On 14 August 2021, a 7.2 magnitude earthquake shook Haiti causing wide-spread damage in the southwestern areas of the country, particularly in the cities Les Cayes and Jérémie. In the following days, aftershocks continued to traumatize the nation, and were then confronted by storm Grace, which caused further complexities for the rescue teams and victims of the earthquake. While NPH facilities in Kenscoff and St. Damien Pediatric Hospital in Port-au-Prince were left undamaged, many families of children and employees at NPH are from the south and have been directly impacted by the earthquake, losing loved ones and their homes.
According to data from the United Nations Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs and the Government of Haiti, they found that:
- 2,207 people died and 12,268 were wounded
- 650,000 people and 260,000 children in need of humanitarian assistance.
- 130,000 houses were partially or completely destroyed
- 53 health facilities were partially damaged and 6 were destroyed
- 308 schools were destroyed or heavily damaged
- 81,000 people lost access to their drinking water source
Our team travelled to the south on the day of the earthquake to provide emergency first aid care in conjunction with the St. Luke Foundation. NPH has since been assessing the extent of the damage and loss of infrastructure, as well as identifying the most affected people and communities.
The team is currently trying to access more remote regions to support stranded communities, especially those in mountainous regions, where many families and children do not have a roof over their head and they struggle to find any source of food.
Social assistance to disaster victims.
You can support us in bringing aid to victims of the 2021 earthquake. Through your donations, we can provide tents, water, food, first aid medical equipment, as well as building materials, to rebuild some of the housing that was damaged for those that are left homeless. It is essential that we continue to travel to the south to provide our support, as well as to do psychological training workshops in order to give hope to the victims.
You can make an impact through giving a donation. Please give now.
