Haiti Crisis Update #15 from Jimmy Dodd
March 15, 2010 - 10:39:42 AM by Eric Rochester
Incredibly, this blog is being read by people across the country. The power of the internet is making a difference. I encourage you to link this blog to your website, Facebook page and other media. Thanks! —Jimmy Dodd
The Big Picture
I came into a new understanding of the devastation resulting from the Haiti earthquake during a recent conversation with Mike Wilson of Cross International. Mike is a long time relief director who started with the Peace Corp in the 70’s in Haiti. Mike has worked with the poor around the world for decades. He said:
Today (March 2010), we continue to deal with the refugee camp problem. Every day we work to move more people from refugee camps to permanent housing. We continue to work with a number of agencies who are building homes for those displaced by the earthquake. Adequate food and clean water continues to be a challenge.
Mike was not referring to Haiti! He was referring to 1972 earthquake in Nicaragua and the resulting crisis which is ongoing to this day!
The BBC story on December 23, 1972 read as follows:
- Ten thousand people are feared dead after an earthquake ripped through the Nicaraguan capital of Managua. Initial reports suggest whole communities have been wiped out as an estimated 80% of buildings have been flattened with little hope of finding survivors.
- The earthquake which reached 6.5 on the Richter scale has sparked huge fires causing fears those who survived the initial attack may not escape the flames.
- Nicaragua was struck at 12:40 local time when all electricity and water supplies to the country were cut. Telegraph and telephone links have also been severed.
- Aid workers are trying to clear the area to prevent the spread of diseases such as typhoid so that experts can search for survivors and get food and water to the hundreds now homeless. Among the ruins and rubble are two of the city’s three main hospitals.
- Relief workers at the scene are trying to bury the dead in makeshift graves to curb a growing stench. The city is still affected by occasional tremors, and cracks in the road are hampering emergency relief efforts.
- Officials have said they need medical aid and anesthetic more than anything else at present. The United States, Mexico and neighboring countries are preparing to send aid, food and medicine.
- The capital city is above a geological fault which has made it susceptible to tremors and earthquakes.
Does that story have a familiar ring to it? There are a number of parallels to the Haiti earthquake.
Yet, thirty eight years later they continue to deal with refugee camps, displaced families, food and water issues and community sustainability. And, the earthquake in Haiti was worse (7.3 – 6.5). In other words, the problems in Haiti can’t be fixed over night – or even over a decade. This is anything but a sprint. This is a marathon. The needs of Haiti resulting from the earthquake will likely be felt into the 2020’s, 2030’s and 2040’s. Sixty seconds of an earthquake – dozens of years of recovery.
The Discovery Channel recently had a special describing the geological factors which led to the Haiti earthquake. They concluded that Haiti will experience another major earthquake within thirty years. They also concluded that the epicenter will shift thirty miles which would place the epicenter directly beneath the capital in Port-au-Prince.
In other words, when considering the Nicaragua earthquake recovery with the predicted Haiti earthquake, Port-au-Prince may never be rebuilt.
So what, exactly, is the point?
I love what Joe Knittig of the Global Orphan Project said when asked this same question. Joe responded:
Here is the point. People matter to Jesus. We’re all that matter to Him. No matter what your bent. The people here – orphans here – concern Him a great deal. Ergo, they concern us. They concern us enough to give them what we can out of love. A home. Some food. Some water. Some clothes. Even if these things could get buried beneath rubble or swept away by water, they matter. They represent more than things. They represent our hearts.
- “These past two months have been the longest year of my life.” – Mile Wilson, Haiti relief worker with Cross International.
- The story of Moise Vaval (see reflections) is scheduled to be featured on Sixty Minutes this coming Sunday, March 21st. Please take the time to listen to the story of this amazing hero who is giving his life to the Haitian people in the midst of his own grief.
- The rainy season continues to add to the devastation. Refugee camps are now muddy swamps.
- 30,000 commercial buildings collapsed in and around Port-au-Prince.
- While the news has focused in on the heartbreaking news that the death toll has climbed to 300,000, it is commonly overlooked that more than 300,000 were severely injured. Sadly, the death toll will continue to rise.
