Stories from the Field:
January 2010
Haiti Log
Geoffrey Gamble
Malteser International
2010-01-20 Wednesday Santo Domingo
Arrive Santo Domingo 2230. Greeted by HE Hans Rothe, Ambassador of Malta to Haiti. Bob Branand KM had already arrived from San Juan. Bob had time to locate the UN Liaison [Norwegian, I never got his name]. He gave Bob a number to call to see if we could get a ride to Port au Prince. We discovered that it is not so easy to get there. Options are public bus overland 190 miles taking 8 to 14 hours or some kind of a flight. Ambassador Rothe dropped me off at Hilton Hotel.
2010-01-21 Thursday Santo Domingo
Found out that instead of busses leaving every hour for PaP, which was the schedule before the earthquake, they only left at 1100 daily. They would not take reservations. One has to get to the station early and line up. Turns out that today is a national holiday [Nuestra Senora de Alta Gracia] and most stores closed. We finally found an open food market and loaded up on supplies. We were warned by the Ambassador that we must bring in to PaP our own water and food. I bought 18 power bars at 240 calories each – enough for three per day for 6 days and some apples.
Spent afternoon at hotel trying to get on USG flight. We were discouraged that we might not be able to get to PaP at all. Talked to Fr. Jacques Beaudry, a French Canadian priest who has lived in Haiti for 40 years. He was going back to his residence at the Communite de St Marie in PaP. Tried to see if we could get a ride with him and his armed escort. No room. Bob was amazingly persistent and after many calls and voicemails to the US Embassy in Santo Domingo, managed to get us on the manifest of a Homeland Security helicopter leaving the next day. At hotel met several people from the German logistics firm of Kuehne und Nagel [Tim Smith; Rud Lynge]. They can supply fuel via Miami if we need it. We also met several Lions Club representatives who were taking tents to the border. They are another possible source of supplies. We spent the evening in the Zona Colonia [Historic District] and attended the Mass and procession of Nuestra de Alta Gracia celebrated by the Dominican cardinal.
2010-01-22 Friday
0700 - Found taxi and made our way to San Isidro Dominican Military Base with back packs and food bag for Malta team. Totally dark and no one around. At last saw hanger with some activity. Met by USN Lt Cmdr Flores who had our names on the manifest.
0830 - Boarded Homeland Security ICE Blackhawk and took off for PaP. Turns out pilot was with my old Marine unit, the First Air Naval Gunfire Liaison Company – of course, he wasn’t even born when I was with the 1st ANGLICO in Vietnam. He gave me the starboard gunner seat. My job was to look out for anything coming at us from 1 to 5 o’clock. Open port. No window. Spectacular views east to mountains. Reminded me of flying in Vietnam in an old Huey one leg in and one leg out 41 years ago. Smiled to myself thinking that someone born when Franklin Roosevelt was President should be doing this. Trip uneventful.
0930 - Landed on grounds of US Embassy in PaP. Ground crew greeting us shouted “Welcome to Hell”. On street side of Embassy thousands of Haitians waiting to get in with some connection to USA to see if they could be evacuated. Wait to be interviewed for them by US authorities was 30 hours. Looked for my DuPont colleague, Suzanne James outside the fence to see if I could get her in. but impossible with the crowds even to see her. [She had been doing volunteer work at a convent in Les Cayes when the Quake struck].
The Homeland Security people very kindly offered to take Bob and me by armed escort a couple of miles to the PaP Airport to meet Cesar Russo, an Argentinean logistician working with Malteser International whom we hoped would be there in the airport parking lot, but, since we had no way of communicating with him, we couldn’t be sure. This was our first look at the chaos and devastation. At airport, parking lot in complete disorder. We were dropped off and took it on faith that somehow we would find the Malteser car. We had no idea as to their temporary location or address. Even if we knew, there was no transportation to get there. A crowd of locals gathered around us. After repeated and unsuccessful attempts to reach Cesar by cellphone, we spotted the Maltese Cross on a vehicle. Great relief.
