A group of Canadian nurses has returned from a humanitarian mission in Haiti, albeit a week after they were supposed to.
Katherine Fitz O'Neil is one of eight people who went to Haiti two weeks ago on what was supposed to be a seven-day charitable mission.
Instead, due to riots and civil unrest, Fitz O'Neil and the other members of Hope Grows had to ration their food and fuel.
Violent blockades surrounded the compound in Petit Paradis where the nurses were staying and delivering aid.
Fitz O'Neil said the group had difficulty getting help from Canadian officials because the embassy in Haiti has been closed for most of this month.
She was able to file a report with Global Affairs Canada in Ottawa, and did get help from one official she hopes to contact again soon.
"I'm very very happy to say that I was fortunate to meet up with somebody from the Canadian embassy who I spoke to briefly, because we were very disappointed with the inaction of the Canadian government. And his name is Jean Touchette and he has asked me to contact him and to tell him our story and they want to make change. They want to hear stories like ours so that in the future they could treat Canadians the way they should be treated," said Fitz O'Neil.
Canadians in Haiti have been returning home since Saturday, often by taking a helicopter from wherever they were staying to the airport.
However a group of students that was in the country for a charitable mission was able to drive to the airport very early in the morning on the weekend.
The nurses finally flew out of their compound to the international airport near Port-Au-Prince on Monday after friends at home raised funds for a helicopter.
They then flew home to Montreal, where they were greeted with hugs and flowers.
Dozens of Canadians, including eight SPVM officers on a training mission, remain in Haiti.
