A journey into Haiti’s hurricane heartland

Mikai Edward 42, lost her home where she lives with her six children and husband in front of the ocean in the Zoranje neighborhood of Roche Bateau., Photo by Marie Arago for Catholic Relief Services.

Mikai Edward 42, lost her home where she lives with her six children and husband in front of the ocean in the Zoranje neighborhood of Roche Bateau. Photo by Marie Arago for Catholic Relief Services.

By Fr.  Jean-Hervé Francois, director general of Caritas Haiti

Seeing the destruction wrought by Hurricane Matthew in Haiti’s South and Grand Anse is beyond anything that we could have imagined.

Our journey took us to Petit-Goâve and Vialet. Both were badly hit. Miragoane City is damaged, but greatest devastation witnessed is in the suburbs. From Aquinas to St. Saint Louis du Sud, the strong winds left trees destroyed.

Cavaillon is a nightmare. The river flooded the entire town, leaving it ravaged. Residents witnessed animals, trees, debris and human bodies being swept away. Twelve people have been found dead under the mud and twenty four more are missing. Teams of workers have been clearing the streets of mud.

Leaving Cavaillon, there is a growing sense of the extent of the damage – collapsed roads, splayed electricity pylons, uprooted trees and washed away homes. Families on the side of the road are drying what Matthew didn’t take away.

On the route to Les Cayes, things just get worse. After the bridge at La Ravine Torbeck along the coastal route, very little remains standing. Trees point in all directions. Houses, schools and churches are without roofs, some collapsed or washed away.  Smashed factories and petrol pumps. Livestock gone, as are hopes of a harvest. The land has been washed away by the storm.

On the road to Jeremiah, La Borde and Camp-Perrin are covered by fallen trees, the pride of the area no longer. Houses and government buildings are reduced to piles of debris as if an explosion has taken place. Everything is in tatters.

In Beaumont town, people have no water or food. They’ve become aggressive to passing cars.

Gomier has been violently sacked. ‘Carrefour Leon’ hit by a catastrophe. Jeremiah and its environs are destroyed with scenes of dilapidated houses, debris clogged streets piling on the dead. Words cannot describe what has happened to this corner of Haiti.

A home destroyed by Hurricane Matthew in Roche Ë Bateau, Haiti. Roche a Bateau, a town roughly 30 miles south of Les Anglaise. where the eye of Hurricane Matthew struck, has very few homes standing. Photo by Marie Arago for Catholic Relief Services

Roche a Bateau, a town roughly 30 miles south of Les Anglaise. where the eye of Hurricane Matthew struck, has very few homes standing. Photo by Marie Arago for Catholic Relief Services

I met people dazed, wondering if it is real. They cannot believe that towns such as Dame-Marie, Anse-d’Hainault, les Irois and Carcasse no longer exist.

Doctors in the hospital in Jeremiah have the look of warriors, overwhelmed, tired beyond endurance but still standing. Priests stay with their flocks who have escaped death.

This is not only a humanitarian disaster, but also an ecological one. The region has lost its earth, its soil. Macaya Park is devastated. Rare animals and plants are gone. A poor country looks set to become poorer.

Despite everything, we meet people back on their feet already. Local solidarity is there. The little we have we share.

People are working together. Young people are clearing roads. Families have built shelters. Roofs are being repaired. Damaged trees tied down. Farmers at work. Donations from within the country are coming in.

Despite the catastrophic situation, the Haitian has kept his smile, a sign of hope for better days.

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