Rosline Limithe, 34, sits outside her small home in the coastal community of Anse D’Hainault washing dishes. The dishes are brand new; she just received them a few days ago from the Red Cross.
Limithe lives near the top of a hill with her husband and five children. There is a house to the left and one in front of her own. Both have tarpaulins distributed by the Red Cross covering the roofs. Limithe’s sister and mother live in these houses.
“I have shared the items the Red Cross gave me with my family and neighbours because everyone here needs help,” says Limithe.
When Hurricane Matthew struck Haiti, Limithe’s home made out of corrugated iron sheets collapsed, and she and her family ran down the hill to find somewhere safe to stay.
“Each house on the way down was collapsing, and people were running out of them,” says Limithe.
She and her family finally found shelter in a car at the bottom of the hill and they stayed there until the hurricane passed.
“It was really terrible, there was lots of wind, says Limithe.
The Red Cross is the first organization to provide assistance to Limithe and the other people living in her community. Although Limithe’s home was damaged and many things were destroyed, her family managed to stay safe. Unfortunately, this wasn’t the case for one of her neighbours’, whose child died in the hurricane.
Limithe says she’s happy with the things she’s received from the Red Cross, especially the tools.
“The tools are good because we use them to work around the house and we will keep using them to do construction,” says Limitthe.
To date, the Red Cross has distributed relief items such as tarpaulins, hygiene items, food, water and cleaning items to 900 families in the town of Anse D’Hainault. In the coming days and weeks ahead, many more people like Limithe will be helped.
