Haiti: Recovering from the Quake

Storm in Haiti

2010-09-26T10:12:00.000-05:00

Every day we check the National Hurricane Center website for new tropical storms and hurricanes, knowing that we'll at least have a few days to prepare the camps and their residents. With nothing on the radar, this afternoon we were taken by complete surprise when at 3:00 the sun was shining - at 3:05 the sky turned green and wind, rain, thunder and lightning like I have never experienced anywhere before hit.

The wind sheered many of the few big trees that are left in Port au Prince, landing on streets, buildings, and tents. Worse yet, it blew tents and new shelters apart like they were made of paper towels. One of the camps in which we work lost 80% of the tents and structures and we lost many common area buildings in another camp.

Kites!

2010-09-01T18:05:00.003-05:00

Most days in Haiti you can see joy on the faces of children or hear the giggles and shouts of fun. When you look closer you can see they are very creatively playing with plastic bags tied to sticks, plastic bottles as footballs or using rocks for marbles. Thanks to the generosity of some students at the University of Minnesota and the ARC Children’s Program the kids at several of the camps American Refugee Committee manages are also able to enjoy beautiful, handmade kites.

The ARC Children’s Program at Terrain Acra currently has over 900 kids enrolled. The staff does an excellent job of keeping the kids busy with lots of activities including painting, singing, and dancing. I happened to be there on Friday and noticed the kites were out. Unfortunately there was no wind so there weren’t many kites flying but the kids didn’t seem to care. They were just excited about the possibility.

2010-08-10T14:41:00.003-05:00

(Photos: Top - A Rah-Rah band stages impromptu demonstration for Haitian presidential candidate;
Bottom - A visit by members of Congress to Old Military Camp, one of the camps managed by ARC)

It was quite a week for politics here in Port au Prince. 24 candidates are now registered for President - and once you're registered you are on the ballot. The last Presidential election had 68 candidates vying for the top spot. This week Wyclef Jean threw his hat into the mix which gnarled traffic for a full day with thousands wearing his party's t-shirt and celebrating by scrawling his message everywhere. The election is currently scheduled for November 28.

As you can imagine, the campaigning is quite creative with a need to reach the masses. One popular technique is to hire people that create impromptu Rah-Rah bands that march through the busiest streets at the most popular times, blocking traffic and becoming front and center in your universe, like the one shown here.

The other political aspect to the week was a visit from some Congressional members at one of our camps, Old Military Camp. House Majority Leader Steny Hoyer led a bipartisan Congressional Delegation to Haiti for a day. Roscoe Bartlett, David Price, Yvette Clarke, Donna Edwards and Aaron Schock joined him. Melanie (in the center of the photo), who manages the Women’s and Children’s Protection Program for ARC in Haiti, was able to provide details about the work she and her team are doing.

Gloves and Goggles for Haitian Workers

2010-08-05T14:18:00.002-05:00

Another very busy week here in Haiti. One of our big tasks was finding more equipment for our Cash for Work crews. A little known fact about Haiti is that you can buy almost anything here, you just need time to find it and money. The familiar task of searching on-line or in a phone book aren't options and with traffic usually at a standstill it can be quite an undertaking. So it was that we found ourselves spending a lot of time this week only to learn that some of the basic equipment we need, work gloves, eye protection, dust masks, etc. are in such high demand with such low supplies that prices have been driven sky high where limited supplies still exist.

You'll see in the photo that we currently have people doing a lot of tough work (lifting rubble piece by piece, hauling full buckets and wheelbarrows, etc) without some of this basic equipment. We were able to purchase what we needed locally when we started our program but a lot of it has simply worn out. With so much work remaining, we could really use your help. Please consider a donation of cash which will allow us to provide the necessary equipment to make work a little easier. If you'd prefer to donate hard goods and could bring your donation to our Headquarters in Minneapolis we especially need leather work gloves (men's size large would be best), plastic safety goggles and dust masks.

I will be sure to feature your donations in use in future photos!

Intro to Cash-for-Work

2010-07-27T16:41:00.001-05:00

(Photos: A cash-for-work team clearing a clinic in Port-au-Prince of rubble.)

Hello Everyone!

The idea of Cash for Work has been around for quite some time with programs all over the world. At the most basic level it is designed to provide cash in exchange for various types of work.

Our Cash for Work teams in Haiti are doing everything from basic camp clean up to working in the neighborhoods surrounding our camps on rubble removal. The benefits of Cash for Work include the most obvious – instant cash in the hands of those that need it most – but almost as important is the pride that comes from being able to provide for your family, even if for a very short period of time as well as giving Haitians a bigger sense of ownership in the reconstruction process.

The unemployment rates were grim before the earthquake with more than two-thirds of the labor force not having formal jobs so of course with so many businesses lying in ruins the numbers are even more difficult.

The good news is that we are currently able to provide Cash for Work at four camps in Haiti with funding lasting a few more months. We’ve worked with the nuances of each camp to design Cash for Work programs that work for the people living there. For instance, in our two camps outside Port au Prince, we rotate through new teams of workers and pay more frequently because jobs are even harder to come by than in the city.

Another example is the size of our teams. In the center of Port au Prince at Terrain Acra camp we have teams of less than 10 so they can work in small alleyways, nooks and crannies to remove rubble and carry it out to streets that can accommodate dump trucks. Those teams are concentrating on clearing rubble from public spaces like streets, schools and clinics. The team in the photo here are clearing a clinic. They are anxious to get back into their neighborhoods and are working hard to make it happen. We’re fast at work looking for funding to continue to enable their efforts.

New Blogger - Deb Ingersoll

2010-07-27T12:54:00.003-05:00

Hi Everyone -

I want to introduce everyone to our newest blogger - Deb Ingersoll.

Deb coordinates ARC's Cash-For-Work program in Haiti. As you know, the earthquake devastated Haiti's infrastructure, destroying homes and buildings. The quake also made the unemployment situation in Haiti even worse. ARC's cash-for-work program tackles both these problems. Workers are paid a daily wage to clear rubble, dig latrines and drainage ditches, and help maintain camps.

Deb will be sharing more about the program as well as her general observations from Haiti. Welcome Deb!

Articles on Haiti Rebuilding Effort

2010-07-22T10:29:00.002-05:00

I wanted to share a couple of articles that describe the challenges of the Haiti rebuilding process.

The first is from Lindsey Coates of The Huffington post on how determining land rights is a critical and time-consuming first step before constructing transitional or replacement shelters for survivors: http://www.huffingtonpost.com/lindsay-coates/land-tenure-haitis-elepha_b_643353.html

The second is a longer article by Deborah Sontag at the NYTimes that describes the challenges of rebuilding in greater detail: http://www.nytimes.com/2010/07/11/world/americas/11haiti.html?sq=haiti&st=cse&scp=13&pagewanted=print

I'll highlight one statistic from the NYTimes article: "It would take three to five years to remove all the debris from Haiti if 1,000 or more trucks worked daily."

Volunteer Nursing in Haiti

2010-07-08T13:07:00.000-05:00

(Photos: Top - Latrine at Terrain Acra; Middle/Top - Patient Consultation Area; Middle - Clinic Staff Training; Middle/Bottom - Medical staff on a home visit in Terrain Acra; Bottom: The clinic staff at Terrain Acra)

I received this message and these photos today from Ann Ferguson, a nurse who spent 2.5 weeks volunteering at ARC's clinic at Terrain Acra in Port-au-Prince.

I am writing this during my last day as a medical volunteer in the clinic run by ARC at Terrain Acra. The last 2 and ½ weeks have been both humbling and awe inspiring – and it has been a privilege to be a part of the clinic staff.

The medical clinic at Terrain Acra was first established in February of 2010 to provide primary care for the people in the camp. The clinic has evolved into a busy primary care clinic which serves people from within the camp – and others who live outside the camp and choose to come there for care.

In three large tents, with no electricity or running water, in extreme heat and on plastic covered dirt floors, the medical clinic at Terrain Acra sees over 120 patients per day. It is hoped that in the coming weeks and months, a new tent can be obtained to move pharmacy activity and supplies, a refrigeration system can be achieved so that a vaccine campaign can be established, and a mental health program will begin in earnest.

The systems of care have been developed through a combined effort of medical volunteers, and the Haitian medical and general clinic staff. Clinic is open 6 days a week. Additionally, the medical team has established a system of home visits within the camp to insure that individuals in need of additional follow up care receive those services. Mobile clinics have also been established in three communities near Terrain Acra. This mobile clinic activity provides the only care to residents of very hard hit areas of the city.

Prenatal visits have ranged form 78-83 per month within the camp. Patients present for wound care daily: puncture wounds, umbilical cord care, infections, cuts, scrapes, occupational injuries and more. A triage system allows for the very young, the elderly, and the sickest to be seen first. Malaria, typhoid, prenatal care, dehydration, stress related conditions, skin infections and others are seen daily. Pharmacy and lab services are available on site. Referrals are made as needed to local specialists and hospitals. No one is turned away.

I am amazed at the level of professionalism in the clinic staff. Despite working in tents with a heat index of over 95, dirt showing through the plastic floors, some of them living in these tents nearby, they treat their patients with respect and conduct themselves with dignity and professionalism.

