Renel Ginol and son, Renelson, inspect their home in Jérémie, Haiti, which was destroyed by Hurricane Matthew Oct. 4. Photo: UNICEF/Moreno GonzalezThe roof of their house collapsed and hurt one of Genelís legs, before they could get away and take shelter in a nearby vocational school. ìNow I help my father in all I can,î explains Renelson. ìI want him to know that I am also strong and we can fix our home together.î Hurricane Matthew has put the lives of millions of children in Cuba, Haiti, Jamaica and Dominican Republic in danger. In Haiti, it is estimated that half a million children live in the most affected areas by the Hurricane, particularly in Grand-Anse and the South.
The Anglican Church of Canada’s relief and development agency is asking for donations to support the people of Haiti as they attempt to cope with the aftermath of Hurricane Matthew.
The Primate’s World Relief and Development Fund (PWRDF) launched an appeal for Haiti Saturday, Oct. 8, noting that, while the storm had passed, its effects were likely to continue to be felt for some time.
Matthew was the most powerful storm to have hit the island nation in almost 10 years, PWRDF said. It brought torrential rains and winds of close to 220 km/h to a Haiti still recovering from the catastrophic earthquake that struck in 2010. About 60,000 people were still living in tents or other makeshift homes as a result of the earthquake.
As of press time, at least 1,000 people had already died in Haiti as a result of the storm, according to the CBC. Tens of thousands of homes have been destroyed, along with roads and other infrastructure, PWRDF said. There is a higher risk of cholera and other water-borne diseases, it added, because of the flooding and mudslides that resulted from the storm.
PWRDF announced an initial grant of $15,000 for Haiti relief Oct. 4, the day the hurricane struck the nation. The money will help provide food, medical aid, shelter, clean water and other assistance to Haitians, the agency said. The grant was made through the ACT Alliance, a coalition of church-based aid agencies.
Before Matthew hit, ACT had already been helping Haitians prepare by evacuating the vulnerable, preparing hygiene and shelter kits and distributing food. The alliance is continuing to work with communities affected by the hurricane to determine their needs and how to meet them, and PWRDF said it will continue to help in these efforts.
Donations can be made online, by phone (contact Jennifer Brown at 416-924-9192 ext. 355; or 1-866-308-7973) or by mail. Mailed cheques should be payable to “PWRDF,” marked “Haiti Response,” and sent to:
The Primate’s World Relief and Development Fund
The Anglican Church of Canada
80 Hayden Street
Toronto, Ontario M4Y 3G2