Haiti 8 months after the earthquake

The Luxembourg Red Cross were in the field with the dog rescue team immediately after the disaster. They worked together with other teams from the Emergency Response Unit, searching for victims buried under rubble. In a second phase, five Luxembourg members of the ERU took turns to ensure the distribution of disaster relief items from several National Societies of the Red Cross. Luc Stoffel was deployed at the request of the International Federation as a specialist in emergency shelters.

Health issues already present before the earthquake

Health problems were already very high in Haiti long before the earthquake. Infectious diseases constitute the leading cause of mortality, but there are other sources of concern such as malnutrition, malaria, diabetes, cardiovascular diseases, psychological disorders, etc.. To address these problems, the Haitian health system is very deficient both qualitatively and quantitatively. The cholera epidemic became an additional problem.

“When you arrive in Haiti, you see garbage everywhere as well as destroyed buildings. People live in tents that are raised above their former house, this was a very powerful image for me. The situation is chaotic. My first thought was: they do not live, they survive. Indeed, the reconstruction work started slowly because the priorities were health and safety issues. Despite this, one feels the plight of Haitians who have recently suffered heavy rains that caused further damage in the form of landslides. The population is very fragile and the fear of having another drama is omnipresent.” – Jorge Valente