We’ve been learning more about the damage caused by last Saturday’s earthquake. The 5.9-quake struck near Port-de-Paix, on the northwest coast of Haiti, less than 50 miles from Terre Blanche. The tremors were felt throughout the region.
In Gros-Morne, a 30-minute drive from Terre Blanche, damage was reported in the news. Specifically, we learned that for one patient of the Clinic of Hope, her house collapsed. This patient was recovering from an illness related to her heart and had been at the Clinic earlier in the week. Volunteers have provided her and her family with food.
We know of a woman in Terre Blanche whose house collapsed. Her son is a faithful worker with the volunteer medical teams.
For another man who works at the school and with the visiting medical teams, his house in the nearby community of Finel collapsed as well. He and his children are sleeping outside since they have nowhere else to go.
Damage is also reported in another nearby community called Labranle.
The school buildings in Terre Blanche and Dubedou as well as the staff housing at the Clinic of Hope are in need of repairs following the earthquake. Some of the clinic staff are sleeping outdoors because they are afraid to sleep inside since the earthquake.
At the recent meeting with the Community Health Program volunteers, we learned that some of their homes had collapsed walls and most of the volunteers had big cracks in their house walls.
Beyond the physical damage caused the earthquake is the emotional fear and panic it has created. In 2010, Haiti was struck by a powerful earthquake that destroyed home and killed thousands of people. Tremors, cracks in walls, and collapsed homes bring reminders of the potential damage and loss caused by earthquakes.
Please continue to pray for Haiti and those rebuilding homes since the recent earthquake.
If you would like to help, Haiti Foundation of Hope has an ongoing presence in northern Haiti. We support ongoing medical care and food distribution, among other projects. Donations of any amount will help those in need.