Before she was kidnapped, an American nurse described Haitians as 'full of joy and love.' Last week, the US urged citizens to leave the Caribbean nation

Before Alix Dorsainvil was kidnapped with her child in Haiti, the American nurse described Haitians as a "resilient people" who are "full of joy and life and love."

Her comments came in a video on the website of El Roi Haiti, the Christian humanitarian aid organization for which she works.

Dorsainvil, the wife of El Roi Haiti Director Sandro Dorsainvil, and their child were reportedly abducted Thursday morning while serving in their community ministry on El Roi Haiti's campus near the capital city Port-au-Prince, according to a statement from the non-profit. It's unclear how old the couple's child is.

The same day, the US State Department ordered the departure of nonemergency government personnel from Haiti as the security situation in the country deteriorates.

The order followed a travel advisory from the US Embassy in Haiti advising US nationals to leave the country immediately due to recent armed clashes between criminal groups and police in Port-au-Prince.

Haiti's capital Port-au-Prince and surrounding areas have been gripped by a yearslong kidnapping-for-profit epidemic, with hundreds of Haitians targeted by gangs seeking ransom payments each year.

While the bulk of such cases are local, targeting the rich and poor alike, foreigners have been taken in several high-profile kidnappings. In 2021, 17 missionaries from the United States and Canada were seized by a local gang while traveling on the road north of the capital and held for more than a month.