Published Sat, Jun 10, 23.
Written by Rebecca Honorat.
You may have seen the video we posted on social media this week about the flash-flood in Leogane. If not, go check it out or have a look at this news article from New York Times:
It had been raining hard (even by Haitian standards) and the surrounding mountains were directing a huge amount of water into the river. Leogane is built on the flat lands around the riverbed and it is susceptible to flooding. The swollen river left the riverbed and raged through the heart of the town. It happened quickly and people, cattle, and even vehicles were caught off guard and washed away. Small business near the road were completely washed away. Other cities experienced flooding but Leogane was hit the hardest.
Leogane is a 15 minute drive from where our headquarters is located in Grand Goave so this hit close to home for our staff and our families.
Our program administrators, Luckner & Garry, gathered some of our High School students and went to help clean up yesterday. Below are some pictures of them working - the water stains on the buildings show how high the flood waters reached.
One of our Program Administrators - Luckner Laporte (aka Ti-Moise)
These students know what it's like to have a community rally around them in a time of need. Bonhomme, Betty, and Nachika lost their dad, Dieuvel'homme, in a car accident last year. Nono was injured in that same accident, and he almost lost his brother several years ago from undiagnosed type 1 diabetes. Shelda's aunt stepped into her life when her parents couldn't afford to look after her. All of them lived through the horrific earthquake in January 2010.
They jumped on the opportunity to help their neighbours in Leogane. This is what walking alongside people looks like - together we can make a difference!
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Alongside Families in Haiti Society is a Registered Canadian Charity
