Patriots Plane to Fly Medical Equipment, Supplies for Haiti Earthquake Relief
August 20, 2021
The New England Patriots are flying their team plane to Haiti to aid in the country's earthquake relief effort.
According to CBS Boston, the Patriots will load necessary supplies and medical equipment onto the plane prior to its departure Saturday morning from Boston's Logan International Airport.
CNN reported at least 2,189 people have died and another 12,268 were injured due to the 7.2-magnitude earthquake in southwestern Haiti last weekend.
"Haiti is now on its knees," Prime Minister Ariel Henry said in a video address Wednesday. "The earthquake that devastated a large part of the south of the country proves once again our limits, and how fragile we are."
Tennis star Naomi Osaka, whose father was born in Haiti, pledged her winnings from the Western & Southern Open toward earthquake relief. The tournament's main sponsor, Western & Southern Financial Group, said it would match her donation.
The Patriots' plane has been utilized in humanitarian efforts before.
It facilitated the delivery of 1.2 million N95 protective face masks from China in April 2020 amid the COVID-19 pandemic. In May 2021, 500,000 COVID vaccines were flown to San Salvador, El Salvador.
