JACMEL, Haiti - Canadian navy sailors from the HMCS Halifax arrived in Jacmel, south of the Haitian capital of Port-au-Prince, Tuesday morning, armed with shovels, picks, crowbars, hammers, saws, generators and hydraulic tools to clear blocked roads.

Jacmel is located about 30 kilometres from the capital of Port-au-Prince, where all of the supplies and medical material sent by Canada is arriving.

Making the trek has been doable since Tuesday but still remains difficult using the road through the mountains. It takes at least two hours to travel the short distance because of fallen rocks that damaged the vehicle lane.

"Our goal here is to clear the roads so that provisions can arrive easily from the city," said Chief Petty Officer Second Class Fred McCrea during a walk through the Haitian streets to take stock of the mess.

Jacmel, a tourist town known for its architecture and colonial charm, was less affected than the capital by the quake, though many large buildings collapsed.

The Canadian sailors wasted no time getting to work, clearing a main road that leads to the Jacmel port. But they will need to use plenty of elbow grease and will have to work in teams because they don't have heavy machinery to help them out.

"Obviously they were happy to see us ... some were saying: It's about time! We're here, at least, and we were excited to arrive," said Master Seaman Charles Jutras. "The people are very calm, very positive and it's (nice) to see people that are able to smile at us. People are pleasant despite the devastation."

Amazingly, we don't sense that the quake had an impact on the morale of the locals as we walked the streets. Especially considering that dozens of people died in this small town as well.

There isn't the same chaos as in downtown Port-au-Prince. There's no looting, no violence. The Jacmel people are picking themselves up and getting organized, all the while waiting for food and water.

"We're happy to contribute and to help the Haitian people, there is an attachment for sure, and plus our Governor General is from here, it's her hometown so it's special for the Canadian contingent, it's an honour," said Jutras.

The Canadian war ship wasn't able to dock at the Jacmel port because the water was too shallow. Instead, they stopped about one kilometre from the shore and unloaded troops using small boats.