Updates From Haiti
U.N. seeks donations for Haiti schools
PORT-AU-PRINCE, Haiti, Feb. 6 (UPI) — Only 85 of 1,500 schools surveyed in the Haitian areas hit by the earthquake survived without major damage, U.N. officials said Friday.
The U.N. Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization or UNESCO appealed for international donations for school rebuilding and teacher training. The agency said Brazil, Bulgaria, Israel and the Norwegian Refugee Council have already made significant contributions to UNESCO programs in Haiti. Brazil has donated $400,000 specifically to train teachers in disaster awareness.
The United Nations has also provided temporary work space for the Ministry of Education. The ministry building was one of many in Port-au-Prince destroyed by the 7.0 magnitude earthquake Jan. 12.
http://www.upi.com/Top_News/International/2010/02/06/UN-seeks-donations-for-Haiti-schools/UPI-11411265461585/
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Aid Agencies Race to Shelter Haiti Quake Victims Ahead of Rains, Overhaul Coordination
Source: International Organization for Migration (IOM)
Date: 05 Feb 2010
A network of 55 humanitarian agencies is currently racing to provide tens of thousands of tents, tarpaulins, ropes and toolkits to 1.1 million displaced Haitians before the onset of the rainy season – which could begin as soon as the end of February. Rains have already begun to fall in the southern town of Jacmel.
Distribution is gathering pace both in Port-au-Prince and beyond, with a system now in place for the town of Leogane (west of the capital), and in the planning stage for other major centers of displacement.
To date, agencies have worked with the Haitian government to distribute at least 15,000 tarpaulins and 12,000 family sized tents, with a further 52,000 tarpaulins and shelter kits ready to go. Humanitarian agencies are providing materials for Haitians to construct their own transitional shelters, given the need to establish sturdier structures before the hurricane season begins in June.
Earthquake in Haiti: WFP External Situation Report,
3 February 2010
Source: United Nations World Food Programme (WFP)
Date: 03 Feb 2010
Overview
Earthquake Caseload: 2 million people
Cost of WFP Earthquake operations in Haiti: US$279 million (Food operations US$246 million, Logistics US$33 million)
Time frame: January to December 2010
WFP Staff in Haiti: 225 + 207 surge personnel (between Haiti and Dom. Rep.)
Current Situation
- Distributions continued smoothly on the fourth day of fixed site food distributions led by WFP, in close cooperation with government and NGOs under the food cluster and with support from MINUSTAH and US forces deployed to support the humanitarian effort in Haiti. Through the distribution network, WFP and partners aim to provide a two week food ration to an estimated 2 million Haitians through 16 fixed distribution points across the most populated sites in the city.
- Thirteen of the distribution sites were activated by Wednesday, including those in Cite Soleil, where, despite tensions in the preceding days, partner World Vision conducted successful distributions, supported by Brazilian and US forces.
- Food prices are reportedly still rising and people are apparently having difficulty in the North and North-Est Departments in meeting their basic food needs. Even those people in regions previously considered “food secure” reportedly face difficulties and prices of wheat and bread are increasingly unreachable for the general population.
- Major repairs to the port have begun with two large pontoons with 200 metric tonne cranes being put in place.
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Lessons learned from Past Experience for International Agencies in Haiti
Source: CDA Collaborative Learning Projects
Date: 03 Feb 2010
External aid can facilitate or hinder long-term peace and development. In light of the massive on-going relief effort in Haiti, it is critical to minimize harmful impacts and maximize positive impacts. Aid can worsen polarization and violence, often inadvertently, or can have positive effects on conflict and social cohesion. Although Haiti has not experienced a civil war or a war with neighbors, nevertheless, it must be considered as an active conflict zone, in which the level of violence has been high for decades. We highlight here a number of lessons drawn from several initiatives led by CDA Collaborative Learning Projects over the last 20 years, in partnership with thousands of colleagues in humanitarian, development, and peacebuilding organizations. As we continue to learn more about the current context in Haiti, this document will be continually updated—please see www.cdainc.com for the most recent version.
