As Haitians continue to reel from Hurricane Matthew’s rampage through their island nation, they are now bracing for yet another catastrophe — cholera. The powerful storm severed water pipelines and contaminated drinking water, leaving the country’s residents extremely vulnerable to the waterborne infection, which can be fatal within hours if left untreated. Samaritan’s Purse has set up a Cholera Treatment Center in a remote area of western Haiti that so far has been the hardest hit by the disease. They have deployed a team of doctors and nurses, who are working to save lives and reduce suffering. They also sent a Disaster Assistance Response Team to serve alongside the Samaritan’s Purse staff based in Haiti to distribute aid to those most affected by the deadly storm.
Their DC-8 cargo plane made five flights to Haiti in the days after the hurricane, carrying a total of 100 tons of tarps, hygiene kits, water filters, and blankets. It also has transported medical supplies for the Cholera Treatment Center, including IV fluids, antibiotics, oral rehydration solution and educational materials on how to reduce the spread of cholera. As their staff works around the clock to provide urgently needed relief to the people of Haiti, they have also deployed U.S. Disaster Relief staff and equipment — including three of their Disaster Relief Units (DRU) — to hard-hit locations in the Carolinas where the storm dumped up to 18 inches of rain. The DRUs will serve as command centers for staff and volunteer teams as they clean out flood-damaged homes, tarp roofs, and remove trees downed by the hurricane’s winds. Further information is available at www.SamaritansPurse.org.
Prayer and Support
Your prayers for this impoverished nation and its resilient people are critically needed, along with financial support in this time of great need.
Bob Woods has worked as an engineer at AECOM Technical Services and HBC Engineering, and is a published Christian author. He served as a full-time missionary in Les Cayes, Haiti for a year. He and his wife Marie, a Haitian national from Les Cayes, have served at CCFL. He can be reached at [email protected].
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