On August 14, a powerful earthquake brought destruction and devastation to the people of Haiti. Relying on past experiences in emergency earthquake response, Humanity & Inclusion prepares to intervene.  

A 7.2-magnitude earthquake struck the coast of Haiti early Saturday morning, resulting in severe damage, injury and deaths. Initial reports by the National Emergency Operations Center say the disaster has resulted in at least 700 deaths and 1,800 people with injuries.

With an epicenter about 8 miles from Petit Trou de Nippes, the most affected areas are the South, Nippes and Grande Anse regions of Haiti, where hundreds of homes, schools and hospitals have been damaged or destroyed. Beyond the risks caused by the tremor, Haiti remains under alert for Tropical Storm Grace, rising sea levels and tsunami in the coming days.

Assessing Needs

With reports of nearly 2,000 people injured already, the most pressing needs are for medical attention and care for the wounded. Hospitals are overwhelmed by the heightened demand, piling atop the ongoing Covid-19 pandemic and damages sustained to their buildings. Several have called for emergency reinforcement.

In any natural disaster, people with disabilities, women, children and aging people are the most likely to be negatively affected. During the 7.0-magnitude earthquake that hit the country in 2010, Humanity & Inclusion teams saw the devastating effect on these populations. Between 2,000 and 4,000 people had limbs amputated from injuries caused by the 2010 earthquake. More than 90,000 people received rehabilitation care to prevent the onset of permanent injuries. Humanity & Inclusion teams say this situation could be similar.  

“From our previous experience, we’re expecting an enormous need for rehabilitation,” says Anissa Bouachria, Humanity & Inclusion’s Emergency Pool Manager. “There are thousands injured, and many of those injuries may worsen or turn into permanent disabilities. Beyond this, people have experienced significant trauma and will need psychosocial support in addition to basic needs like food, water, shelter and items for personal hygiene.” 

Read the latest updates

Response Plan

Humanity & Inclusion, already present in Haiti, is assessing the evolving situation and preparing plans for intervention. At this time, teams are working closely with local authorities to identify the most pressing needs and possibilities. Additional Humanity & Inclusion emergency teams have been activated, and will be sent for reinforcement as soon as possible.

Among the greatest needs for the population, the following have been identified as potential areas of Humanity & Inclusion intervention given the organization’s expertise:

• Rehabilitation services and distribution of mobility aids
• Psychosocial and mental health support
• Logistics support
• Water, sanitation and hygiene (WASH)
• Basic needs (food access, shelter, cash transfers)

Humanity & Inclusion in Haiti

Humanity & Inclusion has been active in Haiti since 2008 and has developed a close relationship to the community. The organization has been an active part of disaster relief interventions related to the 2010 earthquake and 2016 Hurricane Matthew, while ensuring an inclusive humanitarian response in these efforts. Among other activities of inclusive livelihood and rehabilitation, Humanity & Inclusion also set up the first DVFP (disability and vulnerability focal points) and partnered with the Office of the Secretary of State for the Inclusion of People with Disabilities. Today, Humanity & Inclusion remains committed to serving the people of Haiti during this time of great need.

Image: A young girl clears debris following destruction of the 2010 earthquake in Haiti. Copyright: William Daniels/HI Archives - 2010

Following severe floods and landslides on July 27, Humanity & Inclusion is assisting people in Rohingya refugee camps in Cox’s Bazar.

Humanity & Inclusion is helping thousands of people in need following a powerful monsoon in Bangladesh, a situation complicated by a spike in Covid-19 infections. Eight of the 16 camps where Humanity & Inclusion teams are present are currently affected.

"As I speak, at least eight of the camps hosting refugees—members of the Rohingya minority from Myanmar—are literally drowning. They’ve been devastated by severe floods. Many makeshift shelters and huts, roads and facilities are under water. Several landslides have also been reported," says Rajesh Chandra, Humanity & Inclusion’s program manager in Bangladesh. “On top of this tragic situation, the Covid-19 pandemic is gaining ground: there has been a 20 percent increase in cases over the last two and a half months. The country is in lockdown, which is making it even harder for organizations like ours to provide emergency response.”

According to an initial estimate by Humanity & Inclusion’s teams, several dozen people participating in the organization’s ongoing programs, including people with disabilities, have already been directly affected by the disaster. A flash flood and landslide has caused a critical situation in one of the camps. It is impossible to reach some camps and the situation may spread to others if heavy rain continues.

