We're in Port au Prince in a Jesuit seminary backyard with 100 others serving here. They set up a satellite wireless connection for communication, thinking of our communications needs.
We are amidst Haitians, Dominicans, Spaniards, Americans, Canadians and others at an Internally Displaced People (IDP) camp in the backyard of the Jesuit seminary. In the midst of all of this we have hi-speed internet!
Our drive in began early and was 9 1/2 hours long due to being lost (temporarily confused - so the guys term it). We stopped in Jimani along the border and stopped in at a Claretans parish and Parroquial Centre that has been turned into a children's orthopaedic clinic where we saw 23 children with different injuries including broken bones, fractures, amputations, etc. After this we were quickly told that we had to catch a 40 truck convoy of trucks to take us into Port au Prince.
It was a slow drive in as there were many trucks heading into the city. As we got closer to PAP we could see the destruction, collapsed buildings and people wandering around. Many people were carrying luggage with the few belongings they had left.
We're sleeping in tents and eating food we brought in. We are constantly hearing outgoing planes overhead as we are at the end of the runway.
A team of 12 men just came in - paramedics, doctors, fireman and a history teacher. Most are former army. They are led by the Jesuit history teacher. Today they did more than 200 operations including compound fractures, amputations below the knee, above the knee, arms, hands etc. Pat joins their team in the morning through next Tuesday.
They can only operate until 5:30 pm when the light ends as there is no power. Then they collapse with exhaustion, sleep and go out the next morning.
Later tonight the rest of us will find out we are doing.
Thanks for your prayers.
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