Like many people, Cathy Whitehead was sickened when she heard about the devastation an earthquake caused in Haiti last week.
But unlike many Canadians, the news took Ms. Whitehead's mind back some 15 years to her last visit to the country as part of a United Nations mission.
A strong earthquake measuring 7.3 on the Richter scale struck Haiti on Tuesday. Damage to the country's infrastructure, including power and telecommunications, was severe. The death toll was unknown at deadline, but some estimates were as high as tens of thousands.
Ms. Whitehead was in Haiti in 1995 as part of a 700-member police force to help police the country while its own officers completed training. She is currently an RCMP sergeant in Port aux Basques.
Ms. Whitehead says she can still smell Haiti - the sewage, garbage and decay amplified by the heat.
"Most of those people have nothing, and now they have less than nothing," she said, speaking of the poverty most resident of Haiti live in.
While in the country she spent most of her time in Gonaives, a city north of the capital of Port au Prince where most of the damage from the earthquake was centered.
Even then, Ms. Whitehead said there was little running water, sporadic electricity and a general lack of infrastructure. She said she doesn't know how much has changed in the years since she left the country, but media reports since the disaster indicate that much is still the same.
Ms. Whitehead said many of the buildings in the country were made of concrete, so she can imagine an earthquake would cause extensive damage such as wall crumbling and collapsing.
"It's not like they had lovely houses to start with," she said.
Her youngest step-son will soon see the aftermath of the disaster for himself. He is heading to Haiti onboard one of the two Canadian Navy ships destined for the country. The ships will be carrying supplies and military personnel.
Canada deployed the Interdepartmental Strategic Support Team and the Reconnaissance element of the Canadian Forces Disaster Assistance Response Team (DART) to Haiti on Thursday.
Although Ms. Whitehead doesn't keep in contact with anyone from the country, she fondly remembers the people of Haiti. She said while they have very little in terms of material possessions, they are kind and generous.
editor@gulfnews.ca
Official Title: Republic of Haiti
Capital: Port-au-Prince
Population: 8.79 million
Total Area: 27,750 km2
Languages: French and Creole
Head of State: President RenÉ Garcia PrÉval
Head of Government: Prime Minister Jean-Max Bellerive
Gross Domestic product per capita (2008): $842
(Compares to $48,062 per capita in Canada)
Canadian exports to country: (2008) $51,442,137
Canadian imports from country: (2008) $19,280,340
Courtesy of Foreign Affairs Canada
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