Having visited Haiti earlier this month I decided to mark the fourth month anniversary of the 12th January 2010 earthquake on the 12th May with 12 updates which I placed on twitter, Facebook and a number of other sites. They are as below:
1. Sadly devastation in Haiti is much worse than what television portrayed & the risks remain high. ref: Sean Penn: http://bit.ly/dnu8tf
2. When the disaster occurred a man cried out “Do something so that people can have hope” There is still a lot of need for things to be done
3. In addition to damage of the palace, most Government buildings in were severally damaged or completed destroyed displaying Govt depts.
4. A significant number of people Haiti in live now tent camps – some real tents others made up & often not rainproof – it’s hurricane season
5. A lot of people in Haiti whose homes were not badly damaged sleep in tents by their houses/in compounds for fear of further earthquakes
6. Last Monday while in Haiti there was a 4.4 scale aftershock. The ground beneath my feet literally shook. This was not d 1st aftershock
7. In Haiti there are still half collapsed buildings across the city with massive amounts of rubble in the streets
8. Haiti a camp coordinator said- thank God we are still alive, thank u for coming it’s good to know people care –we r all brothers & sisters
9. I was informed that prior to the earthquake the key needs of Haiti were Food & work. Now there is an additional need for Housing
10. Big concern is what happens when disaster relief ends in Haiti. Unlike other places, most pp in Haiti don’t have a “normal” life to resume
11. A key solution for Haiti lies in the hands of Haitians at home & in Diaspora to work with the support of the rest of the world
12. A lot of caring people are making a difference in Haiti, but it feels like a gigantic wound is being covered with a tiny plaster
I plan to provide 12th updates on the 12th of every month up until the 12th January 2011, the 1st year anniversary of the earthquake.
Please don’t forget Haiti!
Copyright 2010. This document is the specific intellectual property of Susan Popoola. Content may not be reused or reproduced without the specific permission of the owner or a reference to the source. Opinions may be generated