Trussville youth group remains stranded in Haiti, but flights to the country are resuming

Mission teams in worship service in Haiti on Sunday morning. Photo via Mission of Hope: Haiti.

A youth group from Faith Community Fellowship in Trussville on a mission trip to Haiti remains safe on Sunday morning as some air traffic to the Caribbean nation has resumed.

The group had been temporarily stranded in Haiti as civil unrest led to protests, according to pastor Mike Ennis.

The protests were sparked when the Commerce Ministry and Economic Ministry issued a joint statement announcing an increase of 38 percent to 51 percent for gasoline, diesel and kerosene. The increase will drive gas prices to near $4 per liter.

Those increases have since been suspended by the Haitian Prime Minister Jack Guy Lafontant who announced the change Saturday night.

“It appears the demonstrations have settled down today, but most flights are canceled out of Port-au-Prince this morning,” Ennis said at about 8:30 a.m. on Sunday. “We’re waiting on info from the airline this afternoon. The students are safe and well taken care of.”

The youth group remains miles away from most of the protest activity.

While Sunday morning services were underway at Faith, NBC 6 in Miami confirmed that American Airlines was boarding a flight to Haiti, the first since violent protests due to civil unrest began on Friday.

The group from FCF is on a mission trip sponsored by Mission of Hope: Haiti. The well-established organization posted a statement on social media Saturday that said the mission teams have plenty of food, water, and security.

“Haiti is in a tough situation,” Ennis told the Tribune on Saturday. “We went to bring hope to an area that has very little hope. This validates why we went there in the first place.”

The youth group is in an enclosed compound with security and are well-protected, Ennis said. The group was scheduled to fly out Saturday before the airport was shut down.