HAITI NEWS (updated on March 6, 2010) Rains in Haiti heightened the misery for
thousands upon thousands of peopleforced to live in the open, in tents or
under tarps by the Jan. 12 earthquake near the capital of
Port-au-Prince, reportsSara Coppler, a veteran of Habitat’s
Disaster Response projects and director of operations for the Haiti
work. Theshowers were an early reminder of the
rainy season, andthen the hurricane season, to come,
making response plans ever more urgent.
Habitat has a goal of serving 50,000 families with shelter
needs—about 20 percent of the 258,541 households
lefthomeless or with damaged homes following the
quake.
EMERGENCY SHELTER KITS: Distribution of Habitat’s emergency
shelter kits is under way. Kits assembled in theDominican Republic, Haiti’s island
neighbor, already have been distributed and kits assembled in
Atlanta, Georgia,USA, are due to arrive this week.
Distribution will begin immediately, utilizing partnerships with
organizations thathave processes in place to safely and
smoothly deliver assistance supplies. Because the need for tools
remains so high,Habitat may be asked to assemble an
additional 10,000 emergency kits. That request—coming from other
organizationsin the United Nations Shelter
Cluster—likely would be made this week.
SAFETY ASSESSMENTS: Meantime, Habitat continues to be a part
of providing technical assistance to assess the safety ofhomes. While many homes are still
standing—some with perhaps little damage, many with more extensive
butrepairable damages—people remain afraid
to sleep in them, not knowing how stable the houses are, or whether
even a minor aftershock might cause
collapse.
TRANSITIONAL SHELTERS/CORE HOUSES: Habitat, working with CHF
International, has pilot-tested a transitional sheltermodel that we expect to begin building in
Leogane and Cabaret—communities outside Port-au-Prince—within the
nextmonth. We expect to launch construction
of the first 50 permanent core homes in about six weeks. The core
house,with extensive disaster-resistance
features built in, is designed to be expanded by the home partner
over time asfinances allow. Construction of the
initial 50 core homes is planned as a demonstration project to show
thegovernment, other NGOs and funders that a
quick response providing permanent shelter solutions is possible—if
fundsare available. With the rains already
starting, disease concerns growing, and hurricane season fast
approaching,permanence is a goal thousands of
families desperately await. Recap: WHAT IS OUR PLAN? Based on what is known now and Habitat's
past experience with international disasters, our early response to
the earthquake is expected to be threefold: 1) mobilizing people to clear the
way for shelter construction and home rehabilitation;
2) distributing building materials
and tools in shelter kits;
3) construction of transitional
housing. The extent of each intervention will depend on the amount
of support we are able to mobilize. IS HABITAT ACCEPTING DONATIONS OF TOOLS AND BUILDING
SUPPLIES? Habitat is collecting offers of product
at the moment as we do not have a full understanding of what is
needed in those areas affected by the earthquake. Also, Habitat
for Humanity does not have warehouse facilities needed to store
materials until we are ready to use them. We are asking companies
that are willing to make a donation of needed products to send
Habitat for Humanity International a letter of intent on company
letterhead outlining what gift could be made, how long it would be
available and how it could be delivered. We are not equipped to
accept tool donations from individuals.
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------ CHILE NEWS (updated on March 6, 2010) Habitat for Humanity is responding to the
devastating 8.8-magnitude earthquake that struck off the coast of
Chile, 200 miles southwest of Santiago. A report from the Ministry
of Housing indicates that approximately 500,000 homes suffered
considerable damage and 2 million people have been affected by the
quake. Habitat for Humanity has a strong
presence in Chile and has been invited to be a part of the
government’s assessment of housing needs created by the quake. With
four project offices in the areas most affected by the earthquake,
Habitat staff are on the ground now to also evaluate the damage to
its offices and homes built. All Habitat homes in the Metropolitan
and Valparaiso regions appear to be in good shape after the first
inspection. Habitat for Humanity Chile has provided
more than 3,500 families with housing since 1998 and works in each
of the five regions of the country. Our ability to expand work in
Chile to effectively meet the housing needs created by the quake
will require support from individuals, churches, corporate partners
and other organizations—particularly in light of resources already
committed to Haiti. |