-Ann

Back to Terrain Acra

2010-05-04T08:47:00.002-05:00

(Photos: Top - Jimmytri and his cousins; Middle - Michellet and his big sister; Bottom - Alies and his sons)

Today was my last full day in Haiti and tomorrow I head back to the frozen tundra known as Minnesota. What an amazing day it was! I went back to Terrain Acra hoping to meet face to face with people and really have the opportunity to sit down with them. I wanted to know in their own words, what it is like to live in Terrain Acra?

I spent the morning interviewing a number of young men who want nothing more than a job. They have so many skills to contribute: teaching, carpentry… one was in law school, but they have no opportunity to get their foot in the door. In fact, there is no door. I asked them to share their thoughts, experiences, stories and hopes on video and they thanked me profusely for the opportunity. All I had to do was hold the camera… but it meant someone was listening.

After the interviews I sequestered Jimmytri, an ARC interpreter, to walk through the camp with me. I had walked through before early last week, but this time it seemed to be a whole different world. The exhaustive heat, the endless trash, and the smells all faded into the background and what I saw was homes filled with smiling families: mothers doing wash, kids playing with makeshift toys, fathers running small businesses... I met Alies and his son Makenson who sell fried meats and dough, Mimose who sells all kinds of soaps, treats, charcoal and more, Madame Dunn who invited me into her home to meet her five grandkids, and so many others! Jimmytri was even willing to show me his home and introduce me to his family. He has been working with ARC since the earthquake and lives in the camp with his identical twin brother, Jimmy-a, aunt and cousins. Jimmytri and Jimmy-a are quite the dynamic duo!

As we were walking around I couldn’t help but notice the mud and was reminded of the impending rainy season. It pains me to think of the tropical rains and what they will do to these peoples’ homes and lives. Imagine never keeping up with the leaks in your roof, or the rains blowing in through the thin sheet that doubles as your door. Think of stepping out your front door in your only set of shoes and into a foot of mud. There was a brief storm last night and still this afternoon the mud was thick and deep. That was after a light shower… These people need proper homes, walkways, and canals to survive the rain and preserve their hope. Countless people shared that they find and make what little they can to sell for food and water to get through each day. Their perseverance is so incredible, but their reality so fragile.

To end the blog and my stay in Haiti I’ll share a little miracle I happened upon this afternoon as we came back through the camp. His name is Michellet. Jimmytri and I were walking back through the camp and nearing the end of our journey when we heard “Photo! Photo!” being called out. I strolled over to offer a photo of the two adorable toddlers when the mother saw and bolted inside. She came back with the tiniest bundle in her arms! She introduced him as Michellet and informed me he was just 8 days old! I asked if he was born right here in her shelter and she said “yes” and that a midwife had been there to help her. There are so many things about that story that leave me, as another woman, both terrified and amazed, but the miracle goes on.

Camp Corail

2010-05-03T10:32:00.005-05:00

(Photos: Top - Kids at Corail Camp. Middle - A boy at Corail Camp constructs a kite from whatever he can find; Middle - A woman sells goods at her small stall at Corail; Bottom - a wide shot of Corail.)

This morning I caught a ride with Richard, our new camp manager at Corail Camp. Corail is a brand new camp that we’ve been asked to take over management of.

The morning commute through Port au Prince is always an experience to behold. First, pray that there are handle bars because you’ll need to hold on. The word pothole doesn’t begin to describe the gaping craters, treacherous ‘speed bumps’ and other obstacles you’ll encounter. But it’s the sights you pass that complicate and deepen an otherwise adventurous ride to work.

Sights of vendors with various goods, people carrying water and other baskets and bags on their heads, children hoping to wash your windshield for change, everything buzzing around you, trash… the trash seems to be everywhere, but it’s the buildings that lay crumbled that call out as reminders.

As we were driving we passed through an area that had more destruction than I had seen. Three story buildings lie pancaked on the ground, rebar twisted and contorted in concrete, unrecognizable. As we drove past a familiar song began to drift through the truck “… We shall overcome someday…someday…” The next neighborhood revealed a new school being painted teal blue and lemon yellow, while just a second further men struck rubble in unison with their sledgehammers, clearing the old for the new... Around the next turn “We need help” is scrawled on the wall. It was about this time when Richard, our camp manager, asked me very simply “If it was a family member who was trapped in the rubble, when would you stop digging?... When would you stop?” All I could think was “never.”

Camp Corail…
I was told that Corail was different. I knew going in that it was a “planned camp,” the result of a coordinated effort between the United Nations, the U.S. Military and aid agencies. Local staff informed me that it is situated on a vast stretch of parched land that’s surrounded by deforestation. One of its primary purposes is to act as a decongestion camp for Terrain de Golf, which goes by many names, but one that rings a bell is “Sean Penn’s Camp.” In real terms, this means that Terrain de Golf is overcrowded and at risk for flooding, fires and more, so they move people to a safer area, i.e. Camp Corail. Currently there are 4,912 people living there in 1,290 tents. 15 have been left open and are being held for people with disabilities. (It’s amazing what a camp manager knows!)

As we drove up I had the feeling we were entering Area 51. The chalky desert dust goes on forever with neatly lined rows of white tents, each containing their own world. Everything is clean & tidy – words you wouldn’t normally associate with a displaced persons camp. Once settled and walking around I found two little boys constructing kites out of plastic bags and twine. This was the perfect kite flying environment! Up into the sky they went sailing. A couple tents down I found a woman running a small business with candies, sodas and other goods. A little bit further I heard a woman calling to me from in her tent. I stopped and doubled back. She invited me in and we introduced ourselves, despite the fact that we spoke no common language. She seemed to be about the same age and was cooking a small meal for herself and her friend. I couldn’t help but notice how sparse her tent was, but once inside you realize it’s someone’s world all the same. I was thankful she had invited me in.

Terrain Acra on the BBC

2010-04-30T09:44:00.003-05:00

An update on the BBC World Have Your Say Program I mentioned yesterday...

They broadcast from Terrain Acra. The show was a great hit – lots of great participants, great questions! They broadcast live for one hour in the camp, with about 50 people from the camp participating. Of that number about 6-7 people were actively answering questions and debating. They were linked into a live show in Little Haiti in Miami, where radio guests called in and asked questions during the first half hour.

Then in the second half hour Wyclef Jean was on the show answering questions and discussing with the group. They asked him to come visit them in Terrain Acra when he comes to Haiti next and he accepted.

You can listen to the podcast or download it at the link below: WHYS in Tent City -http://www.bbc.co.uk/podcasts/series/whys/

Our Haitian Staff

2010-04-29T12:32:00.006-05:00

Beniel, age 21, manages Camp Hope which now cares for 1,000 people.

Mission, also in his twenties, helps to manage the daily activities at Terrain Acra, helping to care for over 25,000 people.

Beniel, Mission, Frank (the teacher I mentioned a few days ago), and so many others – these are the people that are rebuilding Haiti. They are our local staff, and they work every day in unimaginable conditions to restore hope for people who have lost all they’d known before January 12th.

I never knew what partnership and sustainability really meant until this trip. On a theoretical level, I got it. On a real, and very human level, I was clueless. When we say that we give people the tools they need to rebuild their lives, we honestly mean it! And in the midst of all the pain and fear, it is a truly beautiful thing to see. Each of our local staff that I’ve had the opportunity to meet are leaders. They’re the kind of people you want on your side because when you’re around them you feel like things really will get better, and they’ll be the ones to make it happen.

By the way: BBC World Service was at Terrain Acra today. Check out their blog about the visit at: http://www.bbc.co.uk/blogs/worldhaveyoursay/2010/04/whys_in_haiti.html#210759#more

Visit to Terrain Acra

2010-04-28T10:53:00.009-05:00

Photos: (Top - Kids of a proud mother stand in front of their shelter in Terrain Acra Camp; Bottom - the shell of a destroyed home on the edge of Terrain Acra Camp is now used to hang the wash.)

Unlike yesterday, today was not filled with simple solutions. Today I visited Terrain Acra, a camp for earthquake survivors in the Delmas district of Port-au-Prince. There are about 25,000 people who are receiving services in this camp which sprawls endlessly over a valley of toxic waste. It is devastating to see. While there are so many positive things being done to help, the daunting reality of what it must be like to live in the camp is overwhelming.

Everyone is hoping that this reality is short-lived. Right now we face a critical timeline for moving everyone out. Here’s why:

1) Terrain Acra is private land owned by the Acra family. They own a factory on the site and can’t run it with thousands of people living there. The Acra family has been quite patient up until now, but other private landowners are starting to evict people.

2) The land is a valley surrounded by steep hills, and is thus both a flood and landslide zone.

3) We have no idea what chemicals are pumped out of the Acra Factory. The site is unbelievably filthy, with garbage and human waste covering the ground several feet deep.

4) The camp is filled with feral pigs, goats and other animals. We’ve tried everything to fix this issue (partnering with Veterinarians Without Borders, etc.) – but in all likelihood, the animals are here to stay.

5) Most people in Haiti rented their homes pre-earthquake. Now, they live in camps at no cost. Although tent life is hot and cramped and wretched, most people are still too scared to sleep under a cement roof, so they might as well sleep under a tarp for free. This means that they have no incentive to leave.

