Thanks to the generosity of the American public, the Red Cross has delivered food, water, tarps, medical services and other relief supplies — to more than 1.9 million Haitian earthquake survivors.
More than 600 Red Cross and Red Crescent workers from nearly 40 countries Haiti have supported thousands of Haitian Red Cross volunteers in Port-au-Prince with relief efforts. Each Red Cross Red Crescent society team has its own roles and expertise on the ground.
The American Red Cross deployed more than 100 people to Haiti, including local resident Steve McAndrew, who briefed Greater Los Angeles Red Cross volunteers and staff members about his experiences.
Steve McAndrew (r), a member of the American Red Cross International Services leadership team in Haiti, worked closely with Red Cross and Red Crescent Societies from around the world, including representatives of the Iranian Red Crescent Society.
A member of the American Red Cross International Services team, Steve was one of the first responders to arrive in Haiti. As a relief coordinator, he was responsible for overseeing the distribution of relief supplies to the urban settlements and surrounding areas where Haitians have lived since the quake.
McAndrew said that working with Red Cross representatives from around the world who speak different languages and have different disaster response specialties was challenging. However, what unites all Red Cross workers are the organization’s seven Fundamental Principles — Humanity, Impartiality, Neutrality, Independence, Voluntary Service, Unity, and Universality.
According to McAndrew, these international principles allow Red Cross representatives to fulfill their Red Cross humanitarian mission in a peaceful, strategic and thoughtful way with limited security. Working together, the global Red Cross network forms a very powerful engine for relief.
Additional Information about Red Cross Relief Efforts in Haiti
- The Red Cross and partner agencies have provided emergency shelter materials to almost 1 million people in Haiti – 75 percent of those left homeless by the earthquake – and are on pace to reach all 1.3 million people without shelter by May 1. The pace of providing shelter relief (tarps, tents, ropes and toolkits) in Haiti is faster than it was following other major international disasters such as the 2008 cyclone in Myanmar and the earthquake in Indonesia last year. In the past eight weeks, the Red Cross and its partners have been reaching on average more than 100,000 people a week.
- The Red Cross has delivered more than 30 million liters of safe drinking water in 110 different settlements since the earthquake. That translates to approximately 1.5 million liters per day – enough for 290,000 people. To address sanitation needs and prevent the spread of disease, 580 latrines have also been installed.
- In the area of health care, nearly 33,600 people have been treated by Red Cross health care facilities and mobile teams. The American Red Cross has also donated more than 900 units of blood for earthquake survivors. In partnership with the Haitian government and UN agencies, approximately 60,000 people have been vaccinated, including against measles.
- The Red Cross also has the unique responsibility and expertise to help reconnect separated families in Haiti. Caseworkers are helping people register at the official family linking Web site, place phone calls to loved ones abroad and find family members scattered throughout different settlements in Port-au-Prince. So far, nearly 33,000 people have been assisted in this way.
