Engineering news
Humanitarian relief agency RedR has launched an appeal to raise £200,000 needed to help provide water, sanitation and shelter to victims of the earthquake in Haiti
RedR successfully raised £20,000 in just a few days following the earthquake to fly an assessment team to Haiti. The team will identify the training and support requirements of other aid agencies responding to the crisis.
RedR said: “We’ve had a fantastic response to the initial appeal and secured enough to send out the team. But it’s extremely likely that our assessment will show the need for a £200,000 programme, and we welcome any donations.”
RedR provides training and support to the humanitarian sector in areas such as emergency shelters, logistics, safety and security, and water, sanitation and hygiene. The engineering charity expects that its key areas of expertise will be major issues to tackle in the response to the earthquake.
The devastating earthquake which struck Haiti approximately 15 km south of its densely populated capital, Port-au-Prince, has left tens of thousands homeless and in desperate need of medical aid, food, water and sanitation.
RedR said that it was becoming clear from reports that a major relief effort will be required and that the long-term reconstruction efforts will pose a huge challenge.
RedR member and emergency shelter specialist, Joseph Ashmore, who worked in Haiti in 2008 on urban shelter construction, fears recovery may be difficult.
Ashmore said: “There will be serious issues in the longer term requiring longer term support from organisations like RedR - long after the earthquake has faded from the news. It will be a complex urban reconstruction with multi-storey houses and a history of chronic poverty and unrest.”
RedR has also placed its members with water and sanitation expertise on immediate standby after a request from medical aid agency Médecins Sans Frontières, in case operations in Haiti need to be rapidly scaled up. Some RedR-trained personnel, specialising in water and sanitation, are already en route to Haiti as part of a UN-led rapid response team.
If you would like to make a donation to RedR’s Emergency Response Fund please visit its Donate page or call 020 7840 6000.
RedR places experienced relief workers from its Membership register with aid agencies at their request. If you are a RedR Member interested in supporting RedR's response, please contact HR on hr@redr.org.uk