How can the disaster response contribute to long-term development? Key Lessons from Rising from the Ashes: Development Strategies at Times of Disaster
1. Even the most devastated communities retain capacities. Even if the physical/material infrastructure is destroyed, the communities still have strong relationships, personal skills, organizational abilities, important norms and values, effective leaders and the ability to make decisions.
2. Hold relief work to development standards. Every disaster response should appreciate and draw upon local capacities—and should be designed to support and increase them.
3. Relief efforts can be designed to address long-term vulnerabilities and to further the long-term development agenda. Short-term labor intensive projects can address ecological and environmental issues by undertaking needed mitigation measures. Similarly, housing reconstruction can adopt disaster reduction standards for earthquake-resistant homes and buildings.
4. Relief and reconstruction programming should not be preoccupied solely with meeting physical/material needs. It must also integrate measures that support and enhance social and organizational elements (relationships, leadership, decision making, group capacities) and motivational factors (sense of hope, ability to affect their world, feeling that efforts will lead to change, sense of community and social cohesion).
For more information, see Rising from the Ashes: Development Strategies in Times of Disaster (Boulder: Lynne Rienner, 1998).
January 13th, 2010 at 12:21 pm
I’ve just returned from voluntary work with C4L (Reachout to Africa) in the northeast part of South Africa. In lieu of the devastating earthquake today, I’m hoping all your staff are OK.
Would appreciate any such confirmation about a colleague of mine, David Putt from Canada who started on the Haiti rural schools project in December 2009.
Kind regards
Steve Enns
January 13th, 2010 at 4:48 pm
Heard from his brother-in-law that he was able to get an e-mail out to his daughter that he and his two colleagues were safe and are now busy helping in the rescue efforts.
January 13th, 2010 at 6:02 pm
Hi Steve,
We heard from David this morning at about 11 AM. I’m not sure if you might know Marie-Paule and Sebastien as well – they are also okay. As you might expect, he said the situation is devastating. They were helping to distribute medical supplies, which had run out, and were improvising with bedsheets, cardboard splints, etc., and starting to set up more filters.
Rhiannen (David’s daughter)
January 14th, 2010 at 4:23 pm
Our local Nelson newspaper is interested in updates on the well-being and activities of David, Marie-Paule and Sebastien. If anyone has information that they would be willing to share, it could be a good opportunity to also tell Nelson residents about the water projects that attracted David, MP and Seb to Haiti. The reporter’s name is Colin Payne and the number is 250 352-3552 x 115
January 15th, 2010 at 6:55 am
We got a short e-mail from Sébastien on wednesday 13th around 8.00pm Belgium time, which is 11.00am Nelson time. Just confirming what we can read in Rhiannen’s message, and telling us that we shouldn’t worry anymore about them. Of curse today I am worrying since we cannot have any contact with anybody over there. Probably they don’t have any access to drinking water or food, there is great danger for Cholera epidemic, violence and plundering, that is what we get from the News on radio & television.
I would very much appreciate to be informed by anyone of you if you get any news.
Thanks a lot.
Vincent De Marre (Sébastien’s brother living in Belgium Europe) +32 3636 1968
January 15th, 2010 at 1:51 pm
Vincent, We received a forwarded e-mail from David last night, which told of the progress they’d made yesterday. It was reassuring. I will call you to get your e-mail address (probably Saturday, because of the time difference), and then we can keep each other informed with anything we hear.
Rhiannen
January 15th, 2010 at 4:33 pm
Rhiannen and Vincent: Please get in touch if there’s anything more I can do from here. Thanks. rbeck1@netidea.com or 250-354-1352
January 15th, 2010 at 7:12 pm
Rhiannen,
as a friend of David, Marie-P and Sebastien (in Calgary), I was so happy to find the Pure Water site and your news.