1030 - We took off driving to the town of Leogane, about 26 kilometers west of PaP near the coastline and also directly over the epicenter of the earthquake. It was 90% destroyed. Enroute, Cesar received a call that the rest of the Malteser Team was out of gas on the road ahead of us. We stopped at an open gas station, bought two empty 5 gallon plastic water containers and for US$200 filled them with diesel. Unfortunately no tops to containers. We took some Malteser bumper stickers and made tops and resumed our journey. One of the plastic jugs had a leak in the bottom and the floorboards became covered in diesel. Very dangerous. Smell of diesel covered up the stench of rotting bodies.
Usually newscasts present a disaster worse than it actually is. This time it is different. Thousands of collapsed buildings and dwellings. Most all built of concrete with flat floors and roofs. Houses mostly one story. Some two. Buildings maybe four to seven stories. Cinder blocks inferior. Crumble at the touch. No rebars, or if there, then going wrong way. Thousands of bodies still entombed. Structures collapsed one level upon the other like a layer cake or some hideous baklava of people sandwiched between slabs. Impossible to get them out without heavy equipment. Bodies rotting. Some covered with white powder. Some not. Roads unpaved. Dust. Many buildings that were not destroyed and severely damaged and on verge of collapse with next tremor or aftershock. People utterly afraid to go into any buildings. They are living on street in complete squalor. Mountains of filth and garbage in front and behind them. Their look is dazed and sometimes hostile. We move further out into the suburbs. Not open land or fields, but more space between buildings. Damage seems less. People more friendly.
1200 - After an hour and a half trip we reached Leogane. The rest of the team was waiting along the road near a field hospital run by the Cubans. We introduce ourselves [Malteser Team: Dr. Georg Nothelle, Beate Maass, Arnette Waechter-Schneider. US Medical Team – from Miami sent by Dr. Jose Centurion: Armando Garcia MD – a cardiologist; Scott Crane MD – an emergency and trauma specialist; Matt Malkert – a medical student and public health specialist. Creole-speaking Nurses, US Citizens of Haitian descent, also from Miami: Sulotte Amilcar; Rachelle Alin; and Medgine Colin]. Sulotte was born in Leogane, and her father was once the mayor. She is a valuable source of information about the area and should be closely questioned before she departs.
Creole speakers are essential. My impression is that while most Haitians can understand French, even if they cannot speak it, it is extremely difficult even for fluent French speakers to understand Creole. Thus, an American medical team with English/Creole-speaking nurses is at least as effective – if not more so – than a French-speaking team without Creole-speaking support.
We move on to proposed site for our field hospital post. It is on a road that branches off to the right of the main road going west along Haiti’s southern peninsula about a kilometer past the Cuban medical facility. It is located just behind the UN outpost compound. This compound is presently occupied by Sri Lankan troops. They are cordial but not overly helpful. Their mission is to stay put, I guess. The site consists of a fairly large concrete gymnasium adjacent to the road [which the Haitians will not enter for fear of collapse]. Behind it is some sort of a decaying basketball court. Beside it is about half to three quarters of an acre of open land. Not a great deal of room, but enough.
When we arrived, we found the Argentines there with several tents, one of which was serving as an operating tent. Contact is Senor Esteban Chala, Consultor, Comision Cascos Blancos, Ministry of Foreign Relations, Republic of Argentina. Their plan is to be there for another 7 to 10 days and then withdraw. We also found the Johanniter Order from Germany there working with a small outpatient clinic during the day. Again, they plan to with draw soon as well. They spend their nights back at the PaP Airport in a tent with no electricity or water, and commute each day to Leogane. This is not sustainable for them.
After negotiating collaboration and then take-over arrangements, we went in to the City of Leogane. It is largely destroyed. Parish Church – St Rose of Lima - completely destroyed. We were told that to take up the facility and create a hospital post, we must consult with the Mayor of Leogane, the Pastor of the Church, and also the head village Voodoo Man. Such is life in Haiti. One building, about 5 stories that seemed to survive the quake was the St Croix Hospital. This was built by the Episcopal Church, but they abandoned it 3 years ago. The only people left are the American caretaker of the adjoining guesthouse and his wife. The guesthouse was destroyed, and they are sleeping on its collapsed roof. We were warned that the hospital was totally unsafe and could collapse at any time. We went in anyway and made our way to the operating rooms. All of the equipment is still there – gurneys, medical instruments, surgical gowns. The caretaker mentioned that the Canadians had gone through and taken some of it, but much remains. Too bad the building is unsound. It would have been perfect for our purposes. In any event, no Haitian will enter it. Here I ran into Doug Lane of Project Hope. I know his father, Bill Lane, in DC. Small world. Doug has offered us through Project Hope pediatric antibiotics and other medicines if we need them. They are already in PaP on the tarmac. I put Cesar in touch with him.
