"Hurricane Matthew Relief"
OE-0006 - November 2016 - SAF II Caribbean - Haiti - Southern Department - Il a Vache Island

Mission Team 6 deployed back to the southwest of Haiti by flying commercially into Port Au Prince, and using the MAF C-208 Grand Caravan mission aircraft to move over 2,000 pounds of gear and a 9-man emergency medical and rescue team to Les Cayes, Haiti. The team moved with rapid agility through the tense and challenging area of Les Cayes, where riots and gang activity had climaxed in shooting killings just a week before the deployment. The team used boat transport to move to the isolated island of Ile a Vache, signifying the second major emergency medical response to the island since Hurricane Matthew. Once on the island, the team met with governmental leadership, as well as community leaders, and conducted medical clinic operations in Caille Coq and Madame Bernard. The team also performed assessments and delivered lifesaving medications and supplies to the orphanage of Madame Bernard operated by Canadian nun, Sister Flora. The orphanage has over 70 children, some of who are special needs kids who were abandoned in the streets and garbage dumps of Les Cayes. The team also secured commitment and support to move forward with development of a Rescue System for Ile a Vache to help improve survivability on the island, as well as to prepare for a concentrated response of indigenous personnel in the event of the next disaster situation.