Walking through the camp the heat is heavy and thick. Every once in a while you cross a powerful waft of rotting waste. There are sounds of lively music, children’s laughter, mother’s shouting, older men talking as they play dominoes, and young men sawing and hammering as they build new structures. The sights can only be described through a lens as they’re too much for words. While people are happy to greet you, there is a greater sense of desolation.

We walked to the top of a hill overlooking all of Terrain Acra. This was an area that edged our camp ‘border’ and extended into the surrounding neighborhoods that have been leveled. Homes are laid bare and exposed as remnants of their former lives.

On the way back down I encountered a beautiful little girl giggling and playing in her makeshift home. I started a little giggle myself and caught the same chuckle in the eyes of her mother. Together we laughed and I asked if I could take “un photo.” Proudly she said yes, and all three of her children quickly gathered in pose. I showed the picture to the family and wished I could have given her a copy to keep.

Despite the horror they face: their earthquake shattered reality, a pervasive fear of “the big one” and the impending hurricane season, there is a resolve and determination among Haitians that can move mountains. After all, if you were the proud mother of three wouldn’t you do everything in your power to build a better, safer, and brighter future for them?

Clean Water in Kato

2010-04-27T13:08:00.010-05:00

Photos: (1- Kato's old source for drinking and bathing; 2 & 3 - the new water pump in Kato; 4-the village greeting us with palm fronds and singing and dancing)

This afternoon came straight out of a storybook. Brad, our Field Coordinator, asked if I’d like to take a trip to a village where we recently dug a borehole. Sure, I’d love that! After a long and slightly harrowing trip into the country we pulled up to the small village known as Kato. To our surprise, the humming of the engine was replaced by the loud roar of children singing and dancing in cheer for our arrival. Palm fronds wildly waving, the kids sang a song they had designed specially for us. Absolutely surreal. They led us back through the village to the brand new pump that flowed with fresh, clean water.

Brad and our team of local staff had surveyed 49 villages in the area of Ganthier. As a part of the survey they tested all the water points and sent the samples to a lab for results. Those results have been catastrophic. They’ve found that the places where people bath and drink have included bacteria like ecoli. In one place it was 136 times the acceptable level. Bacteria like this can mean dysentery, cholera, elephantiasis, and total devastation to a village of only 300 people. For some, this is their only source of water.

What did it cost to keep water and life flowing through this village? $5,000. Yet another simple solution.

The School in Fond Parisien

2010-04-27T09:05:00.005-05:00

(Top: Schoolkids in a tent at the school; Middle: Frank, the English and Literature teacher at the school; Bottom: The temporary school building)

Today marks my first experience meeting, in person, the people & the reason why we do what it is we do. What an inspiring day it has been! This morning began with a trip to Fond Parisien. A name and place I have heard and seen so many times in video: to see it in person is something else.

Just to the left of the main area of the camp is now a fully operating school. It stands beside the remnants of their old school that is waiting to be rebuilt. The temporary school is a scene you’d recognize from our photos: a thin log structure covered by tarp roofs and surrounded by tarp walls. What photos cannot convey is the life that buzzes within. In this small structure 8 classes are in session, with at least 30 kids in each class! Amazingly they sit attentively, eager to learn.

I had the chance to interview the principal and a few of the teachers during one of their breaks. Frank, their English & Literature teacher, translated for the principal who explained to me that the teachers are paid at the end of the month. He then explained that once this next salary is paid, the funds will run dry and the school will come to a close. The end of the month is the end of this week. The complexity and depth of the issues we face in Haiti are daunting to say the least. This seemed to be a very simple problem with an even simpler solution. $5,500 will keep the school running through the end of term. A little more will help to rebuild their school and give hope for tomorrow. If you can help, please, please do!

The teachers of this school live in the camp – each has been personally affected by the earthquake. Frank, who I mentioned earlier, had paid his way through 2 years of studying English at the Haitian American Institute when the earthquake struck and collapsed his plans for the future. Frank now hopes to save enough money to return to school and complete his last year, but he can’t say what the future holds.

Michellet

2010-04-25T23:23:00.000-05:00

This morning I woke to a warm spring morning in Minnesota. That is, warm by Minnesota standards. By evening I landed in Port-au-Prince and found that I hadn't quite shed my thick winter skin. Hot!

I spent my layover in Miami talking to a man by the name of Michellet. Michellet is from Haiti but has spent the past two years driving cab in Boston. Since the earthquake, he’s spent all his time and energy devising a plan to return and rebuild his country. His dream: to build a school for about 30 children near his hometown. Michellet is convinced that hope for Haiti’s future lies in the education of their youth. His daughter, who is just 10 years old and speaks English, French and Creole is a testament to his dream.

The passion and energy with which he spoke was contagious. “If I can just speak to people through the radio and tell them to love and respect one another, then the positive message will grow!” Michellet wished me wonderful experiences during my stay so that I might be enticed to return again and help Haiti to continue rebuilding. Michellet, if you’re reading this, best wishes to you as well!

New Contributor - Jenna Moeger

2010-04-25T10:48:00.000-05:00

Hi Everyone. I want to welcome Jenna Moeger to the ARC blog. Jenna is ARC's Development and Public Affairs Coordinator.

Recently, Jenna has been working closely with the Community Advocates for Haiti - a group of volunteers in the U.S. who've come together to rally and organize their communities to raise awareness and support for the earthquake survivors ARC works with in Haiti.

We look forward to Jenna's posts over the next week. Welcome Jenna!

The Current Situation in Haiti

2010-04-21T15:05:00.004-05:00

(Photos: Top - one of the transitional shelters our team is building for families in Haiti who lost their homes in the earthquake; Bottom: Mother and child protected from the elements by only some sticks and tarps. Thousands and thousands in Haiti are struggling to get shelter from the elements.)

The situation in Haiti continues to be a struggle for the hundreds of thousands of people who are homeless and virtually the entire population who was traumatized. It will get worse when the rains start in earnest in May. There could be major public health problems, especially in places like Leogone which is south-west of Port-au-Prince and is 50% flood-prone. I was in a camp there last week that already had 6 inches of standing water in it. I inspected a latrine with the Austrian Red Cross. They were constructed with deep pits but the rains filled them up to where they are only about a foot below the hole in the latrine. Human waste and water, combined with compromised hygiene, is an impending threat to loss of human life.

Efforts are being made to get people out of flood-prone areas to "de-congestion camps," which are basically settlements outside of Port-au-Prince but on land that is open and not prone to floods. The problem is that people will move there in anticipation of handouts. As soon as the handouts subside, they will move back to Port-au-Prince. So what people really need are jobs to act as a magnet to get them out of Port-au-Prince. (The government estimates that roughly 1.3 M people need to be moved out. There simply is not enough room with all the rubble.

It is important, therefore, that ARC and other humanitarian organizations seek out partnerships with industries for job creations. For it is only in so doing that we can reverse rural-urban migration. In the process, we must seek to accompany Haitians toward a new economy, toward a “green,” environmentally exemplary, model of development. This horrific crisis can be transformed, like a phoenix rising from the ashes. A deforested land with an impoverished people can become a beacon on the hill for the world to see.

New Contributor - Joe Bock

2010-04-21T15:02:00.003-05:00

I'd like to welcome Joe Bock - ARC's Interim Country Director for Haiti - to the blog. Joe's been in Haiti for several weeks, managing our relief operations there.

Welcome Joe!

Mobile Clinics and Home Visits

2010-04-19T10:36:00.004-05:00

(Photos: top is Dr. Jessica Dailey seeing patients at the mobile clinic, outdoors. Middle is Dr. Dailey at the mobile clinic inside the church. Bottom is me seeing a patient on a home visit in the Terrain Acra camp.)

In addition to offering medical services six days a week at the clinic, the Haitian doctors and American volunteer doctors also conduct mobile clinics and home visits.

The mobile clinic is conducted in the nearby Delmas neighborhood church. Volunteer Drs. Jessica Dailey and Mike Rhodes see patients there two afternoons per week. They treat approximately 20-25 patients there each afternoon. The patient load is slowly increasing as patients learn about the clinic.

We are hoping to be able to establish a full service clinic there over time. The overall goal is to slowly increase our work in the surrounding neighborhood, especially as patients move out of the camp and back into their homes/neighborhoods. The church space offers stability to the clinic and privacy for the patients. It is especially helpful for those who are not living in the Terrain Acra camp itself.

We also do homevisits two afternoons each week. They are geared toward serving those living in the camp who are unable to come from their shelter to the camp clinic. Currently, I make home visits on Monday and Wednesday afternoons with a clinic nurse and interpreter.

One patient’s shelter is on a steep hill and he has his leg in a cast following surgery for injuries sustained during the earthquake. Another patient is bed bound from a spinal cord injury in 1993. He moved to the camp with his family after their residence was destroyed in the earthquake. We also visit a family with two young children, all of whom are being treated for tuberculosis.

Primary Medical Care at Terrain Acra

2010-04-15T14:43:00.012-05:00

(Photos - Top: Dr. Michael Rhodes seeing patients in a clinic exam room.. Middle: is the Terrain Acra clinic Bottom: the Terrain Acra Clinic's registration tent.)

Hello, I’m Kristi Trostel, a physician volunteer serving three weeks with ARC in the Terrain Acra camp this month.