Back at our soon-to-be Leogane facility, our medical team began treating patients along side the Argentines in the basketball court. A dressing and medication table was created from old boards and a large wooden cable spindle that served as the legs. One woman had suffered from a broken pelvis for 6 days and was in agony. We erected tarps and clothes to shield patients from the sun which blazed overhead. Many children had severely infected wounds. Word began to spread that we were there and more patients and their families showed up. In addition to being sick, they were desperate for water. We shared what we had and promised to find more. Potable water is more valuable than gold in Haiti.
1630 - Time to go. There is a curfew from 1800 to 0700 in PaP. It gets dark at 1800 and it is extremely dangerous to be out on any street after that. To ensure a safe return, one must depart no later than 1630. Return uneventful.
1800 - We reach the house on the Rue des Freres in the foothills on the eastern side of PaP that Georg found and rented. It is owned by Jean-Baptiste Gerald – a Haitian American whose family is in Miami. The house is substantial by Haitian standards and undamaged by the Quake. There are four bedrooms upstairs and one or two rooms downstairs that could accommodate more people. There is also a rather large covered porch in back that, if enclosed in mosquito netting, could accommodate several people. In PaP, houses that survived have both advantages and disadvantages. There was running cold water [not more than a trickle] and when the generator works, some electricity. There was also a working electric stove. On the other hand, one must exit rapidly at the slightest aftershock or risk the concrete roof collapsing. The alternative is a tent at the Airport. Enclosed garage is being used to hold supplies, medical and otherwise.
1930 - Electricity fails. Pitch black. I brought a bottle of scotch along with the food from Santo Domingo. All had a pleasant evening. No tremors but lots of gunshots during the night. That would wake the rooster next door, and his crowing would wake the 500 dogs in the neighborhood.
2010-01-23 Saturday
Medical Team went back to Leogane at 0700. Curfew does not allow them to depart before then since the drivers for our vehicles must travel from where they live to the Malta house.
We thought of trying to attend the funeral of Archbishop Joseph Miot who was killed when the earthquake threw him from a balcony, and Msgr. Charles Benoit, the Vicar General who was crushed when the cathedral was destroyed. Our good friend, Father Andrew Small, Director of the US Catholic Bishop’s Conference Latin America Office, is attending as well. Funeral to be conducted by Archbishop Bernardito Auza, Papal Nuncio to Haiti.
However, we decided that it was more important to try to find the Daughters of Charity in Cite de Soleil, who have a relationship with the Order of Malta through the Federal Association and see how they made out. I was informed that Cite Soleil was the most dangerous slum in PaP, and that the 4,000 prisoners who escaped from jails when the quake hit, had gone there to reform their gangs. It was also badly damaged by the Quake. I was advised to bring with me only $100 in cash in my pocket. Otherwise no watch, no cellphone, no passport – nothing. If accosted, I was to give them the cash without hesitation. This trip was against Malteser security policy and I took full responsibility for it.
1100 - We arrived in the area and turned off the main road into a rabbit warren of back alleys and small streets. Everyone seems to be familiar with the nuns and their facility and where it was, but we kept being directed further and further into the slum. Finally, it became clear that we were close to being trapped with very hostile people in front of us, and another group beginning to gather behind us. [I learned many years ago in Iran that you always sit in the shotgun seat by the driver, because, if he bolts, you can jump over and floor it]. Time to beat a hasty retreat, which we did. [He didn’t bolt]. I regret not being able to get to the good sisters. Conclusion: there are only two alternatives to get to them for the time being: one is to go with an armed guard; the second is to contact the nuns by phone when the phones work and get them to come to the edge of this slum and escort us back to their place.