Emergency response

Humanity & Inclusion teams have worked in the Rohingya refugee camps since 2017 and are actively working to respond to severe flooding affecting thousands of people, including people with disabilities, the elderly, women and children. The organization has deployed its mobile emergency teams in coordination with other actors in the camps. Staff are providing appropriate assistance to affected and injured people, including emergency rehabilitation care, such as care management, physical therapy, the supply of mobility aids and assistance with everyday tasks, as well as emergency psychosocial support and referral to protection services.

Teams are making a rapid assessment to determine the need for food, shelter, and the other essentials. Humanity & Inclusion will continuously adapt its actions to provide targeted and useful assistance to people with disabilities, aging people and the injured by providing them with personal protection or other assistive equipment. 

Thanks to its contingency stock, Humanity & Inclusion is already distributing kits containing soap, towels, masks and other items to protect people from Covid-19.

Humanity & Inclusion is also sending a team of civil engineers to assess damage to facilities and houses to identify where repairs need to be made and what response is required.

Humanity & Inclusion teams are helping people affected by the May eruption of the Nyiragongo volcano in the Democratic Republic of the Congo.

The disaster displaced more than 400,000 people and destroyed houses and infrastructure in the city of Goma. For instance, the volcano’s destruction has disrupted the supply of clean drinking water.

Humanity & Inclusion is coordinating a fleet of trucks to help other organizations deliver humanitarian supplies. In partnership with Action Against Hunger, Humanity & Inclusion is transporting water to four distribution sites in the district of Nyiragongo. With two trucks, teams are making six round trips a day to fill each water tank three times.

So far, more than 34,000 gallons of clean drinking water has been delivered to people who need it most.

The Nyiragongo volcano erupted on May 22, spewing lava over neighboring villages and causing reverberating tremors throughout the region. Jérémy Mouton, Humanity & Inclusion’s Emergency Watch and Preparedness Officer in the Democratic Republic of Congo, gives an update on the humanitarian crisis now facing the people of Goma:

In Goma, many people displaced by the eruption of the Nyiragongo volcano are starting to return to the city due to a lack of reception areas and access to services in displacement zones where temporary shared shelters have been set up. And, because they’re afraid their homes in Goma will be broken into, they want to return as soon as possible.

Although some businesses have reopened and transportation services are up and running again, many homes have been destroyed or damaged.

The needs of people affected by the disaster are immense. They are unable to access health care, housing, water, sanitary facilities and food—neither in Goma nor in displacement areas. Displacement has also given rise to overcrowding, lack of privacy, separation of family members and other factors that have exposed people—particularly women, children and people with disabilities—to risk of violence and abuse.

Humanity & Inclusion has worked in the Democratic Republic of the Congo since 1995 and is currently providing response in aid to people in North Kivu. The organization is coordinating a fleet of trucks for humanitarian organizations to deliver supplies to people who need them most. Humanity & Inclusion is also planning to provide psychosocial support to people affected by the disaster and to distribute kits containing essential household items such as tarps and blankets to make the return home easier.

Humanity & Inclusion is providing aid to the most vulnerable people displaced by the eruption of the Nyiragongo volcano near Goma in Democratic Republic of the Congo’s North Kivu province.

The May 22 eruption displaced more than 416,000 people in North and South Kivu, as well as Rwanda. Hundreds of earthquakes followed the eruption, creating panic and anxiety among residents. 

Having left behind or lost their homes and belongings, thousands of families are now without basic necessities or income. Many are living in unsanitary conditions in a region already facing an alarming humanitarian situation, including the presence of numerous armed groups and food insecurity. 

The needs are immense. People affected by the eruption face poor access to drinking water and sanitary facilities, food insecurity, the risk of cholera, and the Covid-19 pandemic.

Humanity & Inclusion has worked in the Democratic Republic of the Congo since 1995, and is responding to assist the most vulnerable people in North Kivu. The organization's logistics experts are also coordinating a fleet of trucks to deliver Humanity & Inclusion supplies, as well as those from other humanitarian organizations.

In this anxiety-inducing climate, Humanity & Inclusion will provide psychological support to impacted people. Teams will also distribute kits containing essential household items such as tarps, blankets, pots and pans, and soap to those in need over the coming weeks.