At this writing, the medical clinic in the Terrain Acra camp is staffed by three volunteer physicians from Minnesota and four Haitian physicians employed by ARC. The Minnesota volunteers are Dr. Michael Rhodes, a Hospitalist at Abbott Northwestern Hospital, Dr. Jessica Daily, a Family Practitioner with Allina medical clinic, and me, Dr. Kristi Trostel, an Internist at Park Nicollet Clinic.

We three Minnesotans start our day at 7 am with our excellent driver Durillma ferrying us through the busy Port-au-Prince traffic. Lasting about an hour, the drive lays bare the widespread poverty and destruction from which the city suffers. However, we also see the people resuming their daily lives and the beginnings of repair and reconstruction.

Once at the clinic, a busy day awaits us.

Patients of all ages await their turn in our clinic. We’re treating ailments stemming from privation and overcrowding in a tropical climate, as well as those afflicted with problems that we may see in the US. The clinic is a large tent with partitions creating five small examination rooms. At the back of the tent the formidable Madame Philibare, a Haitian nurse, manages the small pharmacy and clinic staff. An additional tent sits adjacent and houses the registration area, wound clinic, and urgent care area.

Together with the four Haitian doctors and the aid of our Creole interpreters, we see 140 to 170 patients in clinic each day. Patients are seen free of charge, and we can offer a number of medications and treatments without any cost to patients. We also offer a mobile clinic in the neighborhood around the camp and home visits within the camp, which we'll describe in future blog entries.

New Blog Contributor - Kristi Trostel

2010-04-15T14:39:00.004-05:00

I'd like to welcome Kristi Trostel to the ARC Blog.

Kristi comes from Minnesota. She is a volunteer doctor working in Port-au-Prince at our 10,000 person camp at Terrain Acra and in the surrounding neighborhoods.

Welcome Kristi! And thank you for all your hardwork in Haiti!

Camp Hope and Ganthier

2010-04-09T12:23:00.004-05:00

Photos - (Top: A handicapped latrine at Camp Hope. Many of the people living at Camp Hope have broken limbs or have undergone amputation. Middle: Child-friendly space at Camp Hope. Bottom: View from the Mountains in Ganthier.)

Yesterday, I went out to visit our Camp Hope in Fond Parisien near the border. The camp has grown to between 700 and 800 people, and we're expecting the arrival of 300 more people next week.

Camp Hope is across the street from some mountains. Yesterday, we went out into some of the remote communities in those mountains to see if there were people who had been affected by the earthquake. We've already visited some communities in this area - Ganthier - but we're the only organization meeting with people in this region.

We found that a lot of these villages have not actually been affected by the earthquake. But they are very poor and have some serious issues with clean water and sanitation. We'll be helping them create sanitation and water systems that will protect them from disease.

I think this brings up an important point about the relief effort in Haiti - a point that one might not necessarily think of. It's important that people who weren't directly affected by the quake still see some benefit from all this.

There should be a general sense of the rising tide lifting all. It's good for communities. And it's good for Haiti.

It's important in our role that we try to spread the blessings and use the resources we have to help as many people as we can.

Leogane

2010-04-08T12:46:00.001-05:00

(Top: ARC staff member Leah talks with community leaders at a settlement in Leogane. Middle and bottom: Families living in settlements at Leogane.)

I'm on the way up into the mountains to check on some remote communities who need help. I just wanted to let you all know what I've seen so far.

Yesterday, we headed to Leogane. It's a city of about 140,000 people just west of Port-au-Prince.

Leogane was the closest major population center to the epicenter of the earthquake. They estimate that between 60-80% of the homes were completely destroyed or are unlivable. The people there are in need of good shelter, as well as other types of aid and assistance.

Because Leogane is outside of Port-au-Prince, it has taken longer for aid to reach these people.

There are a number of camps or settlements there - over 70 in total. But only three of these settlements has any organization helping to manage and coordinate aid for the people who live there.

As you know, ARC manages camps and settlements in other parts of Haiti. We visited Leogane to see how we might be able to help. Stay tuned for more.

Pres. Daniel Wordsworth Joins the Blog

2010-04-08T11:36:00.000-05:00

ARC President Daniel Wordsworth is in Haiti for the next few days. While he's there he'll be sharing with us some of the things he's seeing, people he's meeting and what the ARC team is up to.

Daniel has been with ARC as President and CEO since May of 2009.

On the Road - Happy Customers

2010-04-07T16:15:00.003-05:00

(Above: camp residents with their registration cards)

At cluster level, we have been talking about registration from the very beginning of the emergency.

It's a process that needs priority, in order to find out the numbers of people you are working for and other info that helps to to assist them better.

The registration is a process that requires a high number of human resources and paper, a simple and clear information campaign, some music to capture the attention of those who need to listen to the message of the registration agency and a lot of umbrellas to make shade for the people in line, waiting to release their family data.

People were requested to stay at home in order to receive the token to be presented for the registration. At the same time, music was playing and kids started dancing and with them the elderly.

The blue helmets of the Peace Keeping mission, requested to provide security, kept an eye on the crowd that was absolutely peaceful.

And the next morning, registration started, with hundreds lining up.
The questionnaire aimed at capturing the number of families and people for each family and their place of origin in order to prioritize the rubble removal and get started with the construction of the transitional shelter in places that are the best solution for the people: on the site where they used to live or nearby or with host families, relatives or friends with some space in the garden.

Once answered all the question, each family got issued an IDP card, with a unique serial number, corresponding to a file case that will map out the history of each family.

It's only a first step towards return to "normal" life, for hundreds of thousands.

On the Road - Micro Economy

2010-04-01T13:14:00.005-05:00

(top: man's juice and soda stand ; bottom: woman selling rapadou)

While thinking of the big picture to restart the economy, locals are not sitting around on the rubble.

The second week we were at the camp, this man with a camping cooler came out selling a few bottles of juice and sodas. His business has grown to the point that now he has a proper fridge that he locks at night with a chain.

Of course, there is no electricity at the camp to power a fridge, so that he has to buy blocks of ice every morning and put them on top of all the drinks that he keeps properly ordered. At night, the ice has melted and he empties the fridge with a bucket made out of half of a plastic bottle.

Next to him a "take-away" is making pressed fried bananas and spaghetti served with a red tuna sauce.

And then today a woman came by selling rapadou, a sweet snack made out of cane. Extremely sticky.

She held in perfect balance a piece on her head and the other one she had in her hand, showing it around, hoping for some business.

2010-03-26T16:02:00.002-05:00

Before the earthquake, there wasnt much electricity throughout the country.
After the 12th Jauary, there was basically none.

Slowly it started coming back, but there are not so many light lines anyway.
Not in the camp.

Shortly after my arrival, we got 4 solar lights that we installed in critical points in the camp. They make it a little less dangerous than before.

We definitely need many more, as it is a matter of personal safety, for many, to leave their tents and wander even towards the toilets, for example.

On the Road - Meeting the Leaders

2010-03-24T11:17:00.003-05:00

(photos from a meeting with leaders at Terrain Acra)

It's been a long while now since the establishment of the camp at Terrain Acra. Thousands of families and a dozen organizations interact in those square meters that used to be open land last Christmas.

There are two poles that speak on behalf on their communities: ARC as camp coordinating and management agency and the zone leaders.

Since the very beginning of our relief operation at Terrain Acra, a few individuals have been vital for us to understand the situation: they translated, explained, helped, assisted.

Through them we found qualified personnel to work in the clinic, carpenters to build shelters, animators for our Child Friendly Spaces. They are the same ones we introduced to other agencies who intended to extend their services to Terrain Acra.

On Tuesdays organizations and leaders get together to discuss where we are at, what's missing, what's not necessary any longer, and what we could develop together to make things work better.

It's when we work together like this that we can really get things done.

On the Road - Let the Music Play

2010-03-17T13:46:00.005-05:00

This is Mission, my assistant, with some new friends.

Today things were smooth. It's definitely a 2-thumbs-up day.

This morning we met with the owners of the land and discussed how to relocate people within the camp, in order to protect them from being too close to the factory that is now back at almost full production. The only plot of land still available is much smaller than the area where people are right now. It's necessary to plan. And do it carefully, because that land is also at risk of floods during the rainy season.

Next was to make an appointment with somebody doing site planning and mark out the space necessary to move emergency houses. Potentially, they can be turned into transitional shelters as soon as materials arrive.

Again, the community has taken a lot of initiative to identify those houses that have to go and space for relocation. It's my turn now to get the site design to continue with the plan.

Well, it's actually a domino effect that has to click: we need to organize a group of 20 people into a cash-for-work clean-up of the bridge. Then we need to excavate, make the upstream canal deeper, and consolidate the banks to prevent flooding.

It sounds complicated, but it's actually a matter of fine-tuning the orchestra.
Let the concert start!

On the Road - Petite

2010-03-12T16:01:00.005-06:00

It's been two months today since the devastating earthquake that changed so many lives. I have been here for six weeks.

I thought about giving an update on the construction of latrines, the provision of water, the community work, the child friendly spaces, the satellite clinics outside of the camp, the movie nights, the distribution of tarpaulins and mosquito nets…

Then Dr. Larry came to me while I was drinking lunch: a 7Up under the shade of a tree at midday.

He was carrying a 7-month-old baby girl.

Her legs and arms tiny, swollen stomach and big eyes staring at me with an innocent look.

A malnourished child whose mother stopped breastfeeding a month and a half ago.
It's not that she doesn’t want to feed the baby. It's that she's malnourished herself and her breasts ran dry.

