Haiti Will Recover: Let's Help

Today is my last in Haiti and my priority is to get out into the areas outside the city.  It was hot last night and it's getting hotter at daybreak.  I stayed up for a while last night to hear more of the experiences of the Global Medic group. 

Their surgeon, Dr Mike, has completed more than 200 amputations.  He told me that almost all of these surgeries were done without anesthetic.  It was early in the disaster and there wasn't any available.  What amazed me is that instead of fighting and screaming, most people would either pray or sing.   Dr Mike said that he was prepared for screaming and fighting against him, but the singing and praying unnerved him. That ability to take the worst that life has to offer and carry on is why people say that Haitians are resilient.  It's going to be needed to get them through this horror.

As I headed to bed last night, I stepped among the many people that were sleeping on our hotel grounds.  Every free space seems to be used at night since most of the homes are destroyed.

In the morning, we locate all of our supplies including buckets for making PUR that the team cleans prior to distribution.   The Global Medic folks are making sure their inflatable mobile hospital is operational.  Several more of them arrived yesterday and they'll deploy them today. Rahul Singh, from Canada, is proud of his team's efforts.

I'm reunited with Melissa Crutchfield and the rest of the UMCOR team that was kind enough let me ride with them to Haiti.   Melissa says that they'd like to help with the distribution of PUR, oral rehydration salts, and other water treatment products.  So, today they'll watch me so that they're ready to do it themselves when I leave. 

On the way out of town, I mention to Melissa that yesterday I visited Hotel Montana.  I'm very saddened to hear that UMCOR lost Reverend Sam Dixon and Reverend Clint Rabb, two of their most senior officers, in the collapse of the Hotel Montana. Sam Dixon was Melissa's boss.  So, the UMCOR team also visited the Hotel Montana yesterday and they had a memorial service for their leaders.

We travel through the traffic  to Leogane.  There is gas in many stations now and so there are many more vehicles on the road than when we arrived just a few days ago. 

We pass a stream and stop. The Global Medic folks had identified a refugee camp yesterday that might need PUR but as we stop at this stream, the local people explain their need for clean water.   So, we gather some water and walk back to their informal tent city.

The water is pretty disgusting and there's sewage going directly into the stream.  The lack of infrastructure in Haiti pre-earthquake was pretty bad, but post earthquake is even worse.  There are no toilets in these camps so people are using the bushes and it exacerbates contamination of the water. 

I treat 20 liters of PUR and then ask a local mother, Charleen, to conduct the second demonstration.  She does all the steps correctly and I'm ready to start providing PUR to the community.  We ask the best way to do the distribution and the people introduce us to the local leader, Dargent.  

Things start to get out of hand for a bit and I'm a bit worried it might lead to a riot.  I'm ready to walk away and leave the PUR since our intent is to give it away anyway.  But I'm patient for about 15 minutes longer while we discuss how to achieve the distribution fairly.   We decide to leave an allotment with Dargent and he agrees they'll prepare a list and make sure all the families have PUR. 

It turns out that Charleen is from a different camp and I don't want to leave her out of the distribution.  So, we head to her camp and repeat the instructions for PUR with her community.  

The best part of the experience is drinking PUR-treated water.  Of course, I must drink first.  Charlene drinks second and Dargent decides he'll also show his support.  The drinking is particularly orderly as all the children form into a line.   We have a shortage of cups so to prevent hand contamination from dipping cups in the clean water we don't pass the cups but serve the PUR-treated water to everyone. 

It seems like communion with Charlene being the Priest providing the holy wine as the children step forward to drink.  I mention this to Melissa and then hope it's not sacrilegious to suggest this. But I remember the pastor of ADRA last night saying that it was proper that his group was working on the Sabbath for this work.  So, I think I'm okay.

Melissa doesn't seem upset and in fact, she's now joined me in helping serve the PUR water to everyone.  In just a few minutes, we serve a few hundred and drained the buckets dry. 

When we return from the second village, we see that Dargent already has a team and is distributing PUR from tent to tent.  He's keeping a written list just like we suggested to make sure everyone receives PUR.  I'm so glad to see him following through that I get out of our car, grab him by the shoulders, and give him a big "Merci beaucoup". 

