UPDATE: Haiti Disaster

Video Source: MSNBC

Dear Fellow Rotarians,

This is the most tragic situation that you can imagine. The support from Rotary and the world has really stepped up to help and thank you for it.

Here is a brief summary of where we are after 24 hours:

We have communicated by Satellite Phone or Satellite e-mail to most of our Haiti Task Force Team. The situation is so grave they are not yet in a position to move or check on others. Currently we know that ADG Ted Lazarre lost his house and his business and he and his wife and child are on the street in front of the Palace with nowhere to go. I received this message from him via his satellite phone and it went dead almost immediately during the conversation. We are trying to coordinate some assistance as soon as we can contact anyone that is in a position to help. We have not heard from PDG Amos and are still working on it. All other Task Force Leaders are accounted for although we have not communicated with all of them.

At this point our priorities are as follows:

In order of priority we are asking for money first and will have a Foundation DAF account available tomorrow and will also have a District Account with detailed information available by tomorrow. I have also spoken to Rotary in the DR and there is a possibility that we can buy goods and services in the DR and Truck them to PaP.

Secondly we are working on getting shelter, Shelter Boxes of which we have approximately 500 organized to start. We are also looking at the possibilities of â?oMash" type tents for temporary housing and medical shelters.

We desperately need medicine and food. A number of containers have been organized throughout the District and in America and we are in discussions organizing the shipping of those containers through a number of international shipping companies (Tropical Seaboard) that are working with us.

We need clean water and have 100 Water Boxes on their way from England. Additional water purification and supply will be necessary as we go forward.

Our Haiti Task Force ROTAH N.G.O. has funded immediate relief for the few that it can reach.

We need another day or two to effectively decimate the situation and to have our Rotarians to tell us what they feel they want us to do.

Rotarian Claude Surena our Haiti Disaster Chair is our primary contact on this and is working very closely with the Government of Haiti and the Red Cross on our behalf. God Bless him. By 7:00 PM last night he had over 100 injured people in his yard and was out of food, blankets and space.

I appreciate your patience and concern. Please pray for Haiti and give something in support. Your fellow Haitien Rotarians will get it to where it will serve best.

Thank You
PDG Dick

The above is an e-mail received by PADG Haresh Ramchandani at 10:20pm January 13, 2010.