We got into the car and drove off to that feeding center we have heard about on Delmas 31, just one street across the big artery that is Delmas.

We were told everybody knows this feeding center, being next to the Grace Hospital, a very visible structure in the street, out of whose premises an NGO is distributing, these days, food rations.

When we started seeing people walking towards us with bags of rice, we knew we only had to follow them backwards.

We stopped in front of a first gate, which pointed us further down the road to a second gate. There they told us to go to the gate across the street, where uninterested nurses told us the feeding center was not there, but outside and a few blocks away.

We got into the car again and started driving without knowing where to go, asking for info from every other person walking along the street.

I could only focus on fingers, and they were always pointing away, in another direction, in the opposite direction.

We eventually stopped in front of a gate where a nun gave us a box of pasta, rice and baby formula.

In all of this, the baby has been resting, peacefully, in my lap, playing with my finger, while I was calling her Petite.

I kept on telling her that everything is going to be fine.

On the Road - Taking Initiative

2010-03-11T09:55:00.006-06:00

(Photos: Top - That's me showing the Japanese military around the Terrain Acra settlement. At one point, they were going to help us with the site's drainage issues. Bottom - Terrain Acra from the hill above. The blue you see in the background is just some of the tarps we've distributed to help people create shelter in the camp.)

It’s a great sunset going out in front of my eyes.

I started the day really tired because of the lack of sleep that I have been suffering since my arrival here. But the good thing is that we are all running on a good dose of adrenaline, meaning that we could not function back home, but here it's just different.

It is good though, when, at the end of the day, you can say you brought home some results.

Since Monday morning, I have a new assistant to work with. His name is Mission, and his mission is to make sure I don’t get lost in translation. He's a great guy who has a lot of initiative and self confidence, despite his brief experience in the humanitarian sector. There has been only one thing, so far, I had to correct him on.

He had never worked before in Camp Coordination and Camp Management. When I threw him into the crowd, the "lions" rejoiced.

Mission came back to me saying: "there is a big problem! People wanted something from him... they knew what they needed...and they made a plan for how to get it. But they needed our help. What do we do now?"

I told him, it's not a problem. It's a good thing: it's initiative! The problem comes when initiative doesn’t find a way to be addressed.

International Women's Day

2010-03-09T16:11:00.003-06:00

International Women’s Day (March 8) has long been an important holiday in Haiti. At this year’s celebration at Terraine d’Acra settlement, more than 400 women gathered to reflect upon loss, grief, strength and hope.

Speeches were given by women and teens, from a wide range of backgrounds. Many had lost their parents, and some had lost their children to the earthquake. Custodians, nurses and teachers spoke of their work, and the struggles they have had to get training and respect in the work place. They read poetry about women’s struggles and women’s power. Single mothers who had lost their homes spoke about the difficulty of keeping families together. Praise was given to the lives of those who died in “le catastrophe.”

Others spoke of their daily difficulties living in displacement. They spoke of their fear and uncertainty for the future. One woman told how she is regularly beaten by her husband, and how the abuse has worsened since her family moved into the displacement camp. A group performed a skit about a mother who asserted her children’s rights when her husband tried to punish his daughter with a beating.

A teen sang a song with the chorus “women hold up our families and communities.” Together, the entire group sang of their hopes for recovery and rebuilding the new Haiti.

Tony Hoffman is a lecturer at the University of California, Santa Cruz. He is serving in Haiti as a Child Protection Technical Advisor for the American Refugee Committee.

The celebration was organized by Cynthia Barrella. She leads ARC’s child protection team in Haiti and is a part of the local organization Aimer = Servir, highlighted in this blog on January 24th.

On the Road - My First Post

2010-02-28T15:24:00.008-06:00

Photos: Top - Terrain Acra, settlement of 7500+ people. There is garbage everywhere. In the middle of the photo is a mass of garbage we drive over everyday in order to get to our clinic tents (blue tarps on the right). Bottom: Terrain Acra from the hill above it.

The traffic in Port-au-Prince is not second to what I used to be familiar with: Rome.The only difference is that rush hour here seems never ending: it is at any given time between the moment I get into the car in the morning to go to the camp and the moment I get out of the car at the end of the day.

That is why I started traveling with my laptop and get all the typing that I need to during the hours I spend in traffic. So, you can picture me writing most of my posts stuck in Port-au-Prince traffic. :)

It's almost 7 pm, the sky turned black, the sun hasn’t been around much today and the wind is building up: it's going to be a night of intense rain.

Work in progress: It has been now exactly three weeks since I have requested machinery to clean up the Terrain Acra site. It is filled with years and years of rubbish dumped on this land that is now hosting a community of about 7,500 people - ten times bigger than the village I live in back home but concentrated in an infinitively smaller surface.

I am expecting a call tomorrow morning, and I hope I won’t be disappointed again. The vaccination campaign at Terrain Acra, run by the International Federation of the Red Cross, continued for the second day in a row, with people of all ages going around holding on to their arms in the point where the injection happened. I should have asked the kids to pose for me, in line, showing me their arms.

I am sure there will be more tomorrow.

Most exciting news of the day: A new NGO is planning on starting activities at our site, they will offer psychological support and emergency nutrition awareness for children under 1 year old and their mothers. They will employ people in this community and may at a later date reach out to mothers outside the camp boundaries.

The rain has started. So true that when it rains, it pours! It won’t be an easy day at the camp tomorrow, nor an easy night for the people who live there.

New ARC Blogger

2010-02-25T16:04:00.002-06:00

Thank you so much to Leora for sharing with all of us what she and the team have been doing for the last several weeks. You guys are doing great work, Leora!

But, alas, we need to give Leora a break. ARC Haiti Relief Team Member Simona Palenga will share her experiences and thoughts for the next couple weeks.

Simona Palenga, joined the team in Port-au-Prince at the end of January.
A natural born networker, she has worked in various sectors and is now managing the coordination of the activities in Terrain Acra camp. The settlement is currently home to about 8,000 people who lost their homes in the earthquake.

Welcome Simona!

Songs and Ice Cream

2010-02-23T15:37:00.002-06:00

Pictures (top to bottom):
1) Animators created songs to teach kids about using the latrines. It makes the topic just a little more fun.
2) Tony Hoffman, a child psychologist and lecturer at UCSC, is volunteering with us. This week he taught Animators how to teach children to use the new latrines.

It’s now been four weeks since I first arrived in Haiti. Today was very exciting for me because we did our first training with the Animators in the child-friendly spaces. A professor and child psychologist from UCSC in California is here for a visit and to support the program. He helped do a training with the teachers and explain to them the standards we are trying to reach.

It was very well received and the Animators were happy to be a part of making the spaces better and more accessible for children. They also felt more valued by the organization. We gave them name tags, t-shirts, and some plastic sheeting to thank them for their commitment. Each and every one of them really appreciated the gesture and that we are trying to professionalize the team.

One activity that went over very well was when we showed them how to teach children to use a latrine. We put a slab on the floor and demonstrated how to correctly stand and aim in order not to miss the hole in the ground. Everyone found this very amusing and fun, so afterwards we asked the Animators to create songs for teaching children how to correctly go to the bathroom. By the end, each of the centers came up with their own jingle that they are going to teach to the children.

This will surely be an easy and quick way for them to learn about a very important issue in the camp, hygiene and sanitation. Today gave me a bit more energy and made me excited about the team that I am working with and all we have been able to accomplish.

Plus, I was able to get some ice cream this afternoon in celebration of our driver’s birthday. It was just what I needed to get me through the end of the week.

Facing Challenges

2010-02-21T23:14:00.005-06:00

Now that we have created routines in the child-friendly spaces, we are starting to do more outreach in the community. It is an effort to get them more involved and start to think of the spaces as their own, not structures that were built by the American Refugee Committee. We also want to understand the community’s protection concerns and how we can address them together.

For instance, this week we were getting more reports of abuse and of children who have been abandoned by their families. Specifically, we had two unaccompanied children that were left at the camp. It was a very difficult situation. The community was initially hesitant for us to get involved because of the prior incident where foreigners were caught trying to take Haitian children out of the country.

In the end, some of our staff helped report the case to the police and find a temporary place for them to stay, but the whole situation was challenging. The government is currently very weak and the systems and protocols that existed before the earthquake are not entirely applicable now. Some service providers are no longer there, or they don’t have adequate staff or supplies. All of this makes it difficult to know what to do in situations such as child abandonment, which is a serious and sensitive issue in Haiti at the moment.

Right: This week we hired many more teachers at the child-friendly spaces. Now, there are two for every 25 children.

The Rainy Season

2010-02-17T14:02:00.009-06:00

Above: Teachers at the child-friendly spaces taught children how to make origami flowers. The kids loved it!

The rains have started to come to Port-au-Prince and it is creating new frustrations and fears amongst the population. Many of our teachers are coming to school in the morning saying they haven’t slept because the rains flooded their shelters the night before. Since the camp is muddy, parents keep their children home.

All of this makes it difficult to support children and families through the child-friendly spaces. We are working closely with other organizations to speed up the digging of latrines for children. It is becoming even more critical for them, the girls in particular, to have a clean and easily accessible place to go to the bathroom.

