Parents of Students Missing in Haiti Quake Tell U.S. to 'Get in There'

Jan. 18, 2010 — -- Parents of four university students missing in the tons of Haiti rubble admitted today they need a miracle and told the U.S. government that it needs to "step up and get in there."

"We are up against a time clock," said Lin Crispinelli whose daughter Stephanie is among the missing. "There are not enough hands in there."

"We need to get these people out who deserve the life out in front of them," she said. "It seems inconceivable to me that we can't get the manpower there to make this happen."

"With the right help, we could get them," said Crispinelli.

Stephanie Crispinelli was one of 14 students and faculty members traveling from Florida's Lynn University on a relief mission with Food for the Poor. The group arrived last Monday night, just a day before a 7.0 magnitude earthquake rocked the country. The Hotel Montana, where the group was staying, was destroyed.

"We're hoping today for a miracle, and that they'll come out today," said Jean Gianacaci, whose daughter Christine is still missing.

"Today's our day, we need a day," said Gianacaci, saying that reports of people being rescued alive from the collapsed buildings over the weekend has given her hope, and that it is time for her and the other parents to receive some good news.

A Facebook group called "Haiti Earthquake Hotel Montana" has nearly 10,000 photos of people believed to be missing in or around the site of the Hotel Montana. The message board is filled with pleas from family members asking for prayers and any news about their loved ones.

The total U.S. confirmed fatalities in Haiti is 18, but that number is expected to rise as the rescue effort and the search for bodies continues. So far more than 2,000 Americans have been evacuated from the country.