1300 - We next went to what was left of the UN Compound near the airport. We met up with the Malteser team which attends what are known as UN “cluster meetings” each day. There is a separate cluster for water, for food, for medicines, for equipment, etc. At this point, there are two primary occupations for relief workers in PaP: either (1) hands-on medical care for those injured or in need of care, or (2) attending meetings like the cluster meetings. Each is essential and takes all day, and one cannot do both. While the Malteser team attended the cluster meetings, Bob and I [actually Bob] managed to persuade those guarding the UN Commissary that we, although not Un employees, would be great customers. So we went in and with our US Dollars bought food and supplies for the whole Malta team back at the House. Also met Roberto Rubio of AECID [This Spanish organization can supply medicines, medical equipment, and maybe tents]. I gave his coordinates to Cesar.
1600 - Returned to House. Medical Team returned from Leogane at 1800 with the news that they delivered two babies that day which made us all very happy. Malteser Team additions Dr. Alfred Kinselbach [an old friend from Uganda] and Wanda Welker arrived by bus in evening from Santo Domingo. We were all briefed by Georg Nothelle. Very good briefing. Food creole good tonight washed down with UN Commissary beer and wine. Bathing a challenge. I anoint myself with Purel followed by a dusting of Gold Bond medicated powder – an effective if ghostly substitute for a normal routine.
A point about water. When it is in short supply, your mind always wants to drink. My backpack contained a bladder which held a half gallon of water. This gave me a feeling of security about dehydration. I never had to use it, but the thought that it was there made life much easier.
2200 - To bed with rooster, gunshots, and dogs. No tremors.
2010-01-24 Sunday
0700 - Medical team departed for Leogane. Goodbyes all around.
0800 - Bob, Annette and I departed for rendezvous with UN Humanitarian Air Service plane to see if we could hitch a ride back to Santo Domingo. Getting in and out of PaP is very iffy. No guarantees. Had some trouble locating the rendezvous point. Annette had a handwritten piece of paper that looked like a buried treasure map. Everyone who examined it pointed us in a different direction. Finally, we realized that the right location was very close to the Main Terminal of Touissant L’Ouverture Airport near the access runway.
As we waited, I noticed across a ditch from us a US Coast Guard Unit. I went over to talk to them. These are great guys and wanted to help in any way that they could. I told them that we were in desperate need of water out in Leogane. They pointed me to their leader, Chief Petty Officer Ortiz who was up on top of a container trying to fix a tarp for shade. I explained our need, and he jumped down and told me to follow him. He led me to a palate of bottled water and said to get our vehicle over to it. I raced back and got Bob and off we went. We had to go onto the runway a bit, but got there. We had just started filling the Malteser van with cases of water, when armed guards from the US Army appeared. Our Coast Guard friends quickly came up and told them we were “with them”. The Army men looked at us and said, “All right, we are going to turn around and walk away for ten minutes and forget we ever saw you. Don’t do this again. We are supposed to shoot people doing what you’re doing. Don’t come back again.” We loaded up the van with more than 2000+ bottles, sent it off to our thirsty patients in Leogane, then boarded our plane. Such is life in PaP.
As we departed, one of the Coast Guard sailors waved his cap and shouted, “God bless you guys”. It put me in mind of our arrival in PaP – “Welcome to Hell”. Even at the mouth of Hell God makes His presence known.
Flight back to Santo Domingo uneventful.
1700 - Went to Mass at Cathedral to thank God for a safe trip and to pray for the Haitians –good sweet people who have suffered so much. Santo Domingo Cathedral built in 1521. It is the oldest church in the Western Hemisphere, but the Divine Presence illuminated by the flame in the small red candle glass on the altar is as new as the babies just born in Leogane.
2010-01-25 Monday
0830 - Departed for Santo Domingo Airport. While waiting for plane noticed a young Haitian boy, maybe 18 years old, sitting by himself in a wheel chair. Broken bones and a bad infection on his arm. After staring at him across the waiting area for some time, I noticed that he was shivering and in utter misery. I walked over and put my raincoat around him. No sacrifice for me. He was skinny and cold. I am fat and perpetually hot. In any event, I feel sure I’ll see the raincoat again on Judgment Day when he pleads for me before the throne of God.
Rest of trip uneventful.
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