"A US Southern Command (SOUTHCOM)-directed team will begin deploying to Port-au-Prince, Haiti today on a mission to provide humanitarian and disaster relief assistance," the release stated on Wednesday.
The release noted that the advance team will set up operations at the airport in Port-au-Prince for additional personnel and equipment expected to arrive via a C-130 military aircraft.
The pre-positioned team of 100 personnel and nine helicopters located on Grand Cayman Island will also head to Haiti as soon as the weather clears up enough for them to fly.
This mission is being carried out at the request of the government of Haiti in support of the relief operation by the US Agency for International Development's (USAID) Office of Foreign Disaster Assistance.