On Jan. 12, 2010, six miles beneath the earth and 10 miles south of the Haitian capital city of Port-au-Prince, the Enriquillo Fault awoke and began wreaking devastation on one of the poorest communities in the world, an almost perverse occurrence for a nation that has 80 percent of its population living under the poverty line, more than 50 percent in abject poverty. In other words, half the population doesn't even have the hope of obtaining a better life.
News reports began to immediately convey the seriousness of the disaster soon after the shaking subsided along the strike-slip fault, a phenomenon that occurs when two parts of the earth's crust slide past each other. But it wasn't until the images and video interviews started flowing to the public that the sheer scope of the disaster came into the light of stark reality. The anguish was palpable, and the grief plain. Eight days later, early estimates of at least 200,000 dead seem likely to be realized, and the devastation is so comprehensive that it can only be compared in scope to the 2004 tsunami that killed 230,000 people in 14 countries in the Indian Ocean.
One day after the earthquake, we ran an article on claimsmag.com that detailed how shallow the insurance penetration was in this part of the world, and how little the disaster would affect insurers. Our job is to report the news and events as they relate to and impact our audience; however, that doesn't even begin to tell the whole story in this complete and utter catastrophe.
That story can be found in the horrific details, such as the fact that 75,000 had to be buried in massive graves just a week after the earthquake. Or that an estimated 1.5 million people are homeless. Or that surgical masks have become a "status symbol," with most others relegated to smearing a stripe of toothpaste across their top lips or shoving sprigs of basil into their nostrils to help block out the stench of rotting bodies trapped beneath the rubble. It's a catastrophe on a scale that is unimaginable.
Scenarios like these increase the respect we all should have for the catastrophe adjusters in our own country — and those who shift their roles during times of disaster. They are the individuals who are willing to be amongst the first-responders to bravely charge straight into devastation and help pave the road to indemnity, as others are often fleeing in the opposite direction. It makes me marvel at the lessons we've learned from Katrina and other disasters, and how insurers' experiences and accompanying solutions seem to have been adapted to solve international problems of communication and aid relief.
It also makes me admire our own country, which, despite monumental challenges in terms of infrastructure losses and Haitian governmental chaos, has acted swiftly to secure, deliver, and manage the much-needed support to Haiti as quickly and realistically as possible. What's more inspiring? How fast the process was put into place that coordinated cell phone users and telecom companies to send text donations to the Red Cross? Or that, as of January 20th, $27 million in donations was raised using this method? It's an impressive show of humanity.
There will be lessons to learn from the response efforts in Haiti, and I know those who head up our industry's catastrophe units are paying attention. When the time comes, we must be willing to do what it takes to get the job done, despite all obstacles.
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