'You can only imagine the suffering:' Desperate US citizens fleeing Haiti land in Miami on first chartered fight airlifting people out of chaos-ridden island

A charter flight carrying dozens of American citizens fleeing spiraling gang violence in Haiti landed in Miami on Sunday, U.S. State Department officials said.

There were 166 seats available on the first flight out of the chaos-ridden nation but just 47 U.S. citizens took up the offer of returning on the government-chartered flight which arrived at Miami International Airport.

The evacuation came after the U.S. Embassy in Port-au-Prince urged U.S. citizens to leave 'as soon as possible' as chaos gripped the island nation.

Many had simply been visiting family members or on vacation when carnage broke out. All of those on board were required to have a valid U.S. passport.

The country's airports were targeted by gangs together with its main port.

There was a major prison breakout of two of the country largest detention facilities leading to the escape of thousands of prisoners, including several notorious gang leaders.

Marie Lucie St. Fleur, left, sits in the arrivals area at Miami International Airport after arriving on the first evacuation flight out of Cap-Haitien, Haiti on Sunday

Orlando resident Abson Louis, 46, is grateful to be back as he looks for his friends after landing in Miami following the suspension of flights from Haiti nearly two weeks ago

Passengers smile after being greeted in the arrivals area after arriving on the first evacuation flight out of Cap-Haitien, Haiti

Flights were suspended nearly two weeks ago. 47 Haitian-Americans were evacuated and returned to the United States on Sunday

Another passenger is seen having arrived on a charter flight carrying dozens of American citizens fleeing spiraling gang violence in Haiti having landed at Miami Airport

Passenger Avlot Quessa, who lives in Boston, traveled from the center of the country to board the charter flight after going to Haiti last month for was supposed to be a weeklong trip to visit his mother.

'It's just terrible. The suffering, you can only imagine,' Quessa told The Miami Herald of the nearby Caribbean nation. 

'Haiti is my homeland and it's very stressful to see the homeland going through this act of violence, destruction ... and they are our neighbors.

'I ended up staying 20-plus days' he said noting that it was 'good to be back'.

However, Quessa said he also felt bad for the people he left behind: 'I also need to think about the people back home. 

'They are only miles away from Miami. We cannot turn our eyes back on Haiti. 

'Look at how much we invest in Ukraine and Israel. So no one is going to tell me that color doesn't matter.'

A protester reacts while tires burn in the street during a demonstration following the resignation of its Prime Minister Ariel Henry, in Port-au-Prince, Haiti, last week

More than 200 gangs are believed to operate in Haiti, with nearly two dozen concentrated in Port-au-Prince and surrounding areas. They now control 80% of the capital and are vying for more territory 

National Police patrol the area near the empty National Penitentiary after a small fire inside a jail in downtown Port-au-Prince, Haiti. It is the same prison that armed gangs stormed on March 2 allowing hundreds of inmates to escape

National Police stand guard outside the empty National Penitentiary last week following a breakout of inmates

 A woman hangs clothes at the fences of a school that Haitian people are using as a shelter in Port-au-Prince, Haiti

Smoke billows out from an empty cell block at the National Penitentiary following a fire, as a powerful gang leader in Haiti has issued a threatening message aimed at political leaders

A man throws garbage next to the body of a man who was murdered in the street in the capital

Haitian citizens get off a truck to be deported on the border between Haiti and Dominican Republic, as gang violence continues in the aftermath of the resignation of Haiti's Prime Minister Ariel Henry last week

People line up to receive food at a shelter for families displaced by gang violence, in Port-au-Prince

Children line up to receive a plate of food at a shelter for families displaced by gang violence, in Port-au-Prince, Haiti

A father lifts his daughter to the front of a line of people waiting to receive a plate of food, at a shelter for families displaced by gang violence 

A woman squeezes through a human chain of volunteers as she is given the go ahead to pass through for a plate of free food, at a shelter for families displaced from their homes

A man eats a meal as a child covers his face after receiving containers of free food at a shelter for families displaced by gang violence, in Port-au-Prince, Haiti, Thursday, March 14, 2024

Haiti's main airport in the capital, Port-au-Prince, remains closed following gang attacks that have raged through the country in recent weeks, pushing many people to the brink of famine. 

Government and aid agencies this weekend reported the looting of aid supplies as the situation worsened.

The State Department announced on Saturday that it would offer limited charter flights for American citizens from the less chaotic northern city of Cap-Haïtien.

Officials said they could not provide ground transportation to Cap-Haïtien and that U.S. citizens should consider the charter flights 'only if you think you can reach Cap-Haïtien airport safely.'

'We encourage U.S. citizens still in Haiti who seek to depart to contact the Department of State using the crisis intake form on our website if they have not already done so,' the agency said.

Haitian citizens are seen protesting in the streets of Port-au-Prince, early last week

A motorcyclist passes burning tires during a demonstration in the Haiti capital of Port-au-Prince 

Armed members of the G9 and Family gang stand guard at a roadblock in the Delmas 6 neighborhood of Port-au-Prince, Haiti

People walk along a street in Port-au-Prince, Haiti, last week 

A police vehicle passes by the National Penitentiary following a fire last week

'It feels good to be home,' said 46-year-old Abson Louis - another of those on Sunday's flight. 

He had been in Cap-Haïtien when the situation deteriorated and will now return to his Florida home in Orlando. 

'It has been real stressful. It's devastating over there. I think a lot of people are waiting to have the same opportunity to be here, to get out of the chaos. 

'We're grateful the current administration is doing something about people getting left behind, American citizens, Haitian citizens, that are left behind. Hopefully, things will get better,' Louis said.

People taking the U.S. government-coordinated flights must also sign a promissory bill agreeing to reimburse the government.

Another passenger on Sunday's flight, Marie Lucie St. Fleur, 69, of West Palm Beach, said she feels most at home in Haiti and it pains her to see what her homeland is enduring.

'I don't feel well at all. I would like to live in my country and I can't,' she said while sitting in a wheelchair.

The State Department said government officials in Miami were helping the newly arrived evacuees to determine their next steps.

The U.S. military last week flew in additional forces to bolster security at the U.S. Embassy, which is in a neighborhood largely controlled by gangs.