ARTICLE - GOV'T APPEALS FOR INT'L AID

HAITI: GOVERNMENT APPEALS FOR INTERNATIONAL AID
(Defend Haiti)

PORT-AU-PRINCE - Prime Minister Laurent Lamothe on Wednesday appealed for international solidarity in order to help people affected by Hurricane Sandy, the second strong storm in Haiti in as many months, which left in its wake 54 dead, more than two dozen missing and extensive damage valued at hundreds of millions dollars.

It was at a meeting of the Council of Government that Prime Minister Lamothe had ministers present a report of damage within their sectors according to Haiti Press Network . The PM said that with the passage of Tropical Storm Isaac, the country was able to deal with the significant devistation it caused but Hurricane Sandy, which unlike Isaac, did not make a direct landfall on Haiti, was beyond government capabilities.

The number provided by the Minister of Agriculture Jacques Thomas is $104 million for losses in agriculture. Many homes were destroyed as entire neighborhoods were taken by rivers of flood waters. Compounding the troubles is a resurgence in the cholera outbreak that has been in Haiti since 2010.

The Minister of Public Works indicated that considerable damage was recorded in these two sectors with roads destroyed and damaged many bridges on roads. However, the minister ensured that interventions are underway to repair the destroyed road sections.

The Haitian government declared a State of Emergency on Tuesday, 6 days after the storm had passed. The Minister of Communications Ady Jean Gardy said that government officials "estimate that there is a humanitarian emergency that needs an exceptional response."