from the search phase to the recovery phase," said Major General Daniel Allyn, deputy commander of the US military operation in Haiti.

"But at a week after the initiation of the earthquake, we have not found any (US) survivors in the last two days. So we are doubtful that we will be fortunate, but obviously we remain in prayer and hopeful."

His comments came just hours after the United Nations said survivors could still be found under the debris.

International search and rescue teams have extracted more than 90 survivors from beneath collapsed buildings since the disaster struck on January 12, UN Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA) Elisabeth Byrs told AFP.

Some 2,200 US Marines anchored off Haiti's coast in four naval vessels on Monday, bringing the total US military contingent to 7,000, including 5,000 aboard vessels offshore, Allyn told reporters.

A total US troop strength of over 10,000 was expected to operate in the impoverished Caribbean nation "within the coming weeks," with around half of them involved in delivering humanitarian assistance ashore, he said.

Around 800 Marines began moving ashore early Tuesday after establishing a beachhead to support relief efforts west of Port-au-Prince.

Survivors were still scrambling for desperately-needed food and water supplies after a massive logjam at the capital's US-controlled airport, which has only one runway and whose control tower was destroyed.

Allyn said some 200 flights were now taking place per day, and that two additional airstrips -- in the coastal city of Jacmel and in San Isidro in the neighboring Dominican Republic -- would be used by Thursday to relieve some of the pressure on Port-au-Prince.

The US military has delivered over 400,000 bottles of water and 300,000 food rations so far, he said.

Some 40,000 gallons (151,416 liters) of water per day was being produced aboard US naval ships, he added, noting that a self-sustaining water production capacity was just days away.

Another 4,000 pounds (1,814 kilograms) of food and water were also delivered by air to Jacmel.

A dozen water purification units were also set to arrive in Haiti within days.

On Monday, a C-17 aircraft flew from Pope Air Force Base in North Carolina to drop a large pallet filled with supplies in northeast Port-au-Prince, delivering nearly 15,000 meals and over 15,000 liters (3,963 gallons) of water.

But another air drop of this size was not expected until Wednesday, said Colonel David Lapan, a Pentagon spokesman.

"It takes forces on the ground to secure the areas where these drops must go in and to organize the people to avoid a chaotic distribution when those supplies come in," Allyn said.

earlier related report
UN to send 3,500 extra troops, police to Haiti
United Nations (AFP) Jan 19, 2010 - The Security Council voted Tuesday to send 3,500 extra security personnel to quake-hit Haiti to help maintain order and protect aid convoys as the world body mourned its dead exactly one week after the powerful temblor.

The 15-member council, "recognizing the dire circumstances and urgent need for a response," unanimously backed a request to beef up the UN forces in the Caribbean nation made by UN chief Ban Ki-moon on Monday.

"I am grateful to the Security Council for its swift action," Ban told reporters, after it agreed in its vote that the UN mission in Haiti (MINUSTAH) now will consist of a military component of up to 8,940 troops of all ranks and of a police component of up to 3,711.

"We must do all we can to get these extra forces on the ground as soon as possible so that they can help maintain order and deliver humanitarian assistance," Ban added.

The UN boss later led a poignant ceremony to honor the UN quake victims at 4:53 pm (2153 GMT) in the General Assembly, exactly one week after the quake struck, and a moment was observed throughout the United Nations at that time.

A somber-looking Ban then bowed deeply as he faced the UN flag that had been flying atop the headquarters of the UN mission in Haiti (MINUSTAH) which was flattened by the quake.

After the wreath-laying ceremony, hundreds of UN staff, including many Haitians, diplomats and journalists held a candlelight vigil at an outdoor plaza.

The January 12, 7.0-magnitude quake struck the impoverished nation of nine million people, killing at least 75,000, according to the Haitian government.

The capital, Port-au-Prince, has been left largely in ruins by the quake, which also destroyed the MINUSTAH headquarters.

UN officials confirmed the deaths of at least 47 staffers, including 19 Brazilians, with more than 500 still unaccounted for, in the worst tragedy ever to strike to world body.

They also released more names among those fatalities.

During his six-hour visit to Port-au-Prince Sunday, Ban saw first-hand the extensive devastation and expressed solidarity with quake victims and shell-shocked UN staff.

"Our chief priority is to get the relief distribution in Port-au-Prince fully operational so that we may more efficiently distribute supplies: food, water, medicines, tents," the UN boss said.

Ban's call came amid fears that desperation at the slow pace of aid could spill over into widespread violence, in a country that has long-running security troubles.

Thousands of homeless Haitians were prey to roving bands of looters swarming through the ruins of Port-au-Prince, with only sporadic presence of police and military officials tasked with protecting the vulnerable populace.

But in a videoconference from Port-au-Prince, UN spokesman David Wimhurst dismissed reports of widespread looting and chaos as wildly "exaggerated."

Edmond Mulet, the acting MINUSTAH chief, said there was some security concern, particularly with the escape of 4,000 inmates from the city's main prison, including some gang leaders.

But he noted that generally "the security situation is under control."

China's UN Ambassador Zhang Yesui, the council chair this month, said meanwhile the extra troops and police would be deployed for six months.

Head of UN peacekeeping operations, Alain Le Roy, said Monday the reinforcements would be used to protect humanitarian convoys and build aid corridors linking Port-au-Prince with neighboring Dominican Republic and a northern Haitian port.

The Haitian capital's main port was heavily damaged in the quake and will require weeks if not months of repairs.

The extra UN troops would also serve as a reserve force, "in case the security situation deteriorates," Leroy said.

Le Roy said the Dominican Republic had agreed to dispatch a battalion of 800 troops for arrival as early as this week and that other countries, notably from Latin America and the European Union, were considering offers.

Mulet meanwhile said a memorandum of understanding had been reached with both the United States and Canada under which the UN remains in charge of coordinating the relief distribution.

But forces from the two countries would be used to protect aid convoys in their separate areas of responsibility.

US forces would operate mainly in the Port-au-Prince area while the Canadians would deploy in southern Haiti, including the city of Jacmel, he said.

The UN mission in Haiti currently has roughly 7,000 troops, 2,000 police and about 2,000 civilian personnel.

It has been deployed since mid-2004 to help stabilize the impoverished nation, already the poorest in the Americas.

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