Three weeks after the volcano’s eruption, earthquakes are less frequent in Goma and displaced people are returning home. In some of the worst-hit neighborhoods, however, homes have been destroyed, water pipes burst and other damage has been reported. According to the Office of Volcanology in Goma, another eruption is still a possibility.

Moïse lost his leg in 2010, when Haiti was struck by a powerful earthquake. With support from Humanity & Inclusion donors, he received an artificial limb and the chance to reclaim his childhood.

Moïse was just 4 when a powerful, 7.0-magnitude earthquake struck Haiti on January 12, 2010. He was buried beneath rubble, emerging with such grave injuries that doctors had to amputate his left leg a week later.

Without crutches, crawling was his only way to move around. Humanity & Inclusion’s team met Moïse, and fit him with a custom-made prosthetic. Rehabilitation professionals helped Moïse regain strength, balance, and eventually the ability to walk again through regular physical therapy sessions.

Moïse was one of 90,000 Haitians who received rehabilitation support from Humanity & Inclusion (then Handicap International) following the devastating earthquake. Humanity & Inclusion continues to work along Haitians toward long-term recovery plans and future disaster preparedness. Read more about Humanity & Inclusion's work in response to the Haiti earthquake.

Moïse, who will turn 15 in March, lives with his parents and younger brother. Eleven years after the earthquake, he still stays in touch with Humanity & Inclusion staff for continued rehabilitation support. His ongoing care includes new prosthetics as he grows, as well as regular adjustments. Staff also connect him to medical care in case he needs revision surgery.

Moïse loves playing soccer, going to school, and participating in extracurricular activities including basket-weaving and even classical dance.

Header Image: A teenage boy named Moïse holds a soccer ball with the HI logo on it. Two younger boys stand on either side of him. Moïse lost his leg in the Haiti earthquake and wears an artificial limb. Copyright: Davide Preti/HI

Inline Image Left: Moïse, age 4, practices walking with his new prosthetic leg after the Haiti earthquake. Copyright: William Daniels/HI

Inline Image Right: Moïse, now a teenager, smiles and pumps his fist. He's wearing an artificial limb. Copyright: Davide Preti/HI

After the earthquake that struck Haiti on January 12, 2010, Humanity & Inclusion (known then as Handicap International) deployed one of the largest emergency response operations in its history. Eleven years later, its work with the most vulnerable people continues.

Haiti was devastated by the earthquake that killed more than 230,000 people and injured more than 300,000. "In 2010, when the earthquake struck Haiti, there was almost no rehabilitation service in the country," explains Sylvia Sommella, Humanity & Inclusion's director in Haiti.

Humanity & Inclusion mobilized hundreds of people and with record levels of donor support deployed unprecedented means to help those affected. In the earthquake’s wake, Humanity & Inclusion:

• provided rehabilitation care to 90,000 people;
• equipped more than 1,400 people with assistive devices;
• distributed more than 5,000 wheelchairs, crutches and walkers;
• extended psychosocial support to more than 25,000 people;
• built more than 1,000 temporary homes;
• and delivered more than 20,000 tons of humanitarian aid.

Building capacity in Haiti

Today, Humanity & Inclusion continues to help the Haitian population in executing a long-term disaster response.

"Thanks to the support of Humanity & Inclusion, which launched the first training of rehabilitation technicians following the earthquake, it is now possible to benefit from rehabilitation sessions in different infrastructures," Sommella explains. "Humanity & Inclusion continues to support health structures, strives to make rehabilitation centers accessible to all, and ensures qualified medical staff."

In the first six years following the disaster, Humanity & Inclusion trained 86 new medical experts, who are still working Haiti today. This training was supported by USAID. Training is ongoing for rehabilitation technicians and physical therapists continue to develop their skills through virtual coaching.

Preparing for future disasters

Humanity & Inclusion has made it a priority to work with people living in remote areas, so they can be prepared and protected should disaster strike again. That work includes providing partner organizations with shipping and storage services to ensure humanitarian supplies are available to the most vulnerable families for future natural disasters and emergencies.

In addition to disaster preparedness, Humanity & Inclusion is also working alongside Haitians to create economic and employment opportunities and fight Covid-19.

Image: A woman works on an artificial leg in 2017 at a rehabilitation center supported by Humanity & Inclusion. Copyright: Nadia Todres/HI