The Animators (teachers) in the child-friendly spaces are quickly getting the hang of the schedule and structure that is being put into place. Today they separated the children by ages and created specific classrooms for each. We also hired many more teachers to ensure there were 2 for every 25 children.

Some of the Animators have gotten very creative. They are working with the kids on interesting and engaging activities that keep them busy and their minds active until they can go back to school. For example, it was exciting to see the children making origami flowers. This was a very popular activity and we made sure all of the Animators knew how to do it so all the kids could learn.

Psychological Concerns

2010-02-16T14:08:00.002-06:00

Psychological concerns are becoming quite apparent among the population here. Most of our staff say they can’t sleep at night. Many people are still sleeping outside because they’re scared to go in — if they even have places to stay that are still standing. Aftershocks have not only frightened people — they have started to make them think there is something worse coming down the line.

The hardest thing for me is hearing from some people that they believe the earthquake was a sign from God and they somehow brought it upon themselves. There are also a lot of rumors being spread, exacerbated by a lack of clear and accurate information. If you go around town you can see the movie “2012” being sold in the streets and watched on street corners. The movie is about the destruction of the world, and many people think that this is the destiny for Haiti in the next couple of years.

The destruction that happened here is inexplicable and is nothing anyone should have ever had to experience, so I guess I understand why the population is bracing themselves for something worse. We will be hiring a psychologist/counselor to come into our health and protection programs in the next couple of weeks. I would imagine that this, coupled with the music, dance, art, and religious spirit that is so alive and well in Haiti, will help people to recover and heal from their trauma.

One Month Aniversary

2010-02-14T21:41:00.004-06:00

Friday was the one month anniversary of the earthquake and the whole city was shut down. It was meant to be a day of prayer and silence, so we gave the Haitian staff and volunteers the day off. It was a sad day for me to think that a month after aid workers flooded the city, there is still so much to be done.

Most of the city still looks as it did a month ago. It makes me sick to think that anyone has to live in such a dirty environment. Many people are still living in public parks or on small pieces of land, with waste building up on the streets nearby. On the other hand, it is amazing to think that human beings can survive and even overcome in such dire situations.

While driving through downtown with Dr. Alerte, our newly arrived Haitian-American doctor, I saw the city through the eyes of a local witnessing the devastation for the first time. He was shocked as we went through the streets near the Palace. He reminisced about his old school, where he used to attend to church, and when he last visited the downtown post office — all completely flattened and destroyed.

It was humbling to hear him say, “Oh, my goodness. Oh, my goodness,” as we passed shops, houses, schools, banks, hotels, night clubs, and government buildings — all of which are now just rubble piled high in the streets.

We came upon a large group that was having a ceremony in front of the Palace, with lots of singing and praying. It made me feel very relieved and at peace, seeing all the women in white and people gathered around swaying to the music. It reminded me how resilient people can be and gave me hope that the Haitian people will somehow find their way.

Child-Friendly Spaces

2010-02-13T14:57:00.003-06:00

This week we finally started and opened our child-friendly spaces. Thursday was very exciting and chaotic, with lots of accomplishments and lessons learned. Early in the morning, the entire camp was wet and muddy since it had rained the night before. Many people I spoke with were upset and worried about how the rains would affect their living situation and environment. In addition to that, there were few children that actually showed up at 9 a.m.

So we started raising more awareness, and by 10 we were ready to start with a small group of children. It didn’t take long before we were inundated with parents wanting to enroll their kids. We actually had to turn away many cute 3- and 4-year-olds that wanted to join in activities but were just too young to participate and not yet ready to be separated from their parents.

The sun came out in the late morning and it got hot inside most of the tents that the children were using. Nonetheless, they danced, sang, did a few informal educational activities, drew pictures, and then finally went out to play. Play time became quickly overwhelming, since there is very little open space and all of the kids got very excited about the balls and jump ropes.

It was challenging to keep all the little children organized, but they all had fun and the community sat around watching and enjoying the activities from afar. However, after play time the kids became very thirsty and hungry. We had difficulty feeding all the children, but they seemed content with the small crackers and water we were able to give to them until we have a more formal system in place for providing full meals.

After the day was over, when all the Animators sat down and reviewed their progress, they said the families and children were all very happy and that the day had been a great success.

Partnering Amidst Devastation

2010-02-12T16:48:00.003-06:00

After driving around earlier in the week, I am realizing more and more the extent to which the earthquake has affected Haiti. The devastation that happened downtown is much worse than other parts of the city due to poor infrastructure and how old the buildings were. It was really shocking for me to see the number of shops and homes that have been completely lost, one after another, and not like in other parts of the city. The biggest thing that people need right now are jobs and some inputs in order to restart business and built back all that that they have lost. It is only the people that had some savings that are able to start reconstructing their lives right away. After two weeks in Haiti, it’s becoming harder to comprehend the amount of pain families are experiencing. I became very ill this week and was up all night with severe stomach trouble which is making it hard to cope with the long work days and images that surround me… I have decided to take some time out and rest today.

Sanitation, Hygiene, and Medical Care

2010-02-11T11:03:00.002-06:00

As the land for the child friendly spaces is being cleared and tents being built to shade children from the sun, we are busy recruiting and vetting possible animators that are going to be the ones working with the children day in and day out. We have come up with a short list and will be starting to train the teachers and officially register children in the coming days.

We also have doctors here that have set up an ad-hoc mobile clinic and have been able to address some primary health concerns. It has greatly assisted us to integrate into the community since they are grateful that there is an organization present and providing tangible assistance. However, the conditions related to sanitation and hygiene in the settlement continues to be atrocious as the people here have basically settled on a garbage dump that has trash all over.

The doctors here are seeing both chronic and acute illnesses, including acute respiratory infections. There are also people coming forward with wounds related to earthquake, although at this point many of the severe injuries and people needing amputations and other life-saving trauma care been attended to.

In our settlement, in particular, there are many women presenting with concerns such as vaginal infections and I can’t help but think this is related to the poor bathing situations, the lack of showers generally but then also the dirty water they are using. We are desperately trying to get hygiene and other kits to hand out to the population… but they are hard to come by since the demand is so high and there is movement towards making them locally due to the logistics involved with bringing them in from the outside.

Protecting Women and Children

2010-02-09T12:29:00.010-06:00

Today we worked with the leaders of the teachers associations to introduce them to the American Refugee Committee's child-friendly spaces and explain the purpose and intent of the program.

There were a lot of questions and concerns about the lack of formal education and vocational training after the earthquake. We explained that we were intending to set up structures that could provide some immediate support to children but that we did not want to be in competition with the formal education system. The hope is that schools will be rebuilt and running again soon.

Everybody was happy to work with us and excited to get the activities started. They were tasked with going back to their communities to ensure parents were informed about the activities.

We also decided where to build three child-friendly spaces. We are building them in central locations to help bring the communities together to mobilize around major concerns -- food, water, shelter, and sanitation. We had planned to build five spaces (one in each zone in the settlement), but land is hard to come by. People are quickly building their temporary shelters in every available space.

In the coming weeks, I want to focus more on women's protection issues and see what we can do to prevent sexual violence. Gangs move around in the evening and are causing issues for those that are easily exposed, which is most of the population. One of the most alarming things for me continues to be women having to bathe in the open or in the evenings. It is dangerous for them when they are outside or on the streets.

There are many women-headed households in the settlements we are working in. There is a great need to tells them about available services and what to do if something does happen. I am also learning that the stress these women are under is immense. They need basic support and assistance, which they haven't been able to get so far.

Challenging Conditions

2010-02-07T14:26:00.008-06:00

It’s been one full week since I arrived as the American Refugee Committee’s Protection Officer in Haiti. Our team is extremely tired, having spent long hours in the sun and eating just one meal a day -- a Meal-Ready-to-Eat (MRE) that we make by pouring hot water into a bag of dried food.

Most of the stores are closed, so it's difficult to buy things and find what you need. Plus, the streets are so congested that it takes an hour or more to get anywhere in the city, making it close to impossible to get much done during the day.

Since it's Sunday and many people are taking the day off to go to church, we are spending our day planning for the rest of the week. We are putting together lists of supplies and liaising with UNICEF on what they can donate to the child-friendly spaces.

The teachers associations submitted informal proposals to us for what they hoped to accomplish in each of their zones. We reviewed the proposals and gave feedback to the teachers. We were also able to get some tents from our colleagues working in Fond Parisien, which will greatly help to provide shelter for the children.

There were lots of people going to church today. When driving around the city, you can see services being held outside and many people singing and praying. Most people here are religious and have been praying every night in hope that they will find a way to start over.

Although there are informal markets and shops that are operating, most businesses lost all of their goods and now have to start over from scratch. I am also running into lots of university students who have nothing to do because their schools have been damaged and their papers are lost.

Some people are saying that the earthquake was a message from God who was punishing the people of Haiti for something they have done wrong. I am telling them that is not true and that slowly things will get better.

Coordination and Child Safety

2010-02-03T17:24:00.007-06:00

It’s only been a few days since I arrived, but it feels like an eternity. Although a lot has been done, the logistics involved with getting people supplies and coordinating the many agencies and organizations here is immense.

Therefore, progress is only measured in baby steps and will likely take time. Besides attending United Nations coordination meetings and liaising with different people on the current gaps and needs, we have been able to make some headway on the creation of child-friendly spaces.

