Hurricane Matthew in Haiti – one year on

It’s over a year since Hurricane Matthew swept across the Atlantic. On 4 October it hit the southern
peninsula of Haiti, one of the poorest countries in the world. Following the devastating 2010 earthquake, Haiti
was still recovering when Hurricane Matthew swept over the country, adding to and worsening the situation
for people already affected.

The impact of the hurricane was immense: over 500 people 1 lost their lives and 2.2 million people were
affected. In some areas 90 per cent of homes were destroyed and farming, fishing and small-scale
commercial activities were not able to continue because of the devastation. This lead to the loss of incomes
and livelihoods. The damage to critical water and sanitation infrastructure contributed to an increase in the
number of cholera cases2.

This set of activities explores the humanitarian impact of Hurricane Matthew and the importance of building
resilience now and for the future.

Learning objectives
After taking part in these activities, young people will be able to:

 Explore the impact Hurricane Matthew had on those affected and the response carried out to meet
Haiti’s humanitarian needs.

Starter activity
Show the photo on slide two of the accompanying presentation.

© REUTERS/Andres Martinez Casares

Invite immediate responses to the photo and then explain the background. The picture was taken in Chantal,
Haiti, three days after Hurricane Matthew struck in 2016. The hurricane caused widespread damage,
affected 2.2 million Haitians and caused 546 deaths. This photo shows people using a handmade ladder to
cross a collapsed bridge over a river.

1
NOAA 2017, National hurricane center tropical cyclone report: Hurricane Matthew
2
UNDP 2017, Haiti: 3 months after Hurricane Matthew, 7 years after the earthquake

© British Red Cross 2016. All images © British Red Cross 2016 unless otherwise stated.
1 This resource and other free educational materials are available at www.redcross.org.uk/education
The British Red Cross Society is a charity registered in England and Wales (220949) and Scotland (SCO37738).
 Split the class into small groups, and ask each group to agree two questions they would like to ask those
pictured. One should be a closed question, the other an open question.

If needed, explain that:

> Closed questions invite answers that are simple, short and usually quick to provide. They are
good for finding out facts, or to clarify or confirm something. If you ask a closed question, you
know the kind of answer you’ll probably get.

> Open questions invite fuller, more thoughtful answers that may take longer to provide. They are
good at discovering how people think or feel. They can also encourage a person to describe
themselves or something that’s important to them, whether it’s a preference, a problem or a plan.
If you ask an open question, you may well be surprised by the response.

Check that the group understands by asking them to identify which of these is an open and which is a closed
question:

> How far have you travelled today? (closed question)

> How has your life been affected by the hurricane? (open question)

After group discussion time, ask groups to feed back their questions. Then explore the following questions:

 How easy might it be to find answers to the questions you asked?

 Do young people think they could predict people’s responses from news coverage of this or other
recent disasters? How confidently?

 How do they think people who are affected might be feeling – when the hurricane hit and a year
on? Are there some questions it is difficult to ask people in the aftermath of a disaster? We can
be naturally reluctant to delve into pain and loss. Did groups bear this in mind when devising their
open and closed questions?

 Is there sometimes a difference between what you would like to know and what you feel
comfortable asking about? Why might this be?

Develop the theme of critical enquiry by devising one open and one closed question to ask other individuals
or groups that might be involved in the immediate response to an emergency. For example, what would the
group want to ask:

> An expert meteorologist who tracks hurricanes.

> The organiser of a local team of volunteers in Haiti.

> A teenager who survived the 2016 hurricane and also remembers the earthquake in Haiti in 2010.
(The Haitian earthquake was regarded as one of the biggest humanitarian disasters of recent
times).

> The operations director of a major international aid agency based in the UK.

> A journalist covering the story for UK media.

> A local health worker who is keen to promote health messages around sanitation and hygiene.

Improvisation matters

© British Red Cross 2016. All images © British Red Cross 2016 unless otherwise stated.
2 This resource and other free educational materials are available at www.redcross.org.uk/education
The British Red Cross Society is a charity registered in England and Wales (220949) and Scotland (SCO37738).
 Look again at the photo. Note how people are helping themselves and each other. They’ve rigged up
makeshift ladders from available materials. The young are helping the old. They’re transporting things that
might be useful.

Discuss improvisation and what an important part of resilience it is:

 What does it mean to improvise?

 Why might improvisation help us be resilient?

