Helping Haitians with Heavy Lifting:  Barge with 400 Tons of Machinery Headed to Haiti

Samaritan's Purse Launches 235-ft. Supply-Stocked Relief Barge

BOONE, N.C., Jan. 27, 2010—Samaritan’s Purse is using every inch of an 8,000-sq.-ft. landing craft barge to carry 400 tons of heavy-duty help to Haiti.  The barge departed Monday from Ft. Pierce, Fla., carrying bulldozers, backhoes, fuel trucks and other heavy machinery to aid in disaster relief efforts. 

Since the quake struck, seven Samaritan's Purse relief cargo flights have landed in Port-au-Prince.  The barge is expected to arrive in Haiti on Friday.  

The need for heavy machinery is dire.  "The wounded and sick are coming to us by the busloads," said Dr. David Gettle, Chief Medical Advisor of Samaritan's Purse.  "Without the ability to transport supplies through the rubble-strewn streets, we will not be able to treat them.  This shipment of machinery is as important as any medicine in helping us to care for these patients." 

Opportunities to support the work of Samaritan's Purse in Haiti:

• Visit www.samaritanspurse.org or call (800) 528-1980

• Text "SP" to 85944 to donate $10

Samaritan's Purse disaster relief experts, who were on the ground within 24 hours of the quake, will utilize the 400 tons of machinery to expedite distribution of water, medical aid and temporary shelter to desperate earthquake victims.  

Nineteen medical personnel are based at the Baptist Haiti Mission Hospital in Fermathe (southeast of Port-au-Prince) and are treating infected wounds, performing surgery and caring for the sick.  Additionally, a team of 40 Samaritan's Purse staff are working to distribute rolls of plastic for temporary shelter, solar flashlights, blankets, community water filters and water purification packets.
 
Three chaplains with the Billy Graham Evangelistic Association's Rapid Response Team, who have been specially trained to offer emotional and spiritual care in crisis situations, are working with Samaritan's Purse in Haiti to help survivors deal with the emotional trauma of the disaster.

Samaritan's Purse is a non-profit organization that provides immediate, no-red-tape response to the physical and spiritual needs of individuals in crisis situations.  Samaritan's Purse has worked in more than 100 countries to provide aid to victims of war, disease, disaster, poverty, famine and persecution.