When the helicopter finally left the ground from a grass field in Haiti, David Rocheleau says he finally felt a sense of relief.
After making it out of the embattled island nation plagued by anarchy and gang violence, the Quebec resident told CBC News it took a “convoy-like” row of armoured vehicles to get him to the helicopter headed to the Dominican Republic — all trailing behind a motorcycle that drove ahead to check for gangs in the area.
But Rocheleau said Canadian authorities had nothing to do with his rescue on Wednesday. Instead, he said, the business he worked with paid tens of thousands of dollars for the private rescue company, International SOS, to get him out.
He filmed his rescue and gave CBC News exclusive access to the footage.
“Someone in the Canadian Embassy who has all this information could have done this … that’s what pisses me off,” Rocheleau said. “If someone had their head together and took the initiative, they could have easily done it.”
Canada’s efforts to get citizens out of Haiti ‘not cutting it,’ says Quebecer who fled
David Rocheleau describes his ‘stressful and worrisome’ escape from Haiti and says the Canadian government’s support network in the country should be bolstered to support other Canadians stuck in Haiti. ‘The U.S. is doing it, why can’t Canada get out and do it?’ he told CBC’s Travis Dhanraj.
Roughly 3,000 Canadians are registered in Haiti, according to Global Affairs Canada (GAC). The government agency said Friday it responded to 245 inquiries since violence erupted earlier this month among rival gangs, closing the international airport in the capital, Port-au-Prince, and leaving foreigners stranded amid increasing kidnappings, robberies and violent crime.
GAC said some of the requests it received had to do with general travel information and the security situation in Haiti, while others concerned ways to evacuate.
But Tanya English said when her Canadian relative trapped in Haiti attempted to reach out for help, GAC was no help.
CBC News is not identifying English’s relative in Haiti in order to protect their safety, but it has been in direct contact with the relative, who is trying to conserve their phone battery amid an electricity shortage and granted English permission to share their story.
The Canadian, who spent decades doing humanitarian work in Haiti, was diagnosed with cancer two years ago and was supposed to return to Canada at the beginning of March for a followup treatment appointment, English said.
That trip never happened.
Canada hasn’t decided yet on evacuating citizens from Haiti, ambassador says
André François Giroux, Canada’s ambassador to Haiti, says the Canadian government is preparing for ‘all eventuality’ regarding its citizens in Haiti, but said ‘assisted departure’ is ‘very much a last-resort option.’ Giroux’s comments come after some Canadians told CBC News they feel abandoned in Haiti amid worsening violence.
Canadian frustrated with Ottawa’s response
Email correspondence between English’s relative and GAC was obtained by CBC News.
After being given information on how to keep themselves safe, the Canadian wrote on March 17, “Thanks for the info but I was hoping you could help me to evacuate. How can you help me to evacuate?”
Global Affairs then replied, “As you are registered with ROCA, it will enable you to receive important safety updates from the Government of Canada,” referring to Registration of Canadians Abroad, a free service that allows the government to notify travellers of an emergency.
On Wednesday, GAC asked the Canadian if they’d be willing to leave Haiti if departure options become available at a potential “cost recovery basis.” But the following day, it sent another email saying the government of Canada “is not facilitating assisted departures or repatriation flights for Canadians in Haiti at this time.”
“They get this glimmer of hope, thinking, ‘Ah, finally,’ and then they’re completely shattered again,” English said. “They’re just getting absolutely utterly depressed because absolutely nobody cares.”
GAC has not responded to specific questions from CBC News in time for publication, but the agency indicated it cannot comment on specific consular cases.
People take cover from gunfire near the National Palace in Port-au-Prince, Haiti’s capital, on Thursday. Violence erupted earlier this month among rival gangs, resulting in a state of anarchy. (Ralph Tedy Erol/Reuters)
Although the Canadian is still trapped in Haiti, they said they found a potential escape plan through a veteran-led non-profit based in Florida called Project DYNAMO. The organization has confirmed to CBC News that the Canadian requested its help.
But unlike Rocheleau, who waited on standby for two days at a hotel with armed guards hired to keep his group safe, the days went by and Project DYNAMO was unable to obtain the air clearance to get the Canadian out of Haiti.
“I have four helicopters sitting 20 minutes away from me right now — idle,” said Bryan Stern, the founder and CEO of Project DYNAMO. “They’re fuelled, they’re funded, they have pilots. Why won’t they fly? Well, the Dominicans will say that they can’t give us authorization to fly…. Haiti says [they] don’t care.” Haiti shares the Caribbean island of Hispaniola with the Dominican Republic.
Sitting in Santo Domingo, the Dominican Republic’s capital, Stern expressed frustration that his group — which does rescues free of charge through donations — has yet to get permission to use the airspace from the Dominican Ministry of Foreign Affairs, while for-profit companies have been able to operate similar missions.
