As the Guardian reports today on how climate change has brought Haiti to a tipping point,
David Vinuales contemplates the future.Â
Port-au-Prince
As with
the Italian city of Rome, the Haitian capital, Port-au-Prince is built on the mountains. But I’m afraid that similarities between the two capitals end
there.         For one reason or another, the Haitian main city has been never hit straight
by a hurricane. What could happen if one strikes right in the heart of the town? “It would be the worst
situation”, said Ronald Toussaint, expert on climate change at the Haiti Environmental Ministry.The densely populated and poor neighbourhoods are far from being ready for a hurricane,
and a visit to the shanty town of Carrefour Feuilles gives you a rough idea why.Â
The place where the man was taken away by the water
In one of the neighbourhood’s street markets, a drain that used to receive water from a mountain river now looks completely
dry. But only one week before, a man was washed away by water pouring down the drain.Port-au-Prince is one of the most vulnerable places of the country. Urban
growth on the city’s surrounding mountains coupled with a complete lack of any development plan leaves a panoramic view of weak houses everywhere, just in the way of
possible landslides. How we can change the situation? Oxfam is working with authorities, volunteers, local committees and international organisations to help the population to develop plans that allow the country to resist the impact of the hurricanes.The evacuation plans already produced some results last year.“I believe that we are saving lives. In the 2007 and 2008 hurricane seasons, we were extremely prepared…so much so
that we did not record high levels of victims”, said Jean Siba Geneus, co-ordinator of the Port au Prince Municipal Disaster Risk Management Committee.So what would happen if
a hurricane struck the middle of the city? It is hard to say. Meanwhile, it is important to keep working so the population is ready to face those natural emergencies that every year put the poorest
people’s lives at risk.For more information, video footage and audio, see the Guardian report Season of dread returns as Haiti awaits devastating hurricane season.You can help: donate to Building effective emergency response in Haiti More from the Oxfam Press Office at http://www.oxfam.org.uk/news
[ Any views expressed in this article are those of the writer and not of Reuters. ]
India's Prime Minister Manmohan Singh speaks during a national conference with ministers of environment and forests in New Delhi August 18, 2009. Singh said on Tuesday the country must invest in ...
