Great Yarmouth Haven Club

The new Rotary Theme 2010 - 2011

Charity is the winner at our Greyhound evening !

Haven Rotary Club Sends Aid to Haiti

Great Yarmouth Haven Rotary Club were pleased to announce at their Monday lunchtime meeting that the club would be sending 10 Shelter Boxes to the humanitarian disaster at Haiti as a result of the recent earthquake. Such purchases are only possible due to the generosity by the general public who support many fund raising events throughout the year.

These shelter boxes are usually packed with one (sometimes two) ten-person tent(s). Other items can include insulated sleeping mats and thermal blankets, water purification tablets, water purification kits, water containers/carriers, a trenching shovel, a multi-fuelled cook stove, eating utensils and plates, a children’s' activity kit and other essential items. Many shelter boxes have already arrived in Port au Prince and you can experience how the boxes are helping the humanitarian effort by visiting the Website at www.shelterbox.org

President Mike Erskine and Vice Chairman Ian McCreadie of the International Committee discuss the Haiti disaster and the help being given by Rotary Clubs throughout the world.

First Shelter boxes arrive in Haiti

Aid for thousands in Haiti with more to follow

Nearly 100 tonnes of additional aid is being flown to Haiti this week as thousands of people who lost their homes in the devastating earthquake are being given the chance to start rebuilding their lives in ShelterBox tents.

Emergency shelter for more than 20,000 people is now in Port au Prince and surrounding areas with small camps already set up in Delmas, Petion-Ville, Carrefour and Leogane.

Hundreds more ShelterBoxes containing disaster relief tents and other life-saving supplies are being sent to the city in the next few days from Miami, Curucao and France, meaning another 11,000 people will be given emergency shelter.

On Friday, ShelterBox is chartering a 747 aircraft with 1,800 boxes to fly from Stansted Airport to the Dominican Republic where they will be taken overland to neighbouring Haiti.

It is the second flight chartered by the international disaster relief charity for the Haiti response after a plane loaded with 700 ShelterBoxes and 100 tents flew out of Newquay Cornwall Airport last week. ShelterBox Response Team members Jane Nash (UK) and Gary McCafferty (UK) travelled overland from Santa Domingo with an aid convoy to ensure the ShelterBoxes reached Port au Prince at the weekend.

John Leach, Head of Operations for ShelterBox, said: ‘The need in Haiti is massive. Our team in Port au Prince is working with Dutch marines to ensure the safe and effective delivery of disaster relief tents and hundreds of these are already being used in four different locations.

‘Distribution of aid by our highly-trained ShelterBox Response Team members is underway but the need for emergency shelter is still desperate.’

A number of ShelterBoxes have also been used at an orphanage and at two hospitals in Port au Prince where tents are being erected to help save lives.

Speaking from Bernard Mews Hospital in Freres, a suburb of Port au Prince, ShelterBox Response Team member Wayne Robinson (US) said: ‘Right outside the hospital there have been hundreds of people who have been laying in the sidewalks, on the streets and in blankets right on the ground in unbelievable conditions. They are bleeding, they have missing limbs and there are even women giving birth.

‘We felt this was a good use of the initial boxes that we had here on the ground and we’ll be bringing more here and using them as a transitional point to get people out of the elements while they are waiting for treatment at the hospital. Buildings have crashed down all around us here and people are just waiting and waiting to get in here for medical services.’

International disaster relief charity ShelterBox responds to Haiti earthquake

International disaster relief charity ShelterBox is responding to the scenes of destruction in Haiti.

A ShelterBox Response Team (SRT) is currently being mobilised with two SRT members from the USA and one from the UK leading the response.

A 7.0 magnitude earthquake struck the Caribbean island of Haiti at close to 2200 GMT on Tuesday, January 12. Initial reports state that hundreds of people are feared dead while thousands of people have been left homeless.

ShelterBox General Manager Lasse Petersen said: ‘We’re doing everything we can to ensure immediate aid reaches the people of Haiti. The process of getting our team on the ground is well under way.

‘We were in Haiti eighteen months ago, delivering aid after a series of hurricanes left thousands homeless. We’ll now be working closely with our contacts on the ground in the country to make sure we get aid to the people who need it most during the current crisis. Our thoughts go out to the people who have been affected by this disaster.’

Buildings destroyed

The earthquake, described as the worst to hit Haiti in centuries, was centred 10 miles to the south west of the islands capital, Port-au-Prince. The initial earthquake was followed by two aftershocks measuring 5.9 and 5.5 in magnitude.

Many buildings have been devastated including the HQ of the UN mission and the presidential palace. The USA have been quick to respond to the disaster.

President Barack Obama said in a statement: ‘My thoughts and prayers go out to those who have been affected by this earthquake. We are closely monitoring the situation and we stand ready to assist the people of Haiti.’