shelterbox

ShelterBox in Haiti: 2 years on

ShelterBox has been working closely with the International Organization for Migration (IOM) in Haiti to assist thousands of families in rebuilding their lives. 

Exactly two years have passed since a 7.0-magnitude earthquake struck the Caribbean island of Haiti causing an estimated 230,000 people to lose their lives and making a further 1.5 million homeless. 

Despite the international community’s response to the enormous disaster, over 500,000 people have still been living in overcrowded camps on private land. 

ShelterBox has been coordinating a project with IOM to help families to either return to their place of origin, or set up homes in a new location they have identified. Residual stocks of tents and emergency equipment have been distributed to these displaced families to enable them to finally start to rebuild their lives. 

'IOM and ShelterBox have been working in partnership in Haiti since February 2010,’ said Luca Dall'Oglio, the IOM Chief of Mission. ‘Initially a Health Team program saw ShelterBox tents utilised to provide patients injured in the earthquake with a safe place to live and recuperate with their families.’ 

ShelterBox solution only option 

In many cases the landowners are using violent methods to evict the families from the camps on their land. These families do not have the time to wait for the transitional shelter or reconstruction programmes, which have been slowed down due to political issues and the cholera outbreak that has killed nearly 7,000 Haitians since it began last October. For these families, the ShelterBox solution is the only option. 

‘IOM were able to support delivery logistics and the partnership has continued strongly throughout the emergency response as we work towards interim relocation or returning families to their land,’ added Luca. ‘The durability of the ShelterBox tents and the non-food items that also come in the box have been a key incentive to encourage families to leave overcrowded camps and begin to rebuild their lives.’ 

Tom Lay, ShelterBox Operations Coordinator, has been in Haiti working with the IOM:

‘Helping families to restart their lives after a disaster is exactly what ShelterBox endeavours to achieve,’ said Tom. ‘The fact that we are still delivering aid two years on from the earthquake just shows what a huge disaster this was.’ 

Lasting relationship 

‘We hope that this partnership will form a lasting relationship as we tackle the problems faced by families around the world in the aftermath of disasters,' said Luca. 

Over 28,000 ShelterBoxes were sent to Haiti, the greatest number that ShelterBox has ever sent out to a single disaster. This was only possible thanks to the tremendous support from ShelterBox supporters throughout the crisis. 

ShelterBox responding to Turkey earthquake

ShelterBox is responding to the 7.2 magnitude earthquake that struck southeast Turkey on Sunday 23 October, with the epicentre at the village of Tabanli, 20 kilometres north of Van city. 

Two hundred people have been reported as killed following the collapse of dozens of buildings across the region; with thousands more homes severely damaged and many more fatalities expected to be confirmed within the next 24 hours.

ShelterBox is liaising with the Turkish Red Crescent Society and other local contacts with Mark Pearson, ShelterBox Field Operations Specialist, en-route to the affected area.

‘One of the biggest problems the population will face will be the numerous aftershocks and a fear of returning to buildings when so many have been destroyed already. As ever our focus is ensuring the most vulnerable are receiving aid as quickly as possible,' Mark said.

Emergency help urgent

Zulfukar Arapoglu, the mayor of Ercis district of Van, told news broadcaster NTV: ‘A lot of buildings have collapsed, many people were killed, but we don't know the number. We are waiting for emergency help, it's very urgent.

‘We need tents urgently and rescue teams. We don't have any ambulances, and we only have one hospital. We have many killed and injured.’

ShelterBox net spreads beyond Port au Prince

A ShelterBox Response Team (SRT) has delivered 250 ShelterBoxes to Jacmel in the south of Haiti.

SRT members Tom Newman (UK) and Greg Rogers (UK) travelled to the area last week to ensure the effective distribution of the ShelterBoxes to people in desperate need of emergency shelter.

ShelterBox Head of Operations, John Leach, said: ‘We are continuing to spread our net beyond Port au Prince. Last week a newly arrived two man team comprising Greg Rogers and Tom Newman headed south to Jacmel.

