'It's incomprehensible': Hamilton's Haitian community closely watches fallout from earthquake, tropical storm

Rev. Lourdy Dorismond wasn't just watching the scenes from Haiti with horror these past few days — he was also desperately trying to contact his mom.

The priest at Hamilton's French-language Notre-Dame-du-Perpétuel-Secours church grew up in the area of southwest Haiti that was devastated Saturday by the 7.2 magnitude earthquake. At least 1,400 people have died.

Dorismond is among members of the local Haitian community watching from afar, as the people displaced and injured in the quake and ensuing tropical storm wait for basic necessities, such as food, water, medical care and tents.  

Dorismond had been waiting for news of his mother, who he says was alone at home in Coteaux, a city of 60,000 about 30 kilometres west of the more populous port city of Les Cayes, as the quake hit.

"I was so worried," he told CBC Hamilton in French, translated into English, on Tuesday. "After a long time, finally I had the news that she was alive. It was a relief."

Dorismond's siblings live in Port-au-Prince, a nearly six-hour drive east in good conditions. He said he is thankful his mother's neighbours stepped in and took her somewhere safe. "She was overwhelmed."

He went to high school in Les Cayes, and has watched the images of destruction there with deep sadness. Officials say more than 7,000 homes have been destroyed and 5,000 more damaged, leaving about 30,000 families homeless. Hospitals, schools, offices and churches also were demolished or badly damaged.

"As if the earthquake wasn't enough, yesterday [Monday] tropical storm Grace went through," he said, adding his mother was describing people whose homes have been destroyed, stuck outside in the heavy rain and wind with nowhere to go. "It's heartbreaking to see… It's terrifying. The images I am receiving of Cayes and Coteaux are really difficult."

He lamented the frequency of tragedy for people in the region, saying weather-related disasters seem to have become a yearly occurrence, let alone the uncertainty caused by the assassination of President Jovenel Moïse on July 7. 

"The evils of the world are falling on this part of the world where people have hardly any recourse," he said. "People don't know exactly what they will do… It's incomprehensible."

"I am begging everybody to keep praying for us"

Jean-Carme Dorcent, a member of the Haitian Association of Hamilton, has friends from nursing school in Les Cayes, but hasn't been able to reach them since the earthquake. She said although she is from Saint-Marc, about 90 kilometres north of Port-au-Prince and further away from Les Cayes, it doesn't lessen her grief over the devastation.

"For Haitians, it doesn't matter where you are from…. It is one tragedy after another," she said, saying the lack of control over what happens there can manifest in feelings of trauma. "I am begging everybody to keep praying for us."

She said she hopes the international community helps her home country, but also worries about aid not going where it is needed most — something she said occurred after the 2010 earthquake. 

"For some reason, the people who were affected didn't get it," she said, placing part of the blame on the country's government. "[The political situation] is a big barrier."

She said it appears as though non-governmental organizations (NGOs) can sometimes take a cut of donations meant for disaster relief, which can be frustrating for donors. "There [are so many] fees… I don't think it's fair."

Local charity appeals for funds

Serena Bufalino, who runs the Hamilton-based charity Help Heal Humanity, appealed for donors on the steps of city hall Tuesday, saying her team on the ground had lost family members in the recent quake, but was still ready to help.

She said her charity is run almost exclusively by volunteers in order to keep costs low, and she works to ensure as much money as possible goes to her projects, which include an elementary school they built and run, after-school and summer school programs, sanitation projects and assistance with the Haitian Special Olympics team.

Bufalino said money donated in the short term would go toward meeting people's basic needs, such as providing food, water, medical supplies and tents.

"There are hundreds of people just sitting outside with absolutely nothing," she said. "Three of the local schools have been completely demolished, so there's no hope for a September start."

As for Dorismond, he said that despite his work as a public speaker and communicator, he is left without words when people ask him about ongoing crises facing Haitians. 

"Christians go to church and pray for a better future, but each year, it starts again," he said. "We don't see the light at the end of the tunnel."

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