CALGARY – By the dinner hour on Tuesday Calgarian Urbain Louissaint had left about a dozen anxious phone calls and e-mails with his brother, who lives and works in Port-au-Prince, Haiti.
But with thousands feared dead and communication lines down throughout the Haitian capital in the wake of a massive earthquake, Louissaint’s calls weren’t getting through and he’s had no response to his e-mails.
"We are very worried and hopeful that he is OK," said Louissaint, whose brother is married, with three children.
"We’re seeing that houses and buildings came down and we don’t know if he was in the area at the time or not because we can’t even get through on the phones. I just need to get an answer."
The earthquake struck 16 kilometres from Port-au-Prince and was initially measured at 7.0 on the Richter scale. There were two strong aftershocks, followed by a tsunami warning issued for the area.
Louissaint, president of the Haitian Association of Calgary, spent Tuesday afternoon and late into the evening glued to television and Internet news, gathering at the group’s office with other community members hoping to learn more about the fate of family and friends.
Jean Fevry, past president of the association, said he and others are praying for the country, which has seen its share of upheaval and disasters in recent years, including hurricanes in 2008.
"This is a catastrophe," said Fevry, who was born, raised and educated in the impoverished Caribbean nation before moving to Calgary in the late 1980s. "All we can do right now, from here, is pray and hope for the best. Haiti has been through a lot for the past two or three years, but it seems like this is going to be the worst of it all."
Fevry has friends and family in the area, including a sister, and a brother, who is married with children.
Although none of them live directly in the earthquake zone, they visit the capital city, which concerns Fevry. "If we were able to reach them I would feel better."
Fevry and Louissaint said they are reaching out to members of the association, and indeed all Calgarians, with an eye on offering assistance to the country.
"We don’t know what to do but we will do whatever we can to help them deal with this," said Fevry.
"We will try to raise money and we will try to help them spiritually. They are going to really need our help."
Aid agencies are stepping up to offer assistance in the affected area, including Samaritan’s Purse, which is sending staff to take part in the emergency response.
"In circumstances like these it usually includes providing drinking water, cooking kits, hygiene kits and construction materials to build temporary shelters," said spokesman Jeff Adams.
To donate call 1-800-663-6500 or visit http://www.samaritanspurse.ca.
dtetley@theherald.canwest.com———
About Haiti
– – The Caribbean nation of 9 million is a former French colony, founded by freed slaves following a revolt in 1804.
– – Haiti is the poorest country in the Americas with annual per-capita income of $560.
– – More than half the population lives on less than $1 a day. There is a high infant mortality rate (60 for every 1,000 births) and the prevalence of HIV among those between ages 15 and 49 is 2.2 per cent.
– – Haiti’s infrastructure is close to total collapse and severe deforestation has left only 2 per cent of forest cover.
– – After decades of dictatorship, former Roman Catholic priest Jean-Bertrand Aristide became Haiti’s first freely elected leader in 1990. He was ousted by a military coup in 1991, but reinstated with U.S. backing. He was forced into exile in 2004.
– – Haiti has been led by President Rene Preval since May 2006 when the country returned to constitutional rule.
Sources: World Bank, UNDP, CIA
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