‘They’ve wasted no time in assessing needs and distributing the boxes. Tom, who’s on his first deployment, has been doing a great job of running logistics from Santo Domingo (Dominican Republic) and now has his chance to get out in the field.’

Aid for more than 80,000 people has now been distributed in Haiti and enough aid for thousands more will start arriving at the end of February.

Key partnerships

In Port au Prince, the SRT are continuing to work with a range of partners to ensure ShelterBoxes reach the people most in need.

SRT member Mark Boeck (UK), who is currently heading up the team, said: ‘This operation has differed from other deployments due to the high density of the populace in Port au Prince.

‘The lack of available space to pitch our tents and the scale of the disaster has meant that we’ve had to adapt the way in which we distribute aid. We’ve been working with a large collection of organizations, from small orphanages to large NGOs such as Handicap International and Medecins Sans Frontieres as well as the US military, whilst continuing our excellent partnership with the Miami University Field Hospital.’

SRT member Dave Ray (UK) added: ‘I’ve been liasing with ELIN Relief Association (IRE) to build a camp of 74 ShelterBox tents in the Tabarre area. Chaplain Christy Smith told me that a week ago there was a great feeling of resentment and anger within the camp. ‘But now, thanks to ShelterBox, these people have found hope.’

One of the residents in this camp, Janine Cazdeu, told the SRT that she was ‘very glad’ to receive a ShelterBox tent as now her baby does not have to sleep under the sky. Fellow resident, Esther Henry, added that now she has a ShelterBox tent, her four-day old baby, Shakira, will be safe.

Head of Operations John Leach has now returned from Port au Prince to ShelterBox HQ in the UK and has praised the work of the teams on the ground, ShelterBox’s volunteers and all the supporters around the world.

‘I’d like to say a huge thank you to all ShelterBox supporters worldwide who have contributed to this massive effort,’ he said. ‘Without the contributions from donors, Rotary Clubs, schools, scouts, groups and individuals around the world and the commitment of our army of volunteers, none of this would be possible.’

Aid for thousands in Haiti with more to follow

Nearly 100 tonnes of additional aid is being flown to Haiti this week as thousands of people who lost their homes in the devastating earthquake are being given the chance to start rebuilding their lives in ShelterBox tents.
 

Emergency shelter for more than 20,000 people is now in Port au Prince and surrounding areas with small camps already set up in Delmas, Petion-Ville, Carrefour and Leogane.
 

Hundreds more ShelterBoxes containing disaster relief tents and other life-saving supplies are being sent to the city in the next few days from Miami, Curucao and France, meaning another 11,000 people will be given emergency shelter.
 

On Friday, ShelterBox is chartering a 747 aircraft with 1,800 boxes to fly from Stansted Airport to the Dominican Republic where they will be taken overland to neighbouring Haiti.
 

It is the second flight chartered by the international disaster relief charity for the Haiti response after a plane loaded with 700 ShelterBoxes and 100 tents flew out of Newquay Cornwall Airport last week. ShelterBox Response Team members Jane Nash (UK) and Gary McCafferty (UK) travelled overland from Santa Domingo with an aid convoy to ensure the ShelterBoxes reached Port au Prince at the weekend.
 

John Leach, Head of Operations for ShelterBox, said: ‘The need in Haiti is massive. Our team in Port au Prince is working with Dutch marines to ensure the safe and effective delivery of disaster relief tents and hundreds of these are already being used in four different locations.
 

‘Distribution of aid by our highly-trained ShelterBox Response Team members is underway but the need for emergency shelter is still desperate.’
 

A number of ShelterBoxes have also been used at an orphanage and at two hospitals in Port au Prince where tents are being erected to help save lives.
 

Speaking from Bernard Mews Hospital in Freres, a suburb of Port au Prince, ShelterBox Response Team member Wayne Robinson (US) said: ‘Right outside the hospital there have been hundreds of people who have been laying in the sidewalks, on the streets and in blankets right on the ground in unbelievable conditions. They are bleeding, they have missing limbs and there are even women giving birth.
 

‘We felt this was a good use of the initial boxes that we had here on the ground and we’ll be bringing more here and using them as a transitional point to get people out of the elements while they are waiting for treatment at the hospital. Buildings have crashed down all around us here and people are just waiting and waiting to get in here for medical services.’

