Roads blocked by debris add to the difficulty of earthquake victims in Jacmel and many additional parts of Haiti of obtaining much needed relief supplies.

On February 22, the Louisiana-Haiti Sustainable Village Project sent a barge filled with earthquake relief supplies bound for the Port of Jacmel on the south coast of Haiti.  With the help of local residents and volunteers, 100,000 total cubic tons of supplies donated to the Louisiana-Haiti Sustainable Village Project’s warehouse in Elmwood, Louisiana were sorted and packed, filling the Haiti-bound barge to its full capacity with food, medical supplies, household items and tents for earthquake victims.

The Louisiana-Haiti Sustainable Village Project—a consortium of 41 New Orleans nonprofit organizations—is working to build an emergency village for earthquake victims in Haiti, which will include sufficient housing, reliable infrastructure and accessible public services.  The nonprofit effort has received a particularly high level of support from New Orleans residents, survivors of Hurricane Katrina, and those involved in the rebuilding effort following Katrina who have found a particularly unique identification with the situation in Haiti—though the effects in Haiti resulting from the January 12 earthquake are multitudes greater in severity.  Those who have experienced the lingering effects of Hurricane Katrina know as well as anybody that no disaster recovery effort on such a scale can be completed overnight, but will require the long-term continued support and hard work of collaboration of dedicated individuals and committed organizations.

Donations toward the earthquake relief effort in Haiti of The Louisiana-Haiti Sustainable Village Project can be made online through the Louisiana Disaster Recovery Foundation website.