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KATIE HAITI: It's day seven of what feels like a lifetime of waiting for two Prescott women -- trying to learn the fate of a childhood friend.

January 19, 2010

IT'S DAY SEVEN OF WHAT FEELS LIKE A LIFETIME OF WAITING FOR TWO PRESCOTT WOMEN -- TRYING TO LEARN THE FATE OF A CHILDHOOD FRIEND.

KATIE HADLEY WAS IN PORT-AU-PRINCE THE DAY OF THE EARTHQUAKE.

ONE WEEK LATER, THEY STILL DON'T KNOW IF SHE'S ALIVE.

NEWSWATCH'S MORGANNE CAMPBELL SHARES THEIR STORY.

 THE GIRLS WALKING...

EVERY DAY SINCE THE DISASTER STRUCK IN HAITI -- BECKY HUBBARD AND CHRISTINE SLOAN HAVE BEEN GETTING TOGETHER AT LUNCH HOUR -- PHONING AND SCANNING E-MAILS -- ANYTHING TO FIND OUT IF THEIR BEST FRIEND KATIE HADLEY, IS ALIVE.

CHRISTINE AND BECKY CLIP:

"WE FEEL HELPLESS YOU KNOW WE'VE DONE SO MUCH GETTING HER FACE OUT HER NAME OUT AND TRYING TO CONTACT AS MANY PEOPLE AS WE CAN YET THERE IS STILL NO WORD AND WE'RE STILL WAITING..." (BECKY COMES IN)

"ITS FRUSTRATING BECAUSE WE STILL JUST DON'T KNOW WHAT TO DO. "

THE PRESCOTT-BORN ENGINEER IS AMONG 800 CANADIANS STILL UNACCOUNTED FOR THE RUINS OF QUAKE RAVAGED HAITI.

THE WAIT TO LEARN KATIE'S FATE HAS BEEN AGONIZING FOR HER FAMILY - WHO ARE TOO SHAKEN TO SPEAK -- AND HER FRIENDS.

THEY'VE KNOWN KATIE SINCE ELEMENTARY SCHOOL... PLAYED ON SPORTS TEAMS TOGETHER... JOINED CLUBS TOGETHER...WENT TO UNIVERSITY TOGETHER AND TRAVELED TOGETHER...

" KATIE WOULD BE THE TYPE OF PERSON THAT WOULD JUST JUMP ON A PLANE AND GO AND FIND US AND WE CAN'T EVEN DO THAT... THEY AREN'T LETTING JUST REGULAR PEOPLE GO DOWN AND HELP AND IT'S JUST REALLY FRUSTRATING. "

THE LAST TIME ANYONE HEARD FROM KATIE WAS WHEN SHE SENT AN EMAIL TO ONE OF HER WORK MATES FROM HER LAP TOP... ABOUT AN HOUR AFTER SHE SENT THAT EMAIL HER HOTEL WAS BY DESTROYED THE EARTHQUAKE... ALTHOUGH HER HOTEL WAS DESTROYED NO ONE HERE IN PRESCOTT HAS GIVEN UP HOPE THAT KATIE WILL RETURN HOME SAFELY.

"PEOPLE ARE CONSTANTLY WATCHING THE NEWS WATCHING THE INTERNET WATCHING FACEBOOK YOU JUST THINK ABOUT IT ALL OF THE TIME AND THERE'S A LOT OF PEOPLE STAYING UP ALL NIGHT.. THERE'S A PHONE LIST THERE'S PEOPLE TAKING TURNS PHONING HER CELL PHONE... EVERY TWENTY MINUTES THERE'S BEEN SOMEONE PHONING THAT PHONE FOR THE LAST SIX DAYS. "

KATIE WORKS AS AN ENVIRONMENTAL ENGINEER IN OTTAWA -- AND WAS IN HAITI TO DO SOME WORK AT THE CANADIAN EMBASSY.

EVEN THOUGH MUCH OF HAITI HAS BEEN DESTROYED BY THE EARTHQUAKE THE GIRLS REMAIN HOPEFUL KATIE WILL COME HOME.

"YOU DON'T WANT TO THINK IT AND YOU TRY SO HARD TO BLOCK THE THOUGHTS OUT OF YOUR HEAD FROM WHAT COULD HAVE HAPPENED WHAT COULD HAVE ALREADY HAPPENED BUT YOU TRY REALLY HARD AND YOU HOLD ONTO HOPE BECAUSE THEY'RE STILL FINDING PEOPLE AND MAYBE KATIE IS STILL THERE. HOPEFULLY KATIE IS STILL THERE AND WE JUST NEED TO GET HER FOUND "

MORGANNE CAMPBELL CKWS NEWSWATCH PRESCOTT.

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