Rotary Denmark Exceeds 300 box target

A few Days ago Rotary Clubs in Denmark responded to the Earthquake in Haiti by  setting a target of raising 1.5million Danish Kroner, the equivalent of 1 box per club in Denmark. Earlier this evening we passed the target level and the commitments are still coming in.  This means that we can supply over 300 Shelterboxes.

What a great effort!! Clubs will continue to raise money by taking Demo Boxes out to Shopping centres and a raising the profile by television and Radio appearances. 

Circa 600 visitors a day to ShelterBox.DK

We are getting many visitors to our site every day as a result of the Haiti earthquake.  We will continue to add information as it emerges from our team in Haiti.

ShelterBox flies 40 tonnes of additional aid to Haiti from Newquay, Cornwall

Forty tonnes of emergency aid is being flown to Haiti from Newquay Cornwall Airport as ShelterBox’s massive aid operation to the earthquake-stricken country continues.

Enough emergency shelter for 7,000 people will be loaded onto a chartered Airbus A300 today, Wednesday, January 20, to be flown directly to Port au Prince Airport or nearby Santa Domingo to be transferred immediately to the devastated island.

The first aid from the international disaster relief charity arrived in Port au Prince on Monday with hundreds more ShelterBoxes scheduled to have land on a chartered flight from Miami yesterday. Disaster relief tents have already been used to build an emergency field hospital at Port au Prince airport.

 

Because of the logistical nightmare of getting aid into Haiti, ShelterBox has used a variety of means to get aid into the island including flying boxes on a Red Cross plane from France and on Virgin Atlantic flights via London Heathrow. So far, 1,700 ShelterBoxes have been dispatched.

 

Securing a chartered aircraft for 700 more ShelterBoxes means thousands of people in Haiti left homeless by last week’s devastating earthquake will be receiving disaster relief tents and other emergency supplies essential for survival.

ShelterBox’s Founder and CEO Tom Henderson said: ‘In terms of logistics, the aid operation in Haiti has been ShelterBox’s most challenging in the last decade, with only one airport on the island which has been shut until recently and the port shut as well. 

‘As food, water and medicines are now starting to get in, the focus now is fulfilling the urgent need for emergency shelter.’

To add to the logistical problems of delivering aid in Haiti, the airfield has only been operating during daylight hours and there has been a shortage of aviation fuel.

 

Richard Thomasson, Airport Operations Manager at Newquay Cornwall Airport said: ‘The Airport is delighted to be supporting ShelterBox in sending aid to Port au Prince. ShelterBox plays a crucial role in such catastrophes and we are happy to facilitate such aid flights to assist in this process directly from Cornwall. 

Help for thousands en route to Haiti

A child in a Port au Prince hospital. Photograph: Mark Pearson

Emergency shelter provision for more than 30,000 people has now been pledged to the people of Haiti with more due to follow but the logistical nightmare in Haiti continues.

1,700 ShelterBoxes have already been dispatched and a further 1,600 will leave from the UK this week directly for Port au Prince, Haiti. Warehouse volunteers in the UK have worked tirelessly packing the boxes. This is a total of 3,300 ShelterBoxes with more to follow.

The ShelterBox Response Team (SRT) on the ground is continuing its work with ACTED and local Rotarians in order to ensure the fastest and most effective distribution of aid.

David Eby (US), Wayne Robinson (US) and Mark Pearson (UK), who have been in Port au Prince since Thursday, have commenced training sessions with their contacts on the ground to help them deliver and distribute the ShelterBoxes.

While there has been no confirmation of ShelterBoxes arriving in Port au Prince logistics teams in the UK, the ShelterBox Logistics team in Miami and the SRT in Haiti are doing everything within their power to ensure the boxes reach Haiti as quickly as possible.

ShelterBox Head of Operations John Leach said: ‘The people in Haiti need everything now. We’re doing all we can to land emergency shelter provision in Port au Prince but we’re mindful of not adding to the logistical nightmare on the ground.

‘This is a massive logistical challenge and that is why we have a team in Miami helping coordinate the logistical effort.’