Bullets can ‘start flying’ at any time
Paul Doucet, regional security director for International SOS, said in an interview the company credits its compliance with regional laws and connection with relevant departments to having received clearance to fly.
“I can give you complete assurance, 100 per cent, that [how much is charged per rescue] is not why we were successful.
“At no point did that play a factor in how we were able to conduct that mission.”
Doucet said he could not comment directly on how much International SOS charges for its rescue missions.
Roberto Álvarez, the foreign affairs minister of the Dominican Republic, said in an interview that there is no connection between whether organizations charge money for rescue missions and how quickly they receive approval from the ministry.
The delay in permits being granted is largely because of security checks that need to be done, he said.
Since the violence erupted, Álvarez said, about 500 people have received permission to fly from Haiti to the Dominican Republic.
Police officers point their guns during a confrontation with gangs near the National Palace in Port-au-Prince on Thursday. Gang violence in the country has closed the city’s airport and left foreigners stranded amid increasing kidnappings and robberies. (Ralph Tedy Erol/Reuters)
“Every day [they] wake up with [their] bags packed, waiting and waiting,” Tanya English said about her relative, who is still awaiting rescue from Project DYNAMO. “When you get that discouragement every single day, hoping that it’s going to happen, and then it doesn’t.”
Her relative says the roof of their home is riddled with bullet holes from nearby shootings, which could become a real problem once it rains. Food is also getting scarce, with her family member mainly eating out of cans, English said.
Every time they leave the house to get food, “they dash for it,” she said. “You never know when bullets are going to start flying.”
They are still awaiting a response from Global Affairs Canada on possible ways to leave the country. “At the worst time … everyone is just turning their backs,” she said.
Haitian soldiers gather near a runway at the Toussaint Louverture International Airport following a gunfight with armed gangs near the airport, as the government declared a state of emergency, in Port-au-Prince on March 4. (Ralph Tedy Erol/Reuters)
In an interview from his home in Saint-Hyacinthe, Que., on Friday, the day after he returned from Haiti, Rocheleau said he and his wife were finally able to get a good night’s sleep for the first time since the violence erupted.
While Rocheleau said he never felt in imminent danger in Haiti, worries were always at the back of his mind. Before the escape plan with the private company was approved, the 63-year-old said he thought of trekking through the mountains to escape as he sat in his hotel and listened to gunshots outside.
“I could tell there’s someone out there shooting at somebody … but you’re trapped,” he said. “It was like a prison, but a prisoner at least knows there’s a release date.”
EDMONTON – Jake Allen made 31 saves for his second shutout of the season and 26th of his career as the New Jersey Devils closed out their Western Canadian road trip with a 3-0 victory over the Edmonton Oilers on Monday.
Jesper Bratt had a goal and an assist and Stefan Noesen and Timo Meier also scored for the Devils (8-5-2) who have won three of their last four on the heels on a four-game losing skid.
The Oilers (6-6-1) had their modest two-game winning streak snapped.
Calvin Pickard made 13 stops between the pipes for Edmonton.
TAKEAWAYS
Devils: In addition to his goal, Bratt picked up his 12th assist of the young season to give him nine points in his last eight games and now 15 points overall. Nico Hischier remains in the team lead, picking up an assist of his own to give him 16 points for the campaign. He has a point in all but four games this season.
Oilers: Forward Leon Draisaitl was held pointless after recording six points in his previous two games and nine points in his previous four. Draisaitl usually has strong showings against the Devils, coming into the contest with an eight-game point streak against New Jersey and 11 goals in 17 games.
KEY MOMENT
New Jersey took a 2-0 lead on the power play with 3:26 remaining in the second period as Hischier made a nice feed into the slot to Bratt, who wired his third of the season past Pickard.
KEY RETURN?
Oilers star forward and captain Connor McDavid took part in the optional morning skate for the Oilers, leading to hopes that he may be back sooner rather than later. McDavid has been expected to be out for two to three weeks with an ankle injury suffered during the first shift of last Monday’s loss in Columbus.
OILERS DEAL FOR D-MAN
The Oilers have acquired defenceman Ronnie Attard from the Philadelphia Flyers in exchange for defenceman Ben Gleason.
The 6-foot-3 Attard has spent the past three season in the Flyers organization seeing action in 29 career games. The 25-year-old right-shot defender and Western Michigan University grad was originally selected by Philadelphia in the third round of the 2019 NHL Entry Draft. Attard will report to the Oilers’ AHL affiliate in Bakersfield.
UP NEXT
Devils: Host the Montreal Canadiens on Thursday.