I passed the word to other friends in Calgary and we are so relieved.
Will certainly put Pure Water at the top of our donations list,
sincerely
Robin
January 16th, 2010 at 4:37 am
It is very helpful to be in contact with you!
Thank you Rhiannen and Ruth! I’m visiting this blog on a regularly base. in any case this is my e-mail address: vincentdemarre@gmail.com.
Vincent DeMarre
January 17th, 2010 at 10:08 pm
Rhiannen and Vincent, Thank you so much for the news on David, Mari-Paule and Sebastien. I am a close friend of them (in Calgary, Canada). Given the high risk of Cholera epidemic and violence in Haiti I am very concern about their ability to cope with the aftermath. If you are in touch with them again, please ask them is there anything we can do from Calgary beside donation to PureWater. Any update on their situation would be truly appreciated.
John; Ph: 403-568-1757 or 403-297-8265 (office)
January 18th, 2010 at 4:29 pm
Here is a link to the latest photos of the PWW filter factory :
http://purewaterfortheworld.org/picture-gallery/?album=1&gallery=14
January 20th, 2010 at 9:15 am
Bonjour à tous, I am in Montréal and got the news from Lise, she gives the information to Marie-Paule’s familly in the région of Quebec. We are all very happy to know that they are well and faithful as always to there mission. Here, we all know at least one personne that is touched by this incident. I got in contact also with Antoine that is Tibet, I imagine that MP & Seb wrote to him. My other wish is that his familly in Haiti is still well.
January 27th, 2010 at 2:02 pm
I am keeping everyone doing this important work constantly in my thoughts.
January 27th, 2010 at 5:28 pm
We thought that you would like to read the information below. Thank you all for your support, and we will continue to keep you updated on our staff and projects in Haiti.
The communication below is written by: Jeanne M. LeBlanc, Ph.D., ABPP (Rp), R. Psych.
Hi everyone. Just back from Haiti and I wanted to put forth a few thoughts to those of you who would like to volunteer. I am still reeling a bit cognitively, so I might not be as smooth or mindful of feelings and such as some would like, so let me apologize if I seem a bit abrupt. My goal is to inform as much as I can so that people are not needlessly traumatized in ways that will either render them useless if they choose to go (and hence, a burden on the relief efforts since they will need assistance themselves) and/or psychologically scarred more than they imagine they could be.
1. It is absolutely key and essential that ONLY people who have had large-scale and severe disaster experience go over at this point, right now. Many of you know that I have been to Sichuan–have had many experiences with large hurricanes, Katrina, etc., but I cannot tell you how horrendous and very different this situation is right now. There is no infrastructure….if you run out of water, you face dehydration. If you run out of food you face hunger. If you get hurt, you risk high infection within a day or two, and no medical support. I was there with a team of doctors, in one of the few medical hospitals up and running, but there is essentially no ability for you to be care-flighted or returned to the US or Dominican Republic should an emergency arise. The airport is frequently shut down, and you will not be a priority for the military or anyone else to help you. “They” are busy doing the mission they have set out in front of them, and communication and the ability to get help is extremely limited.
2. Rehab needs. The docs I work with pretty much agree that head injuries are at a minimum, in that the people with them have essentially died, or will soon die, (if they are severe). Amputations: Yes…many, many, many. We were doing surgeries almost 24 hours a day….mostly amputations. Unfortunately many of the people who have had amputations have already become infected within a day or two of the surgery (remember essentially no aftercare…they are sleeping outside (which actually seems quite smart, given our earthquake the other day, which personally was terrifying being indoors for…). Any how…many people who had amputations or wound care immediately after the earthquake are having to have higher amputations due to the infections. The docs I flew back with came to the consensus that if 30% of the people they operated on survive, they will be lucky. Spinal cord injury…no aftercare, no adaptive equipment, very limited family left to care for them (if any)…you can imagine the immediate outcome. EVERYONE I spoke to had family killed or missing.
