New Hampshire nurse and her child reportedly kidnapped in Haiti: ‘We’re all very devastated and very worried’

A New Hampshire nurse working at a Christian ministry in Haiti and her child were kidnapped from their campus Thursday morning, the ministry reported in a statement Saturday.

“We can confirm that Alix Dorsainvil, our Director’s wife, and their child were kidnapped on the morning of Thursday, July 27th from our campus near Port au Prince while serving in our community ministry,” El Roi Haiti Outreach International wrote in the statement posted to their website.

Dorsainvil, 31, works as the community health nurse with El Roi, which includes a K-12 school and several ministry programs, according to the organization’s website.

El Roi originally reported the kidnapping of an unnamed staff member on Friday. In the Saturday update, they said they are working with “partners and trusted relationships to secure their safe return.”

“We are aware of reports of the kidnapping of two U.S. citizens in Haiti,” a State Department spokesperson said in response to an inquiry on the kidnapping Sunday. “We are in regular contact with Haitian authorities and will continue to work with them and our U.S. government interagency partners.”

On Thursday, the U.S. government updated their travel advisory for the country to “Level 4: Do Not Travel” and ordered the departure of family members of U.S. government employees and non-emergency U.S. government employees.

The Department of State cites “kidnapping, crime, civil unrest, and poor health care infrastructure” in the advisory. Kidnapping incidents “regularly” include U.S. citizens, the department states, and often involve ransom negotiations and payments of thousands of dollars.

“U.S. citizens in Haiti should depart Haiti as soon as possible by commercial or other privately available transportation options, in light of the current security situation and infrastructure challenges,” the travel advisory directed. “U.S. citizens wishing to depart Port-au-Prince should monitor local news and only do so when considered safe.”

Dorsainvil is reportedly from Middleton, New Hampshire. She graduated in 2014 from the nursing program at Regis College in Weston, which has a longstanding partnership with the Ministry of Health in Haiti, a Regis spokesperson said Sunday.

Regis College President Antoinette Hays described the nurse as a “very caring, and very, very talented young nursing student” during her time at the college and said she’s been involved in work in Haiti since 2007.

“We’re all very devastated and very worried about her and her child,” said Hays. “And I will say we’re not surprised that she’s dedicated her life to this mission that she’s been doing in Haiti.”

The El Roi statement described Dorsainvil as a “deeply compassionate and loving person who considers Haiti her home and the Haitian people her friends and family.”