Keep the Haitian People Close to Your Heart. There Problems Have Just Begun.

Haiti’s rain falls in diagonal sheets.  The raindrops here are the biggest I have ever seen. 

It is.  3:30 in the morning.  I’ve spent the better part of two hours trying to duct tape plastic garbage bags over the “windows” of the shelter box tent, which leaks from every zipper.   The shelter boxes are fine ideas, but not for Haiti.   There are leaks throughout my tent, after two hours of efforts to secure it.  And I have tape.

I don’t mean to complain, because our situation is by far better than most in PAP.  The majority of Haitians do not even have leaky tents.  They have plastic sheeting and tarps to cover their families and belongings.

Sean Penn left yesterday and is telling the world about the impending health crisis that will be caused by the rains if housing issues are ignored.    I hope someone at home listens to him because every good thing that has been done here (medical and otherwise) will be destroyed if we fail to address and solve some basic infrastructure problems.

Our transporteurs sat in the rain last night and begged me for plastic sheeting.  I tried to get them some but the project insisted (not unreasonably) that we need it for the hospital to patch up our own holes so the patients can be moderately dry. 

Mud is being tracked into and through the hospital tents.  More flies and mosquitoes will follow.

I feel so helpless.  None of what we have done will make a difference in a month or two.  All the people in casts will lose their limbs because the casts will get infected.  Once the water starts moving through the streets all of the human waste and human remains will move with it.  

We already saw our first case of salmonella poisoning -- from fresh lettuce at the U.N. restaurant!    

This will only get worse.  Fast.

Here is what my "shelter" looks like from the inside in the rain.  Apologies for the in-the-dark in-a-downpour quality of the images