Oilers: Host the Vegas Golden Knights on Wednesday.
This report by The Canadian Press was first published Nov. 4, 2024.
KANSAS CITY, Mo. (AP) — Patrick Mahomes threw for 291 yards and three touchdowns, and Kareem Hunt pounded into the end zone from two yards out in overtime to give the unbeaten Kansas City Chiefs a 30-24 win over the Tampa Bay Buccaneers on Monday night.
DeAndre Hopkins had two touchdown receptions for the Chiefs (8-0), who drove through the rain for two fourth-quarter scores to take a 24-17 lead with 4:17 left. But then Kansas City watched as Baker Mayfield led the Bucs the other way in the final minute, hitting Ryan Miller in the end zone with 27 seconds to go in regulation time.
Tampa Bay (4-5) elected to kick the extra point and force overtime, rather than go for a two-point conversion and the win. And it cost the Buccaneers when Mayfield called tails and the coin flip was heads. Mahomes and the Chiefs took the ball, he was 5-for-5 passing on their drive in overtime, and Hunt finished his 106-yard rushing day with the deciding TD plunge.
Travis Kelce had 14 catches for 100 yards with girlfriend Taylor Swift watching from a suite, and Hopkins finished with eight catches for 86 yards as the Chiefs ran their winning streak to 14 dating to last season. They became the sixth Super Bowl champion to start 8-0 the following season.
Mayfield finished with 200 yards and two TDs passing for the Bucs, who have lost four of their last five.
It was a memorable first half for two players who had been waiting to play in Arrowhead Stadium.
The Bucs’ Rachaad White grew up about 10 minutes away in a tough part of Kansas City, but his family could never afford a ticket for him to see a game. He wound up on a circuitous path through Division II Nebraska-Kearney and a California junior college to Arizona State, where he eventually became of a third-round pick of Tampa Bay in the 2022 draft.
Two year later, White finally got into Arrowhead — and the end zone. He punctuated his seven-yard scoring run in the second quarter, which gave the Bucs a 7-3 lead, by nearly tossing the football into the second deck.
Then it was Hopkins’ turn in his first home game since arriving in Kansas City from a trade with the Titans.
The three-time All-Pro, who already had caught four passes, reeled in a third-down heave from Mahomes amid triple coverage for a 35-yard gain inside the Tampa Bay five-yard line. Three plays later, Mahomes found him in the back of the end zone, and Hopkins celebrated his first TD with the Chiefs with a dance from “Remember the Titans.”
Tampa Bay tried to seize control with consecutive scoring drives to start the second half. The first ended with a TD pass to Cade Otton, the latest tight end to shred the Chiefs, and Chase McLaughlin’s 47-yard field goal gave the Bucs a 17-10 lead.
The Chiefs answered in the fourth quarter. Mahomes marched them through the rain 70 yards for a tying touchdown pass, which he delivered to Samaje Perine while landing awkwardly and tweaking his left ankle, and then threw a laser to Hopkins on third-and-goal from the Buccaneers’ five-yard line to give Kansas City the lead.
Tampa Bay promptly went three-and-out, but its defence got the ball right back, and this time Mayfield calmly led his team down field. His capped the drive with a touchdown throw to Miller — his first career TD catch — with 27 seconds to go, and Tampa Bay elected to play for overtime.
UP NEXT
Buccaneers: Host the San Francisco 49ers on Sunday.
NASHVILLE, Tenn. (AP) — Darcy Kuemper made 16 saves for his first shutout of the season and 32nd overall, helping the Los Angeles Kings beat the Nashville Predators 3-0 on Monday night.
Adrian Kempe had a goal and an assist and Anze Kopitar and Kevin Fiala also scored. The Kings have won two of their last three.
Juuse Saros made 24 saves for the Predators. They are 1-2-1 in their last four.
Kopitar opened the scoring with 6:36 remaining in the opening period. Saros denied the Kings captain’s first shot, but Kopitar collected the rebound below the goal line and banked it off the netminder’s skate.
Fiala, a former Predator, made it 2-0 35 seconds into the third.
The Kings held Nashville to just three third-period shots on goal, the first coming with 3:55 remaining and Saros pulled for an extra attacker.
Elsewhere in the NHL on Monday:
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DEVILS 3 OILERS 0
EDMONTON, Alta. (AP) — Jake Allen made 31 saves for his second shutout of the season and 26th of his NHL career, helping the New Jersey Devils close their western Canadian road trip with a 3-0 victory over the Edmonton Oilers.
Jesper Bratt had a goal and an assist and Stefan Noesen and Timo Meier also scored. The Devils improved to 8-5-2. They have won three of their last four after a four-game skid.
Calvin Pickard made 13 saves for Edmonton. The Oilers had won two straight.
