Konbit Pou Ayiti

For Immediate Release: November 5, 2007

Emergency Flood Relief for Southern Haiti

Thousands are Homeless After Deadliest Storm of 2007

Gloucester, MA: Haiti KONPAY, based in Gloucester, MA and Jacmel, Haiti, is launching an emergency aid campaign for victims of the floods in southern Haiti. In the wake of the deadliest storm of the 2007 season, families are stranded in the flood waters across the southern region of Haiti, wondering how they will rebuild their lives.

Tropical Storm Noel left no part of the island untouched, and more than one hundred and forty have been reported dead throughout the Caribbean. Haiti KONPAY will distribute emergency assistance to communities in the hardest hit region of the country.

Haiti is baring visible scars from its most recent bouts with Mother Nature. Heavy rains in October produced a mudslide that killed dozens in Cabaret while at the same time destroying fields, homes, and lives in Les Cayes. Winds and rain this week stranded UN and government officials as they toured the devastated southern region.

Agronomist Isaac Cherestal, from the grassroots-based CAPAS in the southern city of Les Cayes reported, “After the rain many houses were destroyed in all the coastal zones. There are no more gardens in these areas, which means there will be hunger.”

Haiti KONPAY is collecting funds for direct assistance to families in the Jacmel and Les Cayes regions. Haiti KONPAY will invest some of the funds in long-term projects for the environment. Families are facing months of grinding hunger due to lost gardens and animals, but without concentrated efforts to protect and restore the natural environment Haiti will continue to face dramatic loss of life due to severe weather.

Haiti KONPAY is coordinating efforts to create a vital network of environmental organizations and institutions in Haiti. The Haitian National Coalition for the Environment was recently launched to link people together throughout Haiti’s ten geographical departments. Massive intensive reforestation is the goal that unites the more than thirty organizations participating in the Coalition, along with finding and promoting an alternative to charcoal.