November 15, 2010- As Haitian authorities announced a cholera outbreak in the Artibonite and Central departments in Haiti four weeks ago, the Christian Reformed World Relief Committee's (CRWRC) International Disaster Response Team was mobilizing to better prepare communities to protect themselves from the illness.
CRWRC's earthquake response in Haiti is primarily centered in five communities in Leogane, about 30 miles outside the capital. Water and sanitation committees created by CRWRC carried out a first phase distribution of 3,400 bars of soap, instruction flyers, and water purification tablets to 1,700 families (approximately 8,500 people) in these five target communities.
Local water and sanitation volunteers are currently walking door-to-door to remind people of proper hygiene practices, and chlorine packages were distributed during a UNICEF training on health procedures for assisting those suffering from cholera. CRWRC is conducting regular tests of the 15 deep-water wells installed in target communities. A second phase of water purification tablet distributions in each of the five communities is planned for later this week.
Since the outbreak was made public, 917 people have died and more than 14,640 have been hospitalised in six of Haiti's ten geographic departments. October's government health announcement met with rising fears that the disease would spread to Port au Prince and outlying communities like Leogane.
To date, official reports indicate six cases of cholera in Leogane. Doctors Without Borders has established a health facility in town to respond to these and any future cholera cases. The Spanish Red Cross is also operating mobile clinics in CRWRC's target communities.
For more information, please contact Kristie van de Wetering, Communications Manager for CRWRC-International Disaster Response in Haiti at the addresses above. To arrange interview with CRWRC Disaster Response Team staff, please contact Beth DeGraff at bdegraff@crwrc.org.
To donate to CRWRC's Haiti earthquake response, please visit www.crwrc.org/haiti. Donations can also be made by calling 800-55-CRWRC or by mailing a check designated, "Haiti Earthquake Response," to CRWRC, 2850 Kalamazoo Avenue SE, Grand Rapids, Mich., 49560.
CRWRC is a faith-based, non-government organization specializing in disaster response, community development, and justice education since 1962.
CRWRC interventions touched the lives of more than one million people living in extreme poverty and disaster in communities around the world in 2009.
CRWRC is a member of the Evangelical Council of Financial Accountability (ECFA), the Canadian Council of Christian Charities, the BBB Wise Giving Alliance, and InterAction. Give with confidence.
To learn more, visit www.crwrc.org.