These spaces are meant to be a place where children can go to play and learn, be with other children, and restore some normalcy to their lives. In the settlements in which we are working, children of all ages are around but don’t have anything to do during the days.

Most of them were in school before the earthquake but now spend their days digging in the dirt or playing with small toys that they have made out of trash. In order to make safe centers for children, it is important to get the communities involved so that they can ensure the spaces remain safe and that they are community-owned and managed.

To start, we created and mobilized teachers associations in the five zones within the camp. After walking around and talking with mothers and fathers, we found out that many people had previous experience working with children from kindergarten to university.

We asked them what they thought of creating child-friendly spaces, and they all agreed that it was important and a good idea. They also said that in addition to getting children engaged and active, it was important that teachers started to work again.

They told us that the adults are just as traumatized as the children, so I think we will use the child friendly spaces to reach out and support as many people as we can. Plus children will no longer have to play near sewage.

Life in Terraine D'Acra

2010-02-01T10:20:00.007-06:00

Today we were in Terraine D'Acra, a settlement that is holding up to 8,000 displaced people, and met with some of the leaders of the community. The area is very widespread with different neighborhoods and communities seeking space in whatever area they can find.

There are many groupings of people and although they lived in the same neighborhoods previously, they have never before been forced to live so close to one another and in such harsh conditions. We were hearing from the people that they needed water, latrines, shelter, and food. They are also worried about the land that they were squatting on and whether they will be kicked off or forced to move elsewhere. Luckily, we talked with the landowner and he was willing to grant them temporary space although a long-term plan is yet to be figured out.

The search and rescue teams, as of today, have been sent out of the country. Although the neighborhoods have all been cleared, the population is clearly traumatized and asking for help. There are some families still looking for bodies. Many are choosing to live in settlements, where it is safer and further from the gangs that roam the streets at night.

Others, however, are worried about their land and are sleeping in their front yards or anywhere they can find space on their property. Those that were renting and those that owned their land are all in the same situation--nowhere to go and no means to start over.

There are many places throughout the city that have been completely demolished. Families are living on the roads, in parking lots, or on open ground throughout the city. Women and girls are showering in the broad daylight with no privacy and the city streets are filthy and littered with trash, making the environment almost unbearable.

That being said, children are flying small kites, playing with makeshift yo-yos, and making small plastic cars out of things they have found. The people here are clearly surviving.

More Team Members Join Blog

2010-01-31T14:52:00.001-06:00

Now that I’m back in Minneapolis, our relief workers on the ground in Haiti will continue to post updates on our response. The first contributor will be Leora Ward, Emergency Protection Officer. Leora is based in Washington, D.C., and has been working in Haiti the past couple weeks. Her job is to ensure that women and children, who are more vulnerable in emergency situations, are protected and their needs are being met. Leora’s posts from the past couple weeks will go up tomorrow.

Thank you for continuing to follow this story. Even though media coverage has decreased, the needs in Haiti are still incredible. And they won’t go away any time soon.

We’re still working in Fond Parisien and Terraine D’Acra — giving medical care, providing clean water, setting up shelters, and managing the settlements. We intend to stay as long as we’re needed.

Last Day in Haiti

2010-01-30T18:00:00.006-06:00

Photos: (top to bottom: 1) drilling a well, 2) Fistun, and 3) little girl leaving in the settlement with ARC relief worker Shannon)

Yesterday was my last day in Haiti. I decided that rather than fly out to Santo Domingo, I wanted to see how our team was doing at our settlement in Fond Parisien (an hour's drive east of Port-Au-Prince). I'm glad I did.

When I left our team there, we were putting up the first tents for the settlement and digging the latrines. So much has happened since:
*84 people have moved into the settlement, patients recovering from injuries and their families.
*There is a mobile health clinic that comes to the camp each day to check on patients recovering
*A well was being dug into the aquifer to provide the people with clean water.
*More and more tents were going up all the time.
*Each family had a kit of essentials like soap, diapers, a basin and other items.
*And we distributed food for everyone living in the camp while I was there = beans, sardines, rice, biscuits, Plumpy Nut, and more.

The people living there were all happy that they had the things they needed and a space of their own.

I'm glad, because all of these people have been through terrible things. I met one young man in the camp named Fistun.

Fistun had arrived at the camp the night before. He lost his family to the earthquake. He accompanied his mother, who was injured, to the clinic nearby our settlement. His mother wasn't able to recover and she passed away at the clinic. Fistun then came to live at our settlement.

When he came to the settlement, Fistun cried for hours in his tent. The women in the settlement were finally able to calm him.

Fistun has already started to make the settlement more like home. He was fixing up his tent when I met him, and he had hung up some paintings he painted inside. One of the women asked him how he was doing. He said "petit-petit" better.

This is why we're here - to help Haitians like Fistun recover from the earthquake, physically and mentally.

Thanks so much for following me on my first emergency response. I hope my reflections helped give you an idea of the issues Haitians are dealing with. The Haiti recovery effort will last for years. If you'd like to support the American Refugee Committee's efforts, go online to www.ARCrelief.org and click donate.

Sights, Sounds, Smells at Terraine D'Acra

2010-01-28T12:43:00.005-06:00

I realized I never described Terraine D'Acra. The land belongs to a factory nearby. It's at the convergence of a few different neighborhoods in the Delmas area of the city. 5,000 people are living there, organized based on the neighborhood they are from.

When you walk through the doors to the settlement, there is trash. Trash everywhere. No one lived in this area before the earthquake, but it seems like it may have been used to dump garbage. A small stream runs through the camp, clogged with trash. The stench is very unpleasant.

People have located their makeshift shelters far enough away from the stream that you can't smell it. The whole area is very hilly. Shelters meander up the hill, with structures on each side of a 'main street'.

If you look at the settlement from the top of the hill, you see sticks driven into the ground in all of the open areas. People have searched for wood wherever they can and begun building the foundation for shelter. But there's not enough wood to complete these shelters, and it doesn't seem people have anything to create a roof with.

Some things about life here are normal. Kids are running around playing everywhere. People are trying to support their families. Women are cooking food to sell to others in the camp.

But people here need help. There's no latrines. People need help building shelter. Access to water is limited. And many people need medical attention. We're getting started by distributing shelter supplies and opening a clinic in the camp. But, there's still a ways to go to get all the essentials for this settlement of 5,000 people.

Stay tuned for more updates from D'Acra.

Clinic Day at Terraine D'Acra

2010-01-28T09:42:00.010-06:00

Photos:
1) Doctor sees a mother and child at the clinic.
2) A woman waits with her child for care.
3) Community leaders plan the layout of the settlement (Latrines, safe spaces for women and children, etc. ..) With American Refugee Committee relief worker Eric James.

Yesterday was a big day at D'Terraine Acra settlement in Port-Au-Prince. We set up a health clinic in D'Acra and saw our first 90 patients - some who had quake-related injuries, who had some health issues related to the conditions in the settlement, and some who simply needed care for everyday issues. Along with our partner organization Egale Aimer serve and another local organization, We Were Able to treat patients and distribute medications to those who needed them. But, at the end of the day the line for the clinic was still very long. Our team has returned there this morning to continue providing care to all who need it.

There was significant progress on planning the Terraine D'Acra settlement, too. In all our work, the American Refugee Committee strives to involve the community in our work from Step 1. The people are living in this settlement, they need to have a voice in how it will function. They know best what they need.

Eric James, our Director of Program Development, sat down with the community leaders and hashed out what should be located where in the settlement. He offered our own expertise in managing such sites as well. After a couple of hours they had a rough plan that everyone was happy with.

Steps like these may seem cumbersome, but without them we might end up creating settlements and programs that do not make sense or function the way the community needs them to.

Today, we'll begin working with the community to develop spaces that are safe and friendly for children living at Terraine D'Acra.

Terraine D'Acra

2010-01-27T09:24:00.007-06:00

Internet has been a major difficulty here in Port-au-Prince. I actually texted my last blog post to a friend to post.

There have been lots of developments since I last wrote. Yesterday, we began managing a settlement of 5,000 at Terraine D'Acra in the Delmas area of the city. I toured the very hilly settlement yesterday. (Wish I could send video, but it would certainly fail. Maybe a photo.)

People have begun putting up their own shelters in this area. Wooden stakes and tree branches stick up out of the ground everywhere. People are trying to get whatever materials they can to create shelter.

Fortunately, we had a shipment of tarps arrive from the United States yesterday and today by plane. (There has been an outpouring of support from companies in the form of tents, tarps, medicines, etc. It's terrific!) This morning, we're distributing tarps to the community so that people can get a roof up over their heads. Since the earthquake happened, no rain has fallen in the city. But the situation will become even worse if we begin getting rain and people have no shelter. We'll continue distributing tarps until all in the settlement have shelter.

We're also doing a clinic today. Dr. Bill Markle from Pennsylvania, an American Refugee Committee volunteer, has recruited a medical team to help him stage a clinic at Terraine D'Acra today. With medicines from our shipment, they'll be able to see patients who really need care.

In the coming days, we'll be working to construct latrines in the settlement and create spaces that are safe for women and children.

