Buffett Travels to Quake-Stricken Haiti

On Tuesday, Jimmy Buffett flew to earthquake-stricken Haiti, filling his airplane with tents for some of the millions of Haitians that are now homeless:

Jimmy Buffett may sing about “Surfing in a Hurricane,” but cruising through Haiti’s earthquake-ravaged capital nearly left the singer without words.

“It’s like it was bombed,” the singer told The Associated Press after touring the ravaged country’s capital.

Buffett loaded his seaplane with tents for some of the 1.2 million Haitians who lost their homes and set a course for the Caribbean nation on Tuesday.

The singer is a lover of Haitian music who has his own room named after him at the famed Hotel Oloffson.

“Haiti’s something worth saving to me,” he said.

He was convinced to make his first visit to Haiti since 1994 because of the needs of so many after the magnitude-7 quake struck on Jan. 12. On Tuesday, he was escorted by U.S. Embassy security personnel past downtown and the destroyed national cathedral.

Shortly after the quake struck, Buffett recorded a video message asking his fans to help out by donating to the relief effort.