A year after one of the most powerful Atlantic storms on record, here is how your support has helped families in southern Haiti heal, rebuild, and replant.
One year ago, Hurricane Melissa, one of the most powerful Atlantic storms on record, tore through the Caribbean. In southern Haiti, severe flooding and landslides swept through our partner communities, damaging homes, clinics, schools, roads, and crops. For many families, it meant starting over.
In Petit-Goâve, the La Digue River flooded and destroyed local infrastructure. Forty-three people lost their lives, and dozens more were left missing.
But even in a time of tremendous grief and uncertainty, hope stayed alive in southern Haiti. Neighbors came together to share resources, help one another, and lift each other’s spirits. And thanks to you, Hope for Haiti was ready to stand with them.
Already prepared
As Hurricane Melissa approached, people asked our team one question again and again: how are you preparing?
“The answer was then and is now, ‘We’re already prepared,'” said Skyler Badenoch, Hope for Haiti CEO. “Our team moved millions of dollars worth of medications and medical supplies into the southern part of Haiti in anticipation of hurricane season. It’s not about preparing for storms like Melissa; it’s about already being prepared.”
The biggest health risks after a hurricane often arrive with the floodwaters: waterborne illnesses like cholera, fungal and skin infections, viral diseases like Zika, and disrupted care for people living with chronic illnesses. Because antibiotics and other essential medications were already in place before the season began, our healthcare professionals could respond immediately, without waiting on shipments. We also shared a cache of these supplies with several of our in-country healthcare partners so they could care for their own communities right away.
Hurricane kits from our Gift-In-Kind partner Direct Relief, distributed before hurricane season, put emergency supplies in families’ hands for the storm’s immediate aftermath. And in Petit-Goâve, our team distributed high-quality, large-capacity tents donated by Direct Relief to provide temporary shelter for families who had lost their homes.
“We are deeply grateful for our friends at Direct Relief,” said Badenoch. “Because of their support and partnership, Hope for Haiti’s front-line healthcare workers in Les Cayes were prepared to respond to hurricane season, providing care, supplies, and critical support to families affected by severe flooding, or just seeking access to everyday healthcare.”
A year of response, by the numbers
| Patient consultations | ~69,000 |
| Mobile clinics held in high-need communities | 492 |
| Disaster-relief gifts-in-kind imported | $15,940,333 |
| People trained in water, sanitation, and hygiene (WASH) | 2,975 |
| Mothers receiving direct cash assistance | 325 ($97,500 total) |
| Farming families given seeds and plants | 200 |
| New homes provided | 10
|
Healthcare where it’s needed most
Since the storm, our Healthcare team has provided approximately 69,000 patient consultations, including care delivered through 492 mobile clinics that bring doctors, nurses, and medication directly to high-need communities.
Our primary healthcare clinic, the Infirmary St. Etienne, was itself damaged by Melissa. High winds and falling debris compromised the roof, shifted a barrier wall, and damaged the patient waiting area when a tree struck the structure. Thanks to grant funding, we have since completed critical structural repairs, restored safe patient flow, and protected essential medical spaces, so our team can once again provide care safely and at full capacity.
To keep care flowing, Hope for Haiti imported $15,940,333 worth of gifts-in-kind designated specifically for disaster relief. These included tents, antibiotics, wound supplies, hygiene kits, fetal doppler machines, anesthesia, needles and syringes, water filtration kits, face masks, and surgical instruments.
Clean water and healthy habits
After a disaster, hygiene and sanitation can be the difference between recovery and a second crisis. Since the hurricane, we have provided WASH training to 2,975 people, including 41 families in our Baby WASH program, which helps parents protect their children’s health and strengthen family hygiene practices.
Replanting, rebuilding, and recovering
Hurricane Melissa wiped out gardens that families depend on for food and income. Our agronomist met with farmers in Corail, Pestel, Camp Perrin, and Baraderes to choose the right plants for the summer planting season, focusing on vegetables that can be harvested quickly. We then carried out an urgent distribution of seeds and plants to 200 farming families.
In partnership with VIA and the Stellar Development Foundation, we transferred $97,500 in direct cash assistance to 325 mothers in the Greater South. These funds help families put nutritious food on the table and buy essentials from local vendors, which also keeps money moving in local economies. In the storm’s aftermath, we also provided digital cash transfers to teachers, farmers, and rural community health workers, and supported schools to keep children learning.
And for 10 families, recovery now includes a new home. In partnership with the ManDodo Humanitarian Foundation and HomePlan, we provided new homes to families who lost theirs in the 2021 earthquake or in Hurricane Melissa and the flooding and landslides that followed.
What the past year taught us
Mobile clinics have expanded access to primary healthcare. They have also shown us how closely health is tied to everything else. Many patients come to us with needs beyond medical care: food insecurity, inadequate sanitation, limited access to safe water, and other social determinants of health. Our team has worked across programs to ease these obstacles where we can, but challenges remain.
Hurricane Melissa is another reminder of the growing vulnerability of families in Haiti. It’s also a reminder of what works: preparation, coordination, and resourcing Haitian leaders who respond in their own communities. That’s why we pre-position medications and supplies every year, before hurricane season begins.
Stand with families in southern Haiti
With your support, we can better prepare for storms to come. Your gift helps us provide healthcare, prepare for and respond to emergencies, and help families access education, clean water, and economic opportunity.
Please consider donating today.
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