Haiti Relief Blog

From Wes Lane (Sunday)

Ben Feldott — Mon, 18 Jan 2010 00:28:09 GMT

Note: For those unfamiliar with Missionary Wes Lane and ministry in Haiti, the following will a be a unique meeting. Wes has served in Haiti & now the Dominican Republic for many years. Missions in Haiti often means facing the poorest and often most dangerous situations imaginable. I have known Wes from Bible College and now for many years through his work in Haiti and he is well suited to this task. Pray for them as they work in Haiti --- Pastor Ben Feldott

Friends,

Sorry for the nature of this message, but I still have limited connection and internet time. We hooked up with some very good people from the Canadian- Haitian chamber of commerce and that has been a big help with connections, very important in getting things done. People waiting in line behind a water truck to fill some jugs. People camping in the street, some still waiting for medical care. We used our whole supply of meds the first day. Melina helped deliver a baby or two. Dentists and Veterinarians are treating people. Everyone is a doctor now if they have a good education. We got some more meds from a closed company here and some from the UN base. We checked the structural integrity of two large buildings that the people are afraid to use as clinics. The first one passed, second one is unsafe. Everyone with any decent education is an engineer too.

Really hard getting fuel. We can't get gasoline or bread or meat. Other foods are available though. The electric is off and won't be back on any time soon. An angry mob killed a man right in front of us, saying he was a thief. Thousands of prisoners have escaped into the streets because the biggest prison in the country fell down. We couldn't stop them as there were simply too many of them and we only had limited ammo. There were three cops with shotguns directing traffic three blocks away and they ignored it.

We have an offer of more meds from a warehouse, but we have to organise more aggressive security before we can go there and open the warehouse or it will be looted. We will get some more armed men for security and go get them. I have found a warehouse for us to use as a base and will go there tomorrow to get it ready. Nearly every business is closed. We hope some will begin to open Monday, including the banks. I haven't got a cell phone yet because they are closed. I went to the owner of the AVIS franchise's house yesterday and he said maybe we can get a different vehicle Monday.

Our priority is to start moving relief supplies to the warehouse for quick distribution to those who need it while we quickly rebuild some churches and then we can use the church buildings as distribution points. Thats all for now. Continue to pray. Many churches are destroyed, many Christians are dead, in need, homeless or have lost family. We are safe, so don't worry about us. We will update this as we can. Thank you for the prayers.

Wes & Melina Lane

Update from Tom Franklin

Ben Feldott — Sun, 17 Jan 2010 23:59:52 GMT

We were up late last night again organizing the filling over 100
BucketFulls of Hope. They are all now filled (Over 300+ man hours -
should be less on the next batch), we still lack the stenciling or
stickers ect. that will facilitate there transport - that should be
completed shortly. We changed the contents by eliminating the pasta
and peas (I'm not a fan of peas) and adding 5 more cans of sardines
and 4 more cans of sausages. This decision was made because we have
reports of people not being able to cook food. We did not want to
eliminate the rice and beans because it is the "everyday staple" used
in Haiti. In addition the 4 oz Bottle of Water Purifying Drops was
eliminated due to the fact we can not find enough. A smaller
flashlight with batteries and a larger roll of duct tape was included
to take its place. We shaved over $1000 (close to 20%) off the first
100 with volume discounts and now know they will come to less than
$50. Hallelujah!! However I'm going to hold to the $60 price for
shipping purposes and want to include water in our first shipment. I
have no idea how much it is going to cost to move 2500 lbs or so into
Haiti until we do it. Wes and I agreed before they left that we would
hold until safe transportation and a secure staging area was
established. They are busy doing that and we are ready to roll. The
biggest problem now looks like fuel. That to me seems like the
biggest prayer need after Wesley and Melina's safety.

Got to go preach and lead the troops,

Tom

P.S. Seven more people were found as of this morning. YOUR PRAYERS
ARE WORKING!!

Update from Wes Lane

Ben Feldott — Sun, 17 Jan 2010 01:30:30 GMT

Praying friends,

This will be short as we are on a shared connection. We are here in safe housing. We have transport, but are scrambling for fuel. No gas stations open. People are siphoning for generators and car. No Electric. Almost no water. Food supplies in city stretched, but plenty in the provinces. Can't find bread. Very few or no international lines. Most stores closed. Found a warehouse, but contract not finalized. Right now, fuel is a priority. We can't move around without it. Also, with stores closed, don't know when I will grab a phone, but that is on priority list. Unbelievable death, destruction and stench. Lots of confusion, sadness and despair. We will send more info when we can.

Wes & Mel