Friday, March 19th, 2010
Our flight out of Haiti was today. Although we had intentions of staying for longer, we had to ensure that we secured our seats within the days we had off, as they were limited. It happened to be the same day that the Union group left as well.
The view from the box truck for the last time
We were silent for most of the ride back to the airport. The sombre tone that had insidiously settled among us seemed to correspond with the wet & heavy overcast sky. The start of the rainy season encroached upon the weary city. It was hard to say goodbye to everyone we met, volunteers & locals alike. These were the people that truly enriched our experience in Haiti.
I remember reflecting on the events that had happened leading up to this very moment. It all seemed to be a blur.
Following the 7.0-magnitude earthquake in Haiti, there were 52 aftershocks measuring 4.5 or greater by the end of January
[1]. The Haitian government reported over 230,000 people had died, 300,000 injured, & over one million left homeless
[2]. The damage is evident everywhere you turn in Port-Au-Prince & surrounding areas. The construction standards in Haiti are low, with no building codes
[3]. Structures are often raised wherever they are able to fit & some buildings are placed on areas with insufficient foundation. Vital infrastructure important in responding to disaster were severely damaged or destroyed
[4]. This included many hospitals which had collapsed, communication & phone systems were impaired & could no longer operate, transportation routes & roads became blocked, & facilities of aid organizations were also affected. It was a logistical nightmare to just provide disaster relief in the early stages & we witnessed & experienced these very issues first hand as they continued to reverberate months post the initial event. Tents, tarps, & makeshift housing provide shelter for the surviving homeless. Some of these shelters are mere bedsheets, hardly enough protection from the upcoming rainy season. And there are predictions of landslides occurring & dams collapsing that could flood entire towns
[5]. Many people have fled to the countryside for refuge, leaving already poor farmers barely making ends meet with even more mouths to feed
[6]. So in spite of the ubiquitous beauty across the countryside, there is evident strain from the disaster rippling from within the large cities throughout the land. The impact of this disaster is huge with multifaceted implications & repair will continue for years, if not decades.
It's overwhelming to face the realities as a foreigner, let alone as a Haitian citizen seeing this happen to your own family, your friends, your country. I cannot imagine. Can you?
And yet there is still laughter & smiles. In a country so ravaged with abject poverty & harsh destruction, after falling so many times for so many years, the people continue to stand up. The relentless fortitude that Haitians seem to inherently carry just blows me away. After seeing their own loved ones killed in their very own homes, Haitians picked themselves up & helped their neighbours. Every single one of the interpreters we met were personally affected by the earthquake, losing loved ones & some being injured themselves. They all started to volunteer soon after the earthquake hit, whether it be helping with interpreting for foreign aid workers in medical clinics, or building new shelter, or shoveling debris off the roads. There is a deep understanding among Haitians on the true meaning of community & compassion. It is a slow process, but there have been many signs of improvement, such as the markets opening & hospitals, schools, & other facilities beginning to function once again. There is still so much help needed, but with continued direct support from local & foreign volunteers, there will be progress.
For the good, the not so good, & everything in between, we are so grateful for everything that happened. And we are so very honoured to have had this opportunity to help. As quickly as things seemed to fall into place for us to go to Haiti, we now stood at the edge of our time within the country; our eyes just a little wider, our hands content from good use, & our hearts aching even more than ever.
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