Tortola, VI,  February 3 , 2010 (DDM)-  Two Virgin Islands’ residents are back in the Territory after being deployed for approximately 10 days to assist with relief efforts in the wake of the January 12 earthquake in Haiti.

Messrs Ron Mobley and Dwayne Straun returned to the Territory on Monday, following their deployment to Haiti and Jamaica respectively.

Mr. Mobley, a retired firefighter and paramedic, was deployed to Haiti on Friday, 22 January.  Reporting on the operations on the ground in Haiti, Mr. Mobley said, “The capital of Haiti seems to be divided into two separate worlds. In one part of the city life seems to have returned to normal with street vendors setting up and doing business as usual.  The other world that now exists in Port-au-Prince is very much different, with people living in makeshift shelters in over 350 separate small communities that have been formed throughout the city on every open field available. It is here where relief efforts are being focused.  With no other place for these people to go, it appears that this situation may be ongoing for some time to come. "

Efforts are being made by the Caribbean Disaster Emergency Response Agency (CDEMA) with the cooperation of member states, to provide suitable tents for the people of Haiti. Plans are being developed to organize ‘tent communities’ to help reduce concerns about health and sanitation problems. 

Mr. Mobley explained that when he left Haiti, the CDEMA response team was finalizing a plan for the Civil Protection Agency in Haiti which would organize the ‘tent communities’ and provide a long-term structure to supply them with food, water and other basic necessities.  He acknowledged that the recovery will be a long one and will take the continued support from the people of the Caribbean and around the world.  Reflecting on his time in Haiti Mobley said, "Our problems are nothing compared to the suffering we saw.”Mr. Dwayne Straun of Virgin Gorda, an emergency medical technician and rescue specialist who was deployed to Jamaica on January 23 to assist in setting up logistics operations for getting relief supplies into Haiti, also returned to the Territory on Monday evening.

Speaking to the DDM about his work and experience in Jamaica Mr. Straun said, “I am happy that I have been blessed with the expertise to be able to assist on this mission and honored to have had the opportunity to represent DDM and the BVI.” 

He added, “I was also impressed with the outpouring of support and the community spirit displayed in Jamaica and around the entire region.  There have been so many donations from across the Caribbean thus far and even more that are still on the way.  This is definitely a wake-up call for us in the Virgin Islands considering that we are in an earthquake prone area.  This could have been us."

In the aftermath of the earthquake, the Government of the Virgin Islands pledged $80,000 in relief aid and also made search and rescue experts available to Haiti, along with national disaster personnel to support staging operations in Jamaica.

A number of local organizations including the Rotary Clubs, the Red Cross and the Haitian Association have also made efforts to secure pledges and provide technical experts in the form of medical doctors.

In related developments, a Situation Report provided by CDEMA on Tuesday, February 2 stated that emergency relief and response operations are continuing in Haiti despite significant challenges.  The report also indicates that there has been a mass exodus of some 235,000 persons from the capital, Port-au-Prince.

According to the report, three priority areas have been declared by the Government of Haiti.  Listed in order of priority, these are housing and shelter, health care and food and water.

The Virgin Islands and 10 of its regional counterparts have so far responded with military and other disciplinary forces, medical personnel and technical teams.  Efforts are being made to strengthen the Haitian Civil Protection Agency to serve as the lead in addressing the priority needs. 

CDEMA in collaboration with the Caribbean Community (CARICOM) has so far provided for the treatment of over 1000 persons, assisted in the distribution of relief supplies, provided convoy security for distribution or relief supplies, conducted search and rescue operations that resulted in the rescue of six persons including two children, established partnerships with non- governmental organisations and international organizations and provided engineering teams to assess structures that require repairs and reconstruction.

The DDM is the Government agency that is responsible for the management of disaster preparedness, response, mitigation and recovery and linking them to its stakeholders.

Contact
Linton Leonard
Information and Education Manager
Department of Disaster Management
Telephone:  284-468-4200
Email:  bviddm@surfbvi.com