Yesterday, I met John, a 3-year-old boy living at the settlement at Terraine D'Acra. He offered our team a lick of the lollipop he was enjoying. We politely declined. John was goofy, fooling around, and having a lot of fun, as a 3-year-old should. It was a great thing to see. The hardship of what has happened to his family hasn't quite reached him yet. Our goal is to help John's family get shelter, water, essential supplies, sanitation and a safe environment so he won't have to worry about his family's situation.

Here is a photo of Perry Witkin, an American Refugee Committee board member who helped us organize the cargo plane shipment and distribution, traveling with it from Minneapolis to Haiti.

A Place to Heal

2010-01-25T23:10:00.002-06:00

Chris is currently without an internet connection, so he sent this update at 11 p.m. (midnight his time) via text message:

Today at Fond Parisien we hit the ground running on our settlement for patients and families living at clinics in the surrounding area. It's a good thing, too. The clinics are doing incredible work, but they're set up primarily to take care of patients. Children have nothing to keep them busy. Adults have nothing to do. And there's very little privacy for families.

Our settlement is ready to accept patients tomorrow. Today we got 20 large tents up and dug and built latrines. Thanks to many generous donors, we have lots of supplies for the camp, too. And the camp will have spaces for children to play and adults to relax.

New patients continue to arrive at the clinics, and there isn't enough space. We got our settlement up and running in the nick of time. I was glad I got the chance to help set up the tents. I'm back in Port-au-Prince now. I hope to see the settlement again, this time with people there and patients continuing to heal.

At Fond Parisien

2010-01-24T20:26:00.001-06:00

Part of our Haiti relief Team has been working near the border with the Dominican Republic at a place called Love the Child. Love the Child is an orphanage that has graciously opened its doors to become a kind of field clinic for people who were injured in the earthquake. There are 130 patients here plus all of their family members.

The clinic is focused mostly on post-operative care, which is a gap in this emergency. Back in Port-Au-Prince, one of the greatest concerns is with follow-up care. There are so many people in need of urgent care and surgeries, that quickly developing a plan for follow-up care has been difficult for organizations providing medical care. As a result, people who've had amputations or other surgeries develop infections and go through trauma all over again.

This clinic has been able to ensure that people are recovering fully.

The care at this compound is very good. And the conditions are good. But it is still a very sad situation. Today, a young girl arrived by ambulance from a different hospital - so that she could receive good after-care here. She had what looked like a broken wrist and her foot had been amputated.

We were discussing the other night how long it will take for Haitians to get over the trauma the country has experienced. As with this little girl, signs of the earthquake will remain for an entire generation.

Photos from Port Au Prince over the last few days

2010-01-23T09:27:00.001-06:00

1. A photo from one of the tent cities where people have congregated in the city.
2. A man in front of a building demolished by the quake.
3. A boy playing in a different tent city. Some of the tent cities are in parks where kids might have an area to play. Others are so cramped there is very little space for anything.
4. Destruction from the earthquake.
5. One of the many signs that people have hung up around Port-Au-Prince appealing for help with food, water, first aid.

Food Distribution

2010-01-22T20:50:00.001-06:00

Today we did a food distribution at four different sites in the Delmas area of the city - at 3 of the tent cities that have popped up throughout the city and at one other location.

We targetted the distribution primarily to mothers with small children who might need the food the most. Pregnant mothers received double. We did also distribute to the elderly and some men. In total, we reached 2,200 people today with food.

At the distribution, I met Milia (above). Milia is 20 years old. Today he's living alone with his cousin. The rest of his family died in the earthquake. Milia has no food. No money to buy food. He's finished with university, but he can't find work in Haiti. Without a job and with his whole family gone, Milia can't purchase food for himself and his cousin. He and his cousin are living wherever they can find space right now.

"My house is dirt. My family is dirt. My country is dirt. Haiti is a mess right now. This country is a mess."

Milia's case is not uncommon. Haiti had problems before this happened. And the earthquake has made things many times worse for the people.

The American Refugee Committee wants to get people like Milia to work, cleaning the streets, digging latrines at the tent settlements, or doing other work. It will help the country get back to normal more quickly, but, most importantly, it will give people like Milia a shot at supporting himself and his cousin.

We have another distribution tomorrow morning. People are in serious need of hygiene products, so we're delivering family hygiene kits (soap, laundry soap, basin, towels, etc.) to 1,000 families tomorrow at yet another tent city. I'll let you knwo tomorrow how that goes.

In Delmas area

2010-01-21T13:47:00.001-06:00

We visited the Delmas area of the city. This was the worst destruction I've seen so far. Buildings down everywhere. How the earth can contort and demolish the buildings is astounding.

Every open area of the city - parks, schools, etc. - has now become tent cities. People have strung up sheets to try and create some shade from the sun. And there are thousands of people packed into small spaces. I don't think there were a lot of open spaces in the city to begin with. People are receiving little to no services - clean water, health, food, etc. - at many of these sites.

We're working with the government for the Delmas area of the city to get life-saving support to people in these tent cities. We want to create some temporary structures for families who are now homeless and living in tent cities. There are also those people who have remained close to their flattened homes, reluctant to leave. We have to make these people feel comfortable enough they can leave their homes and get access to water, food, medical care and shelter elsewhere.

On a last note, people in Port-Au-Prince are trying to get on with life. Markets are opening. People are selling things (what there is to sell), trying to get water. Occasionally laughing. It's the rest of our (the world) responsibility to help them do that successfully.

In Port-Au-Prince

2010-01-20T19:11:00.001-06:00

We arrived in Port-Au-Prince today and met up with the rest of our team who've been here since last Thursday. We saw a glimpse of the destruction the earthquake has caused. But I'm told it's nothing compared to most of the rest of the city (will give a report of that tomorrow).

As I'm sure you've heard, there was another quake (6.0, I think) centered just outside of Port-Au-Prince today. Our part of the team was still in Dominican Republic, so we didn't feel it. But, the team members who were in Port-Au-Prince did. They're both fine. But I think the after-shock definitely made Haitians even more scared.

A team member was coming back into the UN compound yesterday evening when he encountered stones in the street. Apparently, people are too scared to sleep indoors. So, entire neighborhoods are sleeping out in the street, putting stones at either end to stop cars from running them over in the middle of the night.

More tomorrow.

Jimani Clinic

2010-01-20T15:20:00.001-06:00

We arrived at the clinic this morning, around 730 am. We delivered essential supplies for nearly 600 patients who are being treated at the clinic + their family members (each patient probably has 2 or 3 family members with them).

We brought hygiene kit items like soap, towels, diapers, feminine pads, toothbrushes and paste that are essential in emergencies. We also brought mosquito nets, fresh bedding, and lots of cleaning supplies to help maintain the clinic. And soccer balls for something for the kids to do.

People are still arriving here for help. Yesterday there were 80 new arrivals and more are expected today. Injuries are very serious. People who must have limbs amputated, burns, and other serious injuries from cinder block structures falling on top of them.

This is a well-equipped but small clinic. There's not enough room for all of those people who need care and there is no place for people to go once they've been treated. Our team is working on a solution for people who've fled Port-Au-Prince and need shelter and basic services.

On to Port-Au-Prince.

To the Clinic at Jimani

2010-01-19T07:19:00.001-06:00

In a few minutes, we're headed to the clinic at Jimani run by Dorothy Vale and Dale (I'm not sure his last name), in a partnership with Mayo Clinic and others. The clinic is just a few km on the Dominican side of the border. Stephanie and Eric from our team visited the clinic yesterday.

Their description of the clinic was like a scene from a Hollywood film. Haitians are being taken by helicopter from Port-Au-Prince for care at the clinic. The small clinic is seeing 300 patients. Doctors are running around treating injuries of the very worst kinds. People are laying on mattresses, outside, on the ground. In the last 40 hours, the doctors have done 60 amputations.

They're low on certain supplies we hope to get them today: bedsheets, IVs, mattresses, stretchers, Adult diapers, masks, scrubs, wheelchairs, walkers, pillows, bed pans, toothbrushes, towels, cleaning supplies, antiseptic, cots, garbage bags. And body bags and a way to dispose of amputated limbs.

Many families left Port-Au-Prince to accompany their family members to the clinic. Up to 500 people are at Jimani and, with more arriving, they're trying to figure out a long-term way to shelter these people. We hope to help with that as well.

More updates later.

Plane to Santo Domingo

2010-01-19T06:46:00.002-06:00

I got on a plane yesterday afternoon headed for the Dominican Republic to join our relief team that's helping people in Haiti. I'm sure you've been paying atttention to everything happening in Haiti since the huge earthquake hit. People are hurt and need medical attention. People need shelter, their homes have been destroyed. And they need food and clean water. We're helping.

The team has been in Port-Au-Prince in Haiti since Thursday last week. We have a seasoned team with members who've lived in Haiti, traveled widely, and responded to many other emergencies. seasoned team with members who've lived in Haiti, traveled widely, and responded to many other emergencies. But this is my first time joining an emergency response.

My role on the team is communications - to send everything I'm seeing - back to all of you. To be a voice for Haitians who've lost everything, suddenly and with no warning. And to be the eyes, ears and heart for people who don't see this first-hand

I had plenty of time to think on the 8-hour plane journey to Santo Domingo. I've seen the photos on television like everyone else of people whose lives have fallen apart. Of kids who've lost their parents. Of people who've been badly injured. Of the mass graves.

The whole way my single question was: how will I react? How will I be able to process the terrible stories I hear? And the incredible suffering?