Reflections
As I write this blog entry I am on my way to Haiti. This is my thirty-sixth trip to Haiti, the first since the earthquake. I have asked myself many times why it took so long to return to Haiti. Family responsibilities, preaching commitments and PastorServe duties have all contributed to the delay. But, perhaps there is more. It has been one of the more difficult challenges of my life to not go to Haiti.
I have written in the past about Moise Vaval, a dear Haitian friend and his son Jean Marc who was crushed in the earthquake. Not long ago, the body of Jean Marc was positively identified in the rubble. A funeral was held on the following Saturday. Not being at the funeral literally hurt my heart.
At Jean Marc’s funeral, Moise stood on the rubble which was once the school which had crushed his son Jean Marc and read Psalm 34.
- 1 I will extol the LORD at all times;
- his praise will always be on my lips.
- 2 My soul will boast in the LORD;
- let the afflicted hear and rejoice.
- 3 Glorify the LORD with me;
- let us exalt his name together.
- 4 I sought the LORD, and he answered me;
- he delivered me from all my fears.
- 5 Those who look to him are radiant;
- their faces are never covered with shame.
- 6 This poor man called, and the LORD heard him;
- he saved him out of all his troubles.
- 7 The angel of the LORD encamps around those who fear him,
- and he delivers them.
- 8 Taste and see that the LORD is good;
- blessed is the man who takes refuge in him.
Not a day has gone by since January 12th when I haven’t thought of Moise and his family. In my office I have a picture of Moise, Joe White and myself taken in Haiti around 2002. It is a treasure. I look at the photo every day and pray for Moise as he 1. Grieves for his eight year old son, and 2. Plays a leading role in helping his homeland recover from the earthquake. In many ways, there simply hasn’t been time to grieve.
I have heard similar stories from veterans. Fighting alongside friends who were a part of the band of brothers, there simply wasn’t the opportunity to grieve when a friend was killed. The battle continued. It was often not until many years later, after returning to the states, that the grieving process begins. Some veterans have yet to grieve, perhaps fearing that the flood of emotion could never be turned off once allowed to surface.
Thanks to the generosity of The Global Orphan Project, Moise and his family recently spent five days in the Dominican Republic, allowing them their first opportunity to mourn away from the demands of leadership. I pray that Moise and his family were afforded emotional freedom to begin to lament their loss.
Why has it taken so long to return to Haiti? I have wanted to allow others to go first. I have wanted to stay to write and lobby Washington DC leaders. But, perhaps I have feared being too emotional to be of any service in Haiti. Perhaps, in a ever-so faint reflection of Moise, I have sensed the need for an emotional release which has yet to reach the surface. Perhaps Moise found a bit of a release in the DR. Perhaps I will find a bit of release when I wrap my arms around Moise on Tuesday.
Please, check your local listings as the story of Moise Vaval will be featured on Sixty Minutes this coming Sunday. The story could be pushed back a week – but rumor has it his story will air on March 21st.
Reports
From Kyle Gillespie who recently returned from Haiti:
The Haitian doctors, nurses & staff were still running their own program (operating room, ER, pharmacy, Xray, etc.) and we non-Haitians had set up our own ER, wound-care area, pharmacy…. One outfit from Texas did an incredible job of using one of the operating rooms to perform skin grafts and plastic surgery for people injured in the earthquake.
It was as if we had two parallel systems (Haitian and Western) operating in the same space. There was some overlap at times (pediatrics, ICU) but most of the time it seemed like we were running independently of each other. At one point, one of the translators told one of our nurses, “I wish you would take over our hospital so our people won’t die.”
Mission Trip Information
If you have any interest in traveling to Haiti, now is the time to get your Passport and Shots (Tetanus, Hep A and Hep B series).
For mission trips to Haiti with the Global Orphan Project – click here
For mission trips to Haiti with El Shaddai Ministries, contact: esmieletter@aol.com
Are you highly skilled in masonry, concrete placement and roofing systems and able to join a construction team? If so please contact: slanier@pcanet.org and provide a summary of your experience and availability.
Jimmy Dodd
PastorServe
Loving, Serving and Blessing Pastors and Ministry Leadership