The hurricane

Expectant for the approaching weather system, it dawned upon me that our preparations were cold comfort when put into context. We live, fortunately, in a sturdily built home, with ample protection from the onrushing storm. The same cannot be said for the vast majority of the population in Leogane.

When it arrived for twenty-four hours it was no more explosive than a torrential downpour typical of England. However, for the hundreds and thousands living in cramped conditions in poorly constructed corrugated iron housing, let alone the tented IDP camps, it was a crushing blow. Considering all that has befallen Haiti in such a short space of time, this was just one of many disasters that the communities have had to face. Standing out above all else is the stark contrast between our complete safety and the destruction wrought by flash flooding in the communities. As with the earthquake a complete lack of infrastructure and adequate housing has threatened the vast majority. This time, fortunately, it seems that the loss of life may only reach single figures.

To add some colour to the picture of devastation, it is worth understanding a bit about those we are in contact with from the area. Guilou, our house manager, a lady of about forty, spends her days working to support her entire family; herself, four children, two step children, her mother and blind father, her aunt, her partner and her great uncle. This is not unusual in a population where sixty percent are unemployed. She called that morning to ask for our assistance in evacuating her home as it became inundated with floodwaters. Her family were relocated to our ample space and she came to work for us after, in vain, trying to save the contents of her home.

Flooding is nothing new for Haiti, nor to Britain. What is striking, though, in contrast to our experience, is the immanent risk of flash flooding in a country where basic housing is a luxury, where flood defences are non-existent, where riverbanks burst and flow with impunity into the heart of heavily populated areas. If there is one thing that this episode proves, it is that, in order to avoid further damage in future, it would take a Herculean effort to focus attention on improved infrastructure and to deal with, once and for all, the IDP camps in a humane and novel way.