Mercy Corps Emergency Response Specialist Calls Water Number One Priority in Haiti

Portland, OR — Mercy Corps water and sanitation expert Mugur Dumitrache warned of the health issues that threaten earthquake-devastated Haiti if survivors cannot access water. Calling clean water the “number one priority,” Dumitrache detailed Mercy Corps’ work to quickly restore water and sanitation services after major disasters. These efforts are just one element of Mercy Corps’ planned response to this week’s 7.0 magnitude quake.

“Most people can live without water for only three or four days, but the sick, children and the elderly don’t even have that much time,” said Dumitrache. “Getting as much water as possible to people as quickly as possible is the number one priority.”

Lack of clean water for drinking and washing can lead to the spread of diseases such as diarrhea, cholera and hepatitis – all of which can be deadly in a post-disaster setting. The risk of disease is exacerbated by a lack of basic sanitation services like sewers, latrines and garbage collection. “You wind up with people dying not only of critical injuries, but very preventable diseases,” explained Dumitrache.

Dumitrache has overseen the implementation of innovative water and sanitation systems after disasters such as the 2008 cyclone in Myanmar and last year’s earthquake in the Sumatra region of Indonesia. He stressed that providing water to earthquake survivors can be a tough task that includes finding water sources, purchasing trucks and tanks, hiring staff, and purifying and chlorinating large quantities of water. If trucks cannot move through an area, alternative water sources such as wells have to be found.

The United Nations Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs confirmed this week that Port-au-Prince’s water supply system had been cut off.

Filling the need for clean water is just one of the activities that Mercy Corps intends to undertake in Haiti. In addition to filling survivors’ immediate needs, the agency plans to help revitalize the local economy through cash-for-work programs and facilitate young people’s recovery from the psychological trauma of the earthquake.

The first members of Mercy Corps’ emergency response team – all experienced professionals who have responded to disasters such as Hurricane Katrina, the Wenchuan earthquake in China and Cyclone Nargis in Myanmar – headed to Haiti this week. The team will seek to fulfill the most pressing needs of quake survivors and help communities rapidly transition from immediate relief to long-term rebuilding and recovery efforts.

The earthquake exacerbates an already dire humanitarian situation in Haiti, the poorest country in the Western Hemisphere.

HOW TO HELP:
Mercy Corps
Haiti Earthquake Fund
Dept NR
PO Box 2669
Portland, OR 97208

www.mercycorps.org
1-888-256-1900