SRT members Mark Dyer, John Lacquey, Steven Tonkinson (all US) and Ian Neal (UK) have met up with ShelterBoxes sent to Miami on Virgin Atlantic flights. Ian Neal will be heading to Santa Domingo, Dominican Republic to run further logistics from there and work with the Response Team in Port-au-Prince.

                                    
                   ShelterBoxes arrive in Miami, USA on a Virgin Atlantic flight

The UN estimates that 200,000 families, up to one million people, are in need of immediate shelter in Haiti.

ShelterBox Founder and CEO Tom Henderson says: ‘This is as bad as we’ve seen it. There’s never been a bigger need. We’re receiving support and donations from all corners of the globe and from people who come from all walks of life.

‘ShelterBox relies entirely on public donations and people’s generosity. We receive no institutional funding and no DEC money. I’d urge, if you can, to help us.’

3300 Shelterboxes committed to Haiti so far

·         Latest estimates are that there are 1,000,000 people in need of immediate shelter in Haiti.

        1700 ShelterBoxes have already been despatched. These include the prepositioned stock in Curacao, the boxes from El Salvador, the boxes sent to France to fly across with the Red Cross and boxes being flown into Miami by Virgin Atlantic.

·         Another 1,600 boxes are being packed making a total of 3,300 committed so far. This is enough aid for up to 33,000 people. Volunteers will still be packing round the clock throughout the coming weeks.

930 boxes dispatched; 1000 being packed; Virgin helping with Transport

ShelterBox Response Team (SRT) members Dave Eby (US), Wayne Robinson (US) and Mark Pearson (UK) are on the ground in Port au Prince, Haiti.

  The team arrived in the island’s capital on Thursday, January 14 and have already been in contact with government officials, ACTED and Rotarians in the country.

 

The Response Team, who are completely self-sufficient, have set up base with the help of a Haitian Rotarian.

Speaking from Port au Prince, David Eby said: ‘We’re working hard to resolve security, logistics and communications. The city is totally devastated. Our host told us, “There is no more Haiti .”’

 The situation on the ground remains fraught with the damaged infrastructure in Haiti hampering the aid effort but ShelterBox is doing everything within its power to ensure aid reaches Haiti imminently.

 ShelterBox’s Head of Operations John Leach said: ‘We spoke with our team in Haiti this morning and already they’ve been working with other aid agencies and the government to assess where ShelterBoxes are most needed. ‘Our priority is now getting logistics in and doing all we can to get it on the island. We’re sending a ShelterBox Logistics team into Miami to work and coordinate logistics into Haiti from there.’

ShelterBox’s Logistics Manager Richard Lewis added: ‘We’re doing everything we can to make sure emergency aid reaches the people of Haiti.

‘The situation is changing by the minute and we’re exploring every single avenue available to us in order to make sure the aid gets on the ground as quickly as possible.’

 The ShelterBox Logistics team, made up of SRT members Mark Dyer (US), John Lacquey (US) and Ian Neal (UK), will meet a consignment of ShelterBoxes being flown into Miami, USA and run the logistics into Haiti from there.

930 ShelterBoxes have already been dispatched and are en route to Haiti while another 1,000 are being packed today at ShelterBox HQ by ShelterBox’s team of volunteers.  Virgin Atlantic are supporting the relief effort by flying hundreds of the ShelterBoxes on their planes.

 Sir Richard Branson, President of Virgin Atlantic, said: ‘Everyone who has seen the sheer destruction in Haiti over the last few days will have been moved to help in any way they can.

‘We will fly in as much aid as possible so that the agencies on the ground  can respond to the needs of everyone in Haiti whose lives have been devastated by this tragedy.’

 

 

With the need in Haiti growing each day, there are millions of people in need of emergency shelter. ShelterBox Founder Tom Henderson, OBE, says support at this time is crucial.

‘The support we’ve seen in the last few days has been staggering,’ he said. ‘It’s all hands on deck for ShelterBox right across the globe. People in Haiti need our help and we stop until they get it.  If you can help, in any way at all, I’d urge you to do so.’