Adapting available materials to solve a problem can make a big difference when things are tough. Invite
young people to think about their own improvisation skills. Have they got any examples they can share of
times when they have improvised a solution to a problem?

The following are some elements that can contribute to improvisation and resilience:

> Practical skills

> Creativity and imagination

> Confidence

> Positive outlook

> Local knowledge

How would individuals assess themselves on each element? Where do their personal strengths lie? Are
there any other elements they would add to the list? What do they think would help them to be more
resilient?

Ask young people to:

 Discuss how effective a team can be when working together, pooling different qualities and
expertise.

 Consider the qualities that you think you are not personally strong on.

 Who do you know that has other strengths?

 Try to think of people you know who you could team up with in a crisis to cover each of those
bases. How might you work together?

Cholera
Damage from a hurricane can cause long-term impacts such as disease. Due to there being limited access
to clean water and sanitary toilet facilities, this was one of the main concerns when Hurricane Matthew struck
Haiti. Of particular concern was cholera – a highly infectious disease which is spread through drinking and
using contaminated water. Between January and September 2016 the number of new suspected cholera
cases was 27,7423. By the end of December 2016 this number had increased to 41,421 4 cases.
Show slide three of the presentation and invite the group to do some sentence matching, linking up the first
half of the sentences with its appropriate second half. The answers are on slide four.

First half
3
OCHA 2016, Haiti Cholera figures (August 2016)
4
OCHA 2016, Haiti Cholera figures (31 December 2016)

© British Red Cross 2016. All images © British Red Cross 2016 unless otherwise stated.
3 This resource and other free educational materials are available at www.redcross.org.uk/education
The British Red Cross Society is a charity registered in England and Wales (220949) and Scotland (SCO37738).
 > 1. It is essential that people

> 2. They also need access

> 3. Without clean water and sanitation, water-borne diseases

> 4. Cholera is highly infectious and can

> 5. Aid agencies supply clean water as well as

Second half
> a. cause severe diarrhoea, vomiting and dehydration that can be deadly if untreated.

> b. water purification tablets, chlorine solution and hygiene kits.

> c. to sanitary toilet facilities.

> d. have access to clean water for drinking and washing.

> e. such as cholera can spread quickly.

Answers: 1d; 2c; 3e; 4a; 5b

Discuss the assembled sentences. Do they give a clear outline of what cholera is? What else would young
people like to know? What are the key things that need to be done to limit the spread of cholera?

Between January and August 2017 there were 9,5315 new suspected cases, significantly less than the
number of cases in the same period the year before. However, it is at this time in the year that people are
more likely to get cholera. Raising awareness on the importance of clean water, sanitation and hygiene is
vital to tackling the spread of cholera. This includes educating Haitians on the importance of washing hands.

Divide the class up into small groups and ask them to create a poster that would be displayed in Haitian
schools to raise awareness of the importance of handwashing to reduce the spread of cholera. They should
ensure it is visual and has some catchphrases to help the key messages be more memorable.

Humanitarian response to Hurricane Matthew in Haiti

Immediately following Hurricane Matthew, a large amount of humanitarian relief and recovery work was
carried out in Haiti. During the response to an emergency like this, the UN regularly issues “situation reports”.
These reports outline the humanitarian needs of the people affected, as well as the efforts of humanitarian
organisations to address these needs. This activity is based on situation report number 10 6, issued on 14
October 2016.

Divide the class into groups and either give each of them the ‘Humanitarian response to Hurricane Haiti
worksheet’, found at the end of the session plan, or show slide five of the presentation. Give the groups time
to match the humanitarian needs to the response undertaken. The answers to these are on slide six.

Ask the class what they think the most important humanitarian needs are that would need to be addressed in
this situation? What might the priorities be for the local people in Haiti? Would the humanitarian response
outlined in this situation report have fixed the situation, or would more have been needed?

5
OCHA 2017, Haiti Cholera figures (as of 31 August 2017)
6
OCHA 2016, Haiti: Hurricane Matthew Situation Report No. 10 (14 October 2016)

© British Red Cross 2016. All images © British Red Cross 2016 unless otherwise stated.
4 This resource and other free educational materials are available at www.redcross.org.uk/education
The British Red Cross Society is a charity registered in England and Wales (220949) and Scotland (SCO37738).
 Haiti a year on from Hurricane Matthew – a forgotten disaster?
Immediately following the 2016 hurricane, Stephen McAndrew from the International Federation of Red
Cross and Red Crescent Societies said:

“Our biggest concern right now is that the world will forget about this.”

