January 14, 2009 – Port-au-Prince, Haiti…[Libna Stevens/IAD]
Forty-eight hours after a powerful earthquake hit the impoverished country of Haiti, thousands of Seventh-day Adventists are still unaccounted for and concerns are rising over the possibility of deaths among church members. The 7.0 earthquake, which hit near the capital city of Port-au-Prince, flattened buildings and killed thousands.
Among Seventh-day Adventist casualties, one pastor is reported to have been killed in the disaster.
Damage to church property includes the destruction of two of the city’s largest churches. In addition, the Adventist university and hospital sustained some structural damage. However, the university has made its campus grounds available to hundreds seeking refuge, and the hospital staff has resumed its medical operations outdoors.
“Our leaders are frantically addressing their situation there,” said Pastor Israel Leito, president of the church in Inter-America, after hearing from Dr. Elie Henry, vice president of the church in Inter-America, who was in Haiti when the quake hit. Dr. Henry, who took part in the Follow the Bible activities in Port-au-Prince earlier this week, has been in Haiti helping to organize efforts and providing support in the wake of the disaster.
“The top three administrators at the church’s headquarters office in Haiti are coordinating efforts the best they can in the aftermath of the disaster,” said Pastor Leito, who spoke to leaders briefly today over the phone. Leaders from the Central Haiti Conference based in Port-au-Prince are searching for pastors and their congregations, as well.
“We fear that many of our members may have died,” said Pastor Leito. “We are so concerned about getting help for our brethren. They need shelter, water, food, and medicines.”
A special assessment team from the Inter-American Division (IAD) is flying today to the Dominican Republic, and plans to cross the border into Haiti by car tomorrow. The team will help coordinate relief efforts. The eight-member team, including four from the ADRA International Office, one from Germany, and three from Inter-America, will team up with four experts in disaster response and post trauma counseling in the Dominican Republic to respond to the needs in Haiti.
In addition, ADRA International has coordinated a group from Canada that will be joining the assessment team and providing medical aid in mobile clinics.
“The purpose of our team is to establish a basis of operations so that we can offer logistics and volunteers to the other entities and donors and other non-government agencies that are eager to partner with us,” said Wally Amundson, Adventist Development and Relief Agency (ADRA) director for Inter-America.
Team leaders will work in Haiti for at least one week, and some team members are prepared to stay and help for an additional three to four weeks.
ADRA International, ADRA Canada and ADRA Inter-America have put together an initial relief operations budget of $85,000.
“We know there will be more support as we go, but that’s just to get things started,” said Amundson. “Many of the ADRA offices around the world have said they are willing to become partners.”
“With the lack of communication in Haiti, we don’t know how much is available locally or how much we would need to draw on from the Dominican Republic, which is a potential source of supply line and hub for the relief effort,” said Amundson, who has satellite phones which will provide direct communication to the IAD.
Church leaders hope to soon have more information as to its 100,000 church members living in Port-au-Prince, as well as the damages to its 123 temples and dozens of schools there.
The Seventh-day Adventist Church in Haiti has more than 335,000 church members and 470 churches. In addition to a hospital, a university, and a bakery, the church operates dozens of schools there.
The Seventh-day Adventist Church in Inter-America has set up a special fund account specifically to assist church members and Adventist institutions in Haiti in the wake of the devastating earthquake which hit the country on Jan. 12.
Donations by check can be sent to the Inter-American Division, Re: Haiti Catastrophe Fund, 8100 S.W. 117th Avenue, Miami, Florida, 33183.
Donors can contact catastrophefund@interamerica.org and send funds through:
Wire Transfer
Bank Name: Wachovia Bank, Miami, Florida
Account Name: Inter-American Division, Inc., Haiti Catastrophic Fund, account
Account Number: 2000050691001
ABA Number: 063000021
(If Wire Initiate USA)
Swift Number: PNBPUS33
(If Wire Initiate Outside the USA)
For more updates on Haiti and other news, visit us at https://recursing-golick.147-182-135-0.plesk.page/.
