A view of the dwellings that fill the hills surrounding Port-au-Prince (Scott MacKenzie, March 2009)

At 4:53 p.m on January 12th a 7.0-magnitude earthquake centered just 10 miles west of the Haitian capital of Port-au-Prince violently shook and toppled an already dire situation there. Reports coming out of Port-au-Prince are that the city has been largely destroyed. Hospitals, schools, government buildings, UN’s MINUSTAH headquarters, and homes have all collapsed. Building debris and fallen electrical lines block roadways, and relief supplies have yet to reach the roughly 3 million people who are estimated to be affected. Tens of thousands are feared dead, and more are likely missing. Aftershocks have continued to rock the city and dampened hopes as the great many who are now without shelter and basic supplies such as food, water, and medicine face further challenges.

Roughly 3300 miles from the destruction, the tremors of what has happened shake me, and I can only imagine the scale of what has occurred. As I struggle to find the best way to contribute to the relief and recovery, and to help ensure the safety of friends and colleagues of mine who experienced these horrific events in Port-au-Prince, perhaps it is wise that I share with you some of my thoughts and experiences, and hopefully offer some insight into what has happened. As I learn more, I will do my best to add and refine information.

Extreme Environmental Vulnerability
I visited Haiti in March of 2009 as part of a team that was conducting an environmental needs assessment following the devastation brought on by the prior 2008 hurricane season. In August and September of 2008, a combination of hurricanes and tropical storms battered the country in rapid succession, knocking out infrastructure, flooding low-lying areas, and decimating economic livelihoods. Hundreds were killed, millions were temporarily displaced, some permanently. In many ways the country is still recovering from those storms; it was poorly prepared for another horrific event of this nature, particularly an earthquake the likes of which have not been felt on the island in over 200 years.

Photo: Scott MacKenzie, March 2009

Haiti is particularly vulnerable to extreme events such as these – in many ways it is a case study in environmental mismanagement and vulnerability. Perhaps most notable is the deforestation that has reduced tree cover on the Haitian side of Hispaniola (Haiti shares the island of Hispaniola with the Dominican Republic to the east) to some 2% of its original reach. The lack of forested areas exposes the country’s steep hills to severe erosion, and over time this has removed a tremendous amount of topsoil. The loss increases the likelihood of flooding and landslides across the country. Access to clean water and basic sanitation are largely absent in many areas, and waste – much of it human and animal excrement – pollutes much of the water supplies that are available. What doesn’t pollute merely piles up, with waste amassing in street, alleys, and waterways from the capital to the most rural areas.

There is no one reason for Haiti’s squalor, but there is some explanation found in the country’s poor institutional capacity and beleaguered history. Haiti’s fragile government and weak civil infrastructure has been plagued by decades of mismanagement, political and economic corruption, violence, rampant environmental degradation, social upheaval, and neglect. It is the poorest country in the western hemisphere, with over 80% of the population living on $2 a day or less, and depends heavily on remittances from expat members of the Haitian Diaspora to provide economic livelihood.

Port-au-Prince, January 13, 2009 / Photo: Eduardo Munoz, Reuters (via NYT)

Perspective on a Disaster
As our team drove through the winding roads of Port-au-Prince, I was struck by both the sheerness of the hills upon which thousands of dwellings had been constructed, and the shoddiness of their making. Construction is constant all over the country, but it is often incomplete, and generally in areas that are vulnerable to extreme environmental events like hurricanes and earthquakes. This is most evident in the slums that lie below the hilly areas of pocketed affluence in the capital city.

At that time, it was difficult to imagine many of these structures withstanding one hundred mile an hour plus winds and the deluge of storm run-off from a hurricane. The impacts of a 7.0 magnitude earthquake can be nothing short of complete catastrophe.

The work needed to get the country back on its feet will be extraordinary. Given the circumstances prior to the quake, Haiti will have a steep climb ahead. One can only hope that it offers an opportunity for more sustainable development moving forward.

Photo: Scott MacKenzie, March 2009

“Truly Horrific”
Two of my colleagues from that field trip are currently trapped in the capital of Port-au-Prince. Their hotel collapsed in the quake, but they were luckily able to get themselves to the UNDP headquarters a short distance away – the very same headquarters where we received our security briefing and clearance before heading out to the countryside to conduct our assessment last spring. I was able to reach them online today; their brief description of the destruction is truly horrific.

They are safe, although they are without medical and relief supplies, and are using what they do have to treat people in between the aftershocks. People have arrived at the gates to the fenced in facilities seeking assistance. An eerie silence lingers across the city, and as time advances, the scale of what has unfolded becomes apparent. It is a desperate situation. They are now faced with the difficult decision of whether to evacuate, or stay and assist in the emergency relief efforts.

Assist
At this time, the most important thing that any of us can do is to stay informed and offer our assistance in whatever capacity we can – whether that is through donations or  volunteer efforts.

The Clinton Foundation has a page set-up for donations:

Donate to the Clinton Foundation

Yele Haiti is Wyclef Jean’s organization:

Donate to Yele Haiti for earthquake relief