The threat of rain
Hello this is Mark Fried of Oxfam calling from Port-au-Prince, Haiti. I left off my last pod with the tantalising news that I would report next on my visit to the handicapped access latrine that Oxfam built at Petionville club golf course where there are about 50,000 people camped out on the fairway. Sadly I've not been able to get there to see it yet, but it's been described to me. It's like every other latrine except for two simple innovations. First, the door is wide enough for two people to come in, the handicapped person and the helper, and second, there are poles to hang onto and steady yourself. It's simple enough, but no one thought to do it until we asked the camp... You see so many people lost limbs in the quake that it's really needed. What I'd like to talk about to you today is rain. A few drops fell the other night, no more than a smattering, but its got many of us wondering what would happen if we got a steady downpour. There are 100,000s of people living out of doors who have no more roof than a cotton sheet, and there's no question it would make for more misery - just think of the wet mattresses. I asked the Oxfam public health experts and they think we have a breathing space before there are any dire consequences. The real rainy season doesn't begin until April or May, and at the rate we hope to be handing out plastic sheeting for shelter, Oxfam and the other agencies should have a decent, if temporary roof over everyone's head by then. If we fail, of course, there's likely to be a lot of diarrhea, colds and flu, and malaria - all very serious problems in a country as poor and malnourished as Haiti. Speaking of malaria, the mosquitos here are nothing like we have in Canada. They're tiny and skittish and very hard to flap. Besides malaria, cholera is another thing people thought about, but we don't think it will be such a problem because few people drink from surface water or wells which can get contaminated when rains wash human waste into the system. That's why we've concetrated first on drinking water and latrines. The people here are actually very aware of the need for water to be clean. At one site where Oxfam set up a water bladder, particularly for washing because there was another source of water on the site for drinking, people refused to drink the washing water, even though we assured that that it had been treated and was safe, because they just wanted to be sure the water was safe. People are aware of it and know what shouldn't be drunk. Now another potential problem with the April rains is flooding. The lower reaches of the sea flood in the best of times, and now there's rubble blocking many of the national drainage channels like the roads. So clearing the rubble is a high priority for the next few months. Last night I was thinking about the rains and the dangers they might cause when I looked up, and there on the rise, an enormous fire, a mountainside burning bright in the clear night. Golly, and I thought, there is the real danger, not water but fire. Imagine these crowded camps with people cooking on open charcoal fires. Each makeshift home utterly flamable. People need decent shelter and they need it very soon. This is Mark Fried of Oxfam in Port-au-Prince, Haiti.
Hello this is Mark Fried of Oxfam calling from Port-au-Prince, Haiti. I left off my last pod with the tantalising news that I would report next on my visit to the handicapped access latrine that Oxfam built at Petionville club golf course where there are about 50,000 people camped out on the fairway. Sadly I've not been able to get there to see it yet, but it's been described to me. It's like every other latrine except for two simple innovations. First, the door is wide enough for two people to come in, the handicapped person and the helper, and second, there are poles to hang onto and steady yourself. It's simple enough, but no one thought to do it until we asked the camp... You see so many people lost limbs in the quake that it's really needed. What I'd like to talk about to you today is rain. A few drops fell the other night, no more than a smattering, but its got many of us wondering what would happen if we got a steady downpour. There are 100,000s of people living out of doors who have no more roof than a cotton sheet, and there's no question it would make for more misery - just think of the wet mattresses. I asked the Oxfam public health experts and they think we have a breathing space before there are any dire consequences. The real rainy season doesn't begin until April or May, and at the rate we hope to be handing out plastic sheeting for shelter, Oxfam and the other agencies should have a decent, if temporary roof over everyone's head by then. If we fail, of course, there's likely to be a lot of diarrhea, colds and flu, and malaria - all very serious problems in a country as poor and malnourished as Haiti. Speaking of malaria, the mosquitos here are nothing like we have in Canada. They're tiny and skittish and very hard to flap. Besides malaria, cholera is another thing people thought about, but we don't think it will be such a problem because few people drink from surface water or wells which can get contaminated when rains wash human waste into the system. That's why we've concetrated first on drinking water and latrines. The people here are actually very aware of the need for water to be clean. At one site where Oxfam set up a water bladder, particularly for washing because there was another source of water on the site for drinking, people refused to drink the washing water, even though we assured that that it had been treated and was safe, because they just wanted to be sure the water was safe. People are aware of it and know what shouldn't be drunk. Now another potential problem with the April rains is flooding. The lower reaches of the sea flood in the best of times, and now there's rubble blocking many of the national drainage channels like the roads. So clearing the rubble is a high priority for the next few months. Last night I was thinking about the rains and the dangers they might cause when I looked up, and there on the rise, an enormous fire, a mountainside burning bright in the clear night. Golly, and I thought, there is the real danger, not water but fire. Imagine these crowded camps with people cooking on open charcoal fires. Each makeshift home utterly flamable. People need decent shelter and they need it very soon. This is Mark Fried of Oxfam in Port-au-Prince, Haiti.
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