As a rehab psychologist, I used all the skills I know. Suicide prevention, letting those with amputations know they will still be loved and beautiful or a “man”…..holding the hand of someone yelling in pain and soothing them, etc., etc. However, these skills alone — without disaster experience to help give you the emotional steel you need to cope with the situation you are in — will not be sufficient. Not right now.
My recommendations are these: Those with SERIOUS disaster experience, consider deployment, but make it short. Know that it will be more severe than you can even imagine. Even the tsunami was in a country where you could find some infrastructure…somewhere. Here, there is nothing. For the first time in my life I truly had to consider survival situations. Yes, my organization had supplies and contacts, but water goes missing and the next shipment of water is on a plane not allowed to land in the airport…
If you do not have disaster experience, this is NOT the disaster to begin with. Volunteer stateside, providing support to people and organizations who are doing good work. OR — think about deployment months and months from now, when (or if) an infrastructure is there, so you can have the support that is needed.
Bless you all with your desire to help. There will be a way to do so….be sure you plug yourself into something that will allow you to function during and afterwards, rather than becoming another victim of this situation.
Cheers — Jeanne
Jeanne M. LeBlanc, Ph.D., ABPP (Rp), R. Psych.
Diplomate Rehabilitation Psychology
Practice in Rehabilitation Neuropsychology
January 27th, 2010 at 6:02 pm
Pure Water received a request in a heartwarming post this morning from the Quisqueya Christian School (http://quisqueya.org/ ) in Port-au-Prince for 10 more sand filters to add to the 2 they have been using. Stefan noted “These are put to work all day long. On average, they are using 5 trucks of water ….a day, not all purified of course… If you have some of the sand filters to spare, the school will gladly take up to 10 and promises to put them to work really hard!…Your filters are needed in Haiti now, more than ever!”
The Quisqueya campus at Delmas #75 (Port has become a hive of activity. The buildings are undamaged and cleared for use by both civilian and military structural engineers. Since the January 2010 earthquakes, the Quisqueya Christian School Relief Coordination Center has hit the ground running. A collaboration between the school and Crisis Response International has received over a dozen mission teams from locations including Germany, Korea, Mississippi, Texas, and the Dominican Republic with more arriving each day.
The Relief Coordination Center is collecting information on the needs of area hospitals and is deploying medical teams, water purification teams, engineers, and donated medical supplies to where they are most needed. As of January 26th, they are coordinating over 400 people, teams of doctors, nurses and staff to work the most effective way. Doctor teams have come from all over the world. They need medicines, a place to work, drivers, translators, gasoline, food, sleeping quarters, clean clothes–it’s an amazing piece of coordination. Representatives from the Haitian Ministry of Heath and Airline Ambassadors have become involved in QCS coordination efforts, resulting in increased cooperation between aid groups and efficiency. In the last few days they have begun to implement three new efforts to better serve injured Haitians: inter-facility patient transfer, evening shifts at hospitals, and shifting post-operative patients to facilities outside the city for follow-up care.
January 28th, 2010 at 7:06 pm
Dear Rhiannen,
I found following message in the Blog “Updates from Haiti” and happy to learn mesage of yours quoted below about David and his friends! Actually, we with David never met physically, but had e-mail communication through 3rd party (our common friends are Kalyan Thapa and David Beringer)! Having no knowledge he being struck in Haiti disaster I send an e-mail to him on Jan 15 @ putt@netidea.com regarding some humanitarian cause I am projecting to start in Nepal, which is where I am from. Please convey my best wishes and success to him and his Team on that naturally hard Mission in Haiti. God bless them.
“We heard from David this morning at about 11 AM…They were helping to distribute medical supplies, which had run out, and were improvising with bedsheets, cardboard splints, etc., and starting to set up more filters.
Rhiannen (David’s daughter)”
Regards,
Hari Deuja
Surrey, BC