DOMINICA HURRICANE UPDATE – PAIX BOUCHE (September 2018)
DISASTER PROFILE Regarded as the worst natural disaster on record in Dominica, Hurricane Maria made landfall as a Category 5 hurricane on September 18, 2017 with winds over 160 mph. Hurricane Maria left Dominica completely devastated, damaging tens of thousands of buildings, all power, water and telecoms, and obliterating 100% of agriculture – a major source of income. Damages and losses are estimated at USD $1.3m, or 224% of Dominica’s GDP. OUR WORK All Hands and Hearts – Smart Response has been rebuilding Paix Bouche Primary School and Pre-school in St. Andrew Province. At the center of our work are Build Back Better techniques to make the school resistant against future hurricanes and earthquakes. Working closely with the Ministry of Education, the school and the local community, this essential work will create a much safer, more appropriate learning environment and serve as an evacuation shelter for the surrounding communities. CURRENT ACTIVITIES (RECOVERY PHASE) After an impressive final effort from all involved, we are delighted to announce that the Paix Bouche Primary School and Pre School are now complete. This is one of the first school rebuild projects to be completed in Dominica after Hurricane Maria; it is a significant achievement, which was duly celebrated with an opening ceremony on August 16th. The ceremony was attended by over 250 people and we were honored to have some of our donors in attendance, as well as senior members of the Dominican government, representatives from our international and local partners, and a great presence from the school and village community.
‘I’m from Paix Bouche and I live right by the school. During Maria we used the school to stay safe. That night was scary, actually it was terrifying! When I hear of bad weather coming, it just makes me think a stronger hurricane will hit...way worse than Maria, and I just pray to God that we won’t have to go through that again. It scares me to think about it. The classrooms we had to use after Maria were smelly, the water dripping on us, and all around us, made us smell bad. The classrooms were warm and damp, it gave us ring worms...lots of people in my class got ringworms, they couldn’t stop itching their heads and bodies. I love being at school, and playing with my friends, but sometimes I just couldn’t wait to go home, so we didn’t have to sit in the dark anymore. I can’t wait for them to finish our school, and to see the classrooms. I thought we would have to keep doing our work in the tent, or outside, but now we will have a safe place to be. Thank you to everyone that has helped us, you are very very kind.’ student, Grade 5, Paix Bouche Primary School.
OUR IMPACT
89
STUDENTS IMPACTED
20
LOCALS EMPLOYED
2,307
VOLUNTEER DAYS
137
VOLUNTEERS
Morne Prosper Primary School & Pre-school Located high up in the hills of the Roseau Valley, this village school was particularly exposed to the strong hurricane winds of Maria. Two of the primary school classrooms were completely destroyed, while the pre school lost it’s roof and all of it’s contents. The 4 remaining classrooms are now shared between 8 grades, making for a cramped and disruptive learning environment. This is to be our second school rebuild project in Dominica and our staff and volunteers are already making good progress. Excavation of the site is well underway and volunteers have been building a tool shed and bending rebar, which will be used to reinforce the foundations and walls, making it a hurricane and earthquake resistant school.
Roofing Programme After the success of our roofing programme with International Organisation for Migration (IOM) in Calibishie, we are excited to be partnering with International Federation of Red Cross & Red Crescent Societies (IFRC) to continue repairing residential roofs in the Morne Prosper area. With over 90% of roofs lost during Hurricane Maria, this is an area of great need in Dominica, and in Morne Prosper specifically, as they have not yet received any assistance. Our roofing team are busy preparing for this project, and hope to begin their first roof in September.
OUR MISSION To effectively and efficiently address the immediate and long-term needs of communities impacted by natural disasters. By listening to local people, and deploying a unique model of engaging volunteers to enable direct impact, we rebuild safe, resilient schools, homes and other community infrastructure.
OUR DOMINICA PARTNERS
5 YEARS IN A ROW! Only 10% of charities have received at least 5 consecutive 4-star ratings. This means All Hands and Hearts outperforms most of the other 1.5 million charities in America in operational and financial efficiency.
@ALLHANDSANDHEARTS
@ALLHANDSANDHEARTS
@ALLHANDSHEARTS
For additional information: Ellie Griffies-Weld, Partnership Manager ellie.gw@allhandsandhearts.org www.allhandsandhearts.org