VANCE AIR FORCE BASE, Okla. -- An earthquake with a magnitude of 7.0 hit the country of Haiti the afternoon of Jan. 12. Wide spread destruction created a need for massive airlifting of emergency supplies for the survivors.

With so many different nations sending aircraft into the severely damaged Port au Prince airport, safety on the flightline began to resemble the "wild west," according to Lt. Col. Ted Weibel, the 71st Flying Training Wing Chief of Safety.

He was receiving his information from Tech. Sgt. Kyle Boles, the NCO in charge of Flight Safety at Vance, who was deployed to Haiti Feb. 7.

The Port au Prince airport was receiving both military and civilian helicopters and fixed wing aircraft from around the world, said Sergeant Boles in an e-mail sent to the Vance safety office shortly after arriving in Haiti.

He said that all the aircraft were going in every direction with different expectations and standards of operations. Trash and pedestrians on the airfield and random vehicle movements were the initial challenges to safety on the ground.

But according to Colonel Weibel, Sergeant Boles was in great spirits and his only complain was the lack of coffee.

Sergeant Boles is scheduled to return to Vance soon.