Haiti Requests Vessel Arrival Notices

The Haitian national port authority is asking vessel operators to file advance notice before their ships arrive with relief or commercial cargo.



Rear Adm. James Watson, director of operations for the Coast Guard’s Atlantic area, said traffic congestion is building around Haiti with vessels carrying relief supplies, military support supplies and commercial cargo.



The port authority, known by its French acronym APN, is working closely with the joint U.S. Coast Guard-Navy recovery unit at Port-au-Prince to set priorities for arriving cargo, Watson told The Journal of Commerce Friday. The notice of arrival provides the information officials need. The port authority also asks that each vessel have an agent in Haiti.



Port facilities at Port-au-Prince were damaged heavily in the Jan. 12 earthquake, but operations are improving slowly. The port should be able to handle 2,000 TEUs a day by early next week — more throughput than normal operations — Watson said.

Small vessels with cargo for Haiti also should consider landing at Cap Haitian or another of the smaller ports.

“Shippers aren’t taking advantage of the smaller ports. They think that they have to come to Port-au-Prince,” Watson said.



Notice of arrival forms can be found at www.apn.gouv.ht. The bilingual forms are under the tab “Telechargements,” and a list of agents is under the “Consultations” tab.


Contact R.G. Edmonson at bedmonson@joc.com.