In southern Haiti, trunks of uprooted trees still litter fields and beaches as if Hurricane Matthew blew through and left its trail of death and destruction only yesterday.
If it were not for the blue plastic tarps that cover damaged homes, the scene one month after the storm would be practically identical to the days following the Oct. 4 landfall.
Among the felled coconut trees, a single plastic tarp offers little protection from the elements for Jean Robert Sima and his 92-year-old father, who rests on a mattress.
“A man I had done some work for is letting us use his house to spend the night because he is abroad, but that’s only for a few days” and only at night, Sima said.
Every day, Sima and his family visit the ruins of their home, which he hopes to rebuild. However, with his crops ruined, he has no money to buy materials and is unable to find any help.
The southern region of Haiti, considered the country’s breadbasket, was hardest-hit by the powerful storm, which packed winds of 250kph and killed 546 people, according to official figures.
Forty-eight kilometers away in Les Cayes, the capital of the southern department, a teenager was shot dead on Tuesday last week as a ship was unloading aid.
“When aid is distributed, people grow agitated and belligerent,” Sima’s wife, Jiland, said.
“The Haitian officials are dishonest, because they first take aid for their loved ones. You can be there with your kids and nothing else, but they still won’t give you anything,” she said.
Receiving aid is a challenge for the tens of thousands of local residents, in part because there have been no comprehensive surveys of how much assistance is needed due to the extent of the damaged area.
Just 3.2km away, a religious group has discreetly distributed tarps and tools to build shelters.
“We conducted surveys in remote areas to verify who is in need,” said Bertrand Enoc of the Adventist Development and Relief Agency.
Hundreds of people have received emergency kits from a truck parked inside the police station in the small town of Roche-a-Bateaux.
“We cannot help everyone, so some people will receive nothing and could be tempted to protest in the streets,” Enoc said.
The lucky families head to their damaged homes with aid packages tied to motorcycle taxis or on mules, under the jealous gaze of downtown residents.
“From the people’s point of view it’s never enough and they are right,” UN Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs director of operations John Ging said. “But if we take a step back and we see the number that has been reached, the quality of the assistance, it is a good operation.”
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