Reflect on this comment and explore its implications. Can young people form their own responses to the
following questions?

> Why might Stephen McAndrew be concerned about people forgetting?

> Is world attention needed for disasters? Why might it be needed?

> What does that say about the role of the media? What part do newspapers, television, radio and
social media play in contributing to easing humanitarian crises?

> Do young people remember what type of natural disaster struck Haiti in January 2010?

 The 2010 Haiti earthquake was one of the biggest humanitarian disasters of recent times. It
caused over 300,000 deaths and displaced over a million people. Do young people think that
this event may have impacted the Haitians’ response to Hurricane Matthew?

Over a year from when Hurricane Matthew swept over Haiti, there have been some positive outcomes from
the relief and recovery work carried out in the affected areas:

 the number of cholera cases has decreased (9,531 new suspected cases between January and
August 20177);

 many damaged schools have been rebuilt, allowing 30,000 students to return to their studies 8;

 water systems have been repaired to ensure more people have access to clean water 9;

 many people affected, including children, have received psychosocial support to help them to
recover and move on from the impact of the natural disasters 10.

However, many people in Haiti are still in need of humanitarian assistance.

Divide the class into small groups and ask them to write down three ways in which they would ensure the
world does not forget about the impact Hurricane Matthew had on Haiti over a year on from the disaster;
asking them to think particularly about how they could use media channels for this. For instance, they could
create a blog that they could regularly update on the situation? Or a case study that follows one person and
the life in Haiti updated every month over a year?

Credits
This resource was written by PJ White of Alt 62 and originally published in October 2016. This resource was
reviewed and updated October 2017.

7
OCHA 2017, Haiti Cholera figures (as of 31 August 2017)
8
UNICEF 2017, Haiti Humanitarian Situation Report October 2017
9
UNICEF 2017, Haiti Humanitarian Situation Report October 2017
10
UNICEF 2017, Haiti Humanitarian Situation Report October 2017

© British Red Cross 2016. All images © British Red Cross 2016 unless otherwise stated.
5 This resource and other free educational materials are available at www.redcross.org.uk/education
The British Red Cross Society is a charity registered in England and Wales (220949) and Scotland (SCO37738).
 Humanitarian response to Hurricane Matthew – worksheet
The following humanitarian needs and response actions are taken from the United Nations Office for the
Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA) Situation Report No. 10 (14 October 2016).

Match the humanitarian need to the response.

Humanitarian need Response

An estimated 750,000 people need food,  Organisations are setting up Temporary
nutrition and help growing crops for the next Learning Centres and delivering school
three months. supplies and materials.

 An estimated 16,000 people in one of the

affected areas are expected to have
Some areas have reported an increase in
functional water treatment facility by
the number of new suspected cases of
Saturday 15 October 2016.
cholera since the hurricane.
 Medical and water, sanitation and hygiene
equipment has arrived.

 Over 30,000 people have received food

An estimated 1,250,000 people, including
500,000 children, need safe water and
adequate sanitation to help prevent the
spread of diseases, especially cholera.
rations containing rice, pulses, vegetable
oil and salt.
 20 tonnes of high-energy biscuits will be
given out.
 Before the hurricane, sufficient emergency
food supplies to feed up to 300,000 people
for a month were stored in Haiti.

 Mobile cholera treatment unit is being set

An estimated 106,250 children have had
their education disrupted. This number is
likely to rise.
up to ensure people in camps learn about
good hygiene and cholera prevention.
 UNICEF is continuing its work to vaccinate
500,000 people against cholera in the
affected areas.

 An assessment was carried out in some of

Information and communication systems
were damaged in some of the affected
areas. In some of these 80 per cent of the
electricity networks were destroyed.
the most affected regions to help with the
development of a strategy to ensure people
who have lost their homes have access to
some shelter.
 Over 60,519 tarpaulins, 40,000 blankets
and 6,500 kitchen sets are in the country or
are due to arrive in coming days.

A total of 25,160 houses have been highly

 Information and communication systems
damaged, 2,381 flooded and 500
destroyed. are being fixed where possible.

© British Red Cross 2016. All images © British Red Cross 2016 unless otherwise stated.
6 This resource and other free educational materials are available at www.redcross.org.uk/education
The British Red Cross Society is a charity registered in England and Wales (220949) and Scotland (SCO37738).