In just a few hours today, I have distributed enough PUR to provide more than a quarter million liters of safe drinking water to Haitians.  It's a great feeling.  We've also trained Global Medic, Adra, UMCOR, and lots of local trainers on how to demonstrate and provide PUR.   P&G has made a commitment to provide 6 million PUR packets - enough to treat 60 million liters - so there's many days ahead like today for our partners.

Kenna, the creator of Summit on Summit: Kilimanjaro called me yesterday to ask if I could take some video footage of our CSDW relief efforts.  I told him sure and that I'm very grateful that SOTSK is helping for Haiti.  He told me that he and Lupe Fiasco were also emotionally impacted by the Haiti disaster and as soon as they returned from Kilimanjaro they wrote and recorded a song dedicated to the Haiti effort called "Resurrection".  Kenna asked me if I could encourage some the Haitians to stand in front of the rubble and show that they were not giving up but going forward.  I said I'd ask them but didn't know how they'd respond. 

So, after providing PUR to these two communities I asked them if they'd give a cheer.  I didn't have to ask twice or force anything.  It's like they'd been waiting for someone to ask them to do this.  A roar came out of them and then the loud cheers of thank you - "Merci".   It surprised me, particularly the enthusiasm and the smiles.  It made me smile back and join in. 

Let me tell you of something that I'm certain.  Haiti will survive this tragedy.  Don't get me wrong, there's nothing good about this destruction and death.   It's the worst that I've seen - much worse than what I saw after the south east Asia tsunami or the Pakistan earthquake.  Almost total destruction of homes, hotels, and office buildings that goes on for 70 miles.  But, if God intended to destroy Haiti, he knows he didn't come close. The people of Haiti are already rebuilding.  Yes, they have a long ways to go.  And, yes, they desperately want and need our help.  But they're not sitting around and waiting for it.  They're doing what they must.  Burying and mourning their dead, loving the ones remaining, and starting to dig out. 

I'm privileged to have been part of the relief efforts.  Thank you to Rahul Singh of Global Medic for hosting me and arranging my transport into and out of Haiti.  And thanks to UMCOR and Emilio Fernandez who allowed me safe transport in their vehicles.  I'd like  to thank our many partners providing relief including ADRA, Americares, CARE, CDC, Hope for Haiti's Children, Islamic Relief, KONPAY, PSI, Pure Compassion Ministries, Red Cross, Samaritan's Purse, UMCOR, UNICEF, and World Vision.  And, thank you to P&G, P&G employees, and the Cover Girl, PUR Water Filtration, and Replay Fine Fragrance brands that are contributing to CSDW.

Let's keep up the work to help Haiti recover. 

Comments

[tracy sheerin]

woohoo! dr. greg. thanks for all your hard work - and for keeping us posted. we're so proud of you here at chiat.

[Nathan Shane]

This is great to hear that we as a company can help in Haiti - over in the UK people have been rallying together to send out what they can and our thoughts and prayers go out to all of those who have been involved.

So pleased that the PUR program could help the people in need when they needed it!

Thanks again

Nathan
P&G Bournemouth UK

[Fleumingue Jean-Mary]

Greg,

Wow, I just had a chance to give your Haiti experience a read. From Kilimanjaro to Haiti, what a journey, I hope you have a safe travel back to your rest point.

As a Haitian-American living in Cincinnati and fellow P&Ger, I am equally proud of the CSDW team to get PUR into Haiti and P&G’s stepped up efforts and commitment to Haiti's disaster relief. The situation in Haiti is extreme. Nearly half of its people don't have access to clean water. Hence, it is inspiring to see the simple, rapid and effective way you, your team, and P&G are helping to meet the water challenge in Haiti.

It's indeed a great testimony that the world is responding to the Haitian tragedy. With the Haitian resilience, it is certain that Haiti will survive this tragedy.

Talk about touching and improving lives in small but meaningful ways